Acer Travelmate 230 Service Guide

							TravelMate 230/ 280
Service Guide
  PART NO.:  49.46W01.001
                                                                                                                                       PRINTED IN TAIWAN 
						

							II
Revision History
Please refer to the table below for the updates made on HP Lapin service guide.
Date Chapter Updates
01/20/2003 Cover page Correct typo on page II
Dual high quality stereo speakers on page 2
Modify item 3 media activity on page 12
Supports memory size per socket: 512MB on page 19
USB Compliancy Level: USB 2.0 on page 25
Chapter 2 Modify Flash BIOS procedures
Delete Removing HDD password procedures
Chapter 3 Mark the size of the flat-bladed screwdriver and hexed 
screwdriver
Correct the disassembly procedure of HDD module.
Chapter 4 Modify wording: If an error occurs with the internal diskette 
drive, first turn off the power and then reconnect the 
diskette connector to the system board.
Chapter 5 Modify Switch Setting
02/08/2003 Chapter 1 Delete dual display feature
04/14/2003 Chapter 1 Delete RS-232 serial port connectivity feature 
						

							III
Copyright
Copyright © 2003 by Acer Incorporated.   All rights reserved.  No part of this publication may be reproduced, 
transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or translated into any language or computer language, in 
any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, magnetic, optical, chemical, manual or otherwise, without 
the prior written permission of Acer Incorporated.
Disclaimer
The information in this guide is subject to change without notice.
Acer Incorporated makes no representations or warranties, either expressed or implied, with respect to the 
contents hereof and specifically disclaims any warranties of merchantability or fitness for any particular 
purpose.  Any Acer Incorporated software described in this manual is sold or licensed as is.  Should the 
programs prove defective following their purchase, the buyer (and not  Acer Incorporated, its distributor, or its 
dealer) assumes the entire cost of all necessary servicing, repair, and any incidental or consequential 
damages resulting from any defect in the software.  
Intel is a registered trademark of Intel Corporation.
Pentium and Pentium II/III are trademarks of Intel Corporation.
Other brand and product names are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective holders. 
						

							IV
Conventions
The following conventions are used in this manual:Screen messages Denotes actual messages that appear 
on screen.
NOTE Gives bits and pieces of additional 
information related to the current 
topic.
WARNING Alerts you to any damage that might 
result from doing or not doing specific 
actions.
CAUTION Gives precautionary measures to 
avoid possible hardware or software 
problems.
IMPORTANT Reminds you to do specific actions 
relevant to the accomplishment of 
procedures. 
						

							V
Preface
Before using this information and the product it supports, please read the following general information.
1.This Service Guide provides you with all technical information relating to the BASIC CONFIGURATION 
decided for Acer global product offering. To better fit local market requirements and enhance product 
competitiveness, your regional office MAY have decided to extend the functionality of a machine (e.g. 
add-on card, modem, or extra memory capability). These LOCALIZED FEATURES will NOT be covered 
in this generic service guide. In such cases, please contact your regional offices or the responsible 
personnel/channel to provide you with further technical details.
2. Please note WHEN ORDERING FRU PARTS, that you should check the most up-to-date information 
available on your regional web or channel. If,  for whatever reason, a part number change is made, it will 
not be noted in the printed Service Guide.  For ACER AUTHORIZED SERVICE PROVIDERS, your Acer 
office may have a DIFFERENT part number code to those given in the FRU list of this printed Service 
Guide. You MUST use the list provided by your regional Acer office to order FRU parts for repair and 
service of customer machines. 
						

							VI 
						

							VII
Table of Contents
Chapter 1 System Introduction  1
Features  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
System Block Diagram  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
Board Layout   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Indicators   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12
 Keyboard  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Hot Keys  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Hardware Specifications and Configurations   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
Chapter 2 System Utilities  33
BIOS Setup Utility  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Multi-Boot Menu  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35
Boot Options  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49
BIOS Flash Utility  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52
System Utility Diskette   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
System Diagnostic Diskette   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Chapter 3 Machine Disassembly and Replacement  57
General Information   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58
Disassembly Procedure Flowchart  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Removing the Battery  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62
Removing the Hard Disk Drive Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63
Removing the Memory Module  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Removing the Modem Board   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Disassembling the LCD   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .68
Disassembling the Main Unit   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
System Upgrade Procedure  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .91
Chapter 4 Troubleshooting  93
System Check Procedures  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Power-On Self-Test (POST) Error Message   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .98
Index of Error Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .99
Index of Symptom-to-FRU Error Message  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Intermittent Problems  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Undetermined Problems  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Index of Phlash16 Error Message   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Index of PQA Diagnostic Error Code, Message  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Chapter 5 Jumper and Connector Locations  111
Top View  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Bottom View  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Chapter 6 FRU (Field Replaceable Unit) List  115
TravelMate 230 Exploded Diagram   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
TravelMate 280 Exploded Diagram   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Appendix A Model Definition and Configuration  135
Model Number Definition   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .135
Appendix B Test Compatible Components  137
Microsoft Windows XP Environment Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Microsoft Windows 2000 Environment Test  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Microsoft Windows 98 Environment Test  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146 
						

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Table of Contents
Appendix C  Online Support Information  151
Index  153 
						

							Chapter 11
Features
This computer was designed with the user in mind. Here are just a few of its many features:
Performance
T Intel® Mobile Celeron Pentium® 4 series processors from 1.6G up tp 2.0G with 512KB cache 
(TravelMate 230)
TIntel® Mobile Northwood Pentium® 4 series processors from 1.6G up tp 2.4G with 512KB cache 
(TravelMate 280)
T64-bit memory bus
TTwo 200-pin DDR-DRAM with each supporting 128MB/ 256MB/ 512MB, upgradable to the total 
maximum of 1024MB with SODIMM modules, supporting PC1600/2100 .
TBuilt-in floppy diskette drive and Hard diskette drive
THigh-capacity, Enhanced-IDE hard disk
TSimultaneous LCD and CRT display
TSmart Lithium-Ion battery pack
TPower management system with ACPI (Advanced Configuration Power Interface)
TPlug and Play Feature
Multimedia
T16-bit high-fidelity AC’97 stereo audio with 3D sound and wavetable synthesizer
TBuilt-in dual speakers
THigh- speed CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, or DVD/ CD-R/RW drive
Connectivity
T84/85/88 key keyboard, which is PC/AT keyboard compatible.
TFour Universal Serial Bus (USB) 2.0 Ports (Two ports optional)
TBluetooth (Optional)
TTwo IEEE 1394 ports (optional)
TBuilt-in V.90 and V.92 RJ-11 56Kbps fax/modem
TOnboard 10/100 Mbps Ethernet LAN Support 
TUpgradeable memory and hard disk
TMini PCI interface 802.11b/ 802.11a+b Module (optional)
TECP Compliant parallel port.
Multimedia
TAll-in-one design (CD-ROM, floppy disk drive, hard disk drive) 
TSleek, smooth and stylish design
TFull-sized keyboard
TErgonomically centered touchpad pointing device with Internet scroll key
System Introduction
Chapter 1 
						

							Chapter 12
Expansion

One CardBus PC Card (formerly PCMCIA) Type III slot.

Upgrageable memory and hard disk
I/O Ports

One VGA port, I2 C compatible (Optional)

One DC-in port (AC adapter)

Dual high quality stereo speakers

One line-in

One line-out

One CardBus type III slot (3.3V, 5V, 12V support)

Four USB ports (2 ports optional)

Two IEEE 1394 ports (optional)

One ECP parallel port

One RJ-11 port

One RJ-45 jack
Display

14.1” and 15”  TFT LCD displaying 32-bit true-color at 1024x768 XGA resolution

3D capabilities

Supports other output display devices such as LCD projection panels for large audience 
presentations

“Automatic LCD dim” feature that automatically decides the best settings for your display and 
conserves power is activated when the system operates in Battery condition.
Video performance
4X AGP UMA video graphic accelerator with 8MB shared from system memory with Intel 845GL to boost the 
video performance.
Simultaneous display
The computer’s large display and multimedia capabilities are great for giving presentations. If you prefer, you 
can also connect an external monitor when giving presentations. This computer has built-in AGP and VGA 
display system to support simultaneous LCD and CRT display. Simultaneous display allows you to control the 
presentation from your computer and at the same time face your audience. You can also connect other output 
display devices such as LCD projection panels for large-audience presentations.
Dual Display
The computer’s unique graphics chip takes advantage of Windows XP’s multi-display capability, allowing you 
to extend your desktop to an external display device, such as an external monitor projector. With this feature 
enabled, you can move program windows to/from the computer LCD and the external monitor.
Power management
The power management system incorporates an automatic LCD dim feature that automatically dims the LCD 
when the computer is powered by a battery pack to conserve battery power. See “Power Management” on 
page 28 for more information on power management features.