E6510 Sudden reboot with latest BIOS

In my case of this problem, I have not experienced it again since my posting on September 30 (2011).  Seems clear to me that the issue is about the BIOS trying to control hardware that is NOT installed...and boom! all goes black.

Could you please describe once again what exactly you did to fix this issue (I have similar problems when experementing with the WiFi-Switch) ?!?

I applied BIOS update A10 last week.  My machine has been up for 7 days running since applying that update.  This is the longest that my machine has ever stayed up before panicking and doing the black screen thing.

I'm going to tempt fate and see how long it will go before it finally crashes.

I applied BIOS update A10 last week.  My machine has been up for 7 days running since applying that update.  This is the longest that my machine has ever stayed up before panicking and doing the black screen thing. I'm going to tempt fate and see how long it will go before it finally crashes.

A10? So I guess you don´t have a E6x20, right?

Given that the title of the thread is "E6510 Sudden Reboot" ... your guess would be correct.

Sure - regardless this being titled "E6510 Sudden Reboot" I'm glad to share what seems to be THE fix for my machine - I strive to reconcile like problems for all! :-)  (Frankly there is no forum on this for my M4600, but the problem is the same - and given the many, many posts here....it's not solely an E6510 issue, nor should the original post assume so in the misnomer of the post).

Here was my clue:

After running the built-in Dell Diagnostics, the report at the end showed that WWAN (WiMAX hardware?) was NOT installed though I'd been staring at some icon on my desktop to "get started with WiMAX" (a WWAN service provider) work weeks on my new machine.

Here was the light bulb in my head:

I had noticed that in two area of the BOIS, WWAN was checked for use on the machine - clearly a conflict with what the Dell Diagnostics indicated (that WWAN was not installed).  So, I unchecked WWAN in both places in the BIOS, and since then, I've been running without blackouts/shutdowns, for months now.

Best of luck!

Aaaah, okay, now I got it. But unfortunately I have and use WWAN, so no help for me (maybe other users here) :(

Sure - regardless this being titled "E6510 Sudden Reboot" I'm glad to share what seems to be THE fix for my machine - I strive to reconcile like problems for all! :-)  (Frankly there is no forum on this for my M4600, but the problem is the same - and given the many, many posts here....it's not solely an E6510 issue, nor should the original post assume so in the misnomer of the post).

Sorry to be snippy earlier - wasn't sure where you were going with that.  I finally black-screened after 7 days of continuous uptime, so the A10 BIOS did not fix it.  Your suggestion about the WWAN was a great one - it was enabled in the BIOS on my machine, and like you, I don't have a WWAN device.  So I rebooted and disabled in the BIOS.  Fingers crossed and thanks for the tip!

And only time will indicate more and more that was the problem if you don't get crashes anymore.  Do come back and let us know if this also fixed your issue - stills to be the fix for mine.  And if so, Dell needs to heed this and get their configurations right.

I tried this "Unchecking WWAN" settings in the BIOS on my similarly troubled Latitude E6320. I had A05 BIOS after the second MOBO was replaced by Dell since they could not figure out the problem.

The WWAN settings change did not correct the problem for me and I continued trying things from this thread.

Then I tried updating the BIOS to A08 and this did not resolve the ASF2 issue as well.  I then went into BIOS and disable C-States. I am testing that configuration now.

And only time will indicate more and more that was the problem if you don't get crashes anymore.  Do come back and let us know if this also fixed your issue - stills to be the fix for mine.  And if so, Dell needs to heed this and get their configurations right.

No ASF2/force power off/black screens of death since making this change.  Combined with the A10 BIOS update which did have some stability improvements by itself, my machine is finally as stable as previous DELL laptops I've had.

Un-checking C-states did NOT resolve this issue. I still receive around 1 freeze/lock per day with the current settings.

I just completed my Dell Support Chat...they refuse to replace the PC and are sending a tech to replace the Motherboard AND CPU for the THIRD time.

Third time is a charm for replacing the motherboard I hope.

This issue has been ongoing for months now and our client has lost countless hours of productivity due to intermittent Freeze/Black Screen (and in BIOS log-  Power off - ASF2 Force Off).

She is already VERY frustrated at paying for a new laptop and then having nothing but troubles. I haven't spoke with her yet about Dell's final response but she was hoping to get a replacement working computer to use over the Christmas break to try and catch up on the work she has fallen behind on from the last two months of hardware issues.

This is most unfortunate. I pleaded with my Dell tech to replace the Laptop out of a concern for customer retention and he said we had to swap more parts first. :(
My comment was... "Keep replacing parts...I hope you are able to replace the customers as easily."

I suspect she will never authorize a Dell to be purchased again.

Just had this happen again. Really upset - I come out of a meeting and find that a VM I had been running, along with everything else, was off.

I'll try Dell again but I don't hold any hope.

EDIT: No luck. They want me to run the Intel Processor Diagnostic Tool (passed) and Dell Diagnostic Utility and tell them what is in the firmware logs etc etc etc blah blah blah. BTW - I can't run that VM anymore since VMWare can't unlcok the previous lock GRRRR

EDIT - 2: Fixed the VM problem. Dell are suggesting to reload the system software (Windows 7), which would include all the other applications (Office 2010, VMWare, Firefox, etc), to see if this fixes the issue. This would take days which my company won't be happy to accept.

A coworker and I were both experiencing the same hard-shut symptoms.  He removed his battery, checked the contacts, and reinstalled and has not had an issue since (3+ weeks).  I had three occurrences in 2 days and performed the same task and have not had the symptom since.

I did notice that the battery fit is not as secure as I have seen on other laptops.  There seems to be an unreasonable amount of play when you are holding the laptop in my hands while not on a solid service (I am able to feel the battery move when I press on it).  This coupled with the fact that the battery now has one of the supporting feet may be causing the battery to move, and cause an issue with the battery contacts which may in turn result in a higher than normal current draw or excessive heat which may put the machine into an emergency shutdown.  Just a theory, but I have to say that the mechanical design of this particular machine is not up to par with previous Dell laptops that I have had over the past 15 years.

I just got a m4600 and am experiencing the same symptoms.  Initially it was rebooting 1 or 2 times a day.  Then we upgraded the bios to A10, and the shutdowns reduced to once to twice a week..  Dell replaced the battery and that night it shutdown also.  Now awaiting a new mobo replacement.  Doesn't seem promising based on the thread here.  Another co-worker with the same machine hasn't had any reboots in the 3 months he had his.