Sony PCG-GR250, PCG-GR250P, PCG-GR270, PCG-GR270K, PCG-GR270P User Guide
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Welcome.......................................................9
Using Your VAIO Notebook......................11
Using the Keyboard...................................................12
Combinations and functions with the Windows key .........14
Indicators ...........................................................................15
Indicator lights...................................................................16
Combinations and functions with the Fn key ....................17
Using the Touchpad ..................................................19
VAIO Action Setup...................................................21
Using the Center Jog Dial Control............................22
Using the center Jog Dial control ......................................22
Launcher mode ..................................................................23
Guide mode........................................................................24
Center Jog Dial back button...............................................24
Using the center Jog Dial control with Sony software ......25
Using the center Jog Dial control with other software ......25
Using the Removable Hard Disk Drive.....................26
Using the Optical Disc Drive ....................................27
To insert a disc...................................................................27
To eject a disc ....................................................................28
To play a DVD...................................................................29
To play an audio CD..........................................................30
Notes on CD and DVD discs .............................................31
To write data to a CD-RW or CD-R disc...........................31
Using PC Cards .........................................................33
To insert a PC Card............................................................33
To remove a PC Card.........................................................34
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Using Memory Stick Media ....................................36
Types of Memory Stick media.......................................... 36
Write-protecting Memory Stick media ............................. 38
Formatting Memory Stick media...................................... 38
Notes on using Memory Stick media................................ 39
Using a Second Battery Pack....... .............................41
To insert a second battery pack......................................... 41
To charge the second battery pack.................................... 42
To remove the second battery pack................................... 43
Using the Weight Saver............................................44
To attach the weight saver ................................................ 44
To remove the weight saver.............................................. 45
Using Power Saving Modes......................................46
Normal mode..................................................................... 46
Standby mode.................................................................... 46
Hibernate mode................................................................. 46
Connecting a Phone Line .........................................48
Connecting to a LAN................................................49
Setting up your Ethernet connection................................. 49
Connecting Peripheral Devices ...............51
Connecting an External Floppy Disk Drive..............52
To connect an external floppy disk drive.......................... 52
To insert a floppy disk ...................................................... 53
To remove a floppy disk ................................................... 53
Removing an external floppy disk drive when the notebook
is on................................................................................... 53
To carry an external floppy disk drive.............................. 54
Handling floppy disks....................................................... 54
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Connecting a Port Replicator ....................................55
To attach your notebook to the port replicator ..................55
To remove your notebook from the port replicator ...........57
Connecting a PS/ 2 External Mouse or Keyboard......59
To connect an external mouse or keyboard .......................59
Connecting an Audio Device ....................................60
Connecting a CD player, active speaker, or an amplifier..60
Connecting an AV Device.........................................62
Connecting a Parallel Port Printer.............................66
To connect a printer ...........................................................66
Connecting a USB Printer.........................................67
To connect a USB printer ..................................................67
Connecting an External Display................................68
To connect a computer display ..........................................68
To connect a multimedia computer display.......................70
To connect a projector .......................................................70
To select a display..............................................................70
Connecting a USB Device.........................................72
To connect a USB device...................................................72
Connecting an i.LINK Device...................................73
To connect a digital video camera recorder.......................74
Connecting with another VAIO co mputer ................76
Connecting External Speakers ..................................77
Before connecting external speakers .................................77
To connect external speakers.............................................77
Connecting an External Microphone.........................78
To connect an external microphone...................................78
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Expanding Your Notebook Capabilities...................79
Personal Digital Assistant................................................. 79
Wireless LAN Access Point.............................................. 79
Wireless LAN PC Card..................................................... 80
Customizing Your VAIO Notebook..........81
Displaying the Sony Notebook Setup Screen...........82
To display the Sony Notebook Setup screen: ................... 82
Sony Notebook Setup tabs................................................ 83
Controlling Power Management...............................84
Viewing the Power Management status icons .................. 84
Power Management profiles ............................................. 85
Power Management commands ........................................ 88
Conserving battery power................................................. 88
Displaying Battery Information................................89
Battery icon descriptions................................................... 89
Displaying detailed battery information ........................... 90
Selecting the Display Mode......................................92
Changing the window design of Sony software................ 94
Adding Memory.........................................95
Precautions and Procedures ......................................96
Typical expansion memory c onfiguration................97
Models with 256 MB Memory.......................................... 97
Removing a memory module....................................98
Installing a memory module ...................................100
Viewing the amount of memory.............................101
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About the Software on Your Notebook .103
Software Overview..................................................104
Application, Driver, and System Recovery CDs.....110
Using Your Recovery CDs......................................111
To use the Application Recovery CD(s)..........................111
To use the Driver Recovery CD(s) ..................................112
To use the System Recovery CD(s).................................115
Troubleshooting......................................117
Troubleshooting Your Notebook ............................118
My notebook does not start..............................................118
My notebook starts but a BIOS error appears..................118
My notebook starts, but the message “Operating system not
found” appears and Windows does not start....................119
My notebook stops responding or does not shut down....120
The power management setting is not responding...........120
The sound of my notebook’s fan is too loud. ..................121
Why does the System Properties dialogbox displaya slower
CPU speed than advertised? ............................................121
Troubleshooting the LCD Screen............................122
My LCD screen is blank. .................................................122
My LCD screen continues to show the previous screen..122
The image on my connected external display is not centered
or sized properly. .............................................................122
I want to change the video resolution of my display. ......122
I cannot switch the LCD display to TV, and vice versa. .122
Troubleshooting the Mouse and Touchpad.............123
My mouse does not work.................................................123
My touchpad does not work properly..............................123
The pointer does not move while using the Touchpad or
Mouse...............................................................................124
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Troubleshooting Drives, PC Cards and Peripheral De-
vices ........................................................................125
My floppy diskdrive (optional) cannotwrite to afloppy disk.
125
My optical disc drive is not playing my CD or DVD proper-
ly...................................................................................... 125
My optical drive tray does not open................................ 126
I cannot use Digital Video (DV) devices. The message “DV
equipment seems to be disconnected or turned off” appears.
126
My PC Card is not working. ........................................... 126
Troubleshooting Software.......................................127
My software program stops responding or crashes......... 127
When I click an application icon, the message “You must insert the application CD into your optical drive” appears and
the software does not start............................................... 127
I cannot use the DVgate™ software. .............................. 127
My computer’s start-up time seems longer after I have in-
stalled AOL. What can I do?........................................... 127
Troubleshooting the Modem...................................128
My modem does not work. ............................................. 128
My modem connection is slow. ...................................... 128
Troubleshooting Audio...........................................129
My speakers make no sound........................................... 129
My microphone does not work. ...................................... 129
Troubleshooting the Printer ....................................130
I cannot print................................................................... 130
Troubleshooting i.LINK devices ............................131
I cannot establish a connection between two VAIO comput-
ers when using an i.LINK cable...................................... 131
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Getting Help.............................................133
Support Options.......................................................134
Software Support Information.................................136
Sony Service Center.........................................................137
Index.........................................................139
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Welcome
Congratulations on your purchase of this Sony VAIO computer, and
welcome to the VAIO User Guide.
This User Guide provides detailed information on all aspects of using
your new VAIO computer, from keyboard functions to preinstalled
software applications.
In the left navigation window, click the topics you want to learn more
about, and that information will be displayed in this main window.
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Using Your VAIO Notebook
This section describes the following aspects of your new computer:
❑ Using the Keyboard
❑ Using the Touchpad
❑ Using the Center Jog Dial Control
❑ UsingtheRemovableHardDiskDrive
❑ Using the Optical Disc Drive
❑ Using PC Cards
❑ Using Memory Stick Media
❑ Using a Second Battery Pack
❑ Using the Weight Saver
❑ Using Power Saving Modes
❑ Connecting a Phone Line
❑ Connecting to a LAN
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Using the Keyboard
Your notebook keyboard is very similar to that of a typewriter, but the keyboard
has additional keys that perform specific computer-related tasks.
Keyboard
Alt key
Function keys
Numeric key p ad
Print Screen key
Applications
key keys
Navigation
Correction
keys
Escape key
hift key
Ctrl key
Fn key
Windows key
Key Description
Numeric keypad Contains the keys found on a typical calculator. Use the
numeric keypad area to type numbers or to perform
mathematical calculations such as addition and subtraction.
Note that you must press the Num Lock key to activate the
numeric keypad. (When you do so, the Num Lock light will
be on.)
Navigation keys Several keys are d evoted to moving the cursor on the screen.
Correction keys The Insert, Back Space, and Delete keys enable you to make
corrections in your documents.
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Using the Keyboard
Key Description
Function keys The twelve function keys along the top of the keyboard are
used to perform designated tasks. For example, in many
applications, F1 is the Help key. The task associated with
each function key may vary from one application to the next.
Escape key The Esc (Escape) key is used to cancel commands.
Print Screen key The Print Screen key takes an electronic snapshot of the
screen and places it in the Windows Clipboard. You can then
paste the screen shot into a document and print it.
Operator keys
(Shift, Ctrl, Alt
keys)
Several keys are alwaysused with at least one other key: Ctrl,
Alt, and Shift. When held down with another key, the Ctrl
(Control) and Alt (Alternate) keys offer another way to give
commands. For example, in many applications, instead of
choosing the Save command from a menu, you can hold
down Ctrl and press S (referred to as Ctrl+S). The Shift key
operates the same way as on a typewriter; it is used to
produce capital letters or special symbols such as @ and $.
Windows key The key with the Windows logo displays the Windows Start
menu; it is the equivalent of clicking the Start button on the
taskbar. See “Combinations and functions with the Windows
key” for more information.
Fn key The Fn key is used i n combination with other keys to issue
commands. See “Combinations and functions with the Fn
key” for more information.
Applications key The Applications key displays a shortcut menu of context-
sensitive choices. Pressing this key is the equivalent of
clicking the right mouse button.
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Combinations and functions with the Windows key
Combination Function
+ F1 Displays VAIO® Help and Support Center.
+ Tab Switches the selected button on the taskbar.
+ D Displays the desktop.
+ E Displays Windows Explorer.
+ F Displays the Windows Find: All Files window tofind a file or
folder. This is the equivalent of selecting Find and then Files
or Folders from the Start menu.
+ Ctrl + F Displays the Windows Find: Computer window where you
can locate other computers. This is the equivalent of selecting
Find and then Computer from the Start menu.
+ M Minimizes all displayed windows.
Shift + + M Returns all minimized windows to their previous size.
+ R Displays the Run window. This is the equivalent of selecting
Run from the Start menu.
Fn + + Insert Displays the Properties window. This is the equivalent of
double-clicking the System icon in the Control Panel.
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Using the Keyboard
Indicators
Indicator Function
Power Light is green when the power to the notebook is turned on,
flashes amber in Standby mode, and turns off when the
notebook is in Hibernate mode or powered off.
Battery 1 Indicates the status of the battery inserted in the battery bay
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Battery 2 Indicates the status of the battery inserted in the multipurpose
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Memory Stick Indicates that the Memory Stick® slot is in use.
Hard disk This indicator will light when data is being read from or
on the right side of the notebook.
drive bay on the left side of the notebook.
written to the hard disk. Do not enter Standby mode or turn
off the notebook when this indicator is on.
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Indicator lights
Light On Off
Num
Lock
Caps
Lock
Scroll
Lock
The number keys in the numeric
keypad are active.
The letters appear in uppercase as you
type. The Shift key lowers the case of
typed letters when Caps Lock is on.
The screen scrolls differently.
(Exactly how it scrolls dependson the
specific application. It has no effect in
many applications.)
The alphanumeric character keys
in t he keypad area are active.
Letters appear in lower case as
you type (unless you hold down
the Shift key).
Information moves across the
display normally.
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Using the Keyboard
Combinations and functions with the Fn key
✍ If you switch user identities during a computing session, the Fn+F7 and Fn+F8 key
functionality (if available on your computer) will be interrupted. To switch to an
external display or monitor, see “Selecting the Display Mode” for more information.
Combinations/
Feature Function
Fn+ (F3)
Mute On/Off
Fn+ (F4)
Speaker volume
Fn+ (F5)
Brightness control
LCD
Fn+ /
(F7)
Switch to the
external
monitor/LCD
Toggles the built-in speaker off and on.
Adjusts the built-in speaker volume.
To increase volume, press Fn+F4, then or .
To decrease volume, press Fn+F4, then or .
Adjusts the brightness of the LCD.
To increase light intensity, press Fn+F5 and then or .
To decrease light intensity, press Fn+F5 and then or .
Toggles through the LCD, external display (connected to the
Monitor connector) and both LCD and external display.
Only LCD
LCD and external display
Only external display
Connect the cable before youturn on the notebook, otherwise
Fn + F7 will not work.
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Combinations/
Feature Function
LCD
Fn+ only/
(F8)
Control AV out
Toggles between LCD-only and dual LCD/TV display
modes.
Only LCD
LCD and external display
Only external display
Connect the cable before youturn on the notebook, otherwise
Fn + F8 will not work.
Fn+ (F12)
Hibernate
Provides for the lowest level of power consumption.
When you runthiscommand,the state of the system and state
of the peripheral devices are written to the hard disk and the
system power is turned off. To return the system to its
original state, use the power button to turn on power.
Fn + Esc
Standby
Puts the system into Standby mode, a power management
state. To return the system to the active state, press any key.
✍ Some functions are not available until Windows launches.
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Using the Touchpad
Using the Touchpad
The keyboard contains a cursor-pointing device called a touchpad. You can point
to, select, drag, and scroll objects on the screen using the built-in touchpad.
Touchpad
Pointer
Touchpad
Left and Right buttons
Action Description
Point Slide one finger on the touchpad to place the pointer on an
item or object.
Click Press the left button once.
Double-click Press the left button twice.
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Action Description
Right-click Press the right button once. In many applications, this action
displays a shortcut menu of context-sensitive choices.
Drag Slide one finger while pressing the left button.
Scroll Move your finger along the right edge of the touchpad to
scroll vertically. Move your finger along the bottom to scroll
horizontally. (The scroll function is available only with
applications that support a touchpad scroll feature.)
See Mouse Properties for information on touchpad features, s uch asclickingboth
buttons simultaneously, adjusting touchpad speed, and Easy Launcher functions.
To access Mouse Properties,open the Start menu, point toControl Panel, Printers
and other Hardware, and then click the Mouse icon in the Control Panel.
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VAIO Action Setup
VAIO Action Setup
VAIO Action Setup manages the settings for your notebook’s center Jog Dial™
control, Memory Stick® media, and i.LINK®
*
interface. An overview of some
of the functions controlled by VAIO Action Setup is provided in this section. For
more information on changing the settings using VAIO Action Setup, right-click
the Jog Dial Utility icon or in the taskbar and click Help Topics.
* i.LINK is a trademark of Sony used to designate that a product contains an IEEE 1394 con-
nection. The i.LINK connection may vary, depending on the software applications, operating
system, and compatible i.LINK devices. All products with an i.LINK connector may not
communicatew ith each other. Refer to thedocumentation thatcamewithyour compatible
i.LINK device for information on operating conditions and proper connection. Before connectingcompatiblei.LINK PC peripherals to your system, such as a CD-RW or hard disk
drive, confirm theiro perating system compatibility and requiredoperating conditions.
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Using the Center Jog Dial Control
Your notebook is equipped with a center Jog Dial control located below the left
and right buttons. The center Jog Dial control enablesyou to open an application,
folder,or document from a predefined list by rotating and pressing the center Jog
Dial control. In addition, when you press the center JogDial control, you can turn
on your notebook automatically and start the selected application or document.
Center Jog Dial Control
Turn
Back
button
Press
Center Jog Dial Control
The center Jog Dial control window always appears in the display. It is either in
the launcher mode or in the guide mode.
Using the center Jog Dial control
This section explains how to use the center Jog Dial control. For information on
how to change the settings of the center Jog Dial control, right-click the Jog Dial
Utility icon or in the taskbar and click Help Topics.
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Using the Center Jog Dial Control
Launcher mode
The center Jog Dial control window is in launcher mode until a software
application is launched or the Jog Dial control window becomes active. When
you select an item in the Jog Dial control window and it is displayed between
orange bars, you can press the center Jog Dial control to view a submenu of that
item.
Using Launcher mode
To use the center Jog Dial control, click the Jog Dial control window or the Jog
Dial Utility icon in the taskbar. Alternatively, you can press the Ctrl key and the
center Jog Dial control while the Jog Dial control window is active to switch to
launcher mode.
Jog Dial Launcher
To select a desired item, proceed as follows:
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1 Rotatethe center Jog Dial control to select the item you want, and then press
the center Jog Dial control. The Jog Dial Launcher window switches to
guide mode and shows the function of the center Jog Dial control.
Jog Dial Guide
2 Rotate or press the center Jog Dial control to use the desired function.
3 To select another item, repeat steps 1 through 3 above.
Guide mode
The Jog Dial control window is in the guide mode when software is in use and
the software window is active. Depending on thesoftware you are using, you can
select items from t he displayed list using the center Jog Dial control. You can
switch between guide mode and launcher mode by pressing the Ctrl key and the
center Jog Dial control.
Using Guide mode
The Jog Dial control window displays the function of the center Jog Dial control.
Center Jog Dial back button
The center Jog Dial control includes a back button located to the right of the
control. Pressing this button brings you back to the previous screen.
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Using the Center Jog Dial Control
Using the center Jog Dial control with Sony software
If Sony software that supports the center Jog Dial control is active, you can use
the functions of the center Jog Dial control that are allocated to that software. For
more information on functions allocated to software, see the software
application’sHelp.
Using the center Jog Dial control with other software
If the software you are using supports the center Jog Dial control, you can still
use the center Jog Dial control to scroll the window or adjust the window size.
Using a Dialog box
When a window such as Screen Properties is active, the Dialog box is displayed
in the Jog Dial window. You can select an item in the window by rotating the
center Jog Dial control. Pressing the center Jog Dial control is the equivalent of
pressing Enter or Select.
Jog Dial Guide Dialog Box
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Using the Removable Har d Disk Drive
Your notebook is equipped with a removable hard disk drive, located on the right
side next to the battery bay.
The hard disk drive is preformatted and readyto let you take full advantageof all
Sony VAIO® features. You can upgrade to a higher-capacity hard disk drive as
your computing needs warrant.
✍ Sony does not g uarantee interoperability with removable hard disk drives other than
the one provided with your VAIO® notebook.
Removing the hard disk drive
1 Shut down your notebook and locate the latch for the hard disk drive.
2 Loosen and remove the screw on the bottom of the notebook thatsecures the
hard disk drive. Use an appropriate screwdriver.
3 Slide the hard disk drive out of the drive bay.
Installing the hard disk drive
1 Slide the hard disk drive into the drive bay until it clicks into place.
2 Replace and tighten the screw that secures the hard disk drive.
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Using the Optical Disc Drive
Using the Optical Disc Drive
Your notebook comes with a removable optical disc drive located in the
multipurpose bay. Depending on the system you purchased, your optical disc
drive is either a CD-RW/DVD Combo Drive or a DVD-ROM drive.
The optical disc drive is removable when the power is on, but do not remove
the drive when your notebook is in a power saving mode. Any attempt to do
so may result in malfunction and/or data loss.
To insert a disc
1 Turn on the notebook.
✍ When t he notebook is in Standby or Hibernate mode, you cannot insert a disc. See
“Controlling Power Management” for more information on Standby and Hibernate
modes.
2 Press the Eject button to open the optical drive.
The tray slides out.
Ejecting the tray
Eject button
✍ Avoid using adhesive labels to identify your discs. Adhesive labels may come off while
the disc is in use in your opt ical drive, and may cause damage to the unit.
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3 Placean optical disc on the tray with the label side facing up. For DVDs that
can played on both sides, the side of the disc facing up is the side that plays.
4 Press the disc onto the hub until the disc clicks securely into place.
Inserting an optical disc
Label side facing up
5 Close the tray by pushing it gently.
To eject a disc
When you finish using a disc, wait until the LED indicator turns off, and then
press the Eject button to remove the disc.
When the notebook is in a power saving mode, you cannot remove an optical
disc. See “Controlling Power Management” for more information about power
saving modes.
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Using the Optical Disc Drive
If the optical disc does not slide out when you press the Eject button, turn off the
notebook and insert a thin, pointed object (such as a paper clip) into the manual
eject hole.
Make sure to seat the disc firmly ov er the hub fingers. If you do not seat the
disc firmly, you could damage your optical drive and you may not be able to
open the tray.
Manual eject hole
To play a DVD
To play a DVD, you may use the optical disc drive and the preinstalled
WinDVD® application. For more information, see the Help menu in the
WinDVD application.
✍ Before you use the optical disc drive to p lay a DVD, quit any open applications.
Your optical drive can read most DVD-R media. When you are ready to play a
DVD, read the suggestions below to maximize your video viewing experience.
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❑ When playing a DVD onbatterypower, set the powermanagementprofileto
DVD. You can also set the power management profile to Automatic Profile
Selection if the display is not clear when using other profiles.
✍ Automatic Profile Selection sets the power management profil e to DVD whenever a
DVD is inserted. See “Controlling Power Management” for more information.
❑ If you connect your notebook to a TV display, you may need to adjust the
display resolution. Read the suggestions below to set the display resolution
to the proper dimensions. Also see “Selecting the Display Mode” for more
information.
❑ If the notebook is set to the default display setting, part of the video screen
will not appear. To view the entire screen, adjust the display resolution to
640 x 480.
Some discs recor ded at 20 or 24 bits may produce noise while playing. If you
have audio device s connected, this may cause damage to your hearing and
the speakers. Reduce the volume before playing a DVD.
You c annot use the Fn + F8 func tion to switc h betwee n LCD and TV once a DVD
is inserted into the optical drive.
Do not switch between LCD and the external display while the DVD is playing.
This may cause a malfunction, and you may need to restart the DVD software.
Do not switch the power sav i ng mo de s while you are playing the DVD.
Change the settings to disable the screen saver and the virus checker.
Do not use memory-resident utility software to speed up disc access. This
may cause the notebook to malfunction.
To play an audio CD
To play an audio CD, make sure the audio function is turned on. To do this,
complete the following procedure.
✍ The optical disc drive must be installed in the mul tipurpose bay before you begin.
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