HP BIOS Configuration Utility (BCU) FAQ
Q: Where can I download BCU?
A: Go to page www.hp.com/go/clientmanagement. Click Download Library. BIOS Configuration Utility
download links are listed in BIOS Tools category.
Q: Can I use BCU to reset BIOS to factory default?
A: Yes, it requires BCU 2.60 or later version.
Use below command to reset BIOS to factory default. Parameter /cspwd is optional.
BiosConfigUtility.exe /SetDefaults /cspwd:”mypassword”
Q: Why can’t I set BIOS password to “<12345678>”?
A: characters < and > are reserved. Use the <LT> and <GT> tags to specify these characters in password.
Use below command to set password to “<12345678>”
BIOSConfigUtility.exe /nspwd:”<LT>12345678<GT>”
For more password information, please refer to section Password Management in “BIOS Configuration
Utility User Guide.pdf”, which can be found in BCU install folder.
Q: Can I use BCU to enable TPM?
A: Yes, You can use BCU to enable TPM.
The requirements to enable TPM are:
1. The BIOS setup password is set.
2. Embedded security device setting is set to have the device available.
The general steps are
1. Get the current configuration of a target client to a file (You will need to do this to make sure
you have the right setting names and values for the settings you would like to change. Each
product may have a slight difference in the settings.)
2. Edit the configuration in the file (should leave only the settings that you are about to change
only). For example, for an HP Elite 8200, the configuration file EnableTMP.txt may look like the
picture below:
3. Run BIOS Configuration utility with the parameters to set the configuration file and to
provide/set the BIOS setup password. If the target client already has the setup password set,
you will need to provide the password when changing the BIOS configuration (example a below).
If the client does not have the setup password set, you can set it at the same time when
enabling TPM (example b below). If the target client environment is 64-bit, you will need to run
the 64-bit executable instead. Don’t forget to change configuration file name and the password
below to the appropriate values.
a. BiosConfigUtility.exe /setconfig:EnableTPM.txt /cspwd:"mypassword"
b. BiosConfigUtility.exe /setconfig:EnableTPM.txt /nspwd:"mypassword"
Q: I have provided correct password, why BCU always returns message “Password is set, but
no valid current admin password provided.”?
A: This can be solved by rebooting your system.
We’ve found some BIOS randomly behave incorrectly after changing password frequently. This is a
known issue, and reboot system can solve this issue.
Q: Can I use BCU to enable Power-On password?
A: Yes, you can use BCU to enable Power-On password by creating BIOS user.
Enabling Power-On password requires BIOS password is set up. Use below command to set BIOS
password:
BiosConfigUtility.exe /nspwd:" BIOS password”
Use below command to create BIOS user:
BiosConfigUtility.exe /CreateUser:"username","password" /cspwd:”BIOS password”
To remove Power-On password, you need to remove all BIOS uses by command:
BiosConfigUtility.exe /DeleteUser:”username” /cspwd:”BIOS password”
Or clean BIOS password by command:
BiosConfigUtility.exe /cspwd:” BIOS password” /nspwd:””
NOTE: If the BIOS password is enabled and the BIOS user account is created but the power-on password
is not prompted, please run HP ProtectTools to ensure the BIOS domain is enabled. HP ProtectTools can
then be uninstalled through Add or Remove Programs in the Control Panel. If HP ProtectTools is
uninstalled, the BIOS domain will remain enabled.
More information of Power-On password issue at:
http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/Document.jsp?objectID=c01712354
Q: How can I troubleshoot BCU?
A: Following are the general steps for troubleshooting BCU:
1. Check the meaning of your error code in BCU User Guide. If it doesn’t help, want may want to
try below steps.
2. Make sure you are using BCU on commercial HP desktop, workstation or notebook. BCU doesn’t
support none-HP BIOS.
3. Make sure HPCMI has been installed on your system: http://www.hp.com/go/hpcmi
4. You may also want to check your BCU version, and try to use latest version.
5. Contact us. And let us know your BCU version, error code, as well as hardware/software
information of your system.
