BIOS Passwords

Owned by Terrence S Miller
Last updated: Dec 11, 2023
2 min read

Environment

MiWorkspace, Platform as a Service, Campus Computing Sites, DSW

Issue

BIOS passwords being set for MiWorkspace certified models

Resolution

BIOS passwords are now set as part of the on-campus build process (OSD), "BIOS and Driver Update Task Sequence" (TS), and any Windows OS in-place upgrade (IPU) process for all MiWorkspace supported Dell, HP, and Lenovo hardware models.  Microsoft devices are not currently receiving BIOS passwords.  BIOS passwords will not be pushed to existing machines but will only be set in the methods listed above.  

BIOS passwords provide a security measure to protect system configuration and security settings. They are also needed because HP will no longer reset BIOS passwords, so computers with unknown passwords are a risk as this could cause them to be unmanageable and could prevent them from ever being rebuilt.

Affected Models

BIOS passwords are set automatically during OSD and IPU for the following models:

HP

  • All supported models

Dell

  • All supported models

Lenovo

  • All supported models

Questions and Answers

Q: Will BIOS passwords be set on systems that are already in use?

A: BIOS passwords may be added at the time that systems are rebuilt using the OSD task sequence, during a Windows in-place upgrades, or when running the "BIOS and Driver Update Task Sequence".  

 

Q: Why is it important that a BIOS password be set?

A: BIOS passwords provide a security measure to protect system configuration and security settings. They are also needed because HP will no longer reset BIOS passwords, so computers with unknown passwords are a risk as this could cause them to be unmanageable and could prevent them from ever being rebuilt.

 

Q: How can I obtain the MiWorkspace BIOS password?

A: Access to the BIOS password can be granted upon verification of the requestor. Inquiries can be made on Slack in the #its-miworkspace-win-tier3 channel.