Is there any way to hack my mini-pc?

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Rikkitic

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#179100 26-Aug-2015 10:28

My streaming computer is a Pipo mini-pc. After a lot of initial problems, it now works pretty well. There is just one thing that drives me crazy. We switch off the power at night for both safety and economy reasons. When the power comes back on, every single device except the Pipo remembers its settings and comes on too. The Pipo only comes on in standby mode and has to be physically switched on each time by pressing a button on the front. There does not appear to be any way to change this behaviour in the BIOS and I have heard of others who have bricked their Pipos by trying.

My question: is there any way I can modify the power circuitry to get this darned thing to just come one when power is switched on? I know enough electronics to do this kind of thing but not enough to design my own. Is there any kind of fix for this situation?

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#1374508 26-Aug-2015 10:33

Don't turn it off?

ie feed this device with a dedicate feed.

hashbrown

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#1374512 26-Aug-2015 10:47

Is it a S3 sleep state. If so just schedule a wake for shortly after power comes on.

wasabi2k

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#1374522 26-Aug-2015 11:24

Without an option in the BIOS - I doubt it.

graemeh

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#1374539 26-Aug-2015 11:32

Is there a wake on lan setting in the BIOS?

gzt

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#1374552 26-Aug-2015 12:11

What are the BIOS power options available?

Is the button physical momentary switch or a touch button ?

RunningMan

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#1374595 26-Aug-2015 13:32

sticky tape on the power button?

Rikkitic

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#1374606 26-Aug-2015 13:48

I just took another look at the BIOS. It is from American Megatrends and has a lot of settings I don't understand but I found something about the state it should start in after a power failure. The settings options are S0 or S5 but I have no idea what these mean. It is currently set to S0.

I don't see a wake on lan setting but I am still looking. The unit has a press and hold power button to switch it on. The button has to be held in for a second or so until the power LED lights. Otherwise it won't come on.

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Rikkitic

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#1374619 26-Aug-2015 13:51

Another thing I should maybe mention is that it seems to think it is a tablet with batteries, though it isn't.

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bazzer

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#1374620 26-Aug-2015 13:52

Rikkitic: I just took another look at the BIOS. It is from American Megatrends and has a lot of settings I don't understand but I found something about the state it should start in after a power failure. The settings options are S0 or S5 but I have no idea what these mean. It is currently set to S0.

I don't see a wake on lan setting but I am still looking. The unit has a press and hold power button to switch it on. The button has to be held in for a second or so until the power LED lights. Otherwise it won't come on.

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ZollyMonsta

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#1374626 26-Aug-2015 14:04

Rikkitic: I just took another look at the BIOS. It is from American Megatrends and has a lot of settings I don't understand but I found something about the state it should start in after a power failure. The settings options are S0 or S5 but I have no idea what these mean. It is currently set to S0.

I don't see a wake on lan setting but I am still looking. The unit has a press and hold power button to switch it on. The button has to be held in for a second or so until the power LED lights. Otherwise it won't come on.

Don't touch that setting in the BIOS. This is the exact setting I changed which resulted in my PiPo being bricked.

Head over to this page http://freaktab.com/forum/tv-player-support/intel-based-tv-players/meegopad-tv-player/23966-auto-start-without-pressing-power-button

Someone else trying to do the exact same thing as you. Someone else posted a solution to the same forums here http://www.freaktab.com/showthread.php?23577-GUIDE-Enable-MeeGoPad-Auto-Power-On&p=286777#post286777

Oddly that is for some other device. And it involves doing some freaky stuff with the BIOS. So be warned. If you break it, you own all the pieces.

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Brumfondl

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#1374627 26-Aug-2015 14:07

Um, is it just me who is wondering why, if you go to the effort of switching the power off to the device, you can't just make pushing the power button on the device a part of the switching-the-power-back-on routine? It seems a lot safer than mucking around and potentially destroying the device.

geocom

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#1374629 26-Aug-2015 14:12

RunningMan: sticky tape on the power button?

Don't know if your fooling around or not.
If not have you ever held down the power button on a computer for like 5 seconds?

Geoff E

Rikkitic

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#1374640 26-Aug-2015 14:32

RunningMan: sticky tape on the power button?

I don't know if this is a serious suggestion. I have also seen it elsewhere. In the past I had a number of different devices with the same issue and I could never understand why manufacturers insist on doing this. In any case, every device I tested would not have worked with this suggestion. I never found any piece of equipment of any description that would come on if the button is forced in the on position. With every one, the button had to be released first and then pressed after the power had come on. I wish it could be fixed this way. My life would have been much less frustrating if I could have simply soldered those switches to the closed position.

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Rikkitic

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#1374643 26-Aug-2015 14:35

Brumfondl: Um, is it just me who is wondering why, if you go to the effort of switching the power off to the device, you can't just make pushing the power button on the device a part of the switching-the-power-back-on routine? It seems a lot safer than mucking around and potentially destroying the device.

Sure I can. That's obvious. And I do. But the switches are at different locations and I sometimes forget to turn on the computer. Call me old and absent-minded. I would just like it to come on when everything else does. I paid for it so why can't I have it work the way I want it to?

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Rikkitic

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#1374644 26-Aug-2015 14:37

ZollyMonsta:

Oddly that is for some other device. And it involves doing some freaky stuff with the BIOS. So be warned. If you break it, you own all the pieces.

Thanks for the warning. I appreciate the risk and I am treading carefully.

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