Hey all. I don't know where else to ask this question so I'll ask it here... I recently receieved an old 486 PC that was given away by a business because they weren't using it anymore. Unfortunately it has a password on the whole BIOS (when I turn it on, it prompts for a password right after a system check). Is there any way around this? I don't care about the information on the drive so I'm willing to kill everything if necessary. Any help on this subject or help on where I should be asking this would be greatly appreciated!

Hi Eric: The only 2 ways that I know how to remove a password from bios is to (1) find a dip jumper on mother to reset to default bios settings (should be near the bios chip & set to default, run PC, then move back switch to normal setting), or (2) remove battey if it dosen't have a soldered in battery or dallas power source. Once you reset the bios to default, then you should be able to boot up without being asked for a password. Hope this helps, good luck. Z

Hi Again Eric: One more thing about the battery is that you need to leave disconnected for 1/2 to 1 hour to make sure the bios memory is lost & you will need to reset up the bios for your hard drive, floppy drive to boot. Hope this helps again. Z

Thanks for the info, but will I need to know any information about my hardware after performing any of these things? I don't know anything about the computer at all, nor do I have any manuals for it. I don't want to run into any problems with configuring my hardware...

Then i suggest you note ALL the information in your CMOS. Although it will reset to default values when your restart, and it should recognize your hardware (most of it anyway), it cannot hurt to be prudent. From DOS do ctrl-alt-esc, or open your computer olding esc. Browse your settings and note them down. When you reconfigure afterward, some of those settings will offer autosetup or autoconfig, i think of your drives in particular. Use that and verify that they match previous settings. May the digital God look upon you with benevelance!

Hey, I finally was able to bypass the bios. On the motherboard, there was a jumper labeled "PASSWORD." So I just switched it from it's position to another and sure enough, it booted into windows 95. Now I'm no hacker, but having a switch labeled PASSWORD seems like a pretty unsecure way to protect your computer. I find it kinda funny... Anyway, many thanks for your input, I wouldn't have looked around my motherboard had I not even been directed to. Now I all of a sudden have this very usable, very free extra computer to play around with!