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accidentally nuked one of my t440ps (lemmy.spv.sh)

submitted 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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was updating my coreboot tree, rebuild after rebuild, etc

pretty sure i nuked one of the flash chips on the motherboard by keeping the clip connected (and powered & all) while powercycling.

i got away with it before, but i guess i rolled snake eyes this time. those are the bad ones, right?

edit: now that i think about it, i was able to read both flash chips without issue, and reflash them. it might just be a firmware issue, after all!

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[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

they're not socketed, are they? i have virtually zero soldering experience

edit: the chips are the W25Q32FV & W25Q64FV. both are rather cheap wholesale, at ~$0.40 / chip. i've just never replaced a chip like this. i did buy a pencil a while back, though, so it could be good to learn.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 day ago (1 children)

No, they are not socketed. They are 8 pin SOIC packages, which are not too hard to solder.

Look for an SMD solder practice kit that has SOIC packages and practice with that. The motherboard will have a lot more layers, so it will take more heat than the practice board though.

To remove the old chip, I would carefully cut the pins off and desolder them one at a time with some solder wick. Then clean the pads up with the wick. Use lots of flux and don't drag the wick across the pads. That can damage them.

Get a soldering iron tip with a flat surface on it. The round, fine pointed tips don't transfer enough heat. You will also want a wide chisel tip for the solder wick.

To solder the new chip, hold it with tweezers and align it on the pads, then tack one corner pin down. Then solder the opposite corner, then the rest of the pins. If you bridge any pins, just clean it up with solder wick.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 day ago

thank you very much! upon more thought, i think the chips are probably fine. i'll try flashing a known good in ~2hrs.