EDIT: Modified HP dv9000t to now have embedded EVDO!

Hp_EVDO · EVDO Fledgling Joined: 06 Apr 2007 Posts: 13

I have searched high and low and spent 4 hours on tech support and coming up empty handed. So i am asking for help from you guys! Here is my situation:

I have an HP dv9000t that did NOT come with EVDO.
I have modified the motherboard to allow for an extra PCIe slot.
I have installed a Dell 5700 Verizon EVDO card, model CF265, the same cards that come in the Dell D420 and others.
The card is installed and is recognized successfully.
But I cannot find drivers for Windows XP and Vista to save my life!!
The Dell website has drivers but the installation program can ONLY be run on a supported Dell system, no exceptions.
I have called, Verizon, Novatel and Dell with no assitance from any of them!
What I need obviosly is just the driver files... If i can get one of you the PLEASE help me out, and if you own one of these laptops make a copy of the driver files, I would be forever grateful!!!
If i had access to a Dell D420 or any other model with the CF265 card, I would install the program, then copy the entire folder it makes with the driver files.
Please contact me if you can help!

Also, if there is interest I can post the exact details of how I added the PCIe slot, installed the card etc.

Thanks again for reading this I hope I find someone that is nice enuf to help me!! Smile

tmgoethe · EVDO User Joined: 31 May 2005 Posts: 56

I thought HP also offered the internal card, could you see if their software will work? That might be the best bet if it will work.

I have that card on my machine and the drivers are:
c:\windows\system32\drivers\modem.sys
c:\windows\system32\drivers\nwdelmdm.sys

The second one sounds like the important one. I think modem.sys is the generic Windows one. These are are from XP Pro. Not sure about anything for Vista. I'm staying away from that for the foreseeable future.

I could email those files if you send me your address.

You would probably also want the VZW Access manager, though it should work using DUN
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Thomas M. Goethe

Hp_EVDO · EVDO Fledgling Joined: 06 Apr 2007 Posts: 13

I have checked out the HP version but they use a card made by Sierra Wireless, So no go there Sad

... Yeah if you could get me a copy of those files I can try and see if they will work! I should just need the .inf files but im not sure what all its required to have. Is that what windows is reporting under device manager for drivers? Sorry for all the questions, im kinda winging it here since I seem to be the only one to do this!!

My Email:
UnionPacificRR@Hotmail.com

Thanks!!!!

Very Happy

Hp_EVDO · EVDO Fledgling Joined: 06 Apr 2007 Posts: 13

I got your email but Hotmail doesnt support those file extensions Evil or Very Mad

Would it be possible to try and Zip them up and resend?

Thanks again!!
Adam

tmgoethe · EVDO User Joined: 31 May 2005 Posts: 56

Just as an update, we were not able to get him going with any of the Dell software or drivers, BUT, it occurred to me that other software makers use the Novatel internal card, so he tried the Toshiba version of Access Manager. It was not tied to a Toshiba motherboard (the Dell software is tied to a Dell one), and he reported success.
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Thomas M. Goethe

infarct

Hp_EVDO · EVDO Fledgling Joined: 06 Apr 2007 Posts: 13

Ill post the details here in the AM, im currently at work (on a train, im a conductor) writing this so I dont have time to put together a detailed page, but check back ill post the pics and steps i took!

infarct · Posted: Tue May 29, 2007 1:40 am Post subject:

Thanks much.. I have been trying to figure out have to have both WiFi and Verizon Broadband on my laptop.
Kevin
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Kevin D Cannon

Hp_EVDO · EVDO Fledgling Joined: 06 Apr 2007 Posts: 13

Well here is the lowdown:

The computer I modified was a HP Pavillion dv9000t. Was a warranty replacement with a build date around Dec 2006. I have been using my xv6700 tethered to my computer for a year or so for the internet, when i decided to try and build on into my computer. After closer inspection, i noticed that on the motherboard next to the original PCIx slot, there was a silk screen for a second connector but it was not populated. After many hours of reverse engineering the motherboard and connector and learning a LOT on how PCI and PCIx worked, i figured out how to re-connect the PCIx connector so it will work for a EX620 Verizon modem. Here is the basics of what i did.

Before I did any work this is what the motherboard looked like:

As you can see, all the silk screens are there for another PCIx slot, but they never put it in!

This photo is after I installed the new connector:

the replacement connector was graciously donated to my by Molex after I called them and explained my story and what I was trying to accomplish. If you try and do this mod yourself, finding this connector will be the MOST difficult part by far, there are a few dealers that sell them but they all want you to buy production-level quantities. i.e. thousands at a time! I managed to convince them that this was experimental and just needed one so they put in a "sample order" that is usually used by companes seeking a part supplier so they can check the quality of the parts before they make a order. Anyways, I lucked out big time lol

This photo is the final product after all is said and done:

The parts highlighted in green were jumpers and filters installed by me. The larger component on the left is a 100uH inductor on the 3.3v bus for filtering. The rest are 0ohm jumpers. The leftmost jumpers are for the SMBus, or System Management Bus, which allows the motherboard to poll the device and power it on/off during hibernation and sleep modes. Not critical but necessary for proper operation during these modes. The next set of jumpers is for the USB2.0 bus. For our sake, THE most critical part. These and most all cellular modem cards based on the mini PCIx form factor are actually just USB modems. The wonderful thing about mini PCIx is that they thought ahead and used 2 pins on the connector for USB to allow for devices that only need USB connectivity and not the full-fledged PCIx. Which is excellent news in our case. So what I did was install the jumpers on the USB and SMBus, and then connect the large jumper for the 3.3v bus to power the device. While these parts look large in the pictures, in reality they are VERY small. The inductor on the far left is actually only 2.6mm long. The 0ohm jumpers are 1mm.

This project is definitely not for the faint hearted, and requires some extremely good soldering skills. A tiny solder hair across any of these pins could lead to catastrophic failure of the PCI controller, USB hub or the power regulator circuit. Performing this mod will surely void any warranty and i cannot stress enough that this is do at your own risk! I will gladly give any advice but do not condone opeing up your computer and soldering parts onto it! If you have any questions feel free to ask I left a lot out of this article as I have to get ready to head for work. I will prolly be back a little later and add some more details tomorrow!

geniv2 · EVDO User Joined: 06 May 2006 Posts: 26