How to Clear Your Computer’s CMOS to Reset BIOS Settings

Your computer stores low-level settings like the system time and hardware settings in its CMOS. These settings are configured in the BIOS setup menu. If you’re experiencing a hardware compatibility issue or another problem, you may want to try clearing the CMOS.

Clearing the CMOS resets your BIOS settings back to their factory default state. In most cases, you can clear the CMOS from within the BIOS menu. In some cases, you may have to open your computer’s case.

Use the BIOS Menu

The easiest way to clear the CMOS is from your computer’s BIOS setup menu. To access the setup menu, restart your computer and press the key that appears on your screen – often Delete or F2 – to access the setup menu.

If you don’t see a key displayed on your screen, consult your computer’s manual. Different computers use different keys. (If you built your own computer, consult your motherboard’s manual instead.)

Within the BIOS, look for the Reset option. It may be named Reset to default, Load factory defaults, Clear BIOS settings, Load setup defaults, or something similar.

Select it with your arrow keys, press Enter, and confirm the operation. Your BIOS will now use its default settings – if you’ve changed any BIOS settings in the past, you’ll have to change them again.

Use the CLEAR CMOS Motherboard Jumper

Many motherboards contain a jumper that can be used to clear CMOS settings if your BIOS is not accessible. This is particularly useful if the BIOS is password-protected and you don’t know the password.

The exact location of the jumper can be found in the motherboard’s (or computer’s) manual. You should consult the manual for more detailed instructions if you want to use the motherboard jumper.

However, the basic process is fairly similar on all computers. Flip the computer’s power switch to off to ensure it’s not receiving any power. Open the computer’s case and locate the jumper named something like CLEAR CMOS, CLEAR, CLR CMOS, PASSWORD, or CLR PWD – it will often be near the CMOS battery mentioned below. Ensure you’re grounded so you don’t damage your motherboard with static electricity before touching it. Set the jumper to the “clear” position, power on your computer, turn it off again, set the jumper to the original position – and you’re done.

Image Credit: Eden Richardson

Reseat the CMOS Battery

If your motherboard does not have a CLEAR CMOS jumper, you can often clear its CMOS settings by removing the CMOS battery and replacing it. The CMOS battery provides power used to save the BIOS settings – this is how your computer knows how much time has passed even when it’s been powered-off for a while – so removing the battery will remove the source of power and clear the settings.

Important Note: Not all motherboards have removable CMOS batteries. If the battery won’t come loose, don’t force it.

First, ensure the computer is powered off and you’re grounded so you won’t damage the motherboard with static electricity. Locate the round, flat, silver battery on the motherboard and carefully remove it. Wait five minutes before reseating the battery.

Image Credit: John Lester

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How to See Which App is Blocking Your PC from Going into Sleep Mode

Have you ever expected your PC to go into sleep mode only to come back and find it is still powered on? We know we certainly have, here’s how to check what’s keeping it awake.

How to See Which App is Blocking Your PC from Going into Sleep Mode

Press the Win + X keyboard combination or right click in the bottom left hand corner of your screen to bring up the Windows Tools Menu, then launch an admin command prompt.

When the command prompt opens, type the following command:

powercfg /requests

You can see from the screenshot above, that I have 1 Process (VLC Media Player) as well as 2 Drivers that are preventing my PC from going to sleep. That’s all there is to it.

How to Access Your Router If You Forget the Password

Routers protect their web interfaces, where you can configure their networking, parental control, and port forwarding settings, with a username and password. These default passwords can be changed to protect the router’s settings.

If you’ve forgotten a router’s password – or if you acquired a used router and don’t know its password – there’s a way to reset the password. You may also be able to forward ports without knowing the password.

Image Credit: tnarik on Flickr

Find the Default Username and Password

Before resetting your router to its default settings, you should first try using the default username and password to log in. You’ll need these anyway if you plan on resetting the router to its factory default settings. There are several ways to find this information:

• Read your router’s manual. Different models of routers – even ones from the same manufacturer – often have different username and password combinations. To locate the default username and password for the router, look in its manual. (If you’ve lost the manual, you can often find it by searching for your router’s model number and “manual” on Google. Or just search for your router’s model and “default password”.)
• Look for a sticker on the router itself. Some routers – particularly ones that may have come from your Internet service provider – ship with unique passwords. These passwords may sometimes be printed on a sticker on the router itself.
• Try a common username and password combination. Many routers use the password “admin”  (don’t type the quotes) and a blank username, a blank password and “admin” as the username, or “admin” as both the password and username. You can find a fairly comprehensive list of default usernames and passwords for various routers onRouterPasswords.com.

Try to log in with the default credentials after finding them – it’s possible the router was already reset or someone never changed its password. If they don’t work, continue to the next section – you’ll need the default credentials after resetting the router.

Reset the Router to Factory Defaults

Routers come with a button you can press to reset the router to its default factory settings. This resets any configuration changes you’ve made to the router – forwarded ports, network settings, parental controls, and custom passwords will all be wiped away. You’ll be able to access the router with its default username and password, but you may have to spend some time configuring the router again, depending on how many changes you made to its configuration.

The exact process (and location of the reset button) will vary from router to router. For best results, you should consult your router’s manual for any model-specific instructions. However, the process is generally very similar on most routers.

First, look at the back (or perhaps the bottom) of the router. You’ll see a special button labeled Reset. This button is often located in a depressed hole, known as a “pinhole,” so you can’t accidentally press it.

To reset the router, you’ll generally need to press this button and hold it down for about 10 seconds. After you release the button, the router will reset itself to the factory default settings and reboot. If the button is located in a pinhole, you’ll need to use a bent paperclip or another long, narrow object to press and hold it.

Once you’ve pressed the button down for long enough, you can log into the router with its default username and password.

Image Credits: William Hook on Flickr and DeclanTM on Flickr

How to Forward Ports Without Knowing the Password

Do you just want to open the router’s web interface and forward ports for a server, game, or other type of networked program? If so, you don’t necessarily even have to know the password. This trick is also useful if you’re using someone else’s network and don’t have access to the password.

This works because many routers support Universal Plug and Play (UPnP), which allows programs on your computer to “ask” the router to open ports for them. If UPnP is enabled on the router, it will automatically open the port.

If a program supports this option, you’ll generally find it in its connection settings alongside the port configuration. NAT-PMP, which you may also see, is a similar way of automatically forwarding ports that fewer routers support.

If you use a program that doesn’t include integrated support for UPnP, never fear – you can use a program like UPnP PortMapper to quickly forward ports from a desktop application. You can forward any ports you like.

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Once you’ve reset the router’s settings, you can log in with the default username and password and change its password from its web interface.

Send a Free Fax to Anywhere in the World

If you don’t have a fax machine at hand, or if the cost of sending an international fax seems prohibitive, this should interest you.

Send an online fax for free to any fax machine in the world

HelloFax, the online fax company, has recently partnered with Microsoft and now lets you send up to 50 pages per month to any fax machine in the world for free. All your need is a web browser and a Microsoft account (your Hotmail or Windows Live ID should also work).

To get started, go to hellofax.com/skydrive and click the “Sign-up with Microsoft” link. Once your are signed in, just upload any document and put in a fax number (with country code) to send your first online fax. Once your fax has been successfully delivered, a copy of the outbound fax document will be automatically saved in your SkyDrive.

You can use HelloFax to send Word documents, PDFs, text files, images and several other popular formats. You can also pull in documents directly from your SkyDrive, Box, Dropbox, Evernote and Google Drive accounts for faxing.

Also see: Comparison on Online Fax Services

Your free account will only help you send faxes to other numbers but in order to receive faxes, you’ll have to buy an incoming fax number that costs around $7.99 per month.

Update – If you don’t have a Microsoft account, go to hellofax.com/googledrive and use your Google Account to sign-up for HelloFax.  You will still get credit for sending up to  50 faxes per month for free for a maximum of 6 months.

Multitasking on Android With Floating Apps

Android has decent multitasking, but the missing piece of the puzzle is the ability to have multiple apps on-screen at the same time – particularly useful on a larger tablet. Floating apps fill this need.

Floating apps function as always-on-top windows, allowing you to watch videos, browse the web, take notes, or do other things while using another app. They demonstrate how Android’s interface is more flexible than iOS and the Modern UI in Windows.

Browsers

Two popular floating browsers are Floating Browser Flux (free) and OverSkreen (paid, doesn’t yet function on Android Jelly Bean).

With these apps, you can use a browser while using another app, open multiple floating browser windows and view multiple web pages at the same time, or both.

Video Players

Video players are an obvious use case for pop-up apps, especially on a larger tablet. You could watch a video while browsing the web, doing your email, or using any other app on your tablet or phone. DicePlayer, BSPlayer, and Super Video are all free floating video players. Stick It! is a paid app, but it also supports YouTube videos in addition to local video files.

Notepad

Want to take notes while reading a web page, PDF, or any other type of document? Switching back and forth between a note-taking app and the main app you’re using can be tedious. Instead, try hovernote – a floating notes app that hovers over the other apps you’re using. It’s a paid app, but there aren’t any free floating notes apps on Google Play at the moment.

Chat & IRC

Old-school desktop chat programs like ICQ, AIM, MSN, Pidgin, Trillian, and the others didn’t force you into a full-screen chat mode, but most apps on your tablet do. LilyPad gives you a floating chat window, allowing you to chat on Google Talk, Facebook, and Windows Live Messenger (MSN). The developers promise future support for AIM, Yahoo, and Jabber.

If you’re a geek who still uses IRC for your chatting, try FloatIRC.

Calculator

The default Android calculator app looks a bit ridiculous in full-screen mode on a tablet. TryAirCalc or Float Calculator instead – both are free and allow you to use a calculator while using another app.

Any Widget

While floating apps are useful, the selection is currently a bit limited. For example, there’s no floating app that shows your Gmail or a Pandora music player. However, many apps provide widgets, which are normally attached to your home screen. A floating app likeFloating Banner (free) or Floating Widget (paid) allows you to turn any widget into a floating app. If you can’t find a floating app that meets your needs, you can find a widget and turn it into a floating app.

Terminal

AirTerm gives you a floating Linux terminal. If you want to SSH into your Linux server or use Android’s terminal (particularly useful on rooted devices), AirTerm will allow you to do it in a floating window. It’s a paid app, but it’s the only one of its kind on Google Play.

System Stats

Apps like Cool Tool (free) and PerfMon (paid) give you a floating window with information about your Android device’s system stats – resource usage and everything else you might want to know. If you like seeing this stuff, you can see it all the time.

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Android developers who want to create their own floating apps can use StandOut, an open-source library for creating floating apps.