How should VR type be set in Intel ME Region?

[Neuronla]

I have a B360 motherboard and I’m having some complex problems regarding Intel ME and LAN controller: I discovered that LAN and intel ME were (somehow) messing around with my PC, and I solved it by writing 0’s to an specific location at LAN config space and disabling ME DID message and the problem was gone. That problem returned again after a long time and now I can’t solve it by above method, so I think that something must have changed.

Anyway, I could explain the issue a little bit more, but that is not the purpose of this post.

I have been looking at the MEInfo ouput, and I have noticed that TLS is disabled, which could be one of the few connections between Intel ME and LAN, because B360 chipset doesn’t use AMT.

If a clean ME image is used to build an image with Intel FIT, almost every “Intel ME Kernel” option is enabled (Intel AMT, ME Network Services, TLS…), and when I drop my OEM BIOS image into Intel FIT, I can see that TLS is enabled, but other options are disabled. For example: Intel AMT is disabled (as my motherboard doesn’t support AMT), ME Network Services is disabled too (is this option related to TLS? In that case, should it be enabled in order for TLS to be enabled too?). Taking into account that it looks like OEM has disabled some options which cannot be used in my system (as Intel AMT), and left other options enabled (TLS), it may be logical to think that my machine is able to have TLS enabled. However, HWInfo says that ME is not TLS capable.

Right now I’m using the OEM BIOS configured image, and I haven’t tested whether TLS is enabled when using a clean Intel ME image (with all “Intel ME Kernel” options enabled), so I don’t know if any other option should be enabled at Intel FIT in order for TLS to be enabled (like the Intel ME Services option, as I said in the previous paragraph).

Is it posible to enable TLS at Intel ME consumer firmware? How? Is there something I must change at LAN configuration / BIOS / ME in order to have it enabled?

BIOS: 360H4W0X.zip

Specs:
-Motherboard: B360H4-EM (Medion)
-Processor: intel i7-9700K
-RAM: 8 GB of Samsung RAM (M378A1K43CB2-CRC)
-Storage: 1 TB SSD +1 TB HDD.

I have a 300-series chipset (B360, as the motherboard namer says) and these chipsets use CSME version 12

PD: I don’t really understand some posts on this forum about AMT, like this one

Multiple websites on the internet say that AMT is only for Corporate ME images, how are these people supposed to enable AMT at their platforms?


Edit by Fernando: Thread moved into the “Intel Management Engine” Forum Category and thread title shortened/customized

[Neuronla]

I’m having some trouble with my PC. It freezes randomly and there is artifact. I know it isn’t a hardware problem and that, somehow, LAN Controller and Intel ME are related to this issue.

I don’t know how could LAN cause this PC freezing, but using HWInfo, at SMBIOS tab, I’ve seen there is a vPro capabilities section, which is related with VT-d (memory management) and Intel AMT, and one entry says that my BIOS supports “VA extensions”. A couple of websites on the internet mention that VA extensions is an ACPI Op region, and that could be a place to introduce a memory bug which could cause my issue.

However, there isn’t much more info about this. I only know that VA extensions is related to an ACPI Op region and that it is vPro related. I don’t even know what VA means or how could I disable this feature inside BIOS.

Any info about this? Any way to disable VA Extensions with a BIOS mod? What is the function of VA Extensions?

BIOS: 360H4W0X.zip

Specs:
-Motherboard: B360H4-EM (Medion)
-Processor: intel i7-9700K
-RAM: 8 GB of Samsung RAM (M378A1K43CB2-CRC)
-Storage: 1 TB SSD +1 TB HDD.

I have a 300-series chipset (B360, as the motherboard namer says) and these chipsets use CSME version 12


Edit by Fernando: Both help request threads about the same topic merged and thread title customized

[Fernando]

@Neuronla
Welcome to the Win-Raid Forum!
Since you obviously don’t yet know the exact reason for the random freezing of your system, I have merged both threads you have started today and hope, that you will get help from one of our BIOS Modding resp. Intel Management Engine experts.
Good luck!

[Neuronla]

My PC freezes and I’m having some trouble trying to solve it. I have already tried a lot of options and BIOS modifications.

Recently, I’ve been playing around with the CPU straps tab options in FIT, and I’ve noticed two VR type options for different domains: SVID and Fixed VR. I decided to give it a try and I changed every option which had SVID to Fixed VR, and I also changed the Platform IMON option from disabled to enabled.

However, now my PC won’t boot. I don’t want the maximum performance, I just want my PC to work. I would like to know which VR types can be changed without messing up the BIOS, or if I must change some other value in BIOS in order to work.

I also have some another question regarding this theme. I have read that the CPU comunicates the voltage needed to the VRM (Voltage Regulator Module) with SVID, and there is an option in FIT to disable this module, so if I disable VRM using that FIT option, it won’t work neither, right?

Specs:
-Motherboard: B360H4-EM (Medion)
-Processor: intel i7-9700K
-RAM: 8 GB of Samsung RAM (M378A1K43CB2-CRC)
-Storage: 1 TB SSD +1 TB HDD.

I have a 300-series chipset (B360, as the motherboard namer says) and these chipsets use CSME version 12

BIOS: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1N1qE70UH0VblQswsxEM3J_0pjWZsOb0O/view?usp=sharing

[MeatWar]

Threads from March merged, thank you.

EDIT:
As Fernando earlier stated…we still can see any report of the system instability or any shared details of the so called “freeze”…

I wouldnt mess with CSME FW settings, those are vendor/platform specific (ECS mb build bios release and mb design).

Latest 116 bios has 5/6 yrs old mcodes and should be updated, also CSME can be updated to latest 12.0.96.2562.

[Neuronla]

Found this while looking at HWINFO Sensors tab. +3.3, +5.0 and +12.0 V are below their respective voltages. Are these reports reliable? Should I replace my PSU?

[MeatWar]

No they are NOT OK at all… you only found out this now!!!
Insufucient power deliver are one of the main causes of system instability, freeze, reboots etc…
Or mainboard hw issue/voltage regulators… exchange PSU and look again, if still like this get new board.