Dell XPS 8500 User manual

www.dell.com | support.dell.com/manuals
Dell™ XPS™ 8500
Owner’s Manual
Regulatory model: D03M
Regulatory type: D03M005
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Notes, Cautions, and Warnings
NOTE: A NOTE indicates important information that helps you make better
use of your product.
CAUTION: A CAUTION indicates either potential damage to hardware or
loss of data, and tells you how to avoid the problem.
WARNING: A WARNING indicates a potential for property damage,
personal injury, or death.
____________________
Information in this document is subject to change without notice.
© 2012 Dell Inc. All rights reserved.
Reproduction of these materials in any manner whatsoever without the written permission of Dell Inc.
is strictly forbidden.
Trademarks used in this text: Dell™, the DELL logo, and XPS™ are trademarks of Dell Inc.
Microsoft®, Windows®, and the Windows start button logo are either trademarks or registered
trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. Bluetooth®is a
registered trademark owned by Bluetooth SIG, Inc. and is used by Dell under license.
Other trademarks and trade names may be used in this document to refer to either the entities claiming
the marks and names or their products. Dell Inc. disclaims any proprietary interest in trademarks and
trade names other than its own.
2012 - 04 Rev. A00
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Contents 3
Contents
1 Before You Begin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Turn Off Your Computer and Connected Devices . . . . 13
Safety Instructions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Recommended Tools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
2 After Working Inside Your Computer. . . . 15
3 Technical Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Front View of Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Back View of Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Inside View of Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
System-Board Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
4 Computer Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Removing the Computer Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Replacing the Computer Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
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4Contents
5 Memory Module(s). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Removing Memory Module(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Replacing Memory Module(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
6 Front Bezel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Removing the Front Bezel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Replacing the Front Bezel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
7 Graphics-Card Bracket (optional) . . . . . 35
Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Removing the Graphics-Card Bracket. . . . . . . . . . 35
Replacing the Graphics-Card Bracket. . . . . . . . . . 36
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
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Contents 5
8 Graphics Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Prerequisites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Removing the Graphics Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Replacing the Graphics Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
9 PCI-Express x1 Card(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Prerequisites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Removing the PCI-Express x1 Card(s) . . . . . . . . . . 44
Replacing the PCI-Express x1 Card(s). . . . . . . . . . 46
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
10 Wireless Mini-Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Prerequisites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Removing the Mini-Card. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Replacing the Mini-Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
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6Contents
11 Mini-Card Antennas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Removing the Mini-Card Antennas . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Replacing the Mini-Card Antennas . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
12 mSATA Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Removing the mSATA Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Replacing the mSATA Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
13 Hard Drive(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Removing the Primary Hard-Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Replacing the Primary Hard-Drive. . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Removing the Hard Drive Cage . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Replacing the Hard Drive Cage . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
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Contents 7
Removing the Secondary Hard-Drive . . . . . . . . . . 65
Replacing the Secondary Hard-Drive . . . . . . . . . . 66
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
14 Optical Drive(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Prerequisites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Removing the Optical Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Replacing the Optical Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Secondary Optical-Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Prerequisites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Installing a Secondary Optical-Drive . . . . . . . . . . 70
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
15 Media-Card Reader . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Prerequisites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Removing the Media-Card Reader . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Replacing the Media-Card Reader . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
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8Contents
16 Top Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Removing the Top Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Replacing the Top Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
17 Top I/O Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Removing the Top I/O Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Replacing the Top I/O Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
18 Front USB Panel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Removing the Front USB Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Replacing the Front USB Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
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Contents 9
19 Power Button Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Prerequisites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Removing the Power Button Module . . . . . . . . . . 90
Replacing the Power Button Module . . . . . . . . . . 91
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
20 Chassis Fan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Prerequisites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Removing the Chassis Fan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Replacing the Chassis Fan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
21 Processor Fan and Heat-Sink Assembly . 97
Prerequisites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Removing the Processor Fan and Heat-Sink Assembly. 97
Replacing the Processor Fan and Heat-Sink Assembly 99
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
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10 Contents
22 Processor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Removing the Processor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Replacing the Processor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
23 Coin-Cell Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Removing the Coin-Cell Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Replacing the Coin-Cell Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
24 Power-Supply Unit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Removing the Power-Supply Unit . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Replacing the Power-Supply Unit . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
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Contents 11
25 System Board . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Prerequisites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Removing the System Board . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Replacing the System Board. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Postrequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Entering the Service Tag in BIOS . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
26 System Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Entering System Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
System Setup Screens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
System Setup Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Boot Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Clearing Forgotten Passwords . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Password:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Clearing CMOS Passwords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
CMOS:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
27 Flashing the BIOS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
28 Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
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12 Contents
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Before you Begin 13
1
Before You Begin
Turn Off Your Computer and Connected Devices
CAUTION: To avoid losing data, save and close all open files and exit all open
programs before you turn off your computer.
1 Save and close all open files and exit all open programs.
2 Click Start and click Shut Down .
Microsoft Windows shuts down and then the computer turns off.
NOTE: If you are using a different operating system, see the documentation of
your operating system for shut-down instructions.
3 Disconnect your computer and all attached devices from their electrical
outlets.
4 Disconnect all telephone cables, network cables, and attached devices
from your computer.
5 Press and hold the power button, while the computer is unplugged, to
ground the system board.
Safety Instructions
Use the following safety guidelines to protect your computer from potential
damage and ensure your personal safety.
WARNING: Before working inside your computer, read the safety information
that shipped with your computer. For additional safety best practices information,
see the Regulatory Compliance Homepage at dell.com/regulatory_compliance.
WARNING: Disconnect all power sources before opening the computer cover or
panels. After you finish working inside the computer, replace all covers, panels,
and screws before connecting to the power source.
CAUTION: To avoid damaging the computer, ensure that the work surface is flat
and clean.
CAUTION: To avoid damaging the components and cards, handle them by their
edges and avoid touching pins and contacts.
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14 Before you Begin
CAUTION: Only a certified service technician is authorized to remove the
computer cover and access any of the components inside the computer. See the
safety instructions for complete information about safety precautions, working
inside your computer, and protecting against electrostatic discharge.
CAUTION: Before touching anything inside your computer, ground yourself by
touching an unpainted metal surface, such as the metal at the back of the
computer. While you work, periodically touch an unpainted metal surface to
dissipate static electricity, which could harm internal components.
CAUTION: When you disconnect a cable, pull on its connector or on its pull-tab,
not on the cable itself. Some cables have connectors with locking tabs or
thumb-screws that you must disengage before disconnecting the cable. When
disconnecting cables, keep them evenly aligned to avoid bending any connector
pins. When connecting cables, ensure that the connectors and ports are correctly
oriented and aligned.
CAUTION: To disconnect a network cable, first unplug the cable from your
computer and then unplug the cable from the network device.
Recommended Tools
The procedures in this document may require the following tools:
• Small Phillips screwdriver
•Hexnutdriver
• Flash BIOS executable update program available at
support.dell.com
book.book Page 14 Wednesday, April 4, 2012 2:00 PM

After Working Inside Your Computer 15
2
After Working Inside Your Computer
After you complete replacement procedures, ensure the following:
• Replace all screws and ensure no stray screws remain inside your computer
• Connect any external devices, cables, cards, and any other part you
removed before working on your computer
• Connect your computer and all attached devices to their electrical outlets
CAUTION: Before turning on your computer, replace all screws and ensure that
no stray screws remain in the computer. Failure to do so may damage your
computer.
• Turn on your computer.
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16 After Working Inside Your Computer
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Technical Overview 17
3
Technical Overview
WARNING: Before working inside your computer, read the safety information
that shipped with your computer and follow the steps in "Before You Begin" on
page 13. For additional safety best practices information, see the Regulatory
Compliance Homepage at dell.com/regulatory_compliance.
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18 Technical Overview
Front View of Your Computer
1
2
3
11 10 9
8
7
6
1
5
4
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Technical Overview 19
Back View of Your Computer
1media-card reader light 2media-card reader
3optical-drive covers (2) 4USB 3.0 ports (2)
5optical-drive eject buttons (2) 6power button
7accessory tray 8headphone port
9microphone port 10 USB 2.0 port
11 USB 2.0 port with PowerShare
1power port 2network port
3USB 2.0 ports (4) 4USB 3.0 ports (2)
5VGA port 6HDMI port
7optical S/P DIF port 8audio ports
9expansion-card slots 10 security-cable slot
11 padlock rings
2
1
10
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
11
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20 Technical Overview
Inside View of Your Computer
1 front bezel 2 primary hard-drive
3 graphics-card bracket (optional) 4 secondary hard-drive
5 system board 6 card retention clamp
7 power supply 8 primary optical-drive
9 secondary optical-drive
7
2
1
9
5
6
4
8
3
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