Intel ME driver failed to perform handshake with the Firmware (FWSTS0: 0x00304181, FWSTS1: 0x153B0100)

Special Topics Intel Management Engine
1

Hi, I have a Sony VAIO laptop (SVF15213SNW) with broken ME .

The main symptom is the exclamation mark in the device manager with the following remark : (Code 10) STATUS_DEVICE_POWER_FAILURE

In the event viewer it’s this one :

Intel(R) Management Engine Interface driver has failed to perform handshake with the Firmware (FWSTS0: 0x00304181, FWSTS1: 0x153B0100).

Here is the log of MEManuf tool:



MEInfo reports the following:



I was able to dump the BIOS region and DESC region using fptw64 tool. However, when I tried to dump ME region I am stuck with this error:



Also, fptw64 -greset is also failing with following status:

C:\Users\Vishnu Das\Downloads\Compressed\Intel ME System Tools v8 r3\Flash Programming Tool\Windows64>fptw64.exe -greset

Intel (R) Flash Programming Tool. Version: 8.1.60.1561
Copyright (c) 2007 - 2014, Intel Corporation. All rights reserved.

Platform: Intel(R) HM76 Express Chipset
Reading HSFSTS register… Flash Descriptor: Valid

— Flash Devices Found —
W25Q64BV ID:0xEF4017 Size: 8192KB (65536Kb)

Could not set the GlobalReset bit
Initializing HECI Client…
FW Status Register1: 0x00304181
FW Status Register2: 0x153B0100
Current ME State ( 0x1 ) : Bring Up
The ME is not is a functional state. Cannot execute ME Reboot.
The ME could not be reset from the program. The system requires a manual Power-off

Error 217: Setting Global Reset Failed

I am experiencing issues with laptop like sleep mode not working and all due to this I believe.

Anyway to fix this ? I am attaching the dumped BIOS and DESC regions.

Please help …

bios_and_desc_regions.zip (1.94 MB)

2

The ME firmware is corrupted and needs to be repaired/re-flashed. To do that, you need read/write access to the Engine region of the SPI/BIOS chip. Since the Flash Descriptor is locked, that is not possible.

Capture.PNG



You need to follow [Guide] Unlock Intel Flash Descriptor Read/Write Access Permissions for SPI Servicing in order to try to unlock the FD first. That’s the hardest part. Once that’s done, we can repair the ME firmware.

3

Thank you very much for helping :slight_smile:

I think the only way to unlock FD in my laptop is to connect pin 1 with pin 5 of ALC233 audio codec.

But do you happen to know anyother way to unlock the FD via any specific key combinations (In case of Sony laptops) or through other software means ?

4


If the (similar) ALC231 chip pinout is anything to go by, then yes, you need to connect pin 1 and 5.


No, I know nothing for Sony/VAIO. Only HP uses key combinations as far as I know. So you’ll need to try the other methods explained at the FD guide. Once you are able to read the ME region (fptw -me -d me.bin), we can proceed.