Dell OptiPlex GX270 Systems User's Guide
LegacySelect technology control offers legacy-full, legacy-reduced, or legacy-free solutions based on common platforms, hard-drive images, and help desk procedures. Control is provided to the administrator through system setup, Dell OpenManage IT Assistant, or Dell custom factory integration.
LegacySelect allows administrators to electronically activate or deactivate connectors and media devices that include serial and USB connectors, a parallel connector, PCI slots, a floppy drive, and a PS/2 mouse. Connectors and media devices that are deactivated make resources available. You must restart the computer to effect the changes.
ASF is a DMTF management standard that specifies "pre-operating system" or "operating system-absent" alerting techniques. The standard is designed to generate an alert on potential security and fault conditions when the operating system is in a sleep state or the system is powered down. ASF is designed to supersede previous operating system-absent alerting technologies.
Your computer supports the following ASF version 1.0 alerts and remote capabilities:
For more information about Dell's ASF implementation, see the ASF User's Guide and the ASF Administrator's Guide, which are available on the Dell Support website at support.dell.com.
IT Assistant configures, manages, and monitors computers and other devices on a corporate network. IT Assistant manages assets, configurations, events (alerts), and security for computers equipped with industry-standard management software. It supports instrumentation that conforms to SNMP, DMI, and CIM industry standards.
Dell OpenManage Client instrumentation, which is based on DMI and CIM, is available for your computer. For information on IT Assistant, see the Dell OpenManage IT Assistant User's Guide available on the Dell Support website at support.dell.com.
Dell OpenManage Client Instrumentation is software that enables remote management programs such as IT Assistant to do the following:
A managed system has Dell OpenManage Client Instrumentation set up on a network that uses IT Assistant. For information about Dell OpenManage Client Instrumentation, see the Dell OpenManage Client Instrumentation User's Guide, which is available on the Dell Support website at support.dell.com.
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NOTE: When the setup password is enabled, you must know the setup password before you can reset the Chassis Intrusion setting. |
This feature detects that the chassis was opened and alerts the user. To change the Chassis Intrusion setting:
Alert! Cover was previously removed.
To reset the Detected setting, enter system setup. In the Chassis Intrusion option, press the left- or right-arrow key to select Reset, and then choose Enabled, Enabled-Silent, or Disabled.
Use one of the following methods to secure your computer:
A padlock alone prevents the computer from being opened.
A security cable looped around a stationary object is used in conjunction with a padlock to prevent unauthorized movement of the computer.
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NOTE: Before you purchase an antitheft device, make sure that it works with the security cable slot on your computer. |
Antitheft devices usually include a segment of metal-stranded cable with an attached locking device and key. Dell recommends that you use a Kensington lock. The documentation that comes with the device contains instructions for installing it.
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NOTICE: Although passwords provide security for the data on your computer, they are not foolproof. If your data requires more security, it is your responsibility to obtain and use additional forms of protection, such as data encryption programs. |
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NOTICE: If you leave your computer running and unattended without having a system password assigned, or if you leave your computer unlocked so that someone can disable the password by changing a jumper setting, anyone can access the data stored on your hard drive. |
You cannot change or enter a new system password if either of the following two options is displayed:
You can only assign a system password when the following option is displayed:
To escape from the field without assigning a system password, press <Tab> or the <Shift><Tab> key combination to move to another field, or press <Esc> at any time before you complete step 5.
The option heading changes to Enter Password, followed by an empty 32-character field in square brackets.
You can use up to 32 characters. To erase a character when entering your password, press <Backspace> or the left-arrow key. The password is not case sensitive.
Certain key combinations are not valid. If you enter one of these combinations, the speaker emits a beep.
As you press each character key (or the spacebar for a blank space), a placeholder appears in the field.
If the new system password is less than 32 characters, the whole field fills with placeholders. Then the option heading changes to Verify Password, followed by another empty 32-character field in square brackets.
The password setting changes to Enabled.
Password protection takes effect when you restart the computer.
When you start or restart your computer, one of the following prompts appears on the screen.
If Password Status is set to Unlocked:
Type in the password and
- press <ENTER> to leave password security enabled.
- press <CTRL><ENTER> to disable password security.
Enter password:
If Password Status is set to Locked:
Type the password and press <Enter>.
If you have assigned a setup password, the computer accepts your setup password as an alternate system password.
If you type a wrong or incomplete system password, the following message appears on the screen:
** Incorrect password. **
If you again type an incorrect or incomplete system password, the same message appears on the screen. The third and subsequent times you type an incorrect or incomplete system password, the computer displays the following message:
** Incorrect password. **
Number of unsuccessful password attempts: 3
System halted! Must power down.
Even after your computer is turned off and on, the previous message is displayed each time you type an incorrect or incomplete system password.
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NOTE: You can use Password Status in conjunction with System Password and Setup Password to further protect your computer from unauthorized changes. |
If Not Enabled is displayed, the system password is deleted. If Not Enabled is not displayed, press <Alt><b> to restart the computer, and then repeat step 3 through step 5.
To assign a new password, follow the procedure in "Assigning a System Password."
The setup password can be the same as the system password.
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NOTE: If the two passwords are different, the setup password can be used as an alternate system password. However, the system password cannot be used in place of the setup password. |
The computer prompts you to type and verify the password. If a character is not permitted, the computer emits a beep.
After you verify the password, the Setup Password setting changes to Enabled. The next time you enter system setup, the computer prompts you for the setup password.
A change to Setup Password becomes effective immediately (no need to restart the computer).
When you enter system setup, the Setup Password option is highlighted, prompting you to type the password.
If you do not type the correct password, the computer lets you view, but not modify, system setup options.
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NOTE: You can use Password Status in conjunction with Setup Password to protect the system password from unauthorized changes. |
To change an existing setup password, you must know the setup password.
The setting changes to Not Enabled.
To assign a new setup password, perform the steps in "Assigning a System Password."
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NOTICE: This process erases both the system and setup passwords. |
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CAUTION: Before you begin any of the procedures in this section, follow the steps in "Safety Instructions." |
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NOTICE: Before touching anything inside your computer, ground yourself by touching an unpainted metal surface, such as the metal at the back of the computer. While you work, periodically touch an unpainted metal surface to dissipate any static electricity that could harm internal components. |
See "Jumper Settings" to locate the password jumper.
This disables the existing password(s).
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CAUTION: Before you begin any of the procedures in this section, follow the steps in "Safety Instructions." |
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NOTICE: Before touching anything inside your computer, ground yourself by touching an unpainted metal surface, such as the metal at the back of the computer. While you work, periodically touch an unpainted metal surface to dissipate any static electricity that could harm internal components. |
This re-enables the password feature. When you enter system setup, both password options appear as Not Enabledthe password feature is enabled but no password is assigned.
Use system setup settings as follows:
Print the system setup screens (by pressing <Print Screen>) or record the information for future reference.
Before you use system setup, you must know the kind of floppy drive(s) and hard drive(s) installed in your computer. To confirm this information, see the Manufacturing Test Report that came with your computer, or find this information in the online Dell Accessories folder.
If you wait too long and the Microsoft® Windows® logo appears, continue to wait until you see the Windows desktop. Then shut down your computer through the Start menu and try again.
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NOTE: To ensure an orderly computer shutdown, see the documentation that came with your operating system. |
System setup screens display current configuration information for your computer. Information on the screen is organized into four areas:
Fields to the right of the option titles contain settings or values. The fields that you can change appear bright on the screen. The fields that you cannot change (because they are set by the computer) appear less bright. When <Enter> appears to the right of an option title, press <Enter> to access a popup menu of additional options.
This feature allows users to change the sequence of devices from which the computer boots.
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NOTE: To boot to a USB device, the device must be bootable. To make sure your device is bootable, check the device documentation. |
You can use this feature, for example, to tell the computer to boot from the CD drive so you can run the Dell Diagnostics, but specify that the computer boots from the hard drive when the diagnostic tests are complete.
If you wait too long and the Windows logo appears, continue to wait until you see the Windows desktop. Then shut down your computer through the Start menu and try again.
If you wait too long and the Windows logo appears, continue to wait until you see the Windows desktop. Then shut down your computer through the Start menu and try again.
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NOTE: To ensure an orderly computer shutdown, consult the documentation that came with your operating system. |
The Boot Device Menu appears, listing all available boot devices. Each device has a number next to it. At the bottom of the menu, enter the number of the device that is to be used for the current boot only.
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NOTE: Write down your current boot sequence in case you want to restore it. |
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NOTE: Depending on your computer and installed devices, all of the items listed in the section may or may not appear. |
Drive Configuration
Tape drives are not reflected in the Diskette Drive A option. For example, if a single floppy drive and a tape drive are attached to the floppy drive interface cable, set Diskette Drive A to 3.5 Inch, 1.44 MB.
NOTE: You must have an IDE device connected to the primary IDE interface if you have an IDE device connected to the secondary IDE interface. If You Have a Problem See "Hard drive problems." |
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Hard-Disk Drive Sequence If you insert an boot device and reboot, this option will appear in your system setup menu. NOTE: To boot from a USB memory device, select the USB device and move it to make it the first device in the list. |
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Boot Sequence See "Boot Sequence" for more information on this option. |
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Memory Information Indicates amount of installed memory, computer memory speed, amount of video memory, size of the display cache, and channel mode (dual or single). |
| CPU Information
Press the left- or right-arrow key to toggle the CPU Speed option between the resident microprocessor's rated speed (the default) and a lower-compatibility speed. A change to this option takes effect immediately (no restart is necessary). To toggle between the rated processor speed and the compatibility speed while the computer is running in real mode, press <Ctrl><Alt><\>. (For keyboards that do not use American English, press <Ctrl><Alt><#>.)
NOTE: If your computer has a processor capable of supporting hyper-threading, the Hyper-Threading option will be the first selection in the list. |
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Integrated Devices (Legacy Select Options) Configures the following devices integrated with the system board:
Auto automatically configures a connector to a particular designation (COM1 or COM3 for Serial Port 1; COM2 or COM4 for Serial Port 2). If you set a serial connector to Auto and add a card containing a connector configured to the same designation, the computer automatically remaps the integrated port to the next available connector designation that shares the same IRQ setting as follows:
NOTE: When two COM connectors share an IRQ setting, you can use either connector as necessary, but you may not be able to use them both at the same time. If you are running the Windows 95 or IBM® OS/2® operating system, you cannot use both serial connectors at the same time. If the second connector (COM3 or COM4) is also in use, the integrated connector is turned off.
NOTE: You cannot set the parallel connector to 3BCh if Mode is set to EPP. Auto turns off the IDE interface when necessary to accommodate a controller card installed in an expansion slot.
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Power Management (see "Power Management" for more information)
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System Security See "Security" for more information. |
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Keyboard NumLock The settings are On and Off (does not apply to 84-key keyboards). |
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Auto Power On Sets time and days of week to automatically turn on the computer. Choices are every day or every Monday through Friday. Time is kept in a 24-hour format (hours:minutes). Change the start-up time by pressing the right- or left-arrow keys to increase or decrease the numbers or type numbers in both the date and time fields. Disabled is the default. This feature does not work if you turn off your computer using a power strip or surge protector. |
| Fastboot |
| Hard Drive Acoustics Mode
The acoustics mode field may contain the following options:
NOTE: Switching to Performance mode may cause the drive to be noisier, but its performance is not affected.
NOTE: Changing the acoustics setting does not alter your hard-drive image. |
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Asset Tag Displays the customer-programmable asset tag number for the computer if an asset tag number is assigned. |
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NOTE: To boot to a USB device, the device must be bootable. To ensure that your device is bootable, check the device documentation. |
The BIOS detects the device and adds the USB flash option to the boot menu.
The computer boots to the USB device.
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NOTICE: Ensure that your computer is turned off and unplugged before you change the jumper settings. Otherwise, damage to your computer or unpredictable results can occur. |
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NOTICE: Before touching anything inside your computer, ground yourself by touching an unpainted metal surface, such as the metal at the back of the computer. While you work, periodically touch an unpainted metal surface to dissipate any static electricity that could harm internal components. |
To change a jumper setting, pull the plug off its pin(s) and carefully fit it down onto the pin(s) indicated.
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Jumper |
Setting |
Description |
|---|---|---|
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RTCRST |
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NOTICE: To turn off your computer, perform an orderly computer shutdown when possible. |
You can use the ACPI feature to configure the function of the Microsoft Windows 2000 and Windows XP operating systems.
Power Button Functions With ACPI Enabled
Power Button Functions With ACPI Disabled
Power Button Functions for Windows NT
Hyper-Threading is an Intel® technology that can enhance overall computer performance by allowing one physical microprocessor to function as two logical microprocessors, capable of performing certain tasks simultaneously. It is recommended that you use the Microsoft® Windows® XP SP1 or later operating system because Windows XP is optimized to take advantage of Hyper-Threading technology. While many programs can benefit from Hyper-Threading, some programs have not been optimized for Hyper-Threading and may require an update from the software manufacturer. Contact the software manufacturer for updates and information about using Hyper-Threading with your software.
To determine if your computer is using Hyper-Threading technology:
You can enable or disable Hyper-Threading through system setup.
Your computer can be set to use less power when you are not working. You control the power usage through the operating system installed on your computer and certain option settings in system setup. These periods of reduced power are called "sleep states":
This state is not supported by Windows NT 4.0.
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NOTE: All components installed in the computer must support this feature and have the appropriate drivers loaded to enter standby. For more information, see the manufacturer's documentation for each component. |
This state is not supported by Windows NT 4.0.
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NOTE: All components installed in the computer must support this feature and have the appropriate drivers loaded to enter hibernation. For more information, see the manufacturer's documentation for each component. |
The following table lists the sleep states and the methods you can use to wake the computer from each state.
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Sleep State |
Wake-Up Methods (Windows 2000 and XP) |
|---|---|
Standby | |
Hibernate | |
Shutdown |
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NOTE: For more information on power management, see your operating system documentation. |