Fresh Install on Alienware M15x
Whenever we get new machines for the office, Jon will reformat and reinstall them to get rid of all the “crap” that they are shipped with. Normally, this is a good thing as it will make let us start fresh, however sometimes this can cause problems. The first problem I ran into was after using my newly configured laptop involved it slowly dying. It started with the machine locking up while watching DVDs, then it was any videos. Eventually, contacted the Alienware tech support (different number than Dell tech support) and he informed me that there is a very specific order you need to install the drivers for the M15x.
That order is:
- Chipset – R232275
- Audio – R248560
- Video (ATI 5850) – R254294
- Ricoh (chipset) – R232289
- ITE CIR receiver – R232292
- Network (wifi 5300,giga825) – R248086 + R232279
- DE341DL Free fall sensor – R251237
- OSD – R257877
- Command Center – R272621
When I told Jon about this magical order, his first question: “Was this on the website? In the manual? Anywhere other than this tech’s binder?” The answer to all of these questions? No.
This was aggravating, but I wiped the machine and installed all the toys in the correct order and haven’t had any problems since, until today.
Yesterday, I received Couples Retreat in the mail from Netflix. For the first time in a very long time, I was unable to play a Blu-ray in my player (it just displayed “Copyright Violation”). My player automatically checks for new firmware, but I entered setup and told it to look again, to no avail. So I figured, why not try the Blu-ray drive in my Alienware?
Unfortunately, Windows Media Player (version 12.0.7600.16415) couldn’t play it (or apparently any Blu-rays). I went online, figuring that there must be some sort of patch, but alas no. I was directed to a troubleshooting program that I didn’t have, and thus gave up on Microsoft. Then I recalled that my Alienware shipped with 2 discs: Windows 7 Pro and a Resource Disc. I stuck the latter in the drive and went a browsing.
Once I booted up the menu on the resource disc (which oddly enough had no auto-play), I was able to find Cyberlink PowerDVD v8. After installing it (and then patching, twice – this seems to involve downloading a 97.1 MB file each time), I was able to finally view the movie.
