Lenovo W550S, T550 User Manual

ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Note:Beforeusingthisinformationandtheproductitsupports,besuretoreadandunderstandthefollowing:

•Safety,Warranty,andSetupGuide

•RegulatoryNotice

•“Importantsafetyinformation”onpagevi

•AppendixE“Notices”onpage169

ThelatestSafety,Warranty,andSetupGuideandtheRegulatoryNoticeareavailableontheLenovoSupport
Websiteat:
http://www.lenovo.com/UserManuals

FifthEdition(May2016)

©CopyrightLenovo2015,2016.

LIMITEDANDRESTRICTEDRIGHTSNOTICE:IfdataorsoftwareisdeliveredpursuanttoaGeneralServices
Administration“GSA”contract,use,reproduction,ordisclosureissubjecttorestrictionssetforthinContractNo.
GS-35F-05925.

Contents

Readthisfirst..............v

Importantsafetyinformation..........vi

Conditionsthatrequireimmediateaction..vii

Serviceandupgrades..........vii

Powercordsandpoweradapters.....viii

Extensioncordsandrelateddevices.....ix

Plugsandoutlets.............ix

Powersupplystatement..........ix

Externaldevices.............x

Generalbatterynotice...........x

Noticeforremovablerechargeablebattery...x

Noticeforbuilt-inrechargeablebattery....xi

Noticefornon-rechargeablecoin-cellbattery..xi

Heatandproductventilation........xi

Electricalcurrentsafetyinformation....xii

Liquidcrystaldisplay(LCD)notice.....xiii

Usingheadphonesorearphones......xiii

Additionalsafetyinformation.......xiii

Chapter1.Productoverview......1

Locatingcomputercontrols,connectors,and

indicators..................1

Frontview................1

Right-sideview..............3

Left-sideview..............5

Bottomview...............7

Statusindicators.............8

Locatingimportantproductinformation......9

Machinetypeandmodel..........9

FCCIDandICCertificationnumber.....9

LabelsfortheWindowsoperatingsystems..10

Features.................11

Specifications...............12

Operatingenvironment...........13

Lenovoprograms.............13

AccessingLenovoprograms.......13

AnintroductiontoLenovoprograms....14

Chapter2.Usingyourcomputer...17

Registeringyourcomputer..........17

Frequentlyaskedquestions.........17

GettinghelpabouttheWindowsoperating

system..................19

Usingthemulti-touchscreen.........19

Specialkeys...............23

ThinkPadpointingdevice..........25

TrackPointpointingdevice........25

Trackpad...............26

Trackpadtouchgestures.........27

CustomizingtheThinkPadpointingdevice..29

Replacingthecapofpointingstick.....29

Powermanagement............29

Usingtheacpoweradapter........29

Usingthebattery............30

Managingthebatterypower.......33

Power-savingmodes..........33

Connectingtothenetwork..........34

Ethernetconnections..........34

Wirelessconnections..........34

Usinganexternaldisplay..........36

Connectinganexternaldisplay......37

Choosingadisplaymode........37

Changingdisplaysettings........38

Usingaudiofeatures............38

Usingthecamera.............38

Usingaflashmediacardorasmartcard....39

Chapter3.Enhancingyour

computer...............43

FindingThinkPadoptions..........43

ThinkPaddockingstations..........43

Locatingcontrolsandconnectorsonthe

ThinkPaddockingstations........43

AttachingaThinkPaddockingstation....49

DetachingaThinkPaddockingstation...50

Guidelinesonconnectingmultipleexternal

displaystoadockingstation.......50

Securityfeatures............52

Chapter4.Youandyourcomputer..53

Accessibilityandcomfort..........53

Ergonomicinformation..........53

Comfort...............54

Accessibilityinformation.........54

Travelingwithyourcomputer.........57

Traveltips...............57

Travelaccessories...........57

Chapter5.Security..........59

Usingpasswords..............59

Typingpasswords...........59

Power-onpassword...........59

Supervisorpassword..........60

Harddiskpasswords..........61

©CopyrightLenovo2015,2016

i

Harddisksecurity.............63

Settingthesecuritychip...........64

Usingthefingerprintreader..........65

Noticeondeletingdatafromyourstoragedrive..68

Usingfirewalls...............69

Protectingdataagainstviruses........69

Chapter6.Advancedconfiguration..71

Installinganewoperatingsystem.......71

InstallingtheWindows7operatingsystem..71
InstallingtheWindows8.1orWindows10

operatingsystem............72

Installingdevicedrivers...........73

UsingtheThinkPadSetupprogram......73

Mainmenu..............74

Configmenu..............74

DateandTimemenu..........81

Securitymenu.............81

Startupmenu.............86

Restartmenu.............87

UpdatingtheUEFIBIOS.........88

Usingsystemmanagement..........88

Settingmanagementfeatures.......89

Chapter7.Preventingproblems...91

Generaltipsforpreventingproblems......91

Makingsuredevicedriversareup-to-date....92

Takingcareofyourcomputer.........93

Cleaningthecoverofyourcomputer....94

Chapter8.Troubleshootingcomputer

problems...............97

Diagnosingproblems............97

Troubleshooting..............97

Computerstopsresponding.......97

Spillsonthekeyboard..........98

Errormessages............98

Beeperrors..............100

Memorymoduleproblems........100

Networkingproblems..........101

Problemswiththekeyboardandotherpointing

devices................103

Problemswiththedisplayandmultimedia

devices................103

Fingerprintreaderproblems........108

Batteryandpowerproblems.......109

Problemswithdrivesandotherstorage

devices................111

Asoftwareproblem...........112

Problemswithportsandconnectors....112

Chapter9.Recoveryoverview...115

RecoveryoverviewfortheWindows7operating

system..................115

Creatingandusingarecoverymedia....115

Performingbackupandrecovery

operations..............116

UsingtheRescueandRecovery

workspace..............117

Creatingandusingarescuemedium....118

Reinstallingpreinstalledprogramsanddevice

drivers................119

Solvingrecoveryproblems........119

RecoveryoverviewfortheWindows8.1operating

system..................120

Refreshingyourcomputer........120

Resettingyourcomputertothefactorydefault

settings................120

Usingtheadvancedstartupoptions....121

RecoveringyouroperatingsystemifWindows

8.1failstostart.............121

Creatingandusingrecoverymedia.....121

RecoveryoverviewfortheWindows10operating

system..................122

Resettingyourcomputer.........122

Usingadvancedstartupoptions......123

RecoveringyouroperatingsystemifWindows

10failstostart.............123

CreatingandusingarecoveryUSBdrive..123

Chapter10.Replacingdevices...125

Staticelectricityprevention..........125

Disablingthebuilt-inbattery.........125

Replacingtheremovablebattery.......126

InstallingorreplacingthemicroSIMcard....127

Replacingthekeyboard...........129

Replacingthebasecoverassembly......134

Replacingamemorymodule.........136

Replacingthestorage-drivestabilizerbar....137

Replacingtheinternalstoragedrive......138

Replacingthecoin-cellbattery........141

Replacingthedc-incableassembly......143

Replacingthewireless-WANcard.......145

Chapter11.Gettingsupport....149

BeforeyoucontactLenovo..........149

Gettinghelpandservice...........149

Usingdiagnosticprograms........150

LenovoSupportWebsite.........150

CallingLenovo.............150

Purchasingadditionalservices........151

AppendixA.Regulatory

information.............153

Wirelessrelatedinformation.........153

iiThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

LocationoftheUltraConnectwireless

antennas...............154

Wireless-radiocomplianceinformation...155

Locatingwirelessregulatorynotices....155

Certificationrelatedinformation........155

Exportclassificationnotice..........156

Electronicemissionnotices..........156

FederalCommunicationsCommission

DeclarationofConformity........156

IndustryCanadaClassBemissioncompliance

statement...............156

EuropeanUnion-Compliancetothe

ElectromagneticCompatibility(EMC)Directive

orRadioEquipmentDirective.......157

GermanClassBcompliancestatement...157

KoreaClassBcompliancestatement....158

JapanVCCIClassBcompliancestatement..158

Japancompliancestatementforproducts

whichconnecttothepowermainswith

ratedcurrentlessthanorequalto20Aper

phase................158

Japannoticeforacpowercord......158

Lenovoproductserviceinformationfor

Taiwan................158

Eurasiancompliancemark..........158

Brazilaudionotice.............158

ImportantWEEEinformation.........159

Japanrecyclingstatements.........159

RecyclinginformationforBrazil........160

BatteryrecyclinginformationfortheEuropean

Union..................161

BatteryrecyclinginformationforTaiwan.....162

BatteryrecyclinginformationfortheUnitedStates

andCanada................162

RecyclinginformationforChina........162

AppendixC.RestrictionofHazardous

Substances(RoHS)Directive....163

EuropeanUnionRoHS...........163

ChinaRoHS................164

IndiaRoHS................164

TurkishRoHS...............165

UkraineRoHS...............165

TaiwanRoHS...............166

AppendixD.ENERGYSTARmodel

information.............167

AppendixE.Notices.........169

Trademarks................170

AppendixB.WEEEandrecycling

statements.............159

©CopyrightLenovo2015,2016

iii

ivThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Readthisfirst

Besuretofollowtheimportanttipsgivenheretogetthemostuseandenjoymentoutofyourcomputer.
Failuretodosomightleadtodiscomfortorinjury,orcausethecomputertofail.

Protectyourselffromtheheatthatyourcomputergenerates.

Whenyourcomputeristurnedonorthebatteryischarging,thebase,thepalm
rest,andsomeotherpartsmaybecomehot.Thetemperaturetheyreach
dependsontheamountofsystemactivityandthelevelofchargeinthebattery.

Extendedcontactwithyourbody,eventhroughclothing,couldcause
discomfortorevenaskinburn.

•Avoidkeepingyourhands,yourlap,oranyotherpartofyourbodyin
contactwithahotsectionofthecomputerforanyextendedtime.

•Periodicallytakehandsfromusingthekeyboardbyliftingyourhandsfrom
thepalmrest.

Protectyourselffromtheheatgeneratedbytheacpoweradapter.

Whentheacpoweradapterisconnectedtoanelectricaloutletandyour
computer,itgeneratesheat.

Extendedcontactwithyourbody,eventhroughclothing,maycauseaskin
burn.

•Donotplacetheacpoweradapterincontactwithanypartofyourbody
whileitisinuse.

•Neveruseittowarmyourbody.

Preventyourcomputerfromgettingwet.

Protectthecablesfrombeingdamaged.

Toavoidspillsandthedangerofelectricalshock,keepliquidsawayfromyour
computer.

Applyingstrongforcetocablesmaydamageorbreakthem.

Routecommunicationlines,orthecablesofanacpoweradapter,amouse,a
keyboard,aprinter,oranyotherelectronicdevice,sothattheycannotbewalked
on,trippedover,pinchedbyyourcomputerorotherobjects,orinanyway
subjecttotreatmentthatcouldinterferewiththeoperationofyourcomputer.

©CopyrightLenovo2015,2016

v

Protectyourcomputeranddatawhenmovingit.

Beforemovingacomputerequippedwithaharddiskdriveorhybriddrive,do
oneofthefollowing:

•Turnitoff.

•Putitinsleepmode.

•Putitinhibernationmode.

Thishelpstopreventdamagetothecomputer,andpossiblelossofdata.

Handleyourcomputergently.

Donotdrop,bump,scratch,twist,hit,vibrate,push,orplaceheavyobjectson
yourcomputer,display,orexternaldevices.

Carryyourcomputercarefully.

•Useaqualitycarryingcasethatprovidesadequatecushioningandprotection.

•Donotpackyourcomputerinatightlypackedsuitcaseorbag.

•Beforeputtingyourcomputerinacarryingcase,makesurethatitisoff,insleep
mode,orinhibernationmode.Donotputacomputerinacarryingcasewhileit
isturnedon.

Importantsafetyinformation

Note:Readtheimportantsafetyinformationfirst.

Thisinformationcanhelpyousafelyuseyournotebookcomputer.Followandretainallinformationincluded
withyourcomputer.Theinformationinthisdocumentdoesnotalterthetermsofyourpurchaseagreement
ortheLenovo
andSetupGuidethatcomeswithyourcomputer.

Customersafetyisimportant.Ourproductsaredevelopedtobesafeandeffective.However,personal
computersareelectronicdevices.Powercords,poweradapters,andotherfeaturescancreatepotential
safetyrisksthatcanresultinphysicalinjuryorpropertydamage,especiallyifmisused.Toreducethese
risks,followtheinstructionsincludedwithyourproduct,observeallwarningsontheproductandinthe
operatinginstructions,andreviewtheinformationincludedinthisdocumentcarefully.Bycarefullyfollowing
theinformationcontainedinthisdocumentandprovidedwithyourproduct,youcanhelpprotectyourself
fromhazardsandcreateasafercomputerworkenvironment.

Note:Thisinformationincludesreferencestopoweradaptersandbatteries.Inadditiontonotebook
computers,someproducts(suchasspeakersandmonitors)shipwithexternalpoweradapters.Ifyouhave
suchaproduct,thisinformationappliestoyourproduct.Inaddition,computerproductscontainacoin-sized
internalbatterythatprovidespowertothesystemclockevenwhenthecomputerisunplugged,sothe
batterysafetyinformationappliestoallcomputerproducts.

®

LimitedWarranty.Formoreinformation,see“WarrantyInformation”intheSafety,Warranty,

viThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Conditionsthatrequireimmediateaction

Productscanbecomedamagedduetomisuseorneglect.Someproductdamageisseriousenough
thattheproductshouldnotbeusedagainuntilithasbeeninspectedand,ifnecessary,repairedby
anauthorizedservicer.

Aswithanyelectronicdevice,paycloseattentiontotheproductwhenitisturnedon.Onveryrare
occasions,youmightnoticeanodororseeapuffofsmokeorsparksventfromyourproduct.Oryou
mighthearsoundslikepopping,cracking,orhissing.Theseconditionsmightmerelymeanthatan
internalelectroniccomponenthasfailedinasafeandcontrolledmanner .Or,theymightindicate
apotentialsafetyissue.However,donottakerisksorattempttodiagnosethesituationyourself.
ContacttheCustomerSupportCenterforfurtherguidance.ForalistofServiceandSupportphone
numbers,seethefollowingWebsite:
http://www.lenovo.com/support/phone

Frequentlyinspectyourcomputeranditscomponentsfordamageorwearorsignsofdanger.
Ifyouhaveanyquestionabouttheconditionofacomponent,donotusetheproduct.Contact
theCustomerSupportCenterortheproductmanufacturerforinstructionsonhowtoinspectthe
productandhaveitrepaired,ifnecessary.

Intheunlikelyeventthatyounoticeanyofthefollowingconditions,orifyouhaveanysafety
concernswithyourproduct,stopusingtheproductandunplugitfromthepowersourceand
telecommunicationlinesuntilyoucanspeaktotheCustomerSupportCenterforfurtherguidance.

•Powercords,plugs,poweradapters,extensioncords,surgeprotectors,orpowersuppliesthatare
cracked,broken,ordamaged.

•Signsofoverheating,smoke,sparks,orfire.

•Damagetoabattery(suchascracks,dents,orcreases),dischargefromabattery,orabuildupofforeign
substancesonthebattery.

•Acracking,hissing,orpoppingsound,orstrongodorthatcomesfromtheproduct.

•Signsthatliquidhasbeenspilledoranobjecthasfallenontothecomputerproduct,thepowercord,or
poweradapter.

•Thecomputerproduct,powercord,orpoweradapterhasbeenexposedtowater.

•Theproducthasbeendroppedordamagedinanyway.

•Theproductdoesnotoperatenormallywhenyoufollowtheoperatinginstructions.

Note:Ifyounoticetheseconditionswithaproduct(suchasanextensioncord)thatisnotmanufacturedfor
orbyLenovo,stopusingthatproductuntilyoucancontacttheproductmanufacturerforfurtherinstructions,
oruntilyougetasuitablereplacement.

Serviceandupgrades

DonotattempttoserviceaproductyourselfunlessinstructedtodosobytheCustomerSupportCenteror
yourdocumentation.OnlyuseaServiceProviderwhoisapprovedtorepairyourparticularproduct.

Note:Somecomputerpartscanbeupgradedorreplacedbythecustomer.Upgradestypicallyare
referredtoasoptions.ReplacementpartsapprovedforcustomerinstallationarereferredtoasCustomer
ReplaceableUnits,orCRUs.Lenovoprovidesdocumentationwithinstructionswhenitisappropriatefor
customerstoinstalloptionsorreplaceCRUs.Youmustcloselyfollowallinstructionswheninstallingor
replacingparts.TheOffstateofapowerindicatordoesnotnecessarilymeanthatvoltagelevelsinsidea
productarezero.Beforeyouremovethecoversfromaproductequippedwithapowercord,alwaysmake
surethatthepoweristurnedoffandthattheproductisunpluggedfromanypowersource.Ifyouhave
anyquestionsorconcerns,contacttheCustomerSupportCenter.

©CopyrightLenovo2015,2016

vii

Althoughtherearenomovingpartsinyourcomputerafterthepowercordhasbeendisconnected,the
followingwarningsarerequiredforyoursafety.

CAUTION:
Hazardousmovingparts.Keepfingersandotherbodypartsaway.

CAUTION:

Beforeyouopenthecomputercover,turnoffthecomputerandwaitseveralminutesuntilthe
computeriscool.

Powercordsandpoweradapters

DANGER

Useonlythepowercordsandpoweradapterssuppliedbytheproductmanufacturer.

Thepowercordsshallbesafetyapproved.ForGermany,itshallbeH05VV-F,3G,0.75mm
better.Forothercountries,thesuitabletypesshallbeusedaccordingly.

Neverwrapapowercordaroundapoweradapterorotherobject.Doingsocanstressthecordin
waysthatcancausethecordtofray,crack,orcrimp.Thiscanpresentasafetyhazard.

Alwaysroutepowercordssothattheywillnotbewalkedon,trippedover,orpinchedbyobjects.

Protectpowercordsandpoweradaptersfromliquids.Forinstance,donotleaveyourpowercord
orpoweradapternearsinks,tubs,toilets,oronfloorsthatarecleanedwithliquidcleansers.
Liquidscancauseashortcircuit,particularlyifthepowercordorpoweradapterhasbeenstressed
bymisuse.Liquidsalsocancausegradualcorrosionofpowercordterminalsand/ortheconnector
terminalsonapoweradapter,whichcaneventuallyresultinoverheating.

Ensurethatallpowercordconnectorsaresecurelyandcompletelypluggedintoreceptacles.

Donotuseanypoweradapterthatshowscorrosionattheacinputpinsorshowssignsof
overheating(suchasdeformedplastic)attheacinputpinsoranywhereonthepoweradapter .

Donotuseanypowercordswheretheelectricalcontactsoneitherendshowsignsofcorrosionor
overheatingorwherethepowercordappearstohavebeendamagedinanyway.

2

,or

Topreventpossibleoverheating,donotcoverthepoweradapterwithclothingorotherobjects
whenthepoweradapterispluggedintoanelectricaloutlet.

viiiThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Extensioncordsandrelateddevices

Ensurethatextensioncords,surgeprotectors,uninterruptiblepowersupplies,andpowerstripsthatyouuse
areratedtohandletheelectricalrequirementsoftheproduct.Neveroverloadthesedevices.Ifpowerstrips
areused,theloadshouldnotexceedthepowerstripinputrating.Consultanelectricianformoreinformation
ifyouhavequestionsaboutpowerloads,powerrequirements,andinputratings.

Plugsandoutlets

DANGER

Ifareceptacle(poweroutlet)thatyouintendtousewithyourcomputerequipmentappearstobe
damagedorcorroded,donotusetheoutletuntilitisreplacedbyaqualifiedelectrician.

Donotbendormodifytheplug.Iftheplugisdamaged,contactthemanufacturertoobtain
areplacement.

Donotshareanelectricaloutletwithotherhomeorcommercialappliancesthatdrawlargeamounts
ofelectricity;otherwise,unstablevoltagemightdamageyourcomputer,data,orattacheddevices.

Someproductsareequippedwithathree-prongedplug.Thisplugfitsonlyintoagrounded
electricaloutlet.Thisisasafetyfeature.Donotdefeatthissafetyfeaturebytryingtoinsertitinto
anon-groundedoutlet.Ifyoucannotinserttheplugintotheoutlet,contactanelectricianforan
approvedoutletadapterortoreplacetheoutletwithonethatenablesthissafetyfeature.Never
overloadanelectricaloutlet.Theoverallsystemloadshouldnotexceed80percentofthebranch
circuitrating.Consultanelectricianformoreinformationifyouhavequestionsaboutpowerloads
andbranchcircuitratings.

Besurethatthepoweroutletyouareusingisproperlywired,easilyaccessible,andlocatedclose
totheequipment.Donotfullyextendpowercordsinawaythatwillstressthecords.

Besurethatthepoweroutletprovidesthecorrectvoltageandcurrentfortheproductyouare
installing.

Carefullyconnectanddisconnecttheequipmentfromtheelectricaloutlet.

Powersupplystatement

DANGER

Neverremovethecoveronapowersupplyoranypartthathasthefollowinglabelattached.

Hazardousvoltage,current,andenergylevelsarepresentinsideanycomponentthathasthislabel
attached.Therearenoserviceablepartsinsidethesecomponents.Ifyoususpectaproblemwith
oneoftheseparts,contactaservicetechnician.

©CopyrightLenovo2015,2016

ix

Externaldevices

CAUTION:
DonotconnectordisconnectanyexternaldevicecablesotherthanUSBand1394cableswhilethe
computerpowerison;otherwise,youmightdamageyourcomputer.T oavoidpossibledamageto
attacheddevices,waitatleastfivesecondsafterthecomputerisshutdowntodisconnectexternal
devices.

Generalbatterynotice

DANGER

BatteriessuppliedbyLenovoforusewithyourproducthavebeentestedforcompatibilityand
shouldonlybereplacedwithapprovedparts.AbatteryotherthantheonespecifiedbyLenovo,ora
disassembledormodifiedbatteryisnotcoveredbythewarranty.

Batteryabuseormishandlingcancauseoverheat,liquidleakage,oranexplosion.T oavoidpossible
injury,dothefollowing:

•Donotopen,dissemble,orserviceanybattery.

•Donotcrushorpuncturethebattery.

•Donotshort-circuitthebattery,orexposeittowaterorotherliquids.

•Keepthebatteryawayfromchildren

•Keepthebatteryawayfromfire.

Stopusingthebatteryifitisdamaged,orifyounoticeanydischargeorthebuildupofforeign
materialsonthebatteryleads.

Storetherechargeablebatteriesorproductscontainingtherechargeablebatteriesatroom
temperature,chargedtoapproximately30to50%ofcapacity.Werecommendthatthebatteriesbe
chargedaboutonceperyeartopreventoverdischarge.

Donotputthebatteryintrashthatisdisposedofinlandfills.Whendisposingofthebattery,comply
withlocalordinancesorregulations.

Noticeforremovablerechargeablebattery

DANGER

Onlyrechargethebatterystrictlyaccordingtoinstructionsincludedintheproductdocumentation.

Ifthebatteryisincorrectlyreplaced,thereisdangerofanexplosion.Thebatterycontainsasmall
amountofharmfulsubstance.

xThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Noticeforbuilt-inrechargeablebattery

DANGER

Donotattempttoreplacethebuilt-inrechargeablebattery.Replacementofthebatterymustbe
donebyaLenovo-authorizedrepairfacilityortechnician.

Onlyrechargethebatterystrictlyaccordingtoinstructionsincludedintheproductdocumentation.

TheLenovo-authorizedrepairfacilitiesortechniciansrecycleLenovobatteriesaccordingtolocal
lawsandregulations.

Noticefornon-rechargeablecoin-cellbattery

DANGER

Ifthecoin-cellbatteryisincorrectlyreplaced,thereisdangerofanexplosion.Thebatterycontains
asmallamountofharmfulsubstance.

Donotheattomorethan100°C(212°F).

ThefollowingstatementappliestousersinthestateofCalifornia,U.S.A.

CaliforniaPerchlorateInformation:

Productscontainingmanganesedioxidelithiumcoin-cellbatteriesmaycontainperchlorate.

PerchlorateMaterial-specialhandlingmayapply,See
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlorate

Heatandproductventilation

DANGER

Computers,acpoweradapters,andmanyaccessoriescangenerateheatwhenturnedonandwhen
batteriesarecharging.Notebookcomputerscangenerateasignificantamountofheatduetotheir
compactsize.Alwaysfollowthesebasicprecautions:

•Whenyourcomputeristurnedonorthebatteryischarging,thebase,thepalmrest,andsome
otherpartsmaybecomehot.Avoidkeepingyourhands,yourlap,oranyotherpartofyour
bodyincontactwithahotsectionofthecomputerforanyextendedlengthoftime.Whenyou
usethekeyboard,avoidkeepingyourpalmsonthepalmrestforaprolongedperiodoftime.
Yourcomputergeneratessomeheatduringnormaloperation.Theamountofheatdependson
theamountofsystemactivityandthebatterychargelevel.Extendedcontactwithyourbody,
eventhroughclothing,couldcausediscomfortorevenaskinburn.Periodicallytakebreaks
fromusingthekeyboardbyliftingyourhandsfromthepalmrest;andbecarefulnottouse
thekeyboardforanyextendedlengthoftime.

•Donotoperateyourcomputerorchargethebatterynearflammablematerialsorinexplosive
environments.

•Ventilationslots,fansand/orheatsinksareprovidedwiththeproductforsafety,comfort,and
reliableoperation.Thesefeaturesmightinadvertentlybecomeblockedbyplacingtheproducton
abed,sofa,carpet,orotherflexiblesurface.Neverblock,cover,ordisablethesefeatures.

©CopyrightLenovo2015,2016

xi

•Whentheacpoweradapterisconnectedtoanelectricaloutletandyourcomputer,itgenerates
heat.Donotplacetheadapterincontactwithanypartofyourbodywhileusingit.Neverusethe
acpoweradaptertowarmyourbody.Extendedcontactwithyourbody,eventhroughclothing,
maycauseaskinburn.

Foryoursafety,alwaysfollowthesebasicprecautionswithyourcomputer:

•Keepthecoverclosedwheneverthecomputerispluggedin.

•Regularlyinspecttheoutsideofthecomputerfordustaccumulation.

•Removedustfromventsandanyperforationsinthebezel.Morefrequentcleaningsmightbe
requiredforcomputersindustyorhigh-trafficareas.

•Donotrestrictorblockanyventilationopenings.

•Donotoperateyourcomputerinsidefurniture,asthismightincreasetheriskofoverheating.

•Airflowtemperaturesintothecomputershouldnotexceed35°C(95°F).

Electricalcurrentsafetyinformation

DANGER

Electriccurrentfrompower,telephone,andcommunicationcablesishazardous.

Toavoidashockhazard:

•Donotuseyourcomputerduringalightningstorm.

•Donotconnectordisconnectanycablesorperforminstallation,maintenance,orreconfiguration
ofthisproductduringanelectricalstorm.

•Connectallpowercordstoaproperlywiredandgroundedelectricaloutlet.

•Connecttoproperlywiredoutletsanyequipmentthatwillbeattachedtothisproduct.

•Wheneverpossible,useonehandonlytoconnectordisconnectsignalcables.

•Neverturnonanyequipmentwhenthereisevidenceoffire,water,orstructuraldamage.

•Disconnecttheattachedpowercords,batterypack,andallthecablesbeforeyouopenthe
devicecovers,unlessinstructedotherwiseintheinstallationandconfigurationprocedures.

•Donotuseyourcomputeruntilallinternalpartsenclosuresarefastenedintoplace.Neveruse
thecomputerwheninternalpartsandcircuitsareexposed.

DANGER

Connectanddisconnectcablesasdescribedinthefollowingprocedureswheninstalling,moving,
oropeningcoversonthisproductorattacheddevices.

Toconnect:

1.TurneverythingOFF.

2.First,attachallcablestodevices.

3.Attachsignalcablestoconnectors.

4.Attachpowercordstooutlets.

5.TurndevicesON.

Todisconnect:

1.TurneverythingOFF.

2.First,removepowercordsfromoutlets.

3.Removesignalcablesfromconnectors.

4.Removeallcablesfromdevices.

xiiThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Thepowercordmustbedisconnectedfromthewalloutletorreceptaclebeforeinstallingallother
electricalcablesconnectedtothecomputer.

Thepowercordmaybereconnectedtothewalloutletorreceptacleonlyafterallotherelectrical
cableshavebeenconnectedtothecomputer.

DANGER

Duringelectricalstorms,donotperformanyreplacementanddonotconnectthetelephonecable
toordisconnectitfromthetelephoneoutletonthewall.

Liquidcrystaldisplay(LCD)notice

CAUTION:
Theliquidcrystaldisplay(LCD)ismadeofglass,androughhandlingordroppingthecomputercan
causetheLCDtobreak.IftheLCDbreaksandtheinternalfluidgetsintoyoureyesoronyour
hands,immediatelywashtheaffectedareaswithwaterforatleast15minutes;ifanysymptomsare
presentafterwashing,getmedicalcare.

Note:Forproductswithmercury-containingfluorescentlamps(forexample,non-LED),thefluorescentlamp

intheliquidcrystaldisplay(LCD)containsmercury;disposeofaccordingtolocal,state,orfederallaws.

Usingheadphonesorearphones

CAUTION:
Excessivesoundpressurefromearphonesandheadphonescancausehearingloss.Adjustmentof
theequalizertomaximumincreasestheearphoneandheadphoneoutputvoltageandthesound
pressurelevel.Therefore,toprotectyourhearing,adjusttheequalizertoanappropriatelevel.

Excessiveuseofheadphonesorearphonesforalongperiodoftimeathighvolumecanbedangerousifthe
outputoftheheadphoneorearphoneconnectorsdonotcomplywithspecificationsofEN50332-2.The
headphoneoutputconnectorofyourcomputercomplieswithEN50332-2Subclause7.Thisspecification
limitsthecomputer’smaximumwidebandtrueRMSoutputvoltageto150mV.Tohelpprotectagainst
hearingloss,ensurethattheheadphonesorearphonesyouusealsocomplywithEN50332-2(Clause7
limits)forawidebandcharacteristicvoltageof75mV.UsingheadphonesthatdonotcomplywithEN
50332-2canbedangerousduetoexcessivesoundpressurelevels.

IfyourLenovocomputercamewithheadphonesorearphonesinthepackage,asaset,thecombinationof
theheadphonesorearphonesandthecomputeralreadycomplieswiththespecificationsofEN50332-1.
Ifdifferentheadphonesorearphonesareused,ensurethattheycomplywithEN50332-1(Clause6.5
LimitationValues).UsingheadphonesthatdonotcomplywithEN50332-1canbedangerousdueto
excessivesoundpressurelevels.

Additionalsafetyinformation

Plasticbagnotice

DANGER

Plasticbagscanbedangerous.Keepplasticbagsawayfrombabiesandchildrentoavoiddanger
ofsuffocation.

©CopyrightLenovo2015,2016

xiii

Glasspartsnotice

CAUTION:
Somepartsofyourproductmaybemadeofglass.Thisglasscouldbreakiftheproductisdropped
onahardsurfaceorreceivesasubstantialimpact.Ifglassbreaks,donottouchorattempttoremove
it.Stopusingyourproductuntiltheglassisreplacedbytrainedservicepersonnel.

xivThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Chapter1.Productoverview

Thischapterprovidesinformationaboutconnectorlocations,importantproductlabels,computerfeatures,
specifications,operatingenvironment,andpreinstalledprograms.

•“Locatingcomputercontrols,connectors,andindicators”onpage1

•“Locatingimportantproductinformation”onpage9

•“Features”onpage11

•“Specifications”onpage12

•“Operatingenvironment”onpage13

•“Lenovoprograms”onpage13

Locatingcomputercontrols,connectors,andindicators

Thissectionintroducesthecomputerhardwarefeaturestogiveyouthebasicinformationtostartusingthe
computer.

Frontview

Note:Yourcomputermightlookdifferentfromthefollowingillustration.

Figure1.Frontview

1Camera(availableonsomemodels)2Microphones(availableonsomemodels)

3Powerbutton

5Trackpad6TrackPoint

7TrackPointpointingstick

©CopyrightLenovo2015,2016

4Fingerprintreader(availableonsomemodels)

®

buttons

8Screen(multi-touchscreenonsomemodels)

1

1Camera(availableonsomemodels)

Somemodelshaveanintegratedcamera.Usethecameratotakepicturesorholdavideoconference.For
moreinformation,see“Usingthecamera”onpage38

2Microphones(availableonsomemodels)

.

Themicrophonescapturesoundandvoicewhenusedwithaprogramcapableofhandlingaudio.

3Powerbutton

Pressthepowerbuttontoturnonthecomputerorputthecomputerintosleepmode.Forhowtoturnoffthe
computer,see“Frequentlyaskedquestions”onpage17.

Ifyourcomputerisunresponsive,youcanturnoffthecomputerbypressingandholdingthepowerbuttonfor
fourormoreseconds.Ifthecomputercannotbeturnedoff,see“Computerstopsresponding”onpage97.

Youalsocandefinewhatthepowerbuttondoes.Forexample,bypressingthepowerbutton,youcanturn
offthecomputerorputthecomputerintosleeporhibernationmode.Tochangewhatthepowerbutton
does,dothefollowing:

1.GotoControlPanel,thenchangetheviewofControlPanelfromCategorytoLargeiconsorSmallicons.

2.ClickPowerOptions➙Choosewhatthepowerbuttonsdo.

3.Followtheinstructionsonthescreen.

4Fingerprintreader(availableonsomemodels)

Somemodelshaveafingerprintreader.Fingerprintauthenticationtechnologyprovidesasimpleand
secureuseraccessbyassociatingyourfingerprintwithpasswords.Formoreinformation,see“Usingthe
fingerprintreader”onpage65.

ThinkPad

5Trackpad
6TrackPointbuttons
7T rackPointpointingstick

®

pointingdevice

ThekeyboardcontainstheLenovouniqueThinkPadpointingdevice.Pointing,selecting,anddraggingareall
partofasingleprocessthatyoucanperformwithoutmovingyourfingersfromatypingposition.Formore
information,see“ThinkPadpointingdevice”onpage25.

8Screen(multi-touchscreenonsomemodels)

Somemodelsmighthavemulti-touchscreens.Themulti-touchscreenenablesyoutouseyourcomputer
withsimpletouchgestures.Formoreinformation,see“Usingthemulti-touchscreen”onpage19.

2ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Right-sideview

Note:Yourcomputermightlookdifferentfromthefollowingillustration.

Figure2.Right-sideview

1AlwaysOnUSB3.0connector2USB3.0connector

3MiniDisplayPort

5Security-lockslot

®

connector4Fanlouvers

1AlwaysOnUSB3.0connector

TheAlwaysOnUniversalSerialBus(USB)3.0connectorisusedforconnectingUSB-compatibledevices,
suchasaUSBprinteroradigitalcamera.

Bydefault,theAlwaysOnUSB3.0connectorenablesyoutochargesomemobiledigitaldevicesand
smartphonesinthefollowingsituations:

•Whenyourcomputerisonorinsleepmode

•Whenyourcomputerisinhibernationmodeoristurnedoff,butconnectedtoacpower

Ifyouwanttochargethesedeviceswhenthecomputerisinhibernationmodeoristurnedoff,andthe
computerisnotconnectedtoacpower,dothefollowing:

•ForWindows

®

7:StartthePowerManagerprogram,clicktheGlobalPowerSettingstab,andthen

followtheinstructionsonthescreen.

•ForWindows8.1andWindows10:StarttheLenovoSettingsprogram,clickPower,andthenfollow
theinstructionsonthescreen.

Forinstructionsonhowtostarttheprograms,see“AccessingLenovoprograms”onpage13.

Attention:WhenyouattachaUSBcabletothisconnector,ensurethattheUSBmarkisfacingupward.
Otherwisetheconnectormightgetdamaged.

2USB3.0connector

TheUSB3.0connectorisusedforconnectingUSB-compatibledevices,suchasaUSBprinteroradigital
camera.

Chapter1.Productoverview3

Attention:WhenyouattachaUSBcabletothisconnector,ensurethattheUSBmarkisfacingupward.
Otherwisetheconnectormightgetdamaged.

3MiniDisplayPortconnector

UsetheminiDisplayPortconnectortoconnectyourcomputertoacompatibleprojector,externalmonitor,or
high-definitiontelevision.Thiscompactconnectorenablesaplug-and-playsetupandsupportsadaptersthat
canplugintoDVI,VGA,orHigh-DefinitionMultimediaInterface(HDMI™)connectors.TheminiDisplayPort
connectorofyourcomputersupportsaudioaswellasvideostreaming.

4Fanlouvers

Thefanlouversandtheinternalfanenableairtocirculateinthecomputertoensurepropercooling,
especiallythecoolingofthemicroprocessor.

Note:Toensureproperairflow,donotplaceanyobstaclesinfrontofthefanlouvers.

5Security-lockslot

Toprotectyourcomputerfromtheft,youcanpurchaseasecuritycablelockthatfitsthesecurity-lock
slottolockthecomputertoastationaryobject.

Note:Youareresponsibleforevaluating,selecting,andimplementingthelockingdeviceandsecurity
feature.Lenovomakesnocomments,judgments,orwarrantiesaboutthefunction,quality,orperformance
ofthelockingdeviceandsecurityfeature.

4ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Left-sideview

Note:Yourcomputermightlookdifferentfromthefollowingillustration.

Figure3.Left-sideview

1Powerconnector

3VGAconnector

5Media-card-readerslot6Ethernetconnector

7Smart-card-readerslot(availableonsomemodels)

1Powerconnector

2USB3.0connector

4Audioconnector

Connecttheacpoweradaptertothepowerconnectortoprovideacpowertothecomputerandcharge
thebattery.

2USB3.0connector

TheUSB3.0connectorisusedforconnectingUSB-compatibledevices,suchasaUSBprinteroradigital
camera.

Attention:WhenyouattachaUSBcabletothisUSBconnector,ensurethattheUSBmarkisfacingupward.
Otherwisetheconnectormightgetdamaged.

3VideoGraphicsArray(VGA)connector

UsetheVGAconnectortoconnectthecomputertoaVGA-compatiblevideodevice,suchasaVGAmonitor.

Note:Ifyouattachthecomputertoadockingstation,usetheVGAconnectoronthedockingstation,
nottheoneonthecomputer.

4Audioconnector

Connectheadphonesoraheadsetthathasa3.5-mm(0.14-inch)4-poleplugtotheaudioconnectorto
listentothesoundfromthecomputer.

Chapter1.Productoverview5

Ifyouareusingaheadsetwithafunctionswitch,donotpressthisswitchwhileusingtheheadset.Ifyou
presstheswitch,theheadsetmicrophoneisdisabled,andtheintegratedmicrophonesonthecomputeris
enabledinstead.

Note:Theaudioconnectordoesnotsupportaconventionalmicrophone.Formoreinformation,see“Using
audiofeatures”onpage38

5Media-card-readerslot

.

Yourcomputerhasamedia-card-readerslot.Insertyourflashmediacardintothisslottoreadthedata
onthecard.Formoreinformationaboutthesupportedcards,see“Usingaflashmediacardorasmart
card”onpage39.

6Ethernetconnector

Connectthecomputertoalocalareanetwork(LAN)withtheEthernetconnector.

DANGER

Toavoidtheriskofelectricalshock,donotconnectthetelephonecabletotheEthernetconnector.
YoucanonlyconnectanEthernetcabletothisconnector.

TheEthernetconnectorhastwonetworkstatusindicatorsthatshowthestatusofthenetworkconnection.
Whenthegreenindicatorison,thecomputerisconnectedtoaLAN.Whentheyellowindicatorblinks,
dataisbeingtransmitted.

Note:Ifthecomputerisconnectedtoadockingstation,usetheEthernetconnectoronthedockingstation
insteadoftheoneonthecomputer.

7Smart-card-readerslot(availableonsomemodels)

Somemodelsmighthaveasmart-card-readerslot.Generally,smartcardscanbeusedforauthentication,
datastorage,andapplicationprocessing.Smartcardsalsomightprovidestrongsecurityauthentication
forsinglesign-on(SSO)withinlargeorganizations.Formoreinformation,see“Usingaflashmediacard
orasmartcard”onpage39

.

6ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Bottomview

Note:Yourcomputermightlookdifferentfromthefollowingillustration.

Figure4.Bottomview

1Removablebattery2Dockingstationconnector

3Keyboarddrainageholes

5Emergency-resethole

4Speakers

1Removablebattery

Usethecomputerwithbatterypowerwheneveracpowerisunavailable.

2Dockingstationconnector

Connectthecomputertoasupporteddockingstationtoextendthecomputercapabilitieswhenyouareat
theofficeorathome.Formoreinformationaboutthesupporteddockingstations,see“ThinkPaddocking
stations”onpage43

3Keyboarddrainageholes

.

Ifyouaccidentallyspillwaterordrinkoverthekeyboard,liquidcanbedrainedoutfromyourcomputer
throughthekeyboarddrainageholes.

4Speakers

Yourcomputerisequippedwithapairofstereospeakers.

5Emergency-resethole

Ifthecomputerstopsrespondingandyoucannotturnitoffbypressingthepowerbutton,removetheac
poweradapter.Theninsertastraightenedpaperclipintotheemergency-resetholetoresetthecomputer.

Chapter1.Productoverview7

Statusindicators

Thestatusindicatorsshowthestatusofyourcomputer.

Note:Yourcomputermightlookdifferentfromthefollowingillustrations.

1FnLockindicator

TheFnLockindicatorshowsthestatusofFnLockfunction.Formoreinformation,see“Specialkeys”
onpage23.

2Speaker-muteindicator

Whenthespeaker-muteindicatorison,thespeakersaremuted.

3Microphone-muteindicator

Whenthemicrophone-muteindicatorison,themicrophonesaremuted.

4Camera-statusindicator

Whenthecamera-statusindicatorison,thecameraisinuse.

56System-statusindicators

TheindicatorintheThinkPadlogoonthecomputerlidandtheindicatorinthepowerbuttoncentershowthe
systemstatusofyourcomputer:

8ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

•Blinksforthreetimes:Thecomputerisinitiallyconnectedtothepower.

•On:Thecomputerison(innormalmode).

•Off:Thecomputerisofforinhibernationmode.

•Blinksfast:Thecomputerisenteringsleeporhibernationmode.

•Blinksslowly:Thecomputerisinsleepmode.

Locatingimportantproductinformation

Thissectionprovidesinformationtohelpyoulocatethefollowinglabels:

•Machinetypeandmodellabel

•FCCIDandICCertificationlabel

•WindowsCertificateofAuthenticitylabel

•GenuineMicrosoft

®

label

Machinetypeandmodel

Themachinetypeandmodellabelidentifiesyourcomputer.WhenyoucontactLenovoforhelp,themachine
typeandmodelinformationhelpssupporttechnicianstoidentifyyourcomputerandprovidefasterservice.

Thefollowingfigureshowsthelocationofthemachinetypeandmodelofyourcomputer:

Note:Yourcomputermightlookdifferentfromthefollowingillustration.

FCCIDandICCertificationnumber

TheFCCandICCertificationinformationisidentifiedbyalabellocatedonthecomputerbasecover
assemblyasshowninthefollowingfigure.

Note:Yourcomputermightlookdifferentfromthefollowingillustrations.

Chapter1.Productoverview9

Thecontentofthislabeldiffersdependingonthewirelessmodulesthatcomewithyourcomputer:

•Forapreinstalledwirelessmodule,thislabelidentifiestheactualFCCIDandICcertificationnumberfor
thewirelessmoduleinstalledbyLenovo.

Note:Donotremoveorreplaceapreinstalledwirelessmodulebyyourself.Forreplacement,you
mustcontactLenovoservicefirst.Lenovoisnotresponsibleforanydamagecausedbyunauthorized
replacement.

•Forauser-installablewireless-WANmodule,thislabeldirectsyoutoconsultthisuserguidefortheactual
FCCIDandICcertificationnumber.

TheFCCIDandICCertificationnumberlabelfortheuser-installablewireless-WANmoduleisaffixedto
thewireless-WANmodule

1(availableonsomemodels)installedinthecomputer.

Note:Fortheuser-installablewirelessmodule,ensurethatyouuseonlyLenovo-authorizedwireless
moduleforthecomputer.Otherwise,anerrormessagewillbedisplayedandthecomputerwillbeep
whenyouturnonthecomputer.

LabelsfortheWindowsoperatingsystems

Windows7CertificateofAuthenticity:ComputermodelspreinstalledwiththeWindows7operating

systemhaveaCertificateofAuthenticitylabelaffixedtothecomputercoverorinsidethebattery
compartment.TheCertificateofAuthenticityisyourindicationthatthecomputerislicensedforaWindows7
productandispreinstalledwithaWindows7genuineversion.Insomecases,anearlierWindowsversion
mightbepreinstalledunderthetermsoftheWindows7Professionallicensedowngraderights.Printedon
theCertificateofAuthenticityistheWindows7versionforwhichthecomputerislicensedandtheProduct

10ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

ID.TheProductIDisimportantincaseyouneedtoreinstalltheWindows7operatingsystemfromasource
otherthanaLenovoproductrecoverydiscset.

Windows8.1andWindows10GenuineMicrosoftlabel:Dependingonyourgeographiclocation,
thedatewhenyourcomputerwasmanufactured,andtheversionofWindows8.1orWindows10
thatispreinstalled,yourcomputermighthaveaGenuineMicrosoftlabelaffixedtoitscover.See
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/howtotell/Hardware.aspxforillustrationsofthevarioustypesofGenuine
Microsoftlabels.

•InthePeople’sRepublicofChina,theGenuineMicrosoftlabelisrequiredonallcomputermodels
preinstalledwithanyversionofWindows8.1orWindows10.

•Inothercountriesandregions,theGenuineMicrosoftlabelisrequiredonlyoncomputermodelslicensed
forWindows8.1ProorWindows10Pro.

TheabsenceofaGenuineMicrosoftlabeldoesnotindicatethatthepreinstalledWindowsversionisnot
genuine.FordetailsonhowtotellwhetheryourpreinstalledWindowsproductisgenuine,refertothe
informationprovidedbyMicrosoftathttp://www.microsoft.com/en-us/howtotell/default.aspx.

UnlikeWindows7products,therearenoexternal,visualindicatorsoftheProductIDorWindowsversionfor
whichthecomputerislicensed.Instead,theProductIDisrecordedinthecomputerfirmware.Whenevera
Windows8.1orWindows10productisinstalled,theinstallationprogramchecksthecomputerfirmwarefor
avalid,matchingProductIDtocompletetheactivation.

Insomecases,anearlierWindowsversionmightbepreinstalledunderthetermsoftheWindows8.1
ProorWindows10Prolicensedowngraderights.

Features

Thistopicliststhefeaturesofyourcomputer.

Microprocessor

Toviewthesystempropertiesofyourcomputer,dothefollowing:

•ForWindows7:OpentheStartmenu,right-clickComputer,andthenclickProperties.

•ForWindows8.1:Gotothedesktopscreen,andthenmovethepointertothetop-rightorbottom-right
cornerofthescreentodisplaythecharms.ThenclickSettings➙PCinfo.

•ForWindows10:doeitherofthefollowing:

–OpentheStartmenuandclickSettings.IfSettingsisnotdisplayed,clickAllappstodisplayall

programs.ThenclickSettings➙System➙About.

–Right-clicktheStartbutton

Memory

•Doubledatarate3lowsynchronousdynamicrandomaccessmemorymodules(DDR3LSDRAM)

Storagedevice

•2.5-inchformfactor,7-mm(0.28-inch)heightinternalstoragedrive(harddiskdrive,solid-statedrive,
orhybriddrive)

•M.2solid-statedriveforcacheonly(availableonsomemodels)

.ThenselectSystem.

Display

Chapter1.Productoverview11

•ColordisplaywiththeThinFilmTransistor(TFT)technology.

•Displaysize:396.24mm(15.6inches)

•Displayresolution:2880-by-1620or1920-by-1080or1366-by-768(dependingonthemodel)

•Brightnesscontrol

•Camera(availableonsomemodels)

•Microphones(availableonsomemodels)

Keyboard

•6-rowkeyboardor6-rowbacklightkeyboard(dependingonthemodel)

•ThinkPadpointingdevice

•Functionkeys

•Numerickeypad

Interface

•acpowerconnector

•Audioconnector

•Dockingstationconnector

•Ethernetconnector

•Media-card-readerslot

•MiniDisplayPortconnector

•OneAlwaysOnUSB3.0connector

•Smart-card-readerslot(availableonsomemodels)

•T woUSB3.0connectors

•VGAconnector

Wirelessfeatures

•Globalnavigationsatellitesystem(GNSS)receiver(availableonsomemodels)

•Bluetooth

•WirelessLAN

•WirelessWAN(availableonsomemodels)

Securityfeatures

•Security-lockslot

•Fingerprintreader(availableonsomemodels)

Specifications

Thissectionliststhephysicalspecificationsforyourcomputer.

Size

•Width:380.60mm(14.98inches)

•Depth:258.20mm(10.17inches)

•Height:22.45(0.88inch)or23.30mm(0.92inch)

12ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Heatoutput(dependingonthemodel)

•45W(154Btu/hr)maximum

•65W(222Btu/hr)maximum

Powersource(acpoweradapter)

•Sine-waveinputat50to60Hz

•Inputratingoftheacpoweradapter:100to240Vac,50to60Hz

Operatingenvironment

Thissectionprovidesinformationabouttheoperatingenvironmentofyourcomputer.

Environment:

•Maximumaltitudewithoutpressurization:3048m(10000ft)

•T emperature

–Ataltitudesupto2438m(8000ft)

–Operating:5.0°Cto35.0°C(41°Fto95°F)
–Storage:5.0°Cto43.0°C(41°Fto109°F)

–Ataltitudesabove2438m(8000ft)

–Maximumtemperaturewhenoperatingundertheunpressurizedcondition:31.3°C(88°F)

Note:Whenyouchargethebatterypack,itstemperaturemustbeatleast10°C(50°F).

•Relativehumidity:

–Operating:8%to95%atwetbulb:23℃(73℉)
–Storage:5%to95%atwetbulb:27℃(81℉)

Ifpossible,placeyourcomputerinawell-ventilatedanddryareawithoutdirectexposuretosunshine.

Attention:

•Keepelectricalappliancessuchasanelectricfan,radio,airconditioner,andmicrowaveovenaway
fromthecomputer.Thestrongmagneticfieldsgeneratedbytheseappliancescandamagethemonitor
anddataontheharddiskdriveorhybriddrive.

•Donotplaceanybeveragesontopoforbesidethecomputerorotherattacheddevices.Ifliquidisspilled
onorinthecomputeroranattacheddevice,ashortcircuitorotherdamagemightoccur.

•Donoteatorsmokeoveryourkeyboard.Particlesthatfallintoyourkeyboardcancausedamage.

Lenovoprograms

YourcomputercomeswithLenovoprogramstohelpyouworkeasilyandsecurely.

Note:Theavailableprogramsaresubjecttochangewithoutnotice.

TolearnmoreabouttheprogramsandothercomputingsolutionsofferedbyLenovo,goto:
http://www.lenovo.com/support

AccessingLenovoprograms

ToaccessLenovoprogramsonyourcomputer,dothefollowing:

Chapter1.Productoverview13

•ForWindows7andWindows10:

1.ClicktheStartbuttontoopentheStartmenu.Locateaprogrambytheprogramname.

2.IftheprogramisnotdisplayedontheStartmenu,clickAllprogramsorAllappstodisplayall
programs.

3.Ifyoustilldonotfindtheprogramintheprogramlist,searchfortheprograminthesearchbox.

•ForWindows8.1:

1.PresstheWindowskeytoopentheStartscreen.Locateaprogrambytheprogramname.

2.IftheprogramisnotdisplayedontheStartscreen,clickthearrowicontoopentheAppsscreen.

3.IfyoustilldonotfindtheprogramontheAppsscreen,searchfortheprograminthesearchbox.

SomeLenovoprogramsarereadytobeinstalled.Youcannotfindtheseprogramsthroughtheabove
methodsunlessyouhaveinstalledthemfirst.T oinstalltheseLenovoprograms,gotoLenovoPC

Experience➙LenovoT oolsandfollowtheinstructionsonthescreen.

AnintroductiontoLenovoprograms

ThistopicprovidesabriefintroductiontoLenovoprograms.Dependingonyourcomputermodel,someof
theprogramsmightnotbeavailable.

AccessConnections™

(Windows7)

ActiveProtectionSystem™

(Windows7,Windows8.1,and
Windows10)

AutoScrollUtility

(Windows7,Windows8.1,and
Windows10)

CommunicationsUtility

(Windows7)

FingerprintManagerPro,
LenovoFingerprintManager,or
TouchFingerprintManager

(Windows7andWindows8.1)

TheAccessConnectionsprogramisaconnectivityassistantprogramfor
creatingandmanaginglocationprofiles.Eachlocationprofilestoresallthe
networkandInternetconfigurationsettingsneededforconnectingtoanetwork
infrastructurefromaspecificlocationsuchasahomeoranoffice.

Byswitchingbetweenlocationprofilesasyoumoveyourcomputerfromplace
toplace,youcanquicklyandeasilyconnecttoanetworkwithnoneedto
manuallyreconfigureyoursettingsandrestartthecomputereachtime.

TheActiveProtectionSystemprogramprotectsyourinternalstoragedrive(such
asharddiskdrive)whentheshocksensorinsideyourcomputerdetectsa
conditionthatcoulddamagethedrive,suchassystemtilt,excessivevibration,
orshock.

Theinternalstoragedriveislessvulnerabletodamagewhenitisnotoperating.
Thisisbecausewhentheinternalstoragedriveisnotoperating,thesystem
stopsitfromspinning,andmightalsomovethereadandwriteheadsofthe
drivetoareasthatdonotcontaindata.

Assoonastheshocksensorsensesthattheenvironmentisstableagain
(minimalchangeinsystemtilt,vibration,orshock),itturnsontheinternal
storagedrive.

Thisprogramenhancesyourexperiencewithwindowoperation.Thewindow
positionofaforegroundapplicationisautomaticallyadjusted.Thescrollbaron
auserinterfaceisalsoautomaticallyadjusted.

TheCommunicationsUtilityprogramenablesyoutoconfiguresettingsforthe
integratedcameraandaudiodevices.

Ifyourcomputercomeswithafingerprintreader,theFingerprintManagerPro
program,LenovoFingerprintManagerprogram,orT ouchFingerprintManager
programenablesyoutoenrollyourfingerprintandassociateitwithyour
passwords.Asaresult,fingerprintauthenticationcanreplaceyourpasswords
andenablesimpleandsecureuseraccess.

14ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

HotkeyFeaturesIntegration

(Windows7,Windows8.1,and
Windows10)

LenovoCompanion

(Windows8.1andWindows10)

LenovoPCExperience

(Windows7,Windows8.1,and
Windows10)

LenovoSettings

(Windows8.1andWindows10)

LenovoSolutionCenter

(Windows7,Windows8.1,and
Windows10)

MobileBroadbandConnect

(Windows7andWindows10)

MessageCenterPlus

(Windows7)

PasswordManager

(Windows7andWindows8.1)

PowerManager

(Windows7)

RecoveryMedia

(Windows7andWindows10)

RescueandRecovery

®

(Windows7)

SystemUpdate

(Windows7andWindows8.1)

WRITEit

(Windows8.1andWindows10)

HotkeyFeaturesIntegrationisautilitypackagethatenablesyoutoselectand
installutilityprogramsspecificallyforthespecialkeysandbuttonsonyour
computer.Thespecialkeysandbuttonsaredesignedtomeetaccessibilityand
usabilityrequirements.Installingrelatedutilityprogramsenablesfullfunctionality
ofthespecialkeysandbuttons.

Yoursystem’sbestfeaturesshouldbeeasytoaccessandunderstand.With
Companion,theyare.

UseCompaniontoregisteryourcomputer,accessyourusermanual,manage
systemhealthandupdate,checkthewarrantystatus,andseeaccessories
customizedforyourcomputer.Y oualsocanreadhintsandtips,exploreLenovo
forums,andstayup-to-dateontechnologynewswitharticlesandblogsfrom
trustedsources.ThisappisfilledwithexclusiveLenovocontenttohelpyou
learnaboutyournewsystem.

TheLenovoPCExperienceprogramhelpsyouworkmoreeasilyandsecurelyby
providingeasyaccesstovariousprograms,suchasActiveProtectionSystem
andLenovoSolutionCenter.

TheLenovoSettingsprogramenablesyoutoenhanceyourcomputing
experiencebyturningyourcomputerintoaportablehotspot,configuring
cameraandaudiosettings,optimizingyourpowersettings,andcreatingand
managingmultiplenetworkprofiles.

TheLenovoSolutionCenterprogramenablesyoutotroubleshootandresolve
computerproblems.Itcombinesdiagnostictests,systeminformationcollection,
securitystatus,andsupportinformation,alongwithhintsandtipsforoptimal
systemperformance.

TheMobileBroadbandConnectprogramenablesyoutoconnectthecomputer
tothemobilebroadbandnetworkthroughasupportedwireless-WANcard.

TheMessageCenterPlusprogramautomaticallydisplaysmessagestoinform
youaboutimportantnoticesfromLenovo,suchasalertsonsystemupdates
andalertsonconditionsthatrequireyourattention.

ThePasswordManagerprogramautomaticallycapturesandfillsin
authenticationinformationforWindowsprogramsandWebsites.

ThePowerManagerprogramprovidesconvenient,flexible,andcompletepower
managementforthecomputer.Itenablesyoutoadjustyourcomputerpower
settingstoachievethebestbalancebetweenperformanceandpowersaving.

TheRecoveryMediaprogramenablesyoutorestorethecontentsofthehard
diskdrivetothefactorydefaultsettings.

TheRescueandRecoveryprogramisaone-buttonrecoveryandrestore
solution.Itincludesasetofself-recoverytoolstohelpyoudiagnosecomputer
problems,gethelp,andrecoverfromsystemcrashes,evenifyoucannotstart
theWindowsoperatingsystem.

TheSystemUpdateprogramenablesyoutokeepthesoftwareonthecomputer
up-to-datebydownloadingandinstallingsoftwarepackages,includingdevice
drivers,UnifiedExtensibleFirmwareInterface(UEFI)basicinput/outputsystem
(BIOS)updates,andotherthird-partyprograms.

WRITEitgivesyouinstanthandwritinginputwhereveryouneedit.Y oucanwrite
directlyinanyappandtextfield,edittextinreal-time,seeyourfullscreen,and
convertyourhandwritingintodigitaltext.

Chapter1.Productoverview15

16ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Chapter2.Usingyourcomputer

Thischapterprovidesinformationonusingsomeofthecomputercomponents.

Thischaptercontainsthefollowingtopics:

•“Registeringyourcomputer”onpage17

•“Frequentlyaskedquestions”onpage17

•“Usingthemulti-touchscreen”onpage19

•“Specialkeys”onpage23

•“ThinkPadpointingdevice”onpage25

•“Powermanagement”onpage29

•“Connectingtothenetwork”onpage34

•“Usinganexternaldisplay”onpage36

•“Usingaudiofeatures”onpage38

•“Usingthecamera”onpage38

•“Usingaflashmediacardorasmartcard”onpage39

Registeringyourcomputer

Whenyouregisteryourcomputer,informationisenteredintoadatabase,whichenablesLenovotocontact
youifthereisarecallorothersevereproblem.Inaddition,somelocationsofferextendedprivilegesand
servicestoregisteredusers.

WhenyouregisteryourcomputerwithLenovo,youalsowillreceivethefollowingbenefits:

•QuickerservicewhenyoucallLenovoforhelp

•Automaticnotificationoffreesoftwareandspecialpromotionaloffers

ToregisteryourcomputerwithLenovo,gotohttp://www.lenovo.com/registerandfollowtheinstructionson
thescreentoregisteryourcomputer.

IfyouareusingaWindows7operatingsystem,youalsocanregisteryourcomputerthroughthepreinstalled
LenovoProductRegistrationprogram.Theprogramlaunchesautomaticallyafteryouhaveusedyour
computerforaperiodoftime.Followtheinstructionsonthescreentoregisteryourcomputer.

Frequentlyaskedquestions

ThistopicprovidesafewtipsthathelpyouoptimizetheuseofyourThinkPadnotebookcomputers.

Toensurethebestcomputerperformance,gotothefollowingWebpagetofindinformationsuchasaidsfor
troubleshootingandanswerstofrequentlyaskedquestions:
http://www.lenovo.com/support/faq

CanIgetmyuserguideinanotherlanguage?

•T odownloadtheuserguideinanotherlanguage,gotohttp://www.lenovo.com/support.Thenfollow
theinstructionsonthescreen.

©CopyrightLenovo2015,2016

17

Howtoturnoffmycomputer?

•ForWindows7:OpentheStartmenu,thenclickShutdown.

•ForWindows8.1:Dooneofthefollowing:

–GototheStartscreenbypressingtheWindowskey,clickthepowericoninthetop-rightcorner

ofthescreen,thenclickShutdown.

–Moveyourpointertothetop-rightorbottom-rightcornerofthescreentodisplaythecharms.Then

clickSettings➙Power➙Shutdown.

Note:YoualsocanopentheSettingscharmbypressingthesettingskey

•ForWindows10:OpentheStartmenu,click

Power,andthenclickShutdown.

.

HowdoIaccessControlPanel?

•ForWindows7:OpentheStartmenu,thenclickControlPanel.

•ForWindows8.1:PresstheWindowskeytoopentheStartscreen,clickthearrowicon

toopen

theAppsscreen,andthenclickControlPanel.

•ForWindows10:Right-clicktheStartbutton,thenclickControlPanel.

HowdoIusebatterypowermoreeffectivelywhenIamonthego?

•T oconservepower,ortosuspendoperationwithoutexitingprogramsorsavingfiles,see“Power-saving
modes”onpage33

.

•T oachievethebestbalancebetweenperformanceandpowersaving,createandapplypowerplans.
See“Managingthebatterypower”onpage33

•Ifyourcomputerwillbeturnedoffforanextendedperiodoftime,youcanpreventbatterypowerfrom
drainingbyremovingthebattery.

HowdoIsecurelydisposeofdatastoredonthestoragedrive?

•StudyChapter5“Security”onpage59

tofindouthowyoucanprotectyourcomputerfromtheftand

unauthorizeduse.

•Beforeyoudisposeofthedataonthestoragedrive,besuretoreadthetopic“Noticeondeletingdata
fromyourstoragedrive”onpage68.

HowdoIattachanexternalmonitor?

•Ensurethatyoufollowtheprocedureinthetopic“Usinganexternaldisplay”onpage36.

•WiththeExtenddesktopfunction,youcandisplayoutputonboththecomputerdisplayandanexternal
monitor.See“Choosingadisplaymode”onpage37.

HowdoIattachorreplaceadevice?

•SeeChapter10“Replacingdevices”onpage125formoreinformationaboutreplacingthedevicesof
yourcomputer.

Ihavebeenusingthecomputerforsometimealready,anditisgettingslower.WhatshouldIdo?

•Followthe“Generaltipsforpreventingproblems”onpage91

.

•Diagnoseproblemsyourselfbyusingthepreinstalleddiagnosticsoftware.See“Diagnosingproblems”
onpage97.

•CheckforrecoverysolutionsinChapter9“Recoveryoverview”onpage115.

18ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

CanIchangetheWindows8.1startupbehaviortoopeneitherthedesktoportheStartscreen?

•OntheWindows8.1operatingsystem,youcansetthecomputertoopeneitherthedesktoportheStart
screenbydefault.T osetthedefaultstartupscreen,dothefollowing:

1.Onthedesktop,moveyourpointertothetaskbaratthebottomofthescreenandright-clickon
thetaskbar.

2.ClickProperties.ThetaskbarandNavigationpropertieswindowisdisplayed.

3.OntheNavigationtab,locatetheStartscreensection,andthendooneofthefollowing:

–T osetdesktopasyourdefaultstartupscreen,selectWhenIsigninorcloseallappsona

screen,gotothedesktopinsteadofStart.

–T osetStartscreenasyourdefaultstartupscreen,uncheckWhenIsigninorcloseallappsona

screen,gotothedesktopinsteadofStart.

4.ClickOKtosavethenewsetting.

Printthefollowingsectionsandkeepthemwithyourcomputerincaseyouareunabletoaccessthis
onlineuserguidewhennecessary.

•“Installinganewoperatingsystem”onpage71

•“Computerstopsresponding”onpage97

•“Powerproblems”onpage110

GettinghelpabouttheWindowsoperatingsystem

TheWindowshelpinformationsystemprovidesyouwithdetailedinformationaboutusingtheWindows
operatingsystemtohelpyougetthemostofyourcomputer.ToaccesstheWindowshelpinformation
system,dooneofthefollowing:

•ForWindows7:OpentheStartmenu,andthenclickHelpandSupport.

•ForWindows8.1:Moveyourpointertothetop-rightorbottom-rightcornerofthescreentodisplay
thecharms.ThenclickSettings➙Help.Additionally,theWindows8.1operatingsystemprovidesa
Help+TipsapplicationthatyoucanopenfromtheStartscreenorAppsscreen.

•ForWindows10:OpentheStartmenu,andthenclickGetstarted.Additionally,youcanuseCortana
personalassistanttosearchforhelp,apps,files,settings,andsoon.

Usingthemulti-touchscreen

Thistopicprovidesinstructionsonhowtousethemulti-touchscreenthatisavailableonsomemodels.

Notes:

•Y ourcomputerscreenmightlookdifferentfromthefollowingillustrations.

•Dependingontheappyouuse,somegesturesmightnotbeavailable.

Thefollowingtableintroducessomefrequentlyusedgestures.

®

Chapter2.Usingyourcomputer19

Touchgesture(touchmodels
only)

Description

Touch:Tap.

Mouseaction:Click.

Function:Openanapporperformanactiononanopenapp,suchasCopy,
Save,andDelete,dependingontheapp.

Touch:Tapandhold.

Mouseaction:Right-click.

Function:Openamenuwithmultipleoptions.

Touch:Slide.

Mouseaction:Scrollthemousewheel,movethescrollbar,orclickthescroll

arrow.

Function:Scrollthroughitems,suchaslists,pages,andphotos.

Touch:Draganitemtothedesiredlocation.

Mouseaction:Click,hold,anddraganitem.

Function:Moveanobject.

Touch:Movetwofingersclosertogether.

Mouseaction:PresstheCtrlkeywhilescrollingthemousewheelbackward.

Function:Zoomout.

Touch:Movetwofingersfartherapart.

Mouseaction:PresstheCtrlkeywhilescrollingthemousewheelforward.

Function:Zoomin.

Touch:Puttwoormorefingersonanitemandthenrotateyourfingersclockwise

orcounterclockwise.

Mouseaction:Iftheappsupportsrotation,clicktherotationicon.

Function:Rotateanitem.

20ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

ThefollowingtableintroducestouchgesturesontheWindows8.1operatingsystem.

Touchgesture(touchmodels
only)

Description

Touch:Swipeinfromtherightedge.

Mouseaction:Movethepointertothebottom-rightortop-rightcornerofyour

screen.

Function:Displaythecharmsthatcontainsystemcommands,suchasStart,
Settings,Search,Share,andDevices.

Touch:Swipeinfromtheleftedge.

Mouseaction:Movethepointertothetop-leftcornerofyourscreen,andthen

click.Keepclickingtocyclethroughtheopenapps.

Function:Cyclethroughandswitchtoopenapps.

Touch:Swipeinandoutontheleftedge.

Mouseaction:Movethepointertothetop-leftcornerofthescreen,andthen

movethepointerdownwardalongtheleftedge.Tomakeaselection,clickthe
desiredapp.

Function:Viewtherecentlyusedappsorselectanactiveappfromthelist.

Touch:Swipeuptothetopedge.

Mouseaction:Clickthedownwardarrowlocatednearthebottom-leftcorner

oftheStartscreen.

Function:ViewallappsontheStartscreen.

Touch:SwipeinfromthetoporbottomedgeoftheStartscreen,tapCustomize,

andthentapthedesiredicon.

Mouseaction:Right-clickablankareaontheStartscreen,clickCustomize,
andthenclickthedesiredicon.

Function:CustomizetilesontheStartscreen,oruninstallanapp.

Touch:Swipeinfromthetoporbottomedgeofanopenapp.

Mouseaction:Right-clickanywhereonanopenapp.

Function:Viewtheappcommandsonanopenapp,suchasCopy,Save,and
Delete,dependingontheapp.

Touch:Swipeinfromthetopedgetothebottomonanopenapp.

Mouseaction:Fromthetopedgeofthescreen,click,hold,andmovethepointer

tothebottomofthescreen.Then,releasethebutton.

Function:Closethecurrentapp.

Chapter2.Usingyourcomputer21

ThefollowingtableintroducessometouchgesturesontheWindows10operatingsystem.

Touchgesture(touchmodels
only)

Description

Touch:Swipeinfromtherightedge.

Mouseaction:Clicktheactioncentericononthetaskbar.

Function:Opentheactioncentertoseeyournotificationsandquickactions.

Touch:Swipeinfromtheleftedge.

Mouseaction:Clickthetask-viewicononthetaskbar.

Function:Viewallyouropenwindowsintaskview.

Touch:Swipeinfromthebottomtotopforfull-screenedapp.

Mouseaction:MoveyourcursortotheWindowsnotificationareaatthebottom

ofthescreen.

Function:Viewthetaskbar.

Note:Thefullscreenfeatureisavailableonlyonsomeapps.Toopenanapp

infullscreen,click

onthetitlebar.

•Shortsnapforfull-screenedapporwhenyourcomputerisintabletmode

Touch:Swipedownwardsshortlyfromthetopedge.
Mouseaction:Moveyourcursortothetopedgeofthescreen.
Function:Showahiddentitlebar.

•Longswipewhenyourcomputerisintabletmode
Touch:Swipeinfromthetopedgetothebottomedge.
Mouseaction:Fromthetopedgeofthescreen,clickandhold,movethe

pointertothebottomofthescreen,andthenrelease.

Function:Closethecurrentapp.

Tipsonusingthemulti-touchscreen

•Themulti-touchscreenisaglasspanelcoveredwithaplasticfilm.Donotapplypressureorplaceany
metallicobjectonthescreen,whichmightdamagethetouchpanelorcauseittomalfunction.

•Donotusefingernails,glovedfingers,orinanimateobjectsforinputonthescreen.

•Regularlycalibratetheaccuracyofthefingerinputtoavoidadiscrepancy.

Tipsoncleaningthemulti-touchscreen

•T urnoffthecomputerbeforecleaningthemulti-touchscreen.

•Useadry,soft,andlint-freeclothorapieceofabsorbentcottontoremovefingerprintsordustfromthe
multi-touchscreen.Donotapplysolventstothecloth.

•Gentlywipethescreenusingatop-downmotion.Donotapplyanypressureonthescreen.

22ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Specialkeys

Yourcomputerhasseveralspecialkeystohelpyouworkmoreeasilyandeffectively.

Note:Yourcomputermightlookdifferentfromthefollowingillustration.

1Additionalshortcutkeys

Yourcomputermighthavefouradditionalshortcutkeys:

•

•

•

•

:Launchescalculator.

:Locksoperatingsystem.

:Opensthedefaultbrowser.

:OpensComputer.

Note:Dependingonyourcomputermodel,theshortcutkeysmightnotbeavailable.

2Numerickeypad

Youcanusethisnumerickeypadtoinputnumbersquickly.

Note:Dependingonyourcomputermodel,thenumerickeypadmightnotbeavailable.

3Windowskey

ForWindows7andWindows10:OpentheStartmenu.
ForWindows8.1:SwitchbetweenthecurrentworkspaceandtheStartscreen.

ForinformationaboutusingtheWindowskeywithotherkeys,refertothehelpinformationsystemofthe
Windowsoperatingsystem.

4Functionkeys

YoucanconfiguretheFnkeyandfunctionkeysintheKeyboardPropertieswindowbydoingthefollowing:

1.GotoControlPanel,thenchangetheviewofControlPanelfromCategorytoLargeiconsorSmallicons.

2.ClickKeyboard.IntheKeyboardPropertieswindow,clicktheFnandfunctionkeysorThinkPad
F1–F12keystab.

Chapter2.Usingyourcomputer23

3.Selecttheoptionsofyourpreference.

•+EnablesordisablestheFnLockfunction.
WhentheFnLockfunctionisenabled:TheFnLockindicatorison.ToinputF1–F12,pressthefunction

keysdirectly.Toinitiatethespecialfunctionprintedasanicononeachkey,presstheFnkeyandthe
correspondingfunctionkey.

WhentheFnLockfunctionisdisabled:TheFnLockindicatorisoff.T oinitiatethespecialfunction
printedasanicononeachkey,pressthefunctionkeysdirectly.ToinputF1–F12,presstheFnkey
andthecorrespondingfunctionkey.

•

:Mutesorunmutesthespeakers.Whenthespeakersaremuted,thespeaker-muteindicatorturns

on.
Ifyoumutethesoundandturnoffyourcomputer,thesoundwillremainmutedwhenyouturnonyour

computeragain.Toturnonthesound,pressthespeaker-mutekey.

•

•

:Decreasesthevolume.

:Increasesthevolume.

•:Mutesorunmutesthemicrophones.Whenthemicrophonesaremuted,themicrophone-mute
indicatorturnson.

•:Darkensthedisplay.

•:Brightensthedisplay.
Youcantemporarilychangethecomputerdisplaybrightnessbypressingthetwokeys.Tochangethe

defaultbrightnesslevel,right-clickthebatterystatusiconintheWindowsnotificationarea.Thenclick
Adjustscreenbrightnessandmakechangesasdesired.

•:Managesexternaldisplays.

•

:Enablesordisablesthebuilt-inwirelessfeatures.

•

–Windows7:OpensControlPanel.
–Windows8.1:OpenstheSettingscharm.
–Windows10:OpenstheSettingswindow.

•

–Windows7:OpensWindowsSearch.
–Windows8.1:OpenstheSearchcharm.
–Windows10:OpenstheCortanasearchbox.

•

Viewsalltheprogramsthatyouhaveopened.

•

–Windows7:OpensComputer.
–Windows8.1andWindows10:Viewsalltheprograms.

•Fn+Spacebar:Ifyourcomputerisequippedwithabacklightkeyboard,usethiskeycombinationto
controlthekeyboardbacklight.

Therearethreemodesforthekeyboardbacklight:Off,Low,andHigh.PressFn+Spacebartochange
themodeofthekeyboardbacklight.

•Fn+B:HasthesamefunctionastheBreakkey.

24ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

•Fn+K:HasthesamefunctionastheScrLKkey.

•Fn+P:HasthesamefunctionasthePausekey.

•Fn+S:HasthesamefunctionastheSysRqkey.

ThinkPadpointingdevice

TheThinkPadpointingdeviceenablesyoutoperformallthefunctionsofatraditionalmouse,suchas
pointing,clicking,andscrolling.WiththeThinkPadpointingdevice,youalsocanperformavarietyoftouch
gestures,suchasrotatingandzoominginorout.

TheThinkPadpointingdeviceconsistsofthefollowingtwodevices:

1TrackPointpointingdevice
2T rackpad

Bydefault,boththeTrackPointpointingdeviceandthetrackpadareactivewiththetouchgesturesenabled.
Tochangethesettings,see“CustomizingtheThinkPadpointingdevice”onpage29.

TrackPointpointingdevice

TheTrackPointpointingdeviceenablesyoutoperformallthefunctionsofatraditionalmouse,suchas
pointing,clicking,andscrolling.

Chapter2.Usingyourcomputer25

TheT rackPointpointingdeviceconsistsofthefollowingfourcomponents:

1Pointingstick
2Left-clickbutton(primary-clickbutton)
3Right-clickbutton(secondary-clickbutton)
4Scrollbar

TousetheTrackPointpointingdevice,refertothefollowinginstructions:

Note:Placeyourhandsinthetypingpositionanduseyourindexfingerormiddlefingertoapplypressureto
thepointing-sticknonslipcap.Useeitherthumbtopresstheleft-clickbuttonorright-clickbutton.

•Point
Usethepointingstick1tomovethepointeronthescreen.Tousethepointingstick,applypressureto
thepointing-sticknonslipcapinanydirectionparalleltothekeyboard.Thepointermovesaccordingly
butthepointingstickitselfdoesnotmove.Thespeedatwhichthepointermovesdependsonthe
amountofpressureyouapplytothepointingstick.

•Left-click
Presstheleft-clickbutton

2toselectoropenanitem.

•Right-click
Presstheright-clickbutton3todisplayashortcutmenu.

•Scroll
Pressandholdthedottedscrollbar4whileapplyingpressuretothepointingstickintheverticalor
horizontaldirection.Thenyoucanscrollthroughthedocument,Website,orapps.

Trackpad

Theentiretrackpadissensitivetofingertouchandmovement.Youcanusethetrackpadtoperformallthe
pointing,clicking,andscrollingfunctionsofatraditionalmouse.

26ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Thetrackpadcanbedividedintotwozonesbyitsfunction:

1Left-clickzone(Primary-clickzone)
2Right-clickzone(Secondary-clickzone)

Tousethetrackpad,refertothefollowinginstructions:

•Point
Slideonefingeracrossthesurfaceofthetrackpadtomovethepointeraccordingly.

•Left-click
Presstheleft-clickzone

1toselectoropenanitem.

Youalsocantapanywhereonthesurfaceofthetrackpadwithonefingertoperformtheleft-clickaction.

•Right-click
Presstheright-clickzone2todisplayashortcutmenu.
Youalsocantapanywhereonthesurfaceofthetrackpadwithtwofingerstoperformtheright-clickaction.

•Scroll
Puttwofingersonthetrackpadandmovethemintheverticalorhorizontaldirection.Thisactionenables
youtoscrollthroughthedocument,Website,orapps.Ensurethatyoupositionyourtwofingersslightly
apartfromeachother.

Withthetrackpad,youalsocanperformavarietyoftouchgestures.Forinformationaboutusingthetouch
gestures,see“Trackpadtouchgestures”onpage27

.

Trackpadtouchgestures

Theentiretrackpadsurfaceissensitivetofingertouchandmovement.Y oucanusethetrackpadtoperform
thesamepointandclickactionsasyouwoulduseatraditionalmouse.Youalsocanusethetrackpad
toperformavarietyoftouchgestures.

Thefollowingsectionintroducessomefrequentlyusedtouchgesturessuchastapping,dragging,and
scrolling.Formoregestures,seethehelpinformationsystemoftheThinkPadpointingdevice.

Notes:

•Whenusingtwoormorefingers,ensurethatyoupositionyourfingersslightlyapart.

•SomegesturesarenotavailableifthelastactionwasdonefromtheTrackPointpointingdevice.

•Somegesturesareonlyavailablewhenyouareusingcertainapps.

Chapter2.Usingyourcomputer27

Tap

Tapanywhereonthetrackpad
withonefingertoselectoropen
anitem.

Two-fingertap

Tapanywhereonthetrackpadwith
twofingerstodisplayashortcut
menu.

Two-fingerscroll

Puttwofingersonthetrackpad
andmovethemintheverticalor
horizontaldirection.Thisaction
enablesyoutoscrollthroughthe
document,Website,orapps.

Two-fingerzoomin

Puttwofingersonthetrackpad
andmovethemfartherapartto
zoomin.

Two-fingerzoomout

Puttwofingersonthetrackpadand
movethemclosertogethertozoom
out.

ThefollowingsectionintroducessometouchgesturesontheWindows8.1operatingsystem.

Swipefromthetopedge

FromtheStartscreenorthe
currentapp,swipeinfrom
thetopedgeofthetrackpad
withonefingertodisplaythe
commandmenu.

Swipefromtherightedge

Swipeinfromtherightedgeof
thetrackpadwithonefingerto
displaythecharms.

Swipefromthetoptothebottom
edge

Swipefromthetoptothebottom
edgeofthetrackpadwithone
fingertoclosethecurrentapp.
Performingthisgestureonthe
desktopclosesthedesktopand
displaystheStartscreen.

Swipefromtheleftedge

Swipeinfromtheleftedgeofthe
trackpadwithonefingertoshow
thepreviouslyusedapp.

Swipeinandoutfromtheright
edge

Swipeinandoutfromtheright
edgeofthetrackpadwithone
fingertohidethecharms.

Swipeinandoutfromtheleft
edge

Swipeinandoutfromtheleftedge
ofthetrackpadwithonefingerto
displayallthecharms.

ThefollowingsectionintroducessometouchgesturesontheWindows10operatingsystem.

Swipethreefingersup

Putthreefingersonthetrackpad
andmovethemuptoopenthe
taskviewtoseeallyouropen
windows.

Swipethreefingersdown

Putthreefingersonthetrackpad
andmovethemdowntoshowthe
desktop.

28ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

CustomizingtheThinkPadpointingdevice

YoucancustomizetheThinkPadpointingdevicesoyoucanuseitmorecomfortablyandefficiently.For
example,youcanchoosetoenabletheTrackPointpointingdevice,thetrackpad,orboth.Youalsocan
disableorenablethetouchgestures.

TocustomizetheThinkPadpointingdevice,dothefollowing:

1.GotoControlPanel.

2.ClickHardwareandSound➙Mouse.TheMousePropertieswindowisdisplayed.

3.Followtheinstructionsonthescreen.

Replacingthecapofpointingstick

Thecap1ontheendofthepointingstickisremovable.Afteryouusethecapforaperiodoftime,you
mightconsiderreplacingthecapwithanewone.

Note:Ensurethatyouuseacapwithgroovesaasshowninthefollowingillustration.

Powermanagement

Thissectionprovidesinformationabouthowtouseacpowerandbatterypowertoachievethebestbalance
betweenperformanceandpowermanagement.

Usingtheacpoweradapter

Thepowertorunyourcomputercancomeeitherfromthebatteryorfromacpower.Whileyouuseac
power,thebatterieschargeautomatically.

Yourcomputercomeswithanacpoweradapterandapowercord.

•acpoweradapter:Convertsacpowerfornotebookcomputeruse.

•Powercord:Connectstheacoutletandtheacpoweradapter.

Connectingtheacpoweradapter

Toconnectthecomputertoacpower,dothefollowing:

Attention:Usinganimproperpowercordmightseverelydamageyourcomputer.

Note:Ensurethatyouperformtheactionsinthefollowingorder:

Chapter2.Usingyourcomputer29

1.Connectthepowercordtotheacpoweradapter.

2.Connecttheacpoweradaptertothepowerconnectorofthecomputer.

3.Connectthepowercordtoanelectricaloutlet.

Tipsonusingtheacpoweradapter

•Whentheacpoweradapterisnotinuse,disconnectitfromtheelectricaloutlet.

•Donotbindthepowercordtightlyaroundtheacpoweradaptertransformerpackwhenitisconnectedto
thetransformer.

Usingthebattery

Whenyouuseyourcomputerawayfromelectricaloutlets,youdependonbatterypowertokeepyour
computerrunning.Differentcomputercomponentsconsumepoweratdifferentrates.Themoreyouusethe
power-intensivecomponents,thefasteryouconsumebatterypower.

SpendmoretimeunpluggedwithThinkPadbatteries.Mobilityhasrevolutionizedbusinessbyenablingyou
totakeyourworkwhereveryougo.WithThinkPadbatteries,youareabletoworklongerwithoutbeingtied
toanelectricaloutlet.

Checkingthebatterystatus

Moveyourpointertothebattery-statusiconintheWindowsnotificationareatocheckthebatterystatus.
Thebattery-statusicondisplaysthepercentageofbatterypowerremainingandhowlongyoucanuse
yourcomputerbeforeyoumustchargethebattery.

Therateatwhichyouusebatterypowerdetermineshowlongyoucanusethebatteryofyourcomputer
betweencharges.Becauseeachcomputeruserhasdifferenthabitsandneeds,itisdifficulttopredicthow
longabatterychargelasts.Therearetwomainfactors:

•Howmuchenergyisstoredinthebatterywhenyoubegintowork.

•Thewayyouuseyourcomputer.Forexample:

–Howoftenyouaccessthestoragedrive.
–Howbrightyoumakethecomputerdisplay.
–Howoftenyouusethewirelessfeature.

EnablingthebatteryalarmontheWindows7operatingsystem

FortheWindows7operatingsystem,youcanprogramyourcomputersothatwhenthebatterypowerfalls
belowacertainlevel,threeeventsoccur:thealarmgoesoff,amessageisdisplayed,andtheLCDis
turnedoff.

30ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Toenablethebatteryalarm,dothefollowing:

1.StartthePowerManagerprogram.

2.ClicktheGlobalPowerSettingstab.

3.ForLowbatteryalarmorCriticallylowbatteryalarm,setthepercentageofthepowerlevelandset
theaction.

Note:Ifyourcomputerenterssleeporhibernationmodewhenthebatterypowerislowwithoutthealarm
message,themessageisdisplayedwhenthecomputerresumes.T oresumenormaloperation,whenthe
messageisdisplayed,clickOK.

Chargingthebattery

Whenyoufindthattheremainingbatterypowerislow,chargeyourbatteryorreplacetheremovablebattery
withachargedbattery.

Ifanacoutletisconvenient,connectthecomputertoacpower.Thebatteryisfullychargedinabout
fourtoeighthours.Theactualchargingtimedependsonthebatterysize,thephysicalenvironment,and
whetheryouareusingthecomputer.Y oucancheckthebatterychargingstatusatanytimethroughthe
batterystatusiconintheWindowsnotificationarea.

Note:T omaximizethelifeofthebattery,thecomputerdoesnotstartrechargingthebatteryiftheremaining
powerisgreaterthan95%.

Tipsonchargingthebattery

•Beforeyouchargethebattery,makesurethatthetemperatureislowerthan10°C(50°F).

•Chargethebatteryinanyofthefollowingconditions:

–Anewbatteryisinstalled.
–Thepercentageofpowerremainingislow.
–Thebatteryhasnotbeenusedforalongtime.

Maximizingthebatterylife

Tomaximizethelifeofthebattery,dothefollowing:

•Usethebatteryuntilthechargeisdepleted.

•Rechargethebatterycompletelybeforeusingit.Youcanseewhetherthebatteryisfullychargedfromthe
batterystatusiconintheWindowsnotificationarea.

•Alwaysusepowermanagementfeaturessuchaspower-savingmodes.

Handlingthebattery

ThissystemsupportsonlybatteriesspeciallydesignedforthisspecificsystemandmanufacturedbyLenovo
oranauthorizedbuilder.Thesystemdoesnotsupportunauthorizedbatteriesorbatteriesdesignedfor
othersystems.Ifanunauthorizedbatteryorabatterydesignedforanothersystemisinstalled,thesystem
doesnotcharge.

Attention:Lenovohasnoresponsibilityfortheperformanceorsafetyofunauthorizedbatteries,and
providesnowarrantiesforfailuresordamagearisingoutoftheiruse.

Note:Ifanunauthorizedbatteryisinstalled,thefollowingmessageisdisplayed:“Thebatteryinstalledis
notsupportedbythissystemandwillnotcharge.PleasereplacethebatterywiththecorrectLenovo
batteryforthissystem.”

Chapter2.Usingyourcomputer31

DANGER

Donotattempttodisassembleormodifythebatterypack.

Attemptingtodosocancauseanexplosion,orliquidleakagefromthebatterypack.

AbatterypackotherthantheonespecifiedbyLenovo,oradisassembledormodifiedbattery
packisnotcoveredbythewarranty.

DANGER

Iftherechargeablebatterypackisincorrectlyreplaced,thereisdangerofanexplosion.Thebattery
containsasmallamountofharmfulsubstances.T oavoidpossibleinjury:

•ReplaceonlywithabatteryofthetyperecommendedbyLenovo.

•Keepthebatterypackawayfromfire.

•Donotexposeittoexcessiveheat.

•Donotexposeittowaterorrain.

•Donotshort-circuitit.

•Storeitinacooldryplace.

•Keepitawayfromchildren.

Thebatteryisaconsumablesupply.Ifyourbatterybeginstodischargetooquickly,replacethebatterypack
withanewoneofthetypesrecommendedbyLenovo.Formoreinformationaboutreplacingthebattery
pack,contactyourCustomerSupportCenter.

DANGER

Donotdrop,crush,puncturethebattery,ormakeitsubjecttostrongforces.Batteryabuseor
mishandlingcancausethebatterytooverheat,whichcancausegassesorflameto“vent”fromthe
batterypackorcoin-cellbattery.Ifyourbatteryisdamaged,orifyounoticeanydischargefrom
yourbatteryorthebuildupofforeignmaterialsonthebatteryleads,stopusingthebatteryand
obtainareplacementfromthebatterymanufacturer.

DANGER

Onlyrechargethebatterypackstrictlyaccordingtoinstructionsincludedintheproduct
documentation.

DANGER

Donotputthebatterypackintrashthatisdisposedofinlandfills.Whendisposingofthebattery,
complywithlocalordinancesorregulationsandyourcompany'ssafetystandards.

32ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

DANGER

Thereisadangerofanexplosionifthecoin-cellbatteryisincorrectlyplaced.Thelithiumbattery
containslithiumandcanexplodeifitisnotproperlyhandled,ordisposedof.Replaceonlywitha
batteryofthesametype.T oavoidpossibleinjuryordeath,donot:(1)throworimmerseintowater,
(2)allowittoheattomorethan100°C(212°F),or(3)attempttorepairordisassembleit.Disposeof
itasrequiredbylocalordinancesorregulationsandyourcompany'ssafetystandards.

Managingthebatterypower

Toachievethebestbalancebetweenperformanceandpowersaving,adjustyourpowerplansettings.
Toadjustpowerplansettings,dothefollowing:

1.GotoControlPanel,thenchangetheviewofControlPanelfromCategorytoLargeiconsorSmallicons.

2.ClickPowerOptions.

3.Followtheinstructionsonthescreen.

Formoreinformation,refertothehelpinformationsystemoftheprogram.

Power-savingmodes

Thereareseveralmodesthatyoucanuseatanytimetoconservepower.Thissectionintroduceseach
modeandgivestipsontheeffectiveuseofbatterypower.

•Screenblankmode(forWindows7only)
Thecomputerdisplayrequiresconsiderablebatterypower.Toenterscreenblankmode,right-clickthe
batterygaugeiconinthewindowsnotificationareaandselectPoweroffdisplay.

•Sleepmode
Insleepmode,yourworkissavedtomemory,andthenthestoragedriveandthecomputerdisplayare
turnedoff.Whenyourcomputerwakesup,yourworkisrestoredwithinseconds.

Toputyourcomputerintosleepmode,dothefollowing:

–ForWindows7:OpentheStartmenu,thenclickthearrownexttotheShutdownbutton.Click

Sleepfromthemenudisplayed.

–ForWindows8.1:GototheStartscreenbypressingtheWindowskey

,thenclickSleep.

–ForWindows10:OpentheStartmenu,clickPower,andthenclickSleep.

•Hibernationmode
Byusingthismode,youcanturnoffyourcomputercompletelywithoutsavingfilesorexitingany
programsthatarerunning.Whenthecomputerentershibernationmode,allopenprograms,folders,and
filesaresavedtothestoragedrive,andthenthecomputerturnsoff.

Toputthecomputerintohibernationmode,dothefollowing:

–ForWindows7:OpentheStartmenu,thenclickthearrownexttotheShutdownbutton.Click

Hibernatefromthemenudisplayed.

–ForWindows8.1andWindows10:Definewhatthepowerbuttondoesfirst,thenpressthepower

buttontoputthecomputerintohibernationmode.Formoreinformation,see“Frontview”onpage1

Ifyouputyourcomputerintohibernationmodewiththewake-upfunctiondisabled,thecomputerdoes
notconsumeanypower.Thewake-upfunctionisdisabledbydefault.Ifyouputyourcomputerinto
hibernationmodewiththewake-upfunctionenabled,thecomputerconsumesasmallamountofpower.

Toenablethewake-upfunction,dothefollowing:

1.GotoControlPanelandclickSystemandSecurity.

,clickthepowericon

Chapter2.Usingyourcomputer33

.

2.ClickAdministrativeTools.

3.ClickTaskScheduler.Ifyouarepromptedforanadministratorpasswordorconfirmation,typethe
passwordorprovideconfirmation.

4.Fromtheleftpane,selectthetaskfolderforwhichyouwanttoenablethewake-upfunction.The
scheduledtasksaredisplayed.

5.Clickascheduledtask,andthenclicktheConditionstab.

6.UnderPower,selectthecheckboxforWakethecomputertorunthistask.

•Wirelessoff
Whenyouarenotusingthewirelessfeatures,suchasBluetoothorwireless-LAN,turnthemofftohelp
conservepower.

Connectingtothenetwork

YourcomputerhasoneormorenetworkcardsthatenableyoutoconnectyourcomputertotheInternet
orothernetworkconnections.

Ethernetconnections

Youcanconnectyourcomputertoalocalnetworkorabroadbandconnectionbyusingthebuilt-inEthernet
featureofthecomputer.

DANGER

YourcomputerhasanEthernetconnector.Toavoidtheriskofelectricalshock,donotconnect
thetelephonecabletotheEthernetconnector.

Wirelessconnections

Wirelessconnectionisthetransferofdatawithouttheuseofcablesbutbymeansofradiowavesonly.

Dependingonthewirelessdevicesinstalledonyourcomputer,youmightbeabletousethefollowing
wirelessnetworks:

•Wireless-LANconnection

•Wireless-WANconnection

•Bluetoothconnection

Usingthewireless-LANconnection

Awirelesslocalareanetwork(LAN)coversarelativelysmallgeographicarea,suchasanofficebuildingora
house.Devicesbasedonthe802.11standardscanconnecttothistypeofnetwork.

Yourcomputercomeswithabuilt-inwirelessnetworkcardandaconfigurationutilitytohelpyouestablish
wirelessconnectionsandmonitortheconnectionstatus.

Toestablishawireless-LANconnection,dothefollowing:

1.Clickthewireless-network-connection-statusiconintheWindowsnotificationarea.Alistofavailable
wirelessnetworksisdisplayed.

2.Double-clickanetworktoconnecttoit.Providerequiredinformationifneeded.

Thecomputerautomaticallyconnectstoanavailablewirelessnetworkwhenthelocationchanges.Formore
information,refertotheWindowshelpinformationsystem.

34ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Tipsforusingthewireless-LANfeature

Toachievethebestconnection,usethefollowingguidelines:

•Placeyourcomputersothatthereareasfewobstaclesaspossiblebetweenthewireless-LANaccess
pointandthecomputer.

•Openyourcomputerlidtoanangleofslightlymorethan90degrees.

Checkingthewireless-LANconnectionstatus

Youcancheckthewireless-LANconnectionstatusthroughthewireless-network-connection-statusiconin
theWindowsnotificationarea.Themorebarsencompassed,thebetterthesignalis.

FortheWindows7operatingsystem,youalsocancheckthewireless-LANconnectionstatusthrough
AccessConnectionsgaugeintheWindowsnotificationarea.

•Powertothewirelessradioisoffornosignal.

•Powertothewirelessradioison.Thesignalstrengthofthewirelessconnectionispoor.To
improvesignalstrength,moveyourcomputerclosertothewirelessaccesspoint.

•Powertothewirelessradioison.Thesignalstrengthofthewirelessconnection
ismarginal.

•
isexcellent.

Powertothewirelessradioison.Thesignalstrengthofthewirelessconnection

Usingthewireless-WANconnection

Wirelesswideareanetwork(WAN),whichusescellularnetworksfordatatransmission,enablesyou
toestablishwirelessconnectionsoverremotepublicorprivatenetworks.Theseconnectionscanbe
maintainedoveralargegeographicalareabyuseofmultipleantennasitesorsatellitesystemsmaintained
bywirelessserviceproviders.

SomeThinkPadnotebookcomputerscomewithabuilt-inwireless-WANcardintegratedwithsome
wireless-WANtechnologies,suchas1xEV-DO,HSPA,3G,GPRS,orL TE.Byusingthebuilt-inwireless-WAN
cardandtheconfigurationutilitythatcomeswithyourcomputer,youcanestablishwireless-WAN
connections.

Note:Thewireless-WANserviceisprovidedbyauthorizedserviceprovidersinsomecountries.

Tipsforusingthewireless-WANfeature

Toachievethebestconnection,usethefollowingguidelines:

•Keepyourcomputerawayfromyourbody.

•Placeyourcomputeronaflatsurfaceandopenyourcomputerlidtoanangleofslightlymorethan
90degrees.

•Placeyourcomputerawayfromconcreteorbrickwallsthatmightdampencellularsignals.

•Bestreceptionisavailablenearwindowsandotherlocationswherecellularphonereceptionisthe
strongest.

Checkingthewireless-WANconnectionstatus

Youcancheckthewireless-WANconnectionstatusthroughthewireless-network-connection-statusiconin
theWindowsnotificationarea.Themorebarsencompassed,thebetterthesignalis.

FortheWindows7operatingsystem,youalsocancheckthewireless-WANconnectionstatusthroughthe
AccessConnectionsgaugeintheWindowsnotificationarea.

Chapter2.Usingyourcomputer35

•Nosignal

•Weaksignal

•Mediumsignal

•

Strongsignal

UsingtheBluetoothconnection

Bluetoothcanconnectdevicesashortdistancefromoneanother,andiscommonlyusedforconnecting
peripheraldevicestoacomputer,transferringdatabetweenhand-helddevicesandapersonalcomputer,or
remotelycontrollingandcommunicatingwithdevicessuchasmobilephones.

Dependingonthemodel,yourcomputermightsupporttheBluetoothfeature.Totransferdatathrough
theBluetoothfeature,dothefollowing:

Note:Ifyouusethewirelessfeature(the802.11standards)ofyourcomputersimultaneouslywitha
Bluetoothoption,thedatatransmissionspeedcanbedelayedandtheperformanceofthewirelessfeature
canbedegraded.

1.EnsurethattheBluetoothfeatureisenabled.

•ForWindows7:Pressthewireless-radioscontrolkeyandturnontheBluetoothfeature.

•ForWindows8.1:
a.Moveyourpointertothetop-rightorbottom-rightcornerofthescreentodisplaythecharms.
b.ClickSettings➙ChangePCsettings➙PCanddevices➙Bluetooth.
c.TurnontheBluetoothfeature.

•ForWindows10:Dooneofthefollowing:

–OpentheStartmenuandclickSettings.IfSettingsisnotdisplayed,clickAllappstodisplayall

programs.ThenclickSettings➙Devices➙Bluetooth.TurnontheBluetoothfeature.

–OpentheStartmenuandclickSettings.IfSettingsisnotdisplayed,clickAllappstodisplayall

programs.ThenclickSettings➙Network&Internet➙Airplanemode.TurnontheBluetooth
feature.

2.Right-clickthedatathatyouwanttosend.

3.SelectSendTo➙BluetoothDevices.

4.SelectaBluetoothdevice,andthenfollowtheinstructionsonthescreen.

Formoreinformation,refertotheWindowshelpinformationsystemandtheBluetoothhelpinformation
system.

Usinganexternaldisplay

Youcanuseanexternaldisplaysuchasaprojectororamonitortogivepresentationsortoexpandyour
workspace.Thistopicintroduceshowtoconnectanexternaldisplay,choosedisplaymodes,andchange
displaysettings.

Yourcomputersupportsthefollowingvideoresolution,iftheexternalmonitoralsosupportsthatresolution.

•Upto1920x1200,withanexternaldisplayconnectedtotheVGAconnector

•Upto2560x1600,withanexternaldisplayconnectedtotheminiDisplayPortconnector

Formoreinformationabouttheexternaldisplay,refertothemanualsprovidedwithit.

36ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Connectinganexternaldisplay

Youcanuseeitherawireddisplayorawirelessdisplay.Thewireddisplaycanbeconnectedtothe
VGAorminiDisplayPortconnectorbyacable.ThewirelessdisplaycanbeaddedthroughtheWi-Dior
Miracastfunction.

•Connectingawireddisplay

Note:Whenyouconnectanexternalmonitor,avideointerfacecablewithaferritecoreisrequired.

1.Connecttheexternaldisplaytoanappropriatevideoconnectoronyourcomputer,suchasthe
VGAconnectororminiDisplayPortconnector.

2.Connecttheexternaldisplaytoanelectricaloutlet.

3.Turnontheexternaldisplay.

•Connectingawirelessdisplay

Note:Touseawirelessdisplay,ensurethatbothyourcomputerandtheexternaldisplaysupportthe
Wi-DiorMiracastfeature.

–ForWindows7

OpentheStartmenuandclickDevicesandPrinters➙Addadevice

–ForWindows8.1

1.Moveyourpointertothetop-rightorbottom-rightcornerofthescreentodisplaythecharms.

2.ClickDevices➙Projector➙Addawirelessdisplay.

3.Selectthedesiredwirelessdisplayandfollowtheinstructionsonthescreen.

–ForWindows10

Dooneofthefollowing:

–OpentheStartmenuandclickSettings.IfSettingsisnotdisplayed,clickAllappstodisplayall

programs.ThenclickSettings➙Devices➙Connecteddevices➙Addadevice.

–ClicktheactioncentericonintheWindowsnotificationarea.ClickConnect.Selectthedesired

wirelessdisplayandfollowtheinstructionsonthescreen.

Formoreinformation,refertotheWindowshelpinformationsystem.

Choosingadisplaymode

Youcandisplayyourdesktopandappsonthecomputerdisplay,theexternaldisplay,orboth.T ochoose
howtodisplaythevideooutput,pressthedisplay-modeswitchingkeyandthenselectadisplay

modeyouprefer.

Therearefourdisplaymodes:

•Disconnect:Displaysthevideooutputonlyonyourcomputerscreen.

Note:Dependingonthesituation,youmightseeDisconnect,PCscreenonly,Computeronly,or
Disconnectprojector.

•Duplicate:Displaysthesamevideooutputonbothyourcomputerscreenandanexternaldisplay.

•Extend:Extendsthevideooutputfromyourcomputerdisplaytoanexternaldisplay.Y oucandragand
moveitemsbetweenthetwodisplays.

•Projectoronly:Showsthevideooutputonlyonanexternaldisplay.

Note:Dependingonthesituation,youmightseeProjectoronlyorSecondscreenonly.

Chapter2.Usingyourcomputer37

Note:IfyoushowDOSorprogramsusingDirectDraworDirect3D

®

infull-screenmode,onlythemain

displayshowsthevideooutput.

Changingdisplaysettings

Youcanchangethesettingsforboththecomputerdisplayandtheexternaldisplay.Forexample,you
candefinewhichoneisthemaindisplayandwhichoneisthesecondarydisplay.Youalsocanchange
theresolutionandorientation.

Tochangedisplaysettings,dothefollowing:

1.Right-clickonthedesktopandselectScreenResolutionorDisplaysettings.

2.Selectthedisplaythatyouwanttoconfigure.

3.Changedisplaysettingsasyouwant.

Note:Ifyousetahigherresolutionforthecomputerdisplaythantheexternaldisplay,onlypartofthescreen
canbeshownontheexternaldisplay.

Usingaudiofeatures

Yourcomputerisequippedwiththefollowingitems:

•Audioconnector,3.5mm(0.14inch)indiameter

•Microphones

•Speakers

Yourcomputeralsohasanaudiochipthatenablesyoutoenjoyvariousmultimediaaudiofeatures,such
asthefollowing:

•CompliantwithHighDefinitionAudio

•PlaybackofMIDIandMP3files

•RecordingandplaybackofPCMandWAVfiles

•Recordingfromvarioussoundsources,suchasaheadsetattached

Thefollowingtableshowswhichfunctionsoftheaudiodevicesattachedtotheconnectorsonyourcomputer
orthedockingstationaresupported.

Table1.Audiofeaturelist

Connector

AudioconnectorHeadphoneand

Headsetwitha3.5–mm
(0.14–inch)4-poleplug

microphonefunctions
supported

ConventionalheadphoneConventionalmicrophone

Headphonefunction
supported

Notsupported

Usingthecamera

Ifyourcomputerhasacamera,youcanusethecameratopreviewyourvideoimageandtakeasnapshot
ofyourcurrentimage.

Tostartthecamera,dothefollowing:

•ForWindows7:StarttheCommunicationsUtilityprogram.See“AccessingLenovoprograms”on
page13

.

•ForWindows8.1:ClickCamerafromtheStartscreen.

38ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

•ForWindows10:OpentheStartmenu,andclickCamerafromtheallappslist.

Whenthecameraisstarted,thegreencamera-in-useindicatorturnson.

Youalsocanusetheintegratedcamerawithotherprogramsthatprovidefeaturessuchasphotographing,
videocapturing,andvideoconferencing.Tousetheintegratedcamerawithotherprograms,openoneofthe
programsandstartthephotographing,videocapturing,orvideoconferencingfunction.Then,thecamera
startsautomaticallyandthegreencamera-in-useindicatorturnson.Formoreinformationaboutusingthe
camerawithaprogram,refertothehelpinformationsystemoftheprogram.

Configuringcamerasettings

Youcanconfigurethecamerasettingstomeetyourneeds,suchasadjustingthequalityofthevideooutput.

Toconfigurethecamerasettings,dothefollowing:

•ForWindows7:StarttheCommunicationsUtilityprogramandconfigurethecamerasettingsasdesired.

•ForWindows8.1:Dooneofthefollowing:

–Configurethecamerasettingsdirectlyfromtheprogramthatisusingthecamera.Fordetails,seethe

helpinformationsystemoftheprogram.

–ClickLenovoSettingsfromtheStartscreen.ThenclickCamera.Followtheinstructionsonthe

screentoconfigurethecamerasettingsasdesired.

•ForWindows10:Dooneofthefollowing:

–OpentheCameraapp,clickthesettingsiconintheupper-rightcorner.Followtheinstructionsonthe

screentoconfigurethecamerasettingsasdesired.

–ClickLenovoSettingsfromtheStartmenu.ThenclickCamera.Followtheinstructionsonthe

screentoconfigurethecamerasettingsasdesired.

Usingaflashmediacardorasmartcard

Yourcomputerhasamedia-card-readerslot.Itsupportsthefollowingflashmediacards:

•SecureDigital(SD)card

Note:YourcomputerdoesnotsupporttheCPRMfeaturefortheSDcard.

•SecureDigitalHigh-Capacity(SDHC)card

•SecureDigitaleXtended-Capacity(SDXC)card

•MultiMediaCard(MMC)

Somemodelsmightalsohaveasmart-card-readerslot.Smartcardscanbeusedforauthentication,
datastorage,andapplicationprocessing.Smartcardsalsomightprovidestrongsecurityauthentication
forsinglesign-on(SSO)withinlargeorganizations.

Thesmartcardreaderonyourcomputeronlysupportsthesmartcardofthefollowingspecifications:

•Length:85.60mm(3.37inches)

•Width:53.98mm(2.13inches)

•Thickness:0.76mm(0.03inch)

Chapter2.Usingyourcomputer39

Donotinsertsmartcardswithslitsintoyourcomputer.Otherwise,thesmartcardreadermightgetdamaged.

Attention:

•Whiletransferringdatatoorfromaflashmediacard,orasmartcard,donotputyourcomputerintosleep
orhibernationmodebeforethedatatransferiscompleted;otherwise,yourdatacouldbecomedamaged.

•Dependingonthemodel,thecomputermightalsohaveanintegratedsmart-cardreader.Ensurethat
youinsertacorrecttypeofsmartcard(asshowninfigureA)intothesmart-cardreader.Donotinsert
anon-supportcardoracardwithslits(asshowninfigureBandfigureC)intothesmart-cardreader.
Otherwise,thesmartcardreadermightgetdamaged.

Installingaflashmediacardorasmartcard

Toinstallacard,dothefollowing:

Attention:Beforeyoustartinstallingacard,touchametaltableoragroundedmetalobject.Thisaction
reducesanystaticelectricityfromyourbody.Thestaticelectricitycoulddamagethecard.

1.Locatetheappropriatetypeofslotforyourcard.See“Locatingcomputercontrols,connectors,and
indicators”onpage1

.

2.Makesurethatthecardiscorrectlyoriented:

•Forflashmediacard:Themetalcontactsarefacingdownandpointingtowardthecardslot.

•Forsmartcard:Themetalcontactsarefacingupwardandpointingtowardthecardslot.

3.Pressthecardfirmlyintothecardslot.

Iftheplug-and-playfeatureisnotenabledfortheinstalledflashmediacardorsmartcard,dothefollowing
toenablethefeature:

1.GotoControlPanel.

2.ClickHardwareandSound.

3.ClickDeviceManager.Ifyouarepromptedforanadministratorpasswordorconfirmation,typethe
passwordorprovideconfirmation.

4.FromtheActionmenu,selectAddlegacyhardware.TheAddHardwareWizardstarts.

40ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

5.Followtheinstructionsonthescreen.

Removingaflashmediacardorasmartcard

Attention:

•Beforeremovingacard,stopthecardfirst.Otherwise,dataonthecardmightbecorruptedorlost.

•Donotremoveacardwhilethecomputerisinsleepmodeorhibernationmode.Otherwise,thesystem
mightnotrespondwhenyoutrytoresumeoperation.

Toremoveacard,dothefollowing:

1.ClickthetriangulariconintheWindowsnotificationareatoshowhiddenicons.Then,right-clickthe
SafelyRemoveHardwareandEjectMediaicon.

2.Selecttheitemyouwanttoremovetostopthecard.

3.Pressthecardtoejectitfromyourcomputer.

4.Removethecardandstoreitsafelyforfutureuse.

Note:Ifyoudonotremovethecardfromyourcomputerafteryouejectthecardfromtheoperatingsystem,
thecardcannolongerbeaccessed.Toaccessthecard,youmustremoveitfirst,theninsertitagain.

Chapter2.Usingyourcomputer41

42ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Chapter3.Enhancingyourcomputer

Thischapterprovidesinstructionsonhowtousehardwaredevicestoexpandyourcomputercapabilities.

•“FindingThinkPadoptions”onpage43

•“ThinkPaddockingstations”onpage43

FindingThinkPadoptions

Ifyouwanttoexpandthecapabilitiesofyourcomputer,Lenovohasanumberofhardwareaccessories
andupgradestomeetyourneeds.Optionsincludememorymodules,storagedevices,networkcards,port
replicatorsordockingstations,batteries,poweradapters,printers,scanners,keyboards,mice,andmore.

YoucanshopatLenovo24hoursaday,7daysaweekdirectlyovertheWorldWideWeb.Allyouneedisan
Internetconnectionandacreditcard.

ToshopatLenovo,goto:
http://www.lenovo.com/essentials

ThinkPaddockingstations

Youcanattachyourcomputertoasupporteddockingstationtoexpandworkingcapability.

YourcomputersupportsthefollowingUSBdocks:

•ThinkPadUSB3.0Dock

•ThinkPadBasicUSB3.0Dock

FordetailedinformationabouthowtousetheUSBdocks,refertotheusermanualsthatcomewiththe
USBdocks.

Yourcomputeralsosupportsthefollowingdockingstations:

•ThinkPadBasicDock

•ThinkPadProDock

•ThinkPadUltraDock

CAUTION:
Whenthecomputerisattachedtoadockingstation,neverpickuptheassemblybytakingholdofthe
computeralone.Alwaysholdthewholeassembly.

LocatingcontrolsandconnectorsontheThinkPaddockingstations

ThissectionintroducesthelocationsofcontrolsandconnectorsontheThinkPaddockingstations.

©CopyrightLenovo2015,2016

43

ThinkPadBasicDock

Frontview

1Powerbutton:Pressthepowerbuttontoturnonorturnoffthecomputer.

2Ejectbutton:Presstheejectbuttontoreleasethecomputerfromthedockingstation.

3Slidingadjuster:Usetheslidingadjusterasaguidetoalignthedockingstationconnectoronyour

computerwhenyouattachthedockingstation.

4Dockingstationconnector:Usedtoattachyourcomputer.

Rearview

1AlwaysOnUSBconnector:UsedtoconnectdevicesthatarecompatiblewithUSB2.0orchargesome

mobiledigitaldevicesandsmartphoneswhenyourcomputerisinsleeporhibernationmode.

2USB2.0connectors:UsedtoconnectdevicesthatarecompatiblewithUSB2.0.

3USB3.0connector:UsedtoconnectdevicesthatarecompatiblewithUSB3.0.

44ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

4Ethernetconnector:UsedtoconnectthedockingstationtoanEthernetLAN.

Note:IfyouneedtouseanEthernetconnectororanexternalmonitorconnectorwhenyourcomputeris
attachedtoadockingstation,usetheEthernetconnectorortheexternalmonitorconnectoronthedocking
station,insteadoftheoneonthecomputer.

5acpowerconnector:Usedtoconnecttheacpoweradapter.

6VGAconnector:UsedtoconnectthecomputertoaVGA-compatiblevideodevice,suchasaVGA

monitor.

7Security-lockslot:T oprotectyourdockingstationfromtheft,youcanuseasecuritycablelock,such

asaKensington-stylecablelock,thatfitsthissecurity-lockslottolockyourdockingstationtoadesk,
table,orothernon-permanentfixture.

ThinkPadProDock

Frontview

1Powerbutton:Pressthepowerbuttontoturnonorturnoffthecomputer.

2Keylockindicator:Thisindicatorturnsonwhenthesystemlockkeyisinthelockedposition.

3Dockingstatusindicator:Thisindicatorturnsonwhenyourcomputerisdocked.

4Ejectbutton:Presstheejectbuttontoreleasethecomputerfromthedockingstation.

5Slidingadjuster:Usetheslidingadjusterasaguidetoalignthedockingstationconnectoronyour

computerwhenyouattachthedockingstation.

6Dockingstationconnector:Usedtoattachyourcomputer.

7Systemlock:Usethesystemlockkeytolocktheejectbutton.Whenthesystemlockkeyisinthelocked

position,theejectbuttonofthedockingstationislocked;youcannotattachorremoveyourcomputer.

Chapter3.Enhancingyourcomputer45

Rearview

1AlwaysOnUSBconnector:UsedtoconnectdevicesthatarecompatiblewithUSB2.0orchargesome

mobiledigitaldevicesandsmartphoneswhenyourcomputerisinsleeporhibernationmode.

2USB2.0connectors:UsedtoconnectdevicesthatarecompatiblewithUSB2.0.

3USB3.0connectors:UsedtoconnectdevicesthatarecompatiblewithUSB3.0.

4Ethernetconnector:UsedtoconnectthedockingstationtoanEthernetLAN.

Note:IfyouneedtouseanEthernetconnectororanexternalmonitorconnectorwhenyourcomputeris
attachedtoadockingstation,usetheEthernetconnectorortheexternalmonitorconnectoronthedocking
station,insteadoftheoneonthecomputer.

5acpowerconnector:Usedtoconnecttheacpoweradapter.

6DisplayPort

®

connector:Usedtoattachahigh-performancemonitor,adirect-drivemonitor,orother

devicesthatuseaDisplayPortconnector.

7DVIconnector:UsedtoconnectadisplaythatsupportsDigitalVisualInterface(DVI)connection.

ToconnectaDVIdisplay,dothefollowing:

1.Ensurethatthecomputerisconnectedtothedockingstationandworksproperly.

2.Turnoffthecomputer.

3.ConnecttheDVIdisplaytotheDVIconnectoronthedockingstation,andthenconnectthedisplay
toanelectricaloutlet.

4.TurnontheDVIdisplay.

5.Turnonthecomputer.

Note:TurnontheDVIdisplaybeforeyouturnonthecomputer.Otherwisethesystemcannotrecognize
thatthedisplayisconnected.

8VGAconnector:UsedtoconnectthecomputertoaVGA-compatiblevideodevice,suchasaVGA

monitor.

46ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

9Audioconnector:Usedtoconnectheadphonesoraheadsetthathasa3.5-mm(0.14-inch)4-poleplug

totheaudioconnectortolistentothesoundfromthecomputer.

10Security-lockslot:Toprotectyourdockingstationfromtheft,youcanuseasecuritycablelock,such

asaKensington-stylecablelock,thatfitsthissecurity-lockslottolockyourdockingstationtoadesk,
table,orothernon-permanentfixture.

ThinkPadUltraDock

Frontview

1Powerbutton:Pressthepowerbuttontoturnonorturnoffthecomputer.

2Keylockindicator:Thisindicatorturnsonwhenthesystemlockkeyisinthelockedposition.

3Dockingstatusindicator:Thisindicatorturnsonwhenyourcomputerisdocked.

4Ejectbutton:Presstheejectbuttontoreleasethecomputerfromthedockingstation.

5Slidingadjuster:Usetheslidingadjusterasaguidetoalignthedockingstationconnectoronyour

computerwhenyouattachthedockingstation.

6Dockingstationconnector:Usedtoattachyourcomputer.

7Systemlock:Usethesystemlockkeytolocktheejectbutton.Whenthesystemlockkeyisinthelocked

position,theejectbuttonofthedockingstationislocked;youcannotattachorremoveyourcomputer.

Chapter3.Enhancingyourcomputer47

Rearview

1AlwaysOnUSBconnector:UsedtoconnectdevicesthatarecompatiblewithUSB2.0orchargesome

mobiledigitaldevicesandsmartphoneswhenyourcomputerisinsleeporhibernationmode.

2USB2.0connectors:UsedtoconnectdevicesthatarecompatiblewithUSB2.0.

3USB3.0connectors:UsedtoconnectdevicesthatarecompatiblewithUSB3.0.

4Ethernetconnector:UsedtoconnectthedockingstationtoanEthernetLAN.

Note:IfyouneedtouseanEthernetconnectororanexternalmonitorconnectorwhenyourcomputeris
attachedtoadockingstation,usetheEthernetconnectorortheexternalmonitorconnectoronthedocking
station,insteadoftheoneonthecomputer.

5acpowerconnector:Usedtoconnecttheacpoweradapter.

6DisplayPortconnectors:Usedtoattachahigh-performancemonitor,adirect-drivemonitor,orother

devicesthatuseaDisplayPortconnector.

7HDMIconnector:Usedtoconnectahigh-definitiontelevision.

8DVIconnector:UsedtoconnectadisplaythatsupportsDigitalVisualInterface(DVI)connection.

ToconnectaDVIdisplay,dothefollowing:

1.Ensurethatthecomputerisconnectedtothedockingstationandworksproperly.

2.Turnoffthecomputer.

3.ConnecttheDVIdisplaytotheDVIconnectoronthedockingstation,andthenconnectthedisplay
toanelectricaloutlet.

4.TurnontheDVIdisplay.

5.Turnonthecomputer.

Note:TurnontheDVIdisplaybeforeyouturnonthecomputer.Otherwisethesystemcannotrecognize
thatthedisplayisconnected.

48ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

9VGAconnector:UsedtoconnectthecomputertoaVGA-compatiblevideodevice,suchasaVGA

monitor.

10Audioconnector:Usedtoconnectheadphonesoraheadsetthathasa3.5-mm(0.14-inch)4-poleplug

totheaudioconnectortolistentothesoundfromthecomputer.

11Security-lockslot:Toprotectyourdockingstationfromtheft,youcanuseasecuritycablelock,such

asaKensington-stylecablelock,thatfitsthissecurity-lockslottolockyourdockingstationtoadesk,
table,orothernon-permanentfixture.

AttachingaThinkPaddockingstation

ToattachyourcomputertoasupportedThinkPaddockingstation,dothefollowing:

Note:TheThinkPadBasicDockdoesnothavethesystemlock.

1.Disconnectallcablesanddevicesfromthecomputer.

2.Ensurethatthesystemlockkeyisturnedtotheunlockedposition(horizontal).

3.Alignthetop-leftcornerofthecomputerwiththepositionmarkofthedockingstation.Attachyour
computertothedockingstationverticallyuntilyouhearaclick1.Thenturnthesystemlockkeyto
thelockedposition

2.

Chapter3.Enhancingyourcomputer49

4.Checkthedockingstatusindicator.Ifthedockingstatusindicatorisnotturnedon,itindicatesthatyour
computerisnotcorrectlyattachedtothedockingstation.Checktheacpoweradapterofthedocking
station,ordisconnectandreattachtheacpoweradapter.

Note:Ifyouattachyourcomputertoadockingstation,butnotconnecttheacpoweradapterofthedocking
stationtotheacpowerconnector,yourcomputerwillenterbatterymode.

DetachingaThinkPaddockingstation

TodetachyourcomputerfromaThinkPaddockingstation,dothefollowing:

Note:TheThinkPadBasicDockdoesnothavethesystemlock.

1.Disconnectallcablesanddevicesfromthecomputer.

2.Ensurethatthesystemlockkeyisturnedtotheunlockedposition(horizontal).

3.Presstheejectbuttonuntilthecomputermovesup.Then,graspbothsidesofthecomputertoremoveit.

Guidelinesonconnectingmultipleexternaldisplaystoadockingstation

YoucanconnectmultipleexternaldisplaystoasupportedThinkPaddockingstation.T oensurethatthe
multipledisplaysworkcorrectly,observethefollowingguidelinesandconnectthedisplaystoappropriate
connectors.

•Donotusetheconnectorsasshowninthefollowingillustrationsatthesametimeforconnectingmultiple
displays.Otherwise,oneofthedisplaysasshownwillnotwork.

50ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

–ThinkPadProDock

–ThinkPadUltraDock

•FortheThinkPadUltraDock,amaximumofthreedisplays(includingyourcomputerdisplay)canworkat
thesametime.Asaresult,ifyouconnectthreeexternaldisplaystotheThinkPadUltraDock,thedisplay
connectedtotheVGAconnectorwillnotworkwhenyourcomputerdisplayison.

–Whenthecomputerdisplayisoff:

–Whenthecomputerdisplayison:

Chapter3.Enhancingyourcomputer51

Securityfeatures

Thesystemlockkeyhastwopositionsasshowninthedrawing.

Thesecurityfeatureisdifferentwhenthekeyisindifferentpositions:

•Whenthekeyisinposition1,theejectbuttonofthedockingstationislocked,andyoucannotremove
yourcomputer.Thekey-lockindicatorisonwhentheejectbuttonislocked.Thesecuritycableislocked.

•Whenthekeyisinposition2,theejectbuttonofthedockingstationisunlocked,andyoucanremoveyour
computer.Thekey-lockindicatorisoffwhentheejectbuttonisunlocked.Thesecuritycableislocked.

52ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Chapter4.Youandyourcomputer

Thischapterprovidesinformationaboutaccessibility,comfort,andtravelingwithyourcomputer.

Accessibilityandcomfort

Goodergonomicpracticeisimportanttogetthemostfromyourpersonalcomputerandtoavoiddiscomfort.
Arrangeyourworkplaceandtheequipmentyouusetosuityourindividualneedsandthekindofwork
thatyouperform.Inaddition,usehealthyworkhabitstomaximizeyourperformanceandcomfortwhile
usingyourcomputer.

Thefollowingtopicsprovideinformationaboutarrangingyourworkarea,settingupyourcomputer
equipment,andestablishinghealthyworkhabits.

Lenovoiscommittedtoprovidingthelatestinformationandtechnologytoourcustomerswithdisabilities.
Refertotheaccessibilityinformationthatoutlinesoureffortsinthisarea.See“Accessibilityinformation”
onpage54

Ergonomicinformation

Workinginthevirtualofficemightmeanadaptingtofrequentchangesinyourenvironment.Forexample,
adaptingtothesurroundinglightsources,properseating,andtheplacementofyourcomputerhardware,
canhelpyouimproveyourperformanceandachievegreatercomfort.

.

Thisexampleshowssomeoneinaconventionalsetting.Evenwhennotinsuchasetting,youcanfollow
manyofthesetips.Developgoodhabits,andtheywillserveyouwell.

Generalposture:Makeminormodificationsinyourworkingposturetodetertheonsetofdiscomfort
causedbylongperiodsofworkinginthesameposition.Frequentshortbreaksfromyourworkalsohelp
topreventminordiscomfortassociatedwithyourworkingposture.

Display:Positionthedisplaytomaintainacomfortableviewingdistanceof510-760mm(20-30inches).
Avoidglareorreflectionsonthedisplayfromoverheadlightingoroutsidesourcesoflight.Keepthedisplay
screencleanandsetthebrightnesstolevelsthatenableyoutoseethescreenclearly.Pressthebrightness
controlkeystoadjustdisplaybrightness.

Headposition:Keepyourheadandneckinacomfortableandneutral(vertical,orupright)position.

Chair:Useachairthatgivesyougoodbacksupportandseatheightadjustment.Usechairadjustmentsto

bestsuityourdesiredposture.

©CopyrightLenovo2015,2016

53

Armandhandposition:Ifavailable,usechairarmrestsoranareaonyourworkingsurfacetoprovide

weightsupportforyourarms.Keepyourforearms,wrists,andhandsinarelaxedandneutral(horizontal)
position.T ypewithasofttouchwithoutpoundingthekeys.

Legposition:Keepyourthighsparalleltothefloorandyourfeetflatonthefloororonafootrest.

Whatifyouaretraveling?

Itmightnotbepossibletoobservethebestergonomicpracticeswhenyouareusingyourcomputer
whileonthemoveorinacasualsetting.Regardlessofthesetting,trytoobserveasmanyofthetipsas
possible.Sittingproperlyandusingadequatelighting,forexample,willhelpyoumaintaindesirablelevels
ofcomfortandperformance.

Questionsaboutvision?

ThevisualdisplayscreensofThinkPadnotebookcomputersaredesignedtomeetthehigheststandards
andtoprovideyouwithclear,crispimagesandlarge,brightdisplaysthatareeasytosee,yeteasyonthe
eyes.Ofcourse,anyconcentratedandsustainedvisualactivitycanbetiring.Ifyouhavequestionsoneye
fatigueorvisualdiscomfort,consultavision-carespecialistforadvice.

Comfort

Observethefollowingguidelinestoachievegreatercomfortandimproveperformance.

Activesittingandrestbreaks:Thelongeryousitandworkwithyourcomputer,themoreimportantitisto
observeyourworkingposture.Follow“Ergonomicinformation”onpage53andpractice“activesitting”to
avoiddiscomfortassociatedwithyourworkingpostures.Makingminorvoluntaryposturalchangesand
takingshortfrequentworkbreaksarethekeyingredientsforhealthycomputing.Yourcomputerislightand
mobile;youcaneasilyrepositionyourworkingsurfacetoaccommodatemanyposturemodifications.

Workareasetupoptions:Familiarizeyourselfwithallofyourofficefurnituresothatyouknowhowtoadjust
yourworksurface,seat,andotherworktoolstoaccommodateyourpreferencesforcomfort.Ifyourwork
areaisnotinanofficesetting,besuretotakespecialnoteofemployingactivesittingandtakingwork
breaks.ManyThinkPadproductsolutionsareavailabletohelpyoumodifyandexpandyourcomputerto
bestsuityourneeds.Youcanfindsomeoftheseoptionsathttp://www.lenovo.com/essentials.Exploreyour
optionsfordockingsolutionsandexternalproductsthatprovidetheadjustabilityandfeaturesthatyouwant.

Accessibilityinformation

Lenovoiscommittedtoprovidinguserswhohavehearing,vision,andmobilitylimitationswithgreater
accesstoinformationandtechnology.Thissectionprovidesinformationaboutthewaystohelpthese
usersgetthemostoutoftheircomputerexperience.Youalsocangetthemostup-to-dateaccessibility
informationfromthefollowingWebsite:
http://www.lenovo.com/accessibility

Keyboardshortcuts

Thefollowingtablecontainskeyboardshortcutsthatcanhelpmakeyourcomputereasiertouse.

Note:Dependingonyourkeyboard,someofthefollowingkeyboardshortcutsmightnotbeavailable.

KeyboardshortcutFunction

Windowslogokey+U

RightShiftforeightseconds

ShiftfivetimesTurnonorturnoffStickyKeys

OpenEaseofAccessCenter

TurnonorturnoffFilterKeys

54ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

KeyboardshortcutFunction

NumLockforfivesecondsTurnonorturnoffToggleKeys

LeftAlt+LeftShift+NumLock

LeftAlt+LeftShift+PrtScn(orPrtSc)TurnonorturnoffHighContrast

TurnonorturnoffMouseKeys

Formoreinformation,gotohttp://windows.microsoft.com/,andthentypeanyofthefollowingkeywords
forsearching:keyboardshortcuts,keycombinations,shortcutkeys.

EaseofAccessCenter

EaseofAccessCenterontheWindowsoperatingsystemenablesuserstoconfiguretheircomputersto
suittheirphysicalandcognitiveneeds.

TouseEaseofAccessCenter,dothefollowing:

1.GotoControlPanel,andensurethatyouviewControlPanelbyCategory.

2.ClickEaseofAccess➙EaseofAccessCenter.

3.Usethetoolsbyfollowingtheinstructionsonthescreen.

EaseofAccessCentermainlyincludesthefollowingtools:

•Magnifier
Magnifierisausefulutilitythatenlargestheentirescreenorpartofthescreensothatyoucansee

theitemsbetter.

•Narrator
Narratorisascreenreaderthatreadswhatisdisplayedonthescreenaloudanddescribeseventslike

errormessages.

•On-ScreenKeyboard
Ifyouprefertotypeorenterdataintoyourcomputerwithoutusingaphysicalkeyboard,youcanuse

On-ScreenKeyboard.On-ScreenKeyboarddisplaysavisualkeyboardwithallthestandardkeys.Y ou
canselectkeysusingthemouseoranotherpointingdevice,oryoucantaptoselectthekeysifyour
computersupportsmulti-touchscreen.

•HighContrast
HighContrastisafeaturethatheightensthecolorcontrastofsometextandimagesonyourscreen.Asa

result,thoseitemsaremoredistinctandeasiertoidentify.

•Personalizedkeyboard
Adjustkeyboardsettingstomakeyourkeyboardeasiertouse.Forexample,youcanuseyourkeyboard

tocontrolthepointerandmakethekeyboardeasiertotypecertainkeycombinations.

•Personalizedmouse
Adjustmousesettingstomakeyourmouseeasiertouse.Forexample,youcanchangethepointer

appearanceandmakeyourmouseeasiertomanagewindows.

SpeechRecognition

SpeechRecognitionenablesyoutocontrolyourcomputerbyvoice.

Usingonlyyourvoice,youcanstartprograms,openmenus,clickobjectsonthescreen,dictatetextinto
documents,andwriteandsende-mails.Everythingyoudowiththekeyboardandmousecanbedonewith
onlyyourvoice.

TouseSpeechRecognition,dothefollowing:

Chapter4.Youandyourcomputer55

1.GotoControlPanel,andensurethatyouviewControlPanelbyCategory.

2.ClickEaseofAccess➙SpeechRecognition.

3.Followtheinstructionsonthescreen.

Screen-readertechnologies

Screen-readertechnologiesareprimarilyfocusedonsoftwareprograminterfaces,helpinformationsystems,
andvariousonlinedocuments.Foradditionalinformationaboutscreenreaders,seethefollowing:

•UsingPDFswithscreenreaders:
http://www.adobe.com/accessibility.html?promoid=DJGVE

•UsingtheJAWSscreenreader:
http://www.freedomscientific.com/jaws-hq.asp

•UsingtheNVDAscreenreader:
http://www.nvaccess.org/

Screenresolution

Youcanmakethetextandimagesonyourscreeneasiertoreadbyadjustingthescreenresolutionofyour
computer.

Toadjustthescreenresolution,dothefollowing:

•ForWindows7andWindows8.1:

1.Right-clickanemptyareaofthedesktopandselectScreenResolution.

2.Followtheinstructionsonthescreen.

•ForWindows10:

1.Right-clickanemptyareaofthedesktopandselectDisplaysettings➙Advanceddisplaysettings.

2.Followtheinstructionsonthescreen.

Note:Settingaresolutiontoolowmightpreventsomeitemsfromfittingonthescreen.

Customizableitemsize

Youcanmaketheitemsonyourscreeneasiertoreadbychangingtheitemsize.

•T ochangetheitemsizetemporarily,usetheMagnifiertoolinEaseofAccessCenter.

•T ochangetheitemsizepermanently,dothefollowing:

–Changethesizeofalltheitemsonyourscreen.

1.GotoControlPanel,andensurethatyouviewControlPanelbyCategory.

2.ClickAppearanceandPersonalization➙Display.

3.Changetheitemsizebyfollowingtheinstructionsonthescreen.

4.ClickApply.Thischangewilltakeeffectthenexttimeyoulogintotheoperatingsystem.

–ChangethesizeoftheitemsonaWebpage.

PressandholdCtrl,andthenpresstheplus-signkey(+)toenlargeortheminus-signkey(-)to
reducethetextsize.

–Changethesizeoftheitemsonthedesktoporawindow.

Note:Thisfunctionmightnotworkonsomewindows.
Ifyourmousehasawheel,pressandholdCtrl,andthenscrollthewheeltochangetheitemsize.

56ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Industry-standardconnectors

Yourcomputerprovidesindustry-standardconnectorsthatenableyoutoconnectassistivedevices.

Formoreinformationaboutthelocationandfunctionoftheconnectors,see“Locatingcomputercontrols,
connectors,andindicators”onpage1.

Documentationinaccessibleformats

Lenovoprovideselectronicdocumentationinaccessibleformats,suchasproperlytaggedPDFfilesor
HyperTextMarkupLanguage(HTML)files.Lenovoelectronicdocumentationisdevelopedtoensure
thatvisuallyimpaireduserscanreadthedocumentationthroughascreenreader.Eachimageinthe
documentationalsoincludesadequatealternativetextsothatvisuallyimpaireduserscanunderstandthe
imagewhentheyuseascreenreader.

Travelingwithyourcomputer

Thistopicprovidesinformationtohelpyouworkwithyourcomputerwhenyouaretraveling.

Traveltips

Usethefollowingtraveltipstotravelmoreconfidentlyandefficientlywithyourcomputer.

•Althoughitissafetoallowyourcomputertogothroughthex-raymachinesatairportsecuritystations,it
isimportanttokeepyoureyesonthecomputeratalltimestopreventtheft.

•Considerbringinganelectricaladapterforuseinanairplaneorautomobile.

•Ifyoucarryanacpoweradapter,detachtheaccordfromittoavoiddamagingthecord.

Traveltipsonairplanes

Ifyoucarryyourcomputerintoanairplane,takenoteofthefollowingtips:

•Ifyouintendtouseyourcomputerorwirelessservices(suchasInternetandBluetooth),checkwiththe
airlineforrestrictionsandavailabilityofservicesbeforeboardingtheairplane.Iftherearerestrictions
ontheuseofcomputerswithwirelessfeaturesontheairplane,youmustabidebythoserestrictions.If
necessary,enabletheAirplanemodebeforeboarding.IntheAirplanemode,allwirelessfeaturesare
disabled.T oenabletheAirplanemode,dothefollowing:

–ForWindows8.1:Swipeinfromtherightedgeofthescreentodisplaythecharms,tapSettings➙

ChangePCsettings➙Network,andthenslidethecontrolforAirplanemodetotheright.

–ForWindows10:OpentheStartmenuandclickSettings.IfSettingsisnotdisplayed,clickAllapps

todisplayallprograms.ThenclickSettings➙Network&Internet➙Airplanemode.Slidethe
controlforAirplanemodetoenableit.

•Becarefulabouttheseatinfrontofyouonairplanes.Angleyourcomputerdisplaysothatitdoesnotget
caughtwhenthepersoninfrontofyouleansback.

•Whentakingoff,remembertoturnoffyourcomputerorputitintohibernationmode.

Travelaccessories

Thefollowingisachecklistofitemstoconsiderpackingwhenyouaregoingtotravel:

•ThinkPadacpoweradapter

•MiniDisplayPorttoHDMIadapter

•Externalmouse,ifyouareaccustomedtousingone

•Ethernetcable

•Extrabattery,charged

Chapter4.Youandyourcomputer57

•Aqualitycarryingcasethatprovidesadequatecushionandprotection

•Externalstoragedevice

Ifyouaretravelingtoanothercountry,youmightwanttoconsideranacpoweradapterforthecountryto
whichyouaretraveling.

Topurchasetravelaccessories,gotohttp://www.lenovo.com/accessories.

58ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Chapter5.Security

Thischapterprovidesinformationabouthowtoprotectyourcomputerfromtheftandunauthorizeduse.

•“Usingpasswords”onpage59

•“Harddisksecurity”onpage63

•“Settingthesecuritychip”onpage64

•“Usingthefingerprintreader”onpage65

•“Noticeondeletingdatafromyourstoragedrive”onpage68

•“Usingfirewalls”onpage69

•“Protectingdataagainstviruses”onpage69

Usingpasswords

Youcanhelppreventyourcomputerfromunauthorizedusebyusingpasswords.Onceyousetapassword,
apromptisdisplayedonthescreeneachtimeyouturnonthecomputer.Enteryourpasswordattheprompt.
Youcannotusethecomputerunlessyoutypethecorrectpassword.

Ifyouhavesetapower-onpassword,asupervisorpassword,oraharddiskpassword,itunlocks
automaticallywhenthecomputerresumesfromsleepmode.

Note:IfaWindowspasswordhasbeenset,youwillbepromptedtoenterit.

Typingpasswords

Whenthisiconisdisplayed,typeapower-onpasswordorasupervisorpassword.

Whenthisiconisdisplayed,typeauserharddiskpassword.T otypeamasterharddiskpassword,

pressF1.Whentheiconchangesto,typethemasterharddiskpassword

Note:Toreturntotheicon,pressF1again.

Power-onpassword

Youcansetapower-onpasswordtohelpprotectyourcomputeragainstunauthorizedaccess.

Ifyousetapower-onpassword,thepasswordpromptisdisplayedonthescreenwheneveryouturnonthe
computer.Y oumustenterthecorrectpasswordtostartusingthecomputer.

Setting,changing,orremovingapower-onpassword

Beforeyoustart,printtheseinstructions.

Toset,change,orremoveapower-onpassword,dothefollowing:

1.Restartthecomputer.Whenthelogoscreenisdisplayed,pressF1tostarttheThinkPadSetupprogram.

2.SelectSecurity➙Password➙Power-onPasswordbyusingthedirectionalkeys.

3.Dependingonyourneed,dooneofthefollowing:

©CopyrightLenovo2015,2016

59

•T osetapassword,dothefollowing:
a.IntheEnterNewPasswordfield,typeadesiredpasswordandpressEnter.
b.IntheConfirmNewPasswordfield,retypethepasswordandpressEnter.

•T ochangeapassword,dothefollowing:
a.IntheEnterCurrentPasswordfield,typethecurrentpower-onpasswordandpressEnter.
b.IntheEnterNewPasswordfield,typethenewpower-onpasswordandpressEnter;thenretype

thepasswordintheConfirmNewPasswordfieldandPressEnter.

•T oremoveapassword,dothefollowing:
a.IntheEnterCurrentPasswordfield,typethecurrentpower-onpasswordandpressEnter.
b.LeavetheEnterNewPasswordandConfirmNewPasswordfieldsblank.PressEntertwice.

4.ASetupNoticewindowisdisplayed.PressEntertocontinue.

5.PressF10.ASetupConfirmationwindowisdisplayed.SelectY estosavetheconfigurationchanges
andexit.

Note:Youmightwanttorecordyourpasswordandstoreitinasafeplace.Otherwise,ifyouforgetthe
password,youhavetotakeyourcomputertoaLenovoreselleroramarketingrepresentativetohave
thepasswordcanceled.

Supervisorpassword

ThesupervisorpasswordprotectsthesysteminformationstoredintheThinkPadSetupprogram.Ifyouhave
setasupervisorpassword,noonecanchangetheconfigurationofthecomputerwithoutthepassword.It
providesthefollowingsecurityfeatures:

•Ifonlyasupervisorpasswordisset,apasswordpromptisdisplayedwhenyoutrytostarttheThinkPad
Setupprogram.UnauthorizeduserscannotaccesstheThinkPadSetupprogramwithoutthepassword.

•Thesystemadministratorcanusethesupervisorpasswordtoaccessacomputereveniftheuserofthat
computerhassetapower-onpassword.Thesupervisorpasswordoverridesthepower-onpassword.

•Ifbothasupervisorpasswordandapower-onpasswordareset,youcandothefollowingonlyifyou
havethesupervisorpassword:

–Changingordeletingthepower-onpassword
–Changingordeletingthesupervisorpassword
–Changingdateandtime
–Specifyingtheminimumlengthforpower-onpasswordandharddiskpassword
–Changingthesettingforthesecuritychip
–ChangingthesettingfortheVirtualization
–ChangingthesettingfortheI/Oportaccess
–ChangingthesettingfortheAnti-Theft
–ChangingthesettingfortheSecureBoot
–Erasingthefingerprintdata
–Enablingordisablingthefollowingfeatures:

–LockUEFIBIOSSettings
–Passwordatunattendedboot
–BootDeviceListF12Option
–BootOrderLock
–FlashBIOSUpdatingbyEnd-Users

60ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

–SecureRollBackPrevention
–ExecutionPrevention
–Securitymode
–Fingerprintreaderpriority

Notes:

•ThesystemadministratorcansetthesamesupervisorpasswordonmanyThinkPadnotebookcomputers
tomakeadministrationeasier.

•WhenLockUEFIBIOSSettingsoptionisenabled,allBIOSsettingscannotbechanged.Tochange
thesettings,asupervisorpasswordisrequired.

Setting,changing,orremovingasupervisorpassword

Beforeyoustart,printtheseinstructions.

Onlyasystemadministratorcanset,change,orremoveasupervisorpassword.Toset,change,orremovea
supervisorpassword,dothefollowing:

1.Restartthecomputer.Whenthelogoscreenisdisplayed,pressF1tostarttheThinkPadSetupprogram.

2.SelectSecurity➙Password➙SupervisorPasswordbyusingthedirectionalkeys.

3.Dependingonyourneeds,dooneofthefollowing:

•T osetapassword,dothefollowing:
a.IntheEnterNewPasswordfield,typeadesiredpasswordandpressEnter.
b.IntheConfirmNewPasswordfield,retypethepasswordandpressEnter.

•T ochangeapassword,dothefollowing:
a.IntheEnterCurrentPasswordfield,typethecurrentsupervisorpasswordandpressEnter.
b.IntheEnterNewPasswordfield,typethenewsupervisorpasswordandpressEnter;thenretype

thepasswordintheConfirmNewPasswordfieldandpressEnter.

•T oremoveapassword,dothefollowing:
a.IntheEnterCurrentPasswordfield,typethecurrentsupervisorpasswordandpressEnter.
b.LeavetheEnterNewPasswordandConfirmNewPasswordfieldsblank.PressEntertwice.

4.ASetupNoticewindowisdisplayed.PressEntertocontinue.

5.PressF10.ASetupConfirmationwindowisdisplayed.SelectY estosavetheconfigurationchanges
andexit.

Note:Youmightwanttorecordyourpasswordandstoreitinasafeplace.Thenexttimeyouopenthe
ThinkPadSetupprogram,youwillbepromptedtotypeyoursupervisorpasswordtoproceed.Ifyouforget
yoursupervisorpassword,Lenovocannotresetyourpassword.Y oumusttakeyourcomputertoaLenovo
reselleroraLenovomarketingrepresentativetohavethesystemboardreplaced.Proofofpurchaseis
required,andafeewillbechargedforpartsandservice.

Harddiskpasswords

Thefollowingtwotypesofharddiskpasswordscanhelpprotecttheinformationstoredonthestoragedrive:

•Userharddiskpassword
Ifauserharddiskpasswordhasbeenset,butnomasterharddiskpasswordhasbeen,theusermust

entertheuserharddiskpasswordtoaccessfilesandapplicationsonthestoragedrive.

•Masterharddiskpassword

Chapter5.Security61

Themasterharddiskpasswordalsorequiresauserharddiskpassword.Themasterharddiskpassword
isusuallysetandusedbyasystemadministrator.Itenablestheadministratortoaccessanystorage
driveinasystemlikeamasterkey.Theadministratorsetsthemasterpassword;thenassignauser
passwordforeachcomputerinthenetwork.Theusercanthenchangetheuserpasswordasdesired,but
theadministratorstillcangetaccessbyusingthemasterpassword.

Whenamasterharddiskpasswordisset,onlytheadministratorcanremovetheuserharddiskpassword.

Settingaharddiskpassword

Beforeyoustart,printtheseinstructions.

Tosetaharddiskpassword,dothefollowing:

1.Restartthecomputer.Whenthelogoscreenisdisplayed,pressF1tostarttheThinkPadSetupprogram.

2.SelectSecurity➙Password➙HardDisk1Passwordbyusingthedirectionalkeys.

3.Apasswordwindowisdisplayed.YouarepromptedtoselectUserorUser+Master.SelectUserif
youwanttosetonlyoneharddiskpassword.SelectUser+Masterifyouwanttosetauserharddisk
passwordandamasterharddiskpassword,forexampleifyouareanadministratororasupervisor.

•IfyouselectUser,dothefollowing:

a.Whenawindowfortypingthenewpasswordopens,typeyournewpasswordintheEnterNew

PasswordfieldandpressEnter.

b.IntheConfirmNewPasswordfield,retypethepasswordyoujustenteredandpressEnter.

•IfyouselectUser+Master,dothefollowing:

a.First,setauserharddiskpassword.Whenamessagewindowpromptsyoutosettheuserhard

diskpassword,pressEntertocontinue.TypeyournewuserharddiskpasswordintheEnter
NewPasswordfieldandpressEnter.RetypethepasswordintheConfirmNewPassword
fieldandpressEnter.

b.Then,setamasterharddiskpassword.Whenamessagewindowpromptsyoutosetthemaster

harddiskpassword.PressEntertocontinue.T ypeyournewmasterharddiskpasswordinthe
EnterNewPasswordfieldandpressEnter.RetypethepasswordintheConfirmNewPassword
fieldandpressEnter.

4.ASetupNoticewindowisdisplayed.PressEntertocontinue.

5.PressF10.ASetupConfirmationwindowisdisplayed.SelectY estosavetheconfigurationchanges
andexit.

Thenexttimeyouturnonyourcomputer,typetheuserormasterharddiskpasswordtostartyourcomputer
andaccesstheoperatingsystem.

Changingorremovingaharddiskpassword

Tochangeorremovetheharddiskpassword,dothefollowing:

•IfyouareinUser+Masterharddiskmode,youcanselecteitherUserHDPorMasterHDPtochange
thepassword,dependingonyourneeds.

–IfyouselectUserHDPmode,followthefollowingstepstochangetheuserharddiskpassword:

1.TypethecurrentuserharddiskpasswordintheEnterCurrentPasswordfieldandpressEnter.

2.TypethenewpasswordintheEnterNewPasswordfieldandpressEnter;thenretypethe
passwordintheConfirmNewPasswordfieldandpressEnter.

3.ASetupNoticewindowisdisplayed.PressEnteragaintocontinue.Theuserharddiskpassword
ischanged.

Note:TheharddiskpasswordcannotberemovedinUserHDPmode.

62ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

–IfyouselectMasterHDPmode,followthefollowingstepstochangethemasterharddiskpassword:

1.TypethecurrentmasterharddiskpasswordintheEnterCurrentPasswordfieldandpressEnter.

2.TypethenewmasterharddiskpasswordintheEnterNewPasswordfieldandpressEnter;then
retypethenewpasswordyoujustenteredintheConfirmNewPasswordfieldandpressEnter.

3.ASetupNoticewindowisdisplayed.PressEntertocontinue.Themasterharddiskpasswordis
changed.

Note:IfyouleavetheEnterNewPasswordandConfirmNewPasswordfieldsblankandpressEnter
twice,boththeuserandmasterharddiskpasswordsareremoved.

•IfyouareinUserharddiskmode,followthefollowingstepstochangetheuserharddiskpassword:

1.Followsteps1through7in“Settingaharddiskpassword”onpage62,typingyourpasswordtoget
accesstotheThinkPadSetupprogram.

2.TypethecurrentuserharddiskpasswordintheEnterCurrentPasswordfieldandpressEnter.

3.TypethenewpasswordintheEnterNewPasswordfieldandpressEnter;thenretypethenew
passwordintheConfirmNewPasswordfieldandpressEnter.

4.ASetupNoticewindowisdisplayed.PressEnteragaintocontinue.Theuserharddiskpasswordis
changed.

Note:IfyouleavetheEnterNewPasswordandConfirmNewPasswordfieldsblankandpressEnter
twice,theuserharddiskpasswordisremoved.

Tipsonusingtheharddiskpasswords

•Y oucansettheminimumlengthofaharddiskpasswordthroughtheSecuritymenu.

•Ifyousetaharddiskpasswordofoversevencharacters,thestoragedrivecanbeusedonlywitha
computerthatcanrecognizeaharddiskpasswordofoversevencharacters.Ifyoutheninstallthe
storagedriveinacomputerthatcannotrecognizeaharddiskpasswordthatcontainsmorethanseven
characters,youcannotaccessthedrive.

•Recordyourpasswordandstoreitinasafeplace.Ifyouforgettheuserharddiskpassword,orbothuser
andmasterharddiskpasswords,Lenovocannotresetyourpasswordsorrecoverdatafromthestorage
drive.Y oumusttakeyourcomputertoaLenovoreselleroramarketingrepresentativetohavethestorage
drivereplaced.Proofofpurchaseisrequired,andafeewillbechargedforpartsandservice.

Notes:TheeDrivestoragedrivesorTrustedComputingGroup(TCG)Opal-compliantstoragedrivesprovide
self-encryptioncapabilitiestosecureyourdata.

•IfaTCGOpal-compliantstoragedriveandaTCGOpalmanagementsoftwareprogramareinstalled,and
theTCGOpalmanagementsoftwareprogramisactivated,theharddiskpasswordisnotavailable.

•IfaneDrivestoragedriveisinstalledinyourcomputer,andyourcomputerispreinstalledwiththe
Windows8.1orWindows10operatingsystem,theharddiskpasswordisnotavailable.

Harddisksecurity

Toprotectpasswordsfromunauthorizedsecurityattacks,refertothefollowingtipstomaximizesecurity:

•Setapower-onpasswordaswellasaharddiskpasswordforyourinternalstoragedrive.Refertothe
proceduresin“Power-onpassword”onpage59
alongerpasswordisrecommended.

•T oprovidereliablesecurityfortheUEFIBIOS,usethesecuritychipandasecurityapplicationwitha
TrustedPlatformModulemanagementfeature.Referto“Settingthesecuritychip”onpage64

Note:Dependingonthemodel,yourcomputermightsupporttheTPMmanagementfeature.

and“Harddiskpasswords”onpage61.Forsecurity,

.

Chapter5.Security63

•IfaDiskEncryptionstoragedriveisinstalledinyourcomputer,besuretoprotectthecontentsofyour
computermemoryfromunauthorizedaccessbyuseofdriveencryptionsoftware,suchasMicrosoft
WindowsBitLocker

•Beforeyoudisposeof,sell,orhandoveryourcomputer,deletethedatastoredonit.Formoreinformation,
referto“Noticeondeletingdatafromyourstoragedrive”onpage68.

TheharddiskdriveorhybriddrivebuiltintoyourcomputercanbeprotectedbyUEFIBIOS.

UsingWindowsBitLockerDriveEncryption

Tohelpprotectyourcomputeragainstunauthorizedaccess,usethedriveencryptionsoftware,suchas
WindowsBitLockerDriveEncryption.

WindowsBitLockerDriveEncryptionisanintegralsecurityfeatureofsomeeditionsoftheWindows
operatingsystem.Itcanhelpyouprotecttheoperatingsystemanddatastoredonyourcomputer,even
ifyourcomputerislostorstolen.BitLockerworksbyencryptingalluserandsystemfiles,includingthe
swapandhibernationfiles.

BitLockerusesaTrustedPlatformModuletoprovideenhancedprotectionforyourdataandtoensureearly
bootcomponentintegrity.AcompatibleTPMisdefinedasaV1.2TPM.

TochecktheBitLockerstatus,gotoControlPanel,andclickSystemandSecurity➙BitLockerDrive
Encryption.

FormoreinformationaboutWindowsBitLockerDriveEncryption,seethehelpinformationsystemofthe
Windowsoperatingsystem,orsearchfor“MicrosoftWindowsBitLockerDriveEncryptionStep-by-Step
Guide”ontheMicrosoftWebsite.

®

DriveEncryption.See“UsingWindowsBitLockerDriveEncryption”onpage64

.

DiskEncryptionharddiskdrive,Encryptionsolid-statedrive,andEncryptionhybriddrive

SomemodelscontaintheDiskEncryptionharddiskdrive,Encryptionsolid-statedrive,orEncryptionhybrid
drive.Thisfeaturehelpstoprotectyourcomputeragainstsecurityattacksonmedia,NANDflash,ordevice
controllersbyuseofahardwareencryptionchip.Fortheefficientuseoftheencryptionfeature,seta
harddiskpasswordfortheinternalstoragedevice.

Settingthesecuritychip

Strictsecurityrequirementsareimposedonnetworkclientcomputersthattransferconfidentialinformation
electronically.Dependingontheoptionsyouordered,yourcomputermighthaveanembeddedsecurity
chip,acryptographicmicroprocessor.Withthesecuritychip,youcandothefollowing:

•Protectyourdataandsystem

•Strengthenaccesscontrols

•Securecommunications

Beforeyoustart,printtheseinstructions.

TosetanitemontheSecurityChipsubmenu,dothefollowing:

1.Turnoffyourcomputer.Waitforaboutfiveseconds,andthenturnonyourcomputeragain.

2.Whenthelogoscreenisdisplayed,pressF1tostarttheThinkPadSetupprogram.

3.SelectSecurity➙SecurityChipbyusingthedirectionalkeys.

4.PressEnter.TheSecurityChipsubmenuopens.

5.Movetoanitemyouwanttosetbyusingthedirectionalkeys.Whentheitemishighlighted,pressEnter.

64ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

6.Setotheritemsthatyouwanttoset.

7.PressF10.ASetupConfirmationwindowisdisplayed.SelectY estosavetheconfigurationchanges
andexit.

Notes:

•EnsurethatthesupervisorpasswordhasbeensetinThinkPadSetup.Otherwiseanyonecanchangethe
settingsforthesecuritychip.

•Ifthesecuritychipisinactiveordisabled,theClearSecurityChipoptionwillnotbedisplayed.

•Whenyouclearthesecuritychip,turnoffyourcomputerandthenturnitonagainafteryousetthe
securitychiptoActive.Otherwise,theClearSecurityChipoptionisnotdisplayed.

Usingthefingerprintreader

Dependingonthemodel,yourcomputermighthaveafingerprintreader.Fingerprintauthenticationcan
replaceyourpasswords,suchastheWindowspassword,power-onpassword,andharddiskpassword.In
thisway,youcanlogintoyourcomputersimplyandsecurely.

Toenablefingerprintauthentication,enrollyourfingerprintsfirst.Duringtheenrollment,thefingerprintsare
associatedwiththeWindowspasswordautomatically.Toassociateyourfingerprintswithyourpower-on
passwordandharddiskpassword,manuallycreateaconnection.

Enrollingyourfingerprints

Toenrollyourfingerprints,dothefollowing:

•ForWindows7andWindows8.1

1.StarttheFingerprintManagerProprogram.ForinstructionsonhowtostarttheFingerprintManager
Proprogram,see“Lenovoprograms”onpage13.

2.EntertheWindowspasswordasrequired.

3.Clicktheiconforthefingerthatyouwanttoenroll,andconstantlyswipeyourcorrespondingfinger
acrossthefingerprintreaderuntiltheenrollmentcompletes.

4.ClickFinish.Yourfingerprintisenrolledsuccessfully.

Formoreinformationonhowtousethefingerprintreader,refertothehelpsystemoftheFingerprint
ManagerProprogram.

•ForWindows10

1.OpentheStartmenuandclickSettings.IfSettingsisnotdisplayed,clickAllappstodisplayall
programs.ThenclickSettings➙Accounts➙Sign-inoptions.

2.Followtheinstructionsonthescreentofinishtheenrollment.

Note:Itisrecommendedthatyouenrollmorethanonefingerprintincaseofanyinjuriestoyourfingers.

Swipingyourfingeroverthefingerprintreader

Toswipeyourfingeroverthereader,dothefollowing:

Note:Yourcomputermightlookdifferentfromthefollowingillustrations.

Chapter5.Security65

1.Placethetopjointofyourfingeronthesensor.

2.Applylightpressureandswipeyourfingertowardyouacrossthereaderinonesmoothmotion.Donot
liftyourfingerwhenyouareswipingit.

66ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Indicatorbehaviorofthefingerprintreader

IndicatorbehaviorDescription

Green

Amber

Thefingerprintreaderisreadyforswiping.

Thefingerprintcannotbeauthenticated.

Associatingyourfingerprintswithyourpower-onpasswordandharddiskpassword

Toassociateyourfingerprintswithyourpower-onpasswordandharddiskpassword,dothefollowing:

1.Turnoffandthenturnonthecomputer.

2.Whenprompted,swipeyourfingeroverthefingerprintreader.

3.Enteryourpower-onpassword,harddiskpassword,orbothasrequired.Theconnectioniscreated.

Whenyoustartthecomputeragain,youcanuseyourfingerprintstologintothecomputerwithnoneedto
enteryourWindowspassword,power-onpassword,andharddiskpassword.

Attention:Ifyoualwaysuseyourfingerprinttologintothecomputer,youmightforgetyourpasswords.
Writedownyourpasswords,andkeeptheminasafeplace.Ifyouforgetyourpower-onpassword,youmust
takeyourcomputertoaLenovoauthorizedserviceroramarketingrepresentativetohavethepassword
canceled.Ifyouforgetyourharddiskpassword,Lenovocannotresetyourpasswordorrecoverdatafrom
thestoragedrive.Y oumusttakeyourcomputertoaLenovoauthorizedserviceroramarketingrepresentative
tohavethedrivereplaced.Proofofpurchaseisrequired,andafeewillbechargedforpartsandservice.

Settingthefingerprintreader

YoucansetthefingerprintreaderintheFingerprintManagerProprogram.Y oualsocanchangesome
advancedsettingsintheThinkPadSetupprogram.

TochangethesettingsintheFingerprintManagerProprogram,clickSettingsontheprogrammaininterface.
TochangethesettingsintheThinkPadSetupprogram,see“UsingtheThinkPadSetupprogram”onpage73

YoucansetthefollowingconfigurationsintheThinkPadSetupprogram:

•PredesktopAuthentication:Enablesordisablesfingerprintauthenticationbeforetheoperatingsystem
isloaded.

•ReaderPriority:Definesthepriorityforthefingerprintreadersifanexternalfingerprintreaderisattached.

•SecurityMode:Specifiesthesettingsofthesecuritymode.

.

Chapter5.Security67

•PasswordAuthentication:Enablesordisablesthepasswordauthentication.

Note:ThisitemisdisplayedonlyifHighsecuritymodeisenabled.

•ResetFingerprintData:Selectthisitemtoeraseallofthefingerprintdatastoredineithertheinternal
orexternalfingerprintreader.

Maintainingthefingerprintreader

Thefollowingactionscoulddamagethefingerprintreaderorcauseitnottoworkproperly:

•Scratchingthesurfaceofthereaderwithahard,pointedobject.

•Scrapingthesurfaceofthereaderwithyourfingernailoranythinghard.

•Usingortouchingthereaderwithadirtyfinger.

Ifyounoticeanyofthefollowingconditions,gentlycleanthesurfaceofthereaderwithadry,soft,lint-free
cloth:

•Thesurfaceofthereaderisdirtyorstained.

•Thesurfaceofthereaderiswet.

•Thereaderoftenfailstoenrollorauthenticateyourfingerprint.

Ifyourfingerhasanyofthefollowingconditions,youmightnotbeabletoregisterorauthenticateit:

•Y ourfingeriswrinkled.

•Y ourfingerisrough,dry,orinjured.

•Y ourfingerisdry.

•Y ourfingerisstainedwithdirt,mud,oroil.

•Thesurfaceofyourfingerisdifferentfromwhenyouenrolledyourfingerprint.

•Y ourfingeriswet.

•Afingerisusedthathasnotbeenenrolled.

Toimprovethesituation,trythefollowing:

•Cleanorwipeyourhandstoremoveanyexcessdirtormoisturefromthefingers.

•Enrollanduseadifferentfingerforauthentication.

•Ifyourhandsaredry,applylotiontothem.

Noticeondeletingdatafromyourstoragedrive

Someofthedatastoredonthestoragedrivemightbesensitive.Handingyourcomputerovertosomeone
elsewithoutdeletingtheloadedsoftware,suchasoperatingsystemsandapplicationsoftware,mighteven
violatelicenseagreements.Besuretodeletedatastoredonthestoragedrivebeforeyoudisposeof,sell,
orhandoveryourcomputer.

Youcanusethefollowingmethodstodeletedatafromthestoragedrive:

•MovethedatatotheRecycleBin,andthenemptytheRecycleBin.

•Deletethedata.

•Formatyourstoragedrive,usingthesoftwareforinitializingit.

•UsetherecoveryprogramprovidedbyLenovotobringthestoragedrivebacktothefactorydefault
settings.

68ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Theseoperations,however,onlychangethefilelocationofthedata;theydonotdeletethedataitself.In
otherwords,thedataretrievalprocessingisdisabledunderanoperatingsystemsuchasWindows.The
dataisstillthere,eventhoughitseemstobelost.Thus,itissometimespossibletoreadthedatabyuseof
specialsoftwarefordatarecovery.Thereisariskthatpeopleofbadfaithmightreadandmisusethecritical
dataonstoragedrivesforunexpectedpurposes.

Topreventleakageofdata,itisimportantthatyoudeleteallthedatafromtheharddiskdriveorhybriddrive
whenyoudisposeof,sell,orhandoveryourcomputer.Youcandestroythedataphysicallybysmashingthe
harddiskdriveorhybriddrivewithahammer,ormagneticallybymeansofstrongmagneticpower,thus
makingthedataunreadable.Butitisrecommendedthatyouusethesoftware(payware)orservice(pay
service)developedforthatpurpose.Theprocessmighttakeseveralhours.

Fordisposingofdataonthesolid-statedrive,LenovoprovidestheDriveEraseUtilityforResettingthe
CryptographicKeyandErasingtheSolidStateDrivetool.Fordisposingofdataontheharddiskdriveor
hybriddrive,LenovoprovidestheSecureDataDisposal™tool.Gotohttp://www.lenovo.com/support
todownloadthetool.

IfaDiskEncryptionharddiskdrive,Encryptionsolid-statedrive,orEncryptionhybriddriveissupportedand
installedinyourcomputer,youcanlogicallydisposeofallthedataonthedriveinashorttimebyerasingthe
cryptographickey.Thedataencryptedwiththeoldkeyisnotphysicallyerasedbutremainsonthedrive;
however,itcannotbedecryptedwithouttheoldkey.ThisfeatureisalsoavailablewiththeDriveEraseUtility
forResettingtheCryptographicKeyandErasingtheSolidStateDrivetool.

Usingfirewalls

Ifyoursystemispreinstalledwithafirewallprogram,itprotectsagainstcomputerInternetsecuritythreats,
unauthorizedaccess,intrusions,andInternetattacks.Italsoprotectsyourprivacy.

Formoreinformationabouthowtousethefirewallprogram,refertothehelpinformationsystemthat
comeswiththeprogram.

Protectingdataagainstviruses

Yourcomputerispreinstalledwithanantivirusprogramsoyoucandetectandeliminateviruses.The
antivirusprogramisdesignedtohelpyoudetectandeliminateviruses.

Lenovoprovidesafullversionofantivirussoftwareonyourcomputerwithafree30-daysubscription.After
30days,youmustrenewthelicensetocontinuereceivingtheantivirussoftwareupdates.

Formoreinformationabouthowtouseyourantivirussoftware,refertothehelpinformationsystemof
yourantivirussoftware.

Chapter5.Security69

70ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Chapter6.Advancedconfiguration

Thischapterprovidesthefollowinginformationtohelpyouconfigurethecomputer:

•“Installinganewoperatingsystem”onpage71

•“Installingdevicedrivers”onpage73

•“UsingtheThinkPadSetupprogram”onpage73

Installinganewoperatingsystem

Insomesituations,youmightneedtoinstallanewoperatingsystem.Thistopicprovidesinstructionson
howtoinstallanewoperatingsystem.

InstallingtheWindows7operatingsystem

Beforeyoustart,printtheseinstructions.

Attention:

•Theprocessofinstallinganewoperatingsystemdeletesallthedataonyourstoragedrive,includingthe
datathatwerestoredinahiddenfolder.

•IfyourcomputerisequippedwithbothastoragedriveandanM.2solid-statedrive,donotusetheM.2
solid-statedriveasabootabledevice.TheM.2solid-statedriveisusedfor“cache”functiononly.

ToinstalltheWindows7operatingsystem,dothefollowing:

1.CopyallthesubdirectoriesandfilesintheC:\SWTOOL Sdirectorytoaremovablestoragedevice.

•ThesupplementfilesfortheWindows7operatingsystemareintheC:\SWTOOLS\OSFIXESdirectory.

•ThedevicedriversareintheC:\SWTOOLS\DRIVERSdirectory.

•ThepreinstalledprogramsareintheC:\SWTOOLS\APPSdirectory.

2.StarttheThinkPadSetupprogram.See“UsingtheThinkPadSetupprogram”onpage73.

3.SelectStartup➙BoottodisplaytheBootPriorityOrdersubmenu.

4.Selectthedrivethatcontainstheoperatingsysteminstallationprogram,forexample,USBHDD.
ThenpressEsc.

5.SelectStartup➙UEFI/LegacyBoot.Thendooneofthefollowing:

•T oinstalltheWindows7(32-bit)operatingsystem,selectLegacyOnlyorBoth.

•T oinstalltheWindows7(64-bit)operatingsysteminLegacymode,selectLegacyOnly.

•T oinstalltheWindows7(64-bit)operatingsysteminUEFImode,selectUEFIOnly.

6.PresstheF10keytoexittheThinkPadSetupprogram.

7.ConnecttheexternalDVDdrivetothecomputerandinserttheWindows7operatingsysteminstallation
DVDintothedrive,andrestartthecomputer.

8.RestoretheC:\SWTOOLSdirectorythatyoubackedupbeforeinstallingtheWindows7operatingsystem.

9.Installthedevicedrivers.See“Installingdevicedrivers”onpage73.

10.InstalltheWindows7fixmodules.YoucanfindtheWindows7fixmodulesintheC:\SWTOOL S\OSFIXES\
directory.Formoreinformation,gototheMicrosoftKnowledgeBasehomepageat:
http://support.microsoft.com/

©CopyrightLenovo2015,2016

71

11.Installtheregistrypatches,forexampletheEnablingWakeonLANfromStandbyforENERGYSTAR
patch.T odownloadandinstalltheregistrypatches,gototheLenovoSupportWebsiteat:
http://www.lenovo.com/support

Note:Afterinstallingtheoperatingsystem,donotchangetheinitialUEFI/LegacyBootsettinginthe
ThinkPadSetupprogram.Otherwisetheoperatingsystemwillnotstartcorrectly.

WhenyouinstalltheWindows7operatingsystem,youmightneedoneofthefollowingcountryorregion
codes:

CountryorregionCodeCountryorregionCode

ChinaSC

DenmarkDKNorway

FinlandFI

FranceFR

GermanyGR

ItalyIT

JapanJP

NetherlandsNL

SpainSP

SwedenSV

TaiwanandHongKong

UnitedStatesUS

NO

TC

InstallingtheWindows8.1orWindows10operatingsystem

Beforeyoustart,printtheseinstructions.

Attention:

•Theprocessofinstallinganewoperatingsystemdeletesallthedataonyourinternalstoragedrive,
includingthedatathatwerestoredinahiddenfolder.

•IfyourcomputerisequippedwithbothaharddiskdriveandanM.2solid-statedrive,donotusethe
M.2solid-statedriveasabootabledevice.TheM.2solid-statedriveisusedfor“cache”functionandto
supporttheIntelRapidStartTechnology.

ToinstalltheWindows8.1orWindows10operatingsystem,dothefollowing:

1.Connectthedrivethatcontainstheoperatingsysteminstallationprogramtothecomputer.

2.StarttheThinkPadSetupprogram.See“UsingtheThinkPadSetupprogram”onpage73.

3.SelectStartup➙BoottodisplaytheBootPriorityOrdersubmenu.

4.Selectthedrivethatcontainstheoperatingsysteminstallationprogram,forexample,USBHDD.
ThenpressEsc.

5.SelectRestartandensurethatOSOptimizedDefaultsisenabled.ThenpressF10tosavethesettings
andexittheThinkPadSetupprogram.

6.Followtheon-screeninstructionstoinstallthedevicedriversandnecessaryprograms.See“Installing
devicedrivers”onpage73

.

7.Afterinstallingthedevicedrivers,applyWindowsUpdatetogetthelatestmodules,forexamplethe
securitypatches.

8.Dependingonyourpreference,installLenovoprograms.ForinformationaboutLenovoprograms,
see“Lenovoprograms”onpage13.

Note:Afterinstallingtheoperatingsystem,donotchangetheinitialUEFI/LegacyBootsettinginthe
ThinkPadSetupprogram.Otherwise,theoperatingsystemwillnotstartcorrectly.

72ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

WhenyouinstalltheWindows8.1orWindows10operatingsystem,youmightneedoneofthefollowing
countryorregioncodes:

CountryorregionCodeCountryorregionCode

ChinaSC

DenmarkDKNorway

FinlandFI

FranceFR

GermanyGR

ItalyIT

JapanJP

NetherlandsNL

SpainSP

SwedenSV

TaiwanandHongKong

UnitedStatesUS

NO

TC

Installingdevicedrivers

Devicedriveristheprogramthatoperatesaparticularhardwaredeviceofthecomputer.Ifadevicedoes
notperformwelloryouinstallanewdevice,youneedtoinstallorupdatethecorrespondingdevicedriver.
Forexample,ifyouusetheWindows7operatingsystem,tousetheUSB3.0connector,youneedto
downloadandinstalltheUSB3.0driver.

Todownloadthelatestdevicedrivers,dothefollowing:

1.Gotohttp://www.lenovo.com/ThinkPadDrivers.

2.Selectyourproductnametoviewallthedevicedriversforyourcomputer.

3.Selectthedevicedriversyouthatyouneed,andfollowtheinstructionsonthescreen.

Attention:DonotdownloadthedevicedriversfromtheWindowsUpdateWeb.Alwaysdownloadthedevice
driversfrom:
http://www.lenovo.com/ThinkPadDrivers

IfyouusetheWindows7operatingsystem,youalsocanfindthedevicedriversintheC:\SWTOOLS\DRIVERS
directoryonyourstoragedrive.Formoreinformation,see“Reinstallingpreinstalledprogramsanddevice
drivers”onpage119

.

UsingtheThinkPadSetupprogram

TheThinkPadSetupprogramenablesyoutoselectvarioussetupconfigurationsforyourcomputerthrough
configuringtheBIOS.

ToconfiguretheBIOSofyourcomputer,dothefollowing:

1.Restartthecomputer.Whenthelogoscreenisdisplayed,pressF1.TheThinkPadSetupprogramstarts.
Ifyouarerequiredtoenterthesupervisorpassword,enterthecorrectpassword.Youalsocanpress

EntertoskipthepasswordpromptandstarttheThinkPadSetupprogram.Ifyoudonotenterthe
password,youcannotchangetheconfigurationsthatareprotectedbythesupervisorpassword.For
moreinformation,referto“Usingpasswords”onpage59.

2.Usethecursorkeystoselectatab;orusethecursorkeystolocateanitemandpressEntertoselectit.
Thenasubmenuisdisplayed.

Note:Somemenuitemsaredisplayedonlyifthecomputersupportsthecorrespondingfeatures.

3.Setthevalueofanitembydoingoneofthefollowing:

•PresstheF6keytochangetoahighervalue.

Chapter6.Advancedconfiguration73

•PresstheF5keytochangetoalowervalue.

Note:Defaultvaluesareinboldface.

4.Tochangeotherconfigurations,presstheEsckeytoexitthesubmenuandreturntotheparentmenu.

5.Whenyoucompletetheconfiguration,presstheF10keytosaveandexit.Youalsocanselectthe

RestarttabintheThinkPadSetupmenu,andrestartyourcomputerwithoneoftheprovidedoptions.

Note:YoucanpresstheF9keytorestoretothedefaultsettings.

Mainmenu

WhenyouentertheThinkPadSetupprogram,theMainmenuisdisplayedwiththefollowinginformation:

•UEFIBIOSVersion

•UEFIBIOSDate

•EmbeddedControllerVersion

•MEFirmwareVersion

•MachineTypeModel

•System-unitserialnumber

•Systemboardserialnumber

•AssetTag

•CPUType

•CPUSpeed

•InstalledMemory

•UUID

•MACAddress(InternalLAN)

•Preinstalledoperatingsystemlicense

•UEFISecureBoot

•OA3ID

•OA2

Configmenu

Tochangetheconfigurationofyourcomputer,selecttheConfigtabfromtheThinkPadSetupmenu.

ThefollowingtableliststheConfigmenuitems.Defaultvaluesareinboldface.Themenuitemsmight
changewithoutnotice.Dependingonthemodel,thedefaultvaluemightvary.

Attention:Thedefaultconfigurationsarealreadyoptimizedforyou.Improperchangeoftheconfigurations
mightcauseunexpectedresults.

74ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Table2.Configmenuitems

Menuitem

Network

Submenuitem

WakeOnLAN

EthernetLANOptionROM
(forLegacyOnlyboot
modeorBothwithLegacy
first)

UEFIIPv4NetworkStack
(forUEFIOnlybootmode
orBothwithUEFIfirst)

UEFIIPv6NetworkStack

(forUEFIOnlybootmode
orBothwithUEFIfirst)

UEFIPXEBootPriority

(forUEFIOnlybootmode
orBothwithUEFIfirstfor
bootcapabilityandIPv6
andIPv4stacksareboth
enabled.)

Value

•Disabled

•AConly

•ACandBattery

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•IPv6First

•IPv4First

Comments

Enablethecomputerto
poweronwhentheEthernet
controllerreceivesamagic
packet(aspecialnetwork
message).

IfyouselectACOnly,Wake
onLANisenabledonly
whentheacpoweradapter
isattached.

IfyouselectACand
Battery,WakeonLANis
enabledwithanypower
sources.

Notes:

•Themagicpackettype
WakeonLANrequires
acpower.

•TheWakeonLAN
functiondoesnot
workwhenaharddisk
passwordisset.

LoadtheEthernetLAN
OptionROMtoenable
startupfromanintegrated
networkdevice.

EnableordisableInternet
ProtocolVersion4(IPv4)
networkstackforUEFI
environment.

EnableordisableInternet
ProtocolVersion6(IPv6)
networkstackforUEFI
environment.

Selectnetworkstack
priorityforUEFIPXEboot.

Chapter6.Advancedconfiguration75

Table2.Configmenuitems(continued)

Menuitem

USB

Submenuitem

USBUEFIBIOSSupport

AlwaysOnUSB

–ChargeinBatteryMode

USB3.0Mode

Value

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Auto

Comments

Enableordisableboot
supportforUSBstorage
devices.

IfyouselectEnabled,the
externalUSBdevicescan
bechargedthroughUSB
connectorsevenwhenthe
computerisinlow-power
mode(sleep,hibernate,or
power-off).

Note:IfyouselectEnabled,
USBwakeupfunctionis
notsupportedonAlways
OnUSBconnector.

IfyouselectEnabled,the
externalUSBdevicescan
bechargedthroughUSB
connectorsevenwhen
systemisinhibernation
orpower-offmodeandin
batterymode.

SettheUSB3.0controller
modefortheportsshared
betweenUSB2.0andUSB

3.0controllers.

IfyouselectAuto,itenables
youtoconnectandroute
appropriateUSB3.0or
USB2.0connectors.

IfyouselectEnabled,it
enablesUSB3.0mode
andallowsUSB3.0tobe
supportedintheoperating
system.

IfyouselectDisabled,it
disablesandhidestheUSB

3.0controller,andUSB3.0
connectorswillworkas
USB2.0connectors.

Keyboard/Mouse

TrackPoint•Disabled

•Enabled

Enableordisablethe
built-inTrackPointpointing
device.

Note:Ifyouwanttouse
anexternalmouse,select

Disabled.

76ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Table2.Configmenuitems(continued)

Menuitem

Submenuitem

Trackpad•Disabled

FnandCtrlKeyswap

F1–F12asprimaryfunction

Value

Comments

Enableordisablethe

•Enabled

built-intrackpad.

Note:Ifyouwanttouse
anexternalmouse,select
Disabled.

•Disabled

•Enabled

EnableexchangesofFn
andCtrlkeyactionatthe
bottom-leftofthekeyboard.

Disabled:FnkeyandCtrl
keybehaviorisasprinted
onthekeyboard.

Enabled:Fnkeyworksas
Ctrlkey.Ctrlkeyworksas
Fnkey.

•Disabled

•Enabled

EnabletheF1-F12function
orthespecialfunction
printedasanicononeach
keyastheprimaryfunction.

Enabled:Executesthe
F1-F12function.

FnStickykey

Disabled:Executesthe
specialfunction.

Totemporarilyswitchthe
abovetwooptions,press
Fn+EsctoenableFnLock.
TheFnLockindicatorison
whenFnLockisenabled.

•Disabled

•Enabled

Whentheoptionisenabled,
youcanpresstheFnkey
tokeepitinapressed
condition;thenpressthe
desiredfunctionkey.The
actionisequivalentto
pressingtherequiredkey
simultaneouslywiththeFn
key.Whenyoupressthe
Fnkeytwice,thestateis
lockeduntilyoupressthe
Fnkeyagain.

Chapter6.Advancedconfiguration77

Table2.Configmenuitems(continued)

Menuitem

Display

Power

Submenuitem

BootDisplayDevice

TotalGraphicsMemory

BootTimeExtension•Disabled

IntelSpeedStep

®

technology

(IntelSpeedStepmounted
modelsonly)

AdaptiveThermal
Management

Value

•ThinkPadLCD

•Analog(VGA)

•DigitalonThinkPad

•Displayondock

•256MB

•512MB

•1second

•2seconds

•3seconds

•5seconds

•10seconds

•Disabled

•Enabled

ModeforAC

•MaximumPerformance

•BatteryOptimized

ModeforBattery

•MaximumPerformance

•BatteryOptimized

SchemeforAC

•MaximizePerformance

•Balanced

SchemeforBattery

Comments

Selectthedisplaydevice
thatistobeactivatedat
boottime.Thisselection
iseffectiveforboottime,
passwordprompt,and
ThinkPadSetup.

DigitalonThinkPadisthe
MiniDisplayPortonyour
computer.

Displayondockis
DisplayPort,DVIorVGA
connectorsonadocking
station.

Allocatethetotalmemory
whichIntelinternalgraphics
shares.

Note:Ifyouselect512
MB,themaximumusable

memorymightbereduced
on32–bitoperatingsystem.

Thisoptiondefinesthe
amountoftimetoextend
thebootprocess,in
seconds.

Thesystemcannotdetect
someexternalmonitors
duringbootbecausethe
externalmonitorsmight
needafewsecondstobe
ready.Trythisoptionifthe
externalmonitorbeingused
doesnotdisplaytheboot
screen.

SelectthemodeofIntel
SpeedSteptechnologyat
runtime.

MaximumPerformance:

Alwayshighestspeed.

BatteryOptimized:Always
lowestspeed.

Disabled:Noruntime
support,highestspeed.

Selectathermal
managementscheme
touse.

MaximizePerformance:

Reducemicroprocessor
throttling.

78ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Table2.Configmenuitems(continued)

Menuitem

Submenuitem

Value

Comments

CPUPowerManagement

PowerOnwithACAttach

•MaximizePerformance

•Balanced

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

Balanced:Balance
sound,temperature,and
performance.

Note:Eachschemeaffects
fansound,temperature,
andperformance.

Enableordisablethe
power-savingfeaturethat
stopsthemicroprocessor
clockautomaticallywhen
therearenosystem
activities.Normally,it
isnotnecessarytochange
thesetting.

Enableordisableafeature
thatpowersonthesystem
whentheacpoweradapter
isattached.

IfyouselectEnabled,the
systemispoweredonwhen
theacpoweradapteris
attached.Whenthesystem
isinhibernatestate,the
systemresumes.

IntelRapidStart
Technology

DisableBuilt-inBattery•Y es

•Disabled

•Enabled

Enterafter:

•Immediately

•1minute

•2minutes

•5minutes

•10minutes

•15minutes

•30minutes

•1hour

•2hours

•3hours

•No

IfyouselectDisabled,the
systemisnotpoweredon
norresumedwhentheac
poweradapterisattached.

Tousethisfeature,aspecial
partitiononthesolid-state
driveisrequired.

Whenenabled,the
computerentersalower
powerstateafterthe
specifiedtimeinsleep
state.Andittakesonly
secondstoresumenormal
operation.

Temporarilydisablethe
internalbuilt-inbatteryfor
servicingthesystem.After
selectingthisitem,the
systemwillbeautomatically
poweredoff.Thesystemis
thenreadytobeserviced.

Chapter6.Advancedconfiguration79

Table2.Configmenuitems(continued)

Menuitem

BeepandAlarm

IntelAMT

Submenuitem

PasswordBeep•Disabled

KeyboardBeep•Enabled

IntelAMTControl

Value

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•PermanentlyDisabled

Comments

Note:Thebatterywillbe

automaticallyre-enabled
whentheacpoweradapter
isreconnectedtothe
system.

Enablethisoptiontohave
abeepsoundwhenthe
systemiswaitingfora
power-on,harddisk,or
supervisorpassword.
Differentbeepswillsound
whentheenteredpassword
matchesordoesnotmatch
theconfiguredpassword.

Enableordisablekeyboard
beepwhenunmanageable
keycombinationsare
pressed.

IfyouselectEnabled,Intel
AMT(ActiveManagement
Technology)isconfigured
andadditionalsetupitems
areprovidedinMEBx
(ManagementEngineBIOS
Extension)Setup.

IfyouselectPermanently
Disabled,youwillneverbe
abletoenableitagain.Be
cautiouswhenyouwantto
usethisoption.

Note:Youcanenterthe
MEBxSetupmenuby
pressingtheCtrl+Pkey
combinationintheStartup
InterruptMenuwindow.To
displaytheStartupInterrupt
Menuwindow,pressthe
blackbuttonorEnter
keyduringthepower-on
self-test(POST).

CIRATimeout

0-255

Note:Thedefaultvalueis
60seconds.

Setthetimeoutoptionfor
CIRAconnectiontobe
established.Selectable
secondvaluesarefrom1to

254.

Ifyouselect0,use60
secondsasthedefault
timeoutvalue.

Ifyouselect255,the
waitingtimeforestablishing
aconnectionisunlimited.

80ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Table2.Configmenuitems(continued)

Menuitem

IntelNFFIntelNFFcontrol•Disabled

Submenuitem

ConsoleT ype•PCANSI

Value

•VT100+

•PC-ANSI

•VT-UTF8

•Enabled

Comments

Selecttheconsoletypefor
AMT.

Note:Thisconsoletype
shouldmatchtheIntelAMT
remoteconsole.

Thisoptionenablesor
disablestheIntelNetwork
FrameForwarder(NFF)
function.

DateandTimemenu

Tochangethedateortimeofyourcomputer,selecttheDate/TimetabfromtheThinkPadSetupmenu.
Thendothefollowing:

1.UsethecursorkeystoselectSystemDateorSystemTime.

2.Typeadateortime.

Securitymenu

Tochangethesecuritysettingsofyourcomputer,selecttheSecuritytabfromtheThinkPadSetupmenu.

ThefollowingtableliststheSecuritymenuitems.Defaultvaluesareinboldface.Themenuitemsmight
changewithoutnotice.Dependingonthemodel,thedefaultvaluemightvary.

Attention:Thedefaultconfigurationsarealreadyoptimizedforyou.Improperchangeoftheconfigurations
mightcauseunexpectedresults.

Table3.Securitymenuitems

Menuitem

Password

Submenuitem

Supervisor
Password

LockUEFIBIOS
Settings

Passwordat
UnattendedBoot

PasswordatRestart•Disabled

Value

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Enabled

Comments

See“Supervisorpassword”onpage60

Enableordisablethefunctionthatprotects
itemsinThinkPadSetupfrombeingchanged
byauserwhodoesnothavethesupervisor
password.Bydefault,thisissettoDisabled.
Ifyousetthesupervisorpasswordandenable
thisfunction,noonebutyoucanchangeany
itemsinThinkPadSetup.

IfyouselectandenablePasswordat
unattendedboot,apasswordpromptis
displayedwhenthecomputeristurnedon,from
eitherapower-offstateorhibernationstate,by
anunattendedeventsuchasaWakeonLAN
attempt.IfyouselectDisabled,nopassword
promptisdisplayed;thecomputergoesahead
andloadstheoperatingsystem.T oprevent
unauthorizedaccess,settheuserauthentication
ontheoperatingsystem.

IfyouselectandenablePasswordatrestart,
apasswordpromptisdisplayedwhenyou
restartthecomputer.IfyouselectDisabled,no

.

Chapter6.Advancedconfiguration81

Table3.Securitymenuitems(continued)

Menuitem

Fingerprint

Submenuitem

PasswordatBoot
DeviceList

PasswordCount
ExceededError

SetMinimumLength

Power-OnPassword

HardDiskx
Password

Predesktop
Authentication

ReaderPriority•External➙

SecurityMode

Password
Authentication

ResetFingerprint
Data

Value

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•xcharacters
(4≤x≤12)

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

Internal

•InternalOnly

•Normal

•High

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Enter

Comments

passwordpromptisdisplayed;thecomputer
goesaheadandloadstheoperatingsystem.
Topreventunauthorizedaccess,settheuser
authenticationontheoperatingsystem.

IftheSecuritypasswordisset,thisoptionis
usedtospecifywhethertheSecuritypassword
mustbeenteredtodisplaytheF12bootdevice
list.

SelectEnabledtopromptfortheSecurity
password.SelectDisabledtoproceedwithout
anyuseractionrequired.

SelectEnabledtoshowthePOST0199error
andpromptfortheSecuritypassword.Select
DisabledtohidethePOST0199errorand
proceedwithoutanyuseractionneeded.

Specifyaminimumlengthforpower-on
passwordsandharddiskpasswords.Ifyou
setthesupervisorpasswordandspecifya
minimumlengthforpasswords,noonebutyou
canchangethelength.

See“Power-onpassword”onpage59.

See“Harddiskpasswords”onpage61

Note:HardDisk1meanstheharddiskdrive
builtintoyourcomputer.

Enableordisablefingerprintauthentication
beforetheoperatingsystemisloaded.

IfExternal➙Internalisselected,anexternal
fingerprintreaderisusedifattached.Otherwise,
aninternalfingerprintreaderisused.IfInternal
Onlyisselected,aninternalfingerprintreader
isused.

Iffingerprintauthenticationfails,youstillcan
startthecomputerbyenteringapassword.If
youhaveselectedNormal,enterapower-on
passwordorasupervisorpassword;ifyouhave
selectedHigh,enterasupervisorpassword.

Enableordisablepasswordauthentication.This
itemisdisplayedonlyifyouhaveselectedHigh
fortheSecurityModeoption.

Thisoptionisusedtoeraseallfingerprintdata
storedinthefingerprintreaderandresetsettings
tothefactorystate.Asaresult,anypower-on
securityfeaturespreviouslyenabledwillnotbe
abletoworkuntiltheyarere-enabledinthe
fingerprintsoftware.

.

82ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide

Table3.Securitymenuitems(continued)

Menuitem

SecurityChip

Submenuitem

SecurityChip
Selection

SecurityChip

SecurityReporting
Options

Value

•DiscreteTPM

•IntelPTT

•Active

•Inactive

•Disabled

(ForDiscreteTPM)

•Enabled

•Disabled

(ForIntelPTT)

Comments

IfyouselectDiscreteTPM,youcanusea
discreteTPMchipwithTPM1.2mode.Ifyou
selectIntelPTT,youcanuseIntelPlatform
Trustedtechnology(PTT)withTPM2.0mode.

IfyouchangefromIntelPTTtoDiscreteTPM,
amessagepopsupwarningthatallencryption
keyswillbeclearedinthesecuritychip.Ifyou
wanttocontinue,selectY es.

IfyouchangefromDiscreteTPMtoIntelPTT,
amessagepopsupwarningthatallencryption
keyswillbeclearedinthesecuritychip,also
IntelAMTandIntelTXTwillbedisabled.Ifyou
wanttocontinue,selectY es.

Note:IntelPTTcanbeusedwithWindows8or
lateroperatingsystem.

IfyouselectActive,thesecuritychipis
functional.IfyouselectInactive,thesecurity
chipisvisible,butitisnotfunctional.Ifyou
selectDisabled,thesecuritychipishiddenand
itisnotfunctional.

Note:ThisitemisdisplayedwhenSecurityChip
SelectionissettoDiscreteTPM.

IfyouselectEnabled,thesecuritychipis
functional.IfyouselectDisabled,thesecurity
chipishiddenanditisnotfunctional.

Note:ThisitemisdisplayedwhenSecurityChip
SelectionissettoIntelPTT.

EnableordisablethefollowingSecurity
ReportingOptions:

•BIOSROMStringReporting:BIOStext
string.

•SMBIOSReporting:SMBIOSdata.

ClearSecurityChip

IntelTXTFeature
*Unselectablewhen
IntelPTTisenabled.

•Enter

•Disabled

•Enabled

CMOSReportingandNVRAMReportingare
alwaysenabledtoenhancesystemsecurity.

Note:

Theseitemsaredisplayedonlyifyouhave
selectedActiveorEnabledfortheSecurity
Chipoption.

Cleartheencryptionkey.

Note:Thisitemisdisplayedonlyifyouhave
selectedActiveorEnabledfortheSecurity
Chipoption.

EnableordisableIntelT rustedExecution
Technology.

Notes:

Chapter6.Advancedconfiguration83

Table3.Securitymenuitems(continued)

Menuitem

UEFIBIOSUpdate
Option

MemoryProtectionExecution

Virtualization

I/OPortAccess

Submenuitem

PhysicalPresence
forProvisioning

PhysicalPresence
forClear

FlashBIOSUpdating
byEnd-Users

SecureRollBack
Prevention

Prevention

IntelVirtualization
Technology

IntelVT-dFeature•Disabled

EthernetLAN•Disabled

WirelessLAN•Disabled

WirelessWAN•Disabled

Bluetooth•Disabled

USBPort

MemoryCardSlot

SmartCardSlot

Value

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Enabled

•Enabled

•Enabled

•Enabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

•Disabled

•Enabled

Comments

•Thisitemisdisplayedonlyifyouhave
selectedActiveorEnabledfortheSecurity
Chipoption.

•ThisissettodisabledwhenIntelPTTis
enabled.

Thisoptionenablesordisablestheconfirmation
messagewhenyouchangethesettingsofthe
securitychip.

Thisoptionenablesordisablestheconfirmation
messagewhenyouclearthesecuritychip.

IfyouselectEnabled,alluserscanupdatethe
UEFIBIOS.IfyouselectDisabled,onlythe
personwhoknowsthesupervisorpasswordcan
updatetheUEFIBIOS.

IfyouselectDisabled,youcanflashtheolder
versionUEFIBIOS.

Somecomputervirusesandwormscause
memorybufferstooverflow.Byselecting
Enabledyoucanprotectyourcomputeragainst
attacksbysuchvirusesandworms.Ifafter
choosingEnabledyoufindthataprogramdoes
notruncorrectly,selectDisabledandresetthe
setting.

IfyouselectEnabled,aVirtualMachineMonitor
(VMM)canutilizetheadditionalhardware
capabilitiesprovidedbyIntelVirtualization
Technology.

IntelVT-dstandsforIntelVirtualization
TechnologyforDirectedI/O.Whenenabled,a
VMMcanutilizetheplatforminfrastructurefor
I/Ovirtualization.

IfyouselectEnabled,youcanusetheEthernet
LANdevice.

IfyouselectEnabled,youcanusethe
Wireless-LANconnection.

IfyouselectEnabled,youcanusethe
wireless-WANdevice.

IfyouselectEnabled,youcanuseBluetooth
devices.

IfyouselectEnabled,youcanusetheUSB
connectors.

IfyouselectEnabled,youcanusethememory
cardslots.

IfyouselectEnabled,youcanusethesmart
cardreaderslot.

84ThinkPadT550andW550sUserGuide