Acer Travelmate 5600, Travelmate 5100, Aspire 9400, Aspire 7100 Service Manual

TravelMate5600/5100&Aspire9400/7100

Service Guide

Service guide files and updates are available on the AIPG/CSD web; for more information,

please refer to http://csd.acer.com.tw

PRINTED IN TAIWAN

Revision History

Please refer to the table below for the updates made on TravelMate5600/5100 & Aspire9400/7100 service guide.

Date Chapter Updates

Copyright © 2006 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.

Acer is a registered trademark of Acer Corporation. Intel is a registered trademark of Intel Corporation. Pentium 4 and Celeron are trademarks of Intel Corporation. Other brand and product names are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective holders.

Conventions

The following conventions are used in this manual:

Screen messages

NOTE Gives bits and pieces of additional

WARNING Alerts you to any damage that might

CAUTION Gives precautionary measures to

IMPORTANT Reminds you to do specific actions

Denotes actual messages that appear on screen.

information related to the current topic.

result from doing or not doing specific actions.

avoid possible hardware or software problems.

relevant to the accomplishment of procedures.

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's "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.

Chapter1 System Specifications 1

Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Block Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Outlook View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Easy-Launch Buttons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Touchpad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Using the Keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Using the System Utilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Acer Empowering Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Hardware Specifications and Configurations 30

Chapter2 System Utilities 40

BIOS Setup Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Main . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Boot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Exit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Chapter3 Machine Disassembly and Replacement 49

General Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Removing the Battery Pack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Removing the miniPCI/Memory/HDD Module/Keyboard . . . 52

Seperate the LCD module and main unit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Disassemble the main unit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

LCD Disassembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

HDD Disassembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

ODD Disassembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Chapter4 Troubleshooting 67

System Check Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Power-On Self-Test (POST) Error Message . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Index of Error Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

Phoenix BIOS Beep Codes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Index of Symptom-to-FRU Error Message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

Intermittent Problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Undetermined Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

Chapter5 Jumper and Connector Locations 84

Top View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Bottom View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Chapter6 FRU (Field Replaceable Unit) List 87

Exploded Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

Spare Part List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Chapter 1 1

System Specifications

Features

Performance

Aspire 9400 / TravelMate 5600 Series

Intel® Centrino® mobile technology, featuring:

T Intel

Pentium

533 MHz FSB)

T Intel

T Integrated Intel

Pentium® M processor 735 (2 MB L2 cache, 1.70 GHz, 400 MHz FSB) or higher

915PM/915GM Express chipset

CERTIFIED

Aspire 7100 / TravelMate 5100 Series

With no Centrino® mobile technology, featuring:

T Intel

Celeron® M processor 370/380/390 (1 MB L2 cache, 1.50/1.60/1.70 GHz, 400 MHz FSB) or

higher

T Mobile Intel

T Integrated Acer InviLink

wireless technology

M processor 740/750/760/770/780 (2 MB L2 cache, 1.73/1.86/2/2.13/2.26 GHz,

PRO/Wireless 2200BG network connection (dual-mode 802.11b/g) Wi-Fi

solution, supporting Acer SignalUpTM wireless technology

910GML Express chipset

802.11b/g Wi-Fi CERTIFIED solution, supporting Acer SignalUpTM

Chapter 1

Core Logic

T North Bridge + South Bridge:

Memory

T DDR2 400/533 SDRAM

T Two soDIMM slots, 128MB to 1GB per slot

T Maxium memory up to 2GB with two 1GB SODIMMs

T 512KB system/video BIOS in flash ROM; shadow RAM supported

T Dual Channel support

Display

T 17 WXGA TFT LCD, 1440 x 900 pixel resolution , supporting simultaneous multi-window viewing

T Nvidia

T Intel

T 915GM + ICH6M

T 915PM + ICH6M

T 910GML + ICH6M

on dual displays via Acer Gridvista

GeForceTM Go 7300 graphics with 256 MB of VRAM (128 MB of dedicated GDDR2 VRAM; 128 MB of shared system memory), supporting Microsoft OpenEXR High Dynamic Range (HDR) technology, Nvidia

6.0, PCI Express

915GM integrated 3D graphics, featuring Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 900, up to 128

, or

DirectX® 9.0, Shader Model 3.0,

TurboCacheTM, Nvidia® PowerMizerTM

Chapter 1 1

VRAM

Audio

MB of shared memory, supporting Microsoft® DirectX® 9.0 and dual independent displays

T 16.7 million colors

T MPEG-2/DVD hardware-assisted capability

T External CRT: 1600 x 1200 x 16M colors, refresh rate up to 85Hz or higher

T A minimum of 800 x 600 x 256 colors in SimulScan

T 4 x 16M x 16 GDDR2

T 4 x 32M x 16 GDDR2

T Internal microphone

T Two speakers (high quality) 1.5W/9cc each

T HD Audio codec

T Codec specification requires:

T HD Audio interface

T 10 DAC (7.1ch + 2ch); 2 ADC

T DAC SNR >= 95dB, ADC SNR >= 85dB

T Pin 2 pin with Dolby/DTS logo codec

T S/PDIF Out support

T All DACs support 44.1K/48K/96K/192K sample rate

T All ADCs support 44.1K/48K/96K sample rate

T At least 2 GPIOs for customized appllications

Storage subsystem

T HDD:

T 9.5mm height, 2.5” HDD

T Easily removable no more than two screws

T 40/60/80/100GB

T PCI Bus Master Enhanced IDE

T Support Ultra DMA100, S.M.A.R.T

T 40/60/80/100 GB or above

T Dual support both PATA and SATA interface

T DASP support in TravelMate models

T Optical drive options:

T DVD-Super Multi double-layer

T DVD-Dual double-layer

T DVD/CD-RW combo drive

Communication

T Modem: 56Kbps ITU V.92 with PTT approval; Wake-up-Ring support

T LAN: Fast Ethernet; Wake-on-LAN support

T WPAN: Bluetooth

T WLAN: Intel

2.0 + EDR (Enhanced Data Rate)

PRO/Wireless 2200BG network connection (dual-mode 802.11b/g Wi-Fi

2 Chapter 1

CERTIFIEDTM solution, supporting Acer Acer SignalUpTM wireless technology (for Aspire 9400 TravelMate 5600 series)

T WLAN: Integrated Acer InviLink

SignalUp

I/O Ports

T One VGA port, 15 pins

T One microphone-in (pink jack)

T One line-in (blue jack)

T One headphone out / line-out / speaker out jack/ SPDIF (black jack)

T Five external USB 2.0 connectors.

T One DC-in jack (1.7mm) at left-hand side

T One Type II PCMCIA CardBus slot

T One RJ-11 jack for modem

T One RJ-45 jack for LAN

Power Supply

T 8-cell of 18650 Li-Ion battery pack 4800mAh Li-Ion

T 6-cell of 18650 Li-lon battery pack 4000mAh Li-Ion option battery

T 65W 19V 3-pin AC adaptor

wireless technology (for Aspire 7100 / TravelMate 5100 series)

802.11b/g Wi-Fi CERTIFIED solution, supporting Acer

Environment

T Temperature

T Operating: 5

T Non-operating: -20

T Humidity (non-condensing)

T Operating: 20% to 80%

T Non-operating: 20% to 80%

Dimensions and weight

T 400 (W) x 295 (D) x 31.4/39.9 (H) mm (15.75 x 11.61 x 1.24/1.57 inches)

T 3.79 kg (8.36 lbs.)

C to 35 oC

C to 65 oC

Chapter 1 3

Block Diagram

L4: Signal 3

L5: GND

L6: Signal 4

(co-lay)

SATA

24,25

MINI USB

BlueTooth

PCB Layer Stackup

L1: Signal 1

L2:VCC

L3: Signal 2

SATA

24,25

HDD

CDROM

USB

5 PORT

PATA

USB

SATA

15,16,17,18

MDC Card

MODEM

INT.SPKR

G1421B

OP AMP

ICH6-M

Line Out

Int.

MIC In

Mic In

Codec

ALC861

Azalia

Line In

400 MHz

11,12

DMI I/F

100MHz

6,7,8,9,10

400 MHz LVDS

DDR II

400MHz

DDR II

11,12

400MHz

3 4, 5

Intel 910GM (UMA)

Intel 915PM (DIS)

HOST BUS

400MHz

CLK GEN.

IDT CV125

Mobile CPU

Dothan

Pad

30 30

INT_KBTouch

Finger

ENE KB3910

KBC

512 K

PM39LV040-70JCE

3129

Golden

Xbus

BIOS ROM

LPC BUS

PCI MINI CARD

PCIE X1

22, 23

10/100

RTL8110CL

LAN

Mini-PCI

802.11A/B/G

TXFM

RJ45

CB1410

24,25

CP2211

ONE SLOT

PCMCIA

PCI BUS

ENE

PWR SW

Nvidia

G72M-V

24,25

VRAMx4

LCD

G792

RGB

CRT

4 Chapter 1

Outlook View

Just for Starters...

Front Open View

Aspire 9400/7100

Chapter 1 5

TravelMate 5600/5100

Just for Starters...

"Launch keys" on page 10

# Icon Item Description

1 N/A Display screen Also called Liquid-Crystal Display (LCD), displays

2 N/A Status indicators Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs) that light up to show the

3 Wireless communication

4 Bluetooth communication

5 N/A Microphone Internal microphone for sound recording.

6 N/A Touchpad Touch-sensitive pointing device which functions like a

7 N/A Click buttons (left, center

8 Power indicator Indicates the computer’s power status.

button

and right)

computer output.

status of the computer’s functions and components.

Press to enable/disable Wireless function. Lights to indicate the status of wireless LAN communications.

Press to enable/disable Bluetooth function. Lights to indicate the status of Bluetooth communications.

computer mouse.

The left and right buttons function like the left and right mouse buttons; the center button servesw as a four-way scroll butotn.

9 Battery indicator Indicates the computer’s battery status.

6 Chapter 1

10 Bluetooth communication

"Launch keys" on page 10

indicator

Indicates the status of Bluetooth communication.

11 Wireless communication

indicator

12 N/A Palmrest Comfortable support area for your hands when you use

13 N/A Keyboard For entering data into your computer.

14 N/A Power button Turns the computer on and off.

15 N/A Easy-launch buttons Buttons for launching frequently used programs.

Closed Front View

Indicates the status of wireless LAN communication.

the computer.

Aspire 9400/7100

TravelMate 5600/5100

# Icon Item Description

1 N/A Speakers Left and right speakers deliver stereo audio output.

2 Line-in jack Accepts audio line-in devices (e.g., audio CD player,

stereo walkman).

3 Microphone-in jack Accepts input from external microphones.

4 Headphones/speaker/

line-out jack with S/PDIF support

5 N/A Latch Locks and releases the lid.

Indicates the computer’s power status.

Chapter 1 7

Left View

Note:

# Icon Item Description

1 Kensington lock slot Connects to a Kensington-compatible computer security

lock.

2 N/A Optical drive Internal optical drive; accepts CDs or DVDs (slot-load or

tray-load depending on model).

3 N/A Optical disk access

indicator

4 N/A Optical drive eject button Ejects the optical disk from the drive (location depends

5 N/A Emergency eject hole Ejects the optical drive tray when the computer is turned

Lights up when the optical drive is active (location depends on model).

on model).

off (location depends on model).

Right View

# Icon Item Description

1 N/A PC Card slot eject button Ejects the PC Card from the slot.

2 PC Card slot Accepts one Type II PC Card.

3 Three USB 2.0 ports Connect to Universal Serial Bus (USB) 2.0 devices (e.g.,

USB mouse, USB camera).

4 N/A Ventilation slots Enable the computer to stay cool, even after prolonged

use.

5 DC-in jack Connects to an AC adaptor.

8 Chapter 1

Rear View

Note:

# Icon Item Description

1 Two USB 2.0 ports Connect to Universal Serial Bus (USB) 2.0 devices (e.g.,

USB mouse, USB camera).

2 External display (VGA) port Connects to a display device (e.g., external monitor,

LCD projector).

3 Modem (RJ-11) port Connects to a phone line.

4 Ethernet (RJ-45) port Connects to an Ethernet 10/100-based network.

5 N/A Battery Powers the computer.

Bottom View

# Item Description

1 Battery release latch Releases the battery for removal.

2 Cooling fan Helps keep the computer cool.

NOTE: Do not cover or obstruct the opening of the fan.

3 Mini PCI card bay Houses the computer’s Mini PCI card.

4 Ventilation slots Enable the computer to stay cool, even after prolonged use.

5 Memory compartment Houses the computer's main memory.

6 Hard disk bay Houses the computer’s hard disk (secured with screws).

7 Battery lock Locks the battery in position.

8 Battery bay Houses the computer’s battery pack.

Chapter 1 9

Indicators

Icon Function Description

"Launch keys" on page 10

Your computer has seven easy-to-read status indicators, including four on the front panel.

The front panel indicators are visible when the computer cover is closed up..

Icon Item Description

HDD Indicates when the hard disk drive is active.

Caps Lock activity Lights up when Caps Lock is activated.

Num Lock activity Lights up when Num Lock is activated.

Power Indicates the status of computer’s power status.

Battery Indicates the computer’s battery status.

Bluetooth Indicates the status of Bluetooth communication.

Wireless LAN Indicates the status of wireless LAN communication.

10 Chapter 1

Easy-Launch Buttons

1. Charging:

2. Fully charged:

"Acer

"Launch Manager" on page 32

1. Charging:

2. Fully charged:

"Acer

"Launch Manager" on page 32

Easy-launch button Default application

Located above the keyboard are four buttons. They are mail, Web browser, Empowering Key and one userprogrammable button.

Item Default Application

Acer Empowering Technology (User-programmable)

Web Browser Internet browser (User -programmable)

P User programmable

Mail Email application (User-programmable)

Chapter 1 11

Touchpad

The build-in touchpad is a pointing device that senses movement on its surface.

This means the cursor responds as you move your finger across the surface of the touchpad.

The touchpad is located in the middle of the palm rest area, providing maximum comfort and efficiency.

Touchpad Basics

T Move your finger across the touchpad(2) to move the cursor.

T Press the left (1) and right (4) buttons located beneath the touchpad to perform selection and

execution functions. These two buttons are similar to the left and right buttons on a mouse. Tapping on the touchpad is the same as clicking the left button

T Use the 4-way scroll (3) button to scroll up or down and move left or right a page. This button

mimics your cursor pressing on the right scroll bar of windows applications.

Function Left Button(1) Righ Button(4) Main touchpad(2) Center button(3)

Execute Quickly click twice Tap twice (at the

same speed as double-clicking the mouse button)

Select Click once Tap once

Drag Click and hold.

Then slide your finger across the touchpad to drag the cursor over the selection.

Access context menu

Scroll CLick and hold to

NOTE: When using the touchpad, keep it-and your fingers-dry and clean. The touchpad is sensitive to finger

movement; hence, the lighter the touch, the better the response. Tapping harder will not increase the touchpad’s responsiveness.

Click once

Tap twice quickly; rest your finger on the touchpad on the second tap and drag the cursor.

move up/down/left/ right

12 Chapter 1

Using the Keyboard

The full-sized keyboard includes an embedded numeric keypad, separate cursor keys, two Windows keys and twelve function keys.

Lock keys and Embedded Numeric Keypad

The keyboard has four lock keys which you can toggle on and off.

The computer features three lock keys, each with its own status indicator light.

Lock Key Description

Caps Lock When Caps Lock is on, all alphabetic characters are typed in

uppercase. Toggle on and off by pressing the Caps Lock key on the left side of the keyboard.

Num lock

<Fn+F11>

Scroll lock

<Fn+F12>

When Num Lock is on, the embedded keyboard is in numeric mode. The keys function as a calculator(complete with the arithmetic operators+,-,*, and /). Use this mode when you need to do a lot of numeric data entry. When Num Lock is off, the keys assume cursor and other shortcut functions.

When Scroll Lock is on, the screen moves one line up or down when you press the up or down arrow keys respectively. Scroll Lock does not work with some applications.

The embedded numeric keypad functions like a desktop numeric keypad. It is indicated by small characters located on the upper right corner of the keycaps. To simplify the keyboard legend, cursor-control key symbols are not printed on the keys.

Desired access Num Lock on Num Lock off

Numer keys on

embedded keypad

Cursor-control keys

on embedded

keypad

Main keyboard

keys

Chapter 1 13

Type numbers in a normal manner

Hold <Shift> while using cursorcontrol keys.

Hold <Fn> while typing letters on embedded keypad.

Hold <Fn> while using cursor-control keys.

Type the letters in a normal manner.

Windows Keys

+ Tab

+ E

+ F1

+ F

+ M

Shift + + M

+ M

+ R

The keyboard has two keys that perform Windows-specific functoins.

Windows logo key Pressed alone, this key has the same effect as clicking on the

Windows Start button; it launches the Start menu. It can also be used with other keys to provide a variety of functions:

+ Tab (Activates the next Taskbar button)

+ E (Opens the My Computer window)

+ F1 (opens Help and Support)

+F (opens the Find: All Files dialog box)

+ M (minimizes all windows)

<Shift> + + M (undoes the minimize all windows action)

+ R (opens the Run dialog box)

Application key This key has the same effect as clicking the right mouse button; it

opens the application’s context menu.

Hotkeys

The computer employs hotkeys or key combinations to access most of the computer’s controls like screen brightness, volume output and the BIOS utility. To activate hotkeys, press and hold the <Fn> key before pressing the other key in the hotkey combination.

14 Chapter 1

Hot Key Icon Item Description

Fn+F1 Hot key help This key will cause a help

message to appear on the display device that describes the definition and functionality of the unit hot keys.

Fn+F2 Acer eSettings Launches the Acer eSetting in

Acer Empowering Technology. See “Acer Empowering Technology”

Fn+F3 Acer ePower

Management

Fn+F4 Sleep Puts the computer in Sleep mode

Fn+F5 Display toggle Switches display output between

Fn+F6 Screen blank Turns the display screen backlight

Launches the Acer ePower Management in Acer Empowering Technology. See “Acer Empowering Technology”

the display screen, external monitor(if connected)and both .

off to save power. Press any key to return

Fn+F7 Touchpad toggle Turns the internal touchpad on

and off

Fn+F8 Speaker toggle Turns the speakers on and off

Fn+w Volume up Increases the sound volume

Fn+y Volume down Decreases the sound volume

Fn+x Brightness up Increases the screen brightness

Fn+z Brightness down Decrease the screen brightness

Chapter 1 15

Special Keys

> Alt Gr>

Alt Gr>

<5>

www.microsoft.com/typo graphy/faq/faq12.htm

<Shift>

You can locate the Euro symbol and the US dollar sign at the upper-center of your keyboard.

The Euro Symbol

1. Open a text editor or word processor.

2. Either press < > at the bottom-right of the keyboard, or hold <Alt Gr> and then press the <5> key at

the upper-center of the keyboard.

NOTE: Some fonts and software do not support the Euro symbol. Please refer to www.microsoft.com/

typography/faq/faq12.htm for more information.

The US Dollar Sign

1. Open a text editor or word processor.

2. Either press < > at the bottom-right of the keyboard, or hold <Shift> and then press the <4> key at

the upper-center of the keyboard.

NOTE: This function varies according to the language settings.

16 Chapter 1

Using the System Utilities

Start Control Panel Display

Note:

Start Control Panel Display

Settings (2)

Extend my Windows desk top onto this monitor

Start All Programs Acer GridVista

Acer GridVista(dual-display compatible)

To enable the dual monitor feature of your notebook, first ensure that the second monitor is connected, then, select Start, Control Panel, Display and click on Settings. Select the secondary monitor (2) icon in the display box and then click the check box Extend my Windows desktop onto this monitor. Finally, click Apply to confirm the new settings and click OK to complete the process.

Acer GridVista is a handy utility that offers four pre-defined display settings so you can view multiple windows on the same screen. To access this function, please go to Start, All Programs and click on Acer GridVista. You may choose any one of the four display settings indicated below:

Double (vertical), Triple (primary at left), Triple (primary at right), or Quad Acer Gridvista is dual-display compatible, allowing two displays to be partitioned independently.

Set up Procedure

1. Run Acer GridVista and select your preferred screen configuration for each display from the taskbar.

2. Drag and drop each window into the appropriate grid.

3. Enjoy the convenience of a well-organized desktop.

Chapter 1 17

NOTE: The system utilities work under Microsoft Windows XP only.

Note:

Launch Manager

Launch Manager allows you to set the four easy-launch buttons located above the keyboard. You can access the Launch Manager by clicking on Start, All Programs, and then Launch Manager to start the application.

Norton AntiVirus

Norton AntiVirus is an anti-virus software that finds and repairs infected files, and protects against viruses to keep your computer data safe and secure.

How do I check for viruses?

A Full System Scan scans all files on your computer. To perform a system scan:

18 Chapter 1

1. Start Norton AntiVirus.

Start All Programs

Launch Manager

Norton AntiVirus Start Programs Norton AntiVirus

Scans

Double click on the Norton AntiVirus icon on the desktop or click on the Start menu in the Windows

taskbar, highlight Programs, and select Norton AntiVirus.

2. In the Norton AntiVirus main window, click Scan for Viruses.

3. In the Scan for Viruses panel, click Scan My Computer.

4. Under Actions, click Scan.

5. When the scan is complete, a scan summary appears. Click Finished.

You can schedule customized virus scans that run unattended on specific dates and times or at periodic

intervals. If you are using the computer when the scheduled scan begins, it runs in the background so that you

do not have to stop working.

For more information refer to the Norton Antivirus Help menu.

Chapter 1 19

Acer Empowering Technology

Acer’s innovative Empowering Technology makes it easy for you to access frequently used functions and manage your new Acer notebook. It features the following handy utilities:

T Acer eDataSecurity Management protects data with passwords and advanced encryption algorithms. T Acer eLock Management limits access to external storage media. T Acer ePerformance Management improves system performance by optimizing disk space, memory and

registry settings.

T Acer eRecovery Management backs up/recovers data flexibly, reliably and completely. T Acer eSettings Management accesses system information and adjusts settings easily. T Acer eNet Management hooks up to location-based networks intelligently (for selected models). T Acer ePower Management extends battery power via versatile usage profiles. T Acer ePresentation Management connects to a projector and adjusts display settings conveniently.

For more information, press the < > key to launch the Empowering Technology menu, then click on the appropriate utility and select the Help function.

20 Chapter 1

Acer eDataSecurity Management

Acer eDataSecurity Management is handy file encryption utility that protexts your files from being accessed by unauthorized persons. It is conveniently integrated with Windows explorer as a shell extension for quick and easy data encryption/decryption and also supports on-the-fly file encryption for MSN Messager and Microsoft Outlook.

There are two passwords that can be used to encrypt/decrypt a file; the supervisor passowrd and the filespecific password. The supervisor passwork is a “master” password that cna decrypt any file on your system; the file-specific password will be used to encrypt files by default, or you cna choose to enter your own filespecific password when encrypting a file.

NOTE: The password used encrypt a file is the unique key that the system needs to decrypt it. If you lose the

password, the supervisor password is the only other key capable of decrypting the file. If you lose both passwords, there will be no way to decrypt your encryped file! Be sure to safeguard all related

passwords!

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Acer eLock Management

Acer eLock Management is a security utility that allows you to lock up your removable data, optical and floppy drives to ensure that data can’t be stolen while your notebook is unattended.

T Removable data devices - includes USB disk drives, USB pen drives, USB flash drives, USB MP3 drives,

USB memory card readers, IEEE 1394 disk drives and any other removable disk drives that can be mounted as a file system when plugged into the system.

T Optical drive deivces - includes any kind of CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drives. T Floppy disk drives - 3.5-inch disks only.

To activate Acer eLock Management, a password must be set first. Once set, you may apply lock to any of the three kinds of devices. Lock(s) will immediately be set without any reboot necessary, and will remain locked after rebooting, until unlocked.

If you do not set a password, Acer eLock Management will reset back to the initial status with all locks removed.

NOTE: If you lose your password, there is no method to reset it except by reformatting your notebook or taking

your notebook to anAcer Customer Serivce Center. Be sure to remember or write down your password.

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Acer ePerformance Management

Acer ePerformance Management is a system optimization tool that boosts the performance of your Acer notebook. It provides you with the following options to enhance overall system performance:

T Memory optimization - releases unused memory and check usage. T Disk optimization - removes unneeded items and files. T Speed optimization - improves the usability and performance of your Windows XP system.

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Acer eRecovery Management

Acer eRecovery Management is a powerful utility that does away with the need for recovery disks provided by the manufacturer. The Acer eRecovery Management utility occupies space in a hidden partition on your system’s HDD. User-created backups are stored on D:\ drive. Acer eRecovery Management provides you with:

T Password protection. T Recovery of applications and drivers. T Image/data backup:

T Back up to HDD (set recovery point).

T Back up to CD/DVD.

T Image/data recovery tools:

T Recover from a hidden partition (factory defaults).

T Recover from the HDD (most recent user-defined recovery point).

T Recover from CD/DVD.

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