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Question

Tech advice required - Bypass security and reformat old work

by Jul 30, 2018 2:45PM PDT

Lenovo Thinkpad 450s

I have an old work laptop from a corporate company I worked at a few years ago. They didn't ask for it back and never chased me for it, its been in my cupboard ever since. I want to wipe the hard drive and install a new OS.

The laptop is security restricted. It has Bitlocker and the company security password screen. The BIOS is also locked to read only.

I know the Bitlocker code, so can get past this stage. My password has expired and I have no way of logging onto the system to update it, as my user account does not exist anymore. I also do not wish to contact the company in case they ask for the laptop back.

Any ideas how I can go about bypassing the security in place and wipe the hard drive clean, ready to install a new OS?

Discussion is locked

2 Posts
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Answer
This reads like "Help me jack this laptop I don't own."
by Forum moderator Jul 30, 2018 3:00PM PDT

Yes it does. But if you want to try, just remove the HDD and blank on any other PC with DBAN (read about it on the web, it's free, one pass will do.)

Now you have a blank drive and boot your USB, DVD of you OS to install and you are off to the races.

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I see your point :)
by nunpeck84 Jul 30, 2018 3:10PM PDT

I agree, it does sound like I am trying to pull a fast one, but its not the case. I offered to give it back and the company was upgrading all their laptops, the tech guy didnt care, so I kept it.

Thanks for the advice, I will give it a go.

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