Re: Removing Internal Modems on Older Ultra-Light Laptops

On Mon, 24 Jul 2006 09:08:02 -0400, William P.N. Smith
<news2006c@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Inquirer <reply@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
William P.N. Smith<news2006c@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Removing the drivers, disabling the hardware, or physically removing
it for some unspecified security reason or something?

Physically removing (for reasons which shall remain unspecified for
now :o) ).

Sigh. You'll generally find that the more information you give, the
better the response you'll receive.

Sorry, I was just a little hesitant to give the whole story.

Here it is:

While I always need a laptop, there are times when I want to be
completely _without_ the ability for dial-up internet access. (for
certain personal reasons)

With the laptops I've had in the past, I would have someone hold my
PCMCIA modem-cards for me and when I needed access (or just had to
have a "fix") , I would take them back- sometimes for shorter periods,
sometimes for longer. The bottom line was that I had a relatively
simple and practical way to switch between access/no-access.

others are impossible-
the modems are integrated onto the motherboard itself.

That's not impossible, just more difficult. Desolder the offending
chip, remove the DAA bits, cut some traces, apply AC power to the
phone line port, there are all kinds of options.

Okay, so not actually impossible but also not a viable option as per
below.

[I'm assuming this can be non-reversable,

That _alone_ would be okay. Not ideal but acceptable. It's what you
describe further down which would _not_ be acceptable.

though you still won't be
able to prevent someone from attaching a USB or PCMCIA modem...

That I realize and is to my advantage. ( as I hope now is clear from
what I wrote above.)

I'm
also assuming you don't mind some potential collateral damage,
or even
rendering the computer in question completely un-usable.]

This is where this becomes an unacceptable option; the idea is to have
a _working_ , _usable_laptop without an internal modem.

(If I didn't need a usuable computer... "If my grandmother had
wheels...", If.., If... :o))

but I'd just
fill the hole with hot-melt glue or epoxy if removing the drivers or
disabling the modem in software didn't work.

But you have to be able to find the right hole...

If you can't find the modem port I can't help you much with this
option.

I hope you already saw my follow-up to this. From the context, I had
thought you meant some interface or opening for the modem itself and
not the RJ-11 port which I then realized you were referring to.

Once I realized this, I also realized that this could be a good
solution for any unit with an internal modem which cannot be _easily_
removed.

Going back to the very beginning of your initial reply: the problem
with merely disabling a modem via software is how easy it is to
re-enable it. However, you also mentioned removing drivers.

Am I correct in assuming that once the drivers were completely removed
from the system, the modem could not work until the drivers were
replaced and the only way to replace them would be via download or
loading from some medium.[1] (If so, this should be comparable to the
PCMCIA card solution of mine which I described above).

If I am correct about all this, my next question obviously is: how
does one completely remove modem drivers?

Thank you very much for your continued time and patience.

NOTES:

[1] This brings to mind the following.

The system-recovery CD which came with the Dell Inspiron B120 I
recently bought, stated that it did not contain drivers...

Now I know the drivers can be downloaded from the Dell website but
without at least the drivers for the _modem_ (or the NIC or WiFi
configuration), how would one even get online?

Is it really fair to assume that everyone has such convenient access
for downloading and saving onto removable media?

When buying a computer that is prominently promoted as being
internet-ready (to the point of including all of that online service
provider software and promotional offers), is it really too much to
ask that the mfr. include a CD with _at least_ the networking
drivers?


----
Reply to group. Email invalid. Thanks.
.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Removing Internal Modems on Older Ultra-Light Laptops
    ... fill the hole with hot-melt glue or epoxy if removing the drivers or ... disabling the modem in software didn't work. ...
    (comp.sys.laptops)
  • Re: Removing Internal Modems on Older Ultra-Light Laptops
    ... Destroying the lapopt or even removing the modem seems like overkill. ... you also mentioned removing drivers. ... replaced and the only way to replace them would be via download or ...
    (comp.sys.laptops)
  • Re: modem and prosesser problems
    ... Check the modem manufacturer's website for the latest XP compatible drivers ... If you already have such drivers, try removing and ... reinstalling the drivers for the modem. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.basics)
  • Re: modem dissappears from device manager
    ... By removing the Registry entries, you now tell XP to ignore your modem. ... Why remove the drivers when the modem was still defined in Device Manager?? ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.hardware)
  • Re: setting up the fax
    ... Faxing can be done over a phone line using a data/fax analog modem. ... drivers for that motherboard must get installed. ... to install, troubleshoot, and configure a hardware voice/data/fax modem ... minutes to receive faxes for free, and there's no setup to send faxes ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.general)