How To Change Service Tag On Dell Motherboard

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Two weeks ago my computer (XPS 17 9700) was damaged, Dell told me that I need to pay for the repair, so I bought a Dell motherboard online. When the motherboard arrived I discovered that the motherboard was written to the OptiPlex PC service tag, which prevented me from activating windows and updating the correct drivers within the system. I would like to know if there is any way to modify the Service Tag on my motherboard BIOS, this issue is bothering me a lot.Chris (Dell)Justin (Dell)

15 Replies

Hi there, I'm curious about this answer.

The only times I've been able to change the service tag on a motherboard has been when replacing with one directly from Dell. Any other time the service tag field is grayed out in the BIOS.

Big Green Man

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Jun 8, 2021 at 16:26 UTC

There used to be tools available online to do this, but I don't think they work with newer computers. You might need to contact Dell on this one.

For newer computers, the previous tools are no longer available. But I want to know how to contact and communicate with Dell, because I bought the motherboard online and not the dell factory. I don't know if they would be willing to serve me.

Big Green Man

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Jun 8, 2021 at 16:33 UTC

Qihang wrote:

For newer computers, the previous tools are no longer available. But I want to know how to contact and communicate with Dell, because I bought the motherboard online and not the dell factory. I don't know if they would be willing to serve me.

It'll be out of warranty, so they'll probably charge you to make the change. I'm guessing you know what the service tag is supposed to be because you'd need that info to change it. I'd just do a support chat using the XPS's service tag and see where that gets you.

So I don't know, what do I do, but my XPS pc is showing optiplex pc

jwarner14

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Jun 8, 2021 at 17:05 UTC

Unless something has changed, The service tag on a motherboard cannot be changed. Once it is set, it's set.

I've always suspected that Dell has a private tool that can reset refurbished motherboard service tags, but nothing is available.

Jrx1216

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Jun 8, 2021 at 17:05 UTC

As far as I'm aware, you cannot change the service tag associated with a motherboard once it's been set. When you get a brand-new one from Dell, it comes with a blank one and allows you to set it once and only once and gives you a warning that it cannot be changed once set. If you're willing to get way too deep into this, you may be able to dump the bios chip's ROM and write back to it with an external tool, but unless you already have the tool, it's almost certainly not worth it.

I would suggest putting your correct service tag into dell's support site and just manually installing the drivers you need, instead of having it use Support Assist or Command | Update to scan to do so, as they'll look at the service tag burned into the Motherboard.

Did you get Pro Support with this machine? If so, you should have been able to get a tech on-site to replace it within a day or so by calling them.

I think Dell should have a tool to clear these service tags and other information, but I do not know how to get it, ha ha ha

I think it's hard for me to manually go to enter the service tag and then download drivers and other content on the dell website every time, I still wish there was a tool that could help me correct it.

If there is a utility to change the Service Tag then Dell only let their Technicians have access to it. You could install Windows with the option to activate later and then try the phone line for activation. You can get drivers without the Service Tag.

Other than that you can always install Linux on it and not worry about the licence and the drivers.

ZebraMike

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Jun 8, 2021 at 20:13 UTC

Zebra Computers is an IT service provider.

We used to use the Dell Asset.exe utility. But I hear it doesn't work on newer computers.

What about upgrading the bios?

The model number etc is stored in bios tables.

I have seen the same part number used on Optiplexes and Precision WS etc.

The model of the computer is taken from the DMI information in the BIOS AFAIK.

When you change the bios it changes such information.

So go to support.dell.com, put in the original Service Tag or manually select the right model, and then download/install the latest bios for that machine.

Should change the model showing in bios information and from DMI/WMI/SNMP.

Qihang wrote:

So I don't know, what do I do, but my XPS pc is showing optiplex pc

Hello Qihang,

The essence of your PC is contained in the motherboard. Especially the chipset. I believe this is where the model information and the digital signature required to activate the machine is stored.

I've been wiping and reloading old Dell machines after we upgraded to Windows 10. What I do is go to support.dell.com, plug in the service tag, then look for the Originally installed OS and download the Driver pack for that OS. It could be that the original OS from Dell was Windows 7 or Windows 8.

If you install the original OS along with Dell's driver pack for that OS then it will activate Windows.

You don't want to change the service tag - the tag is related to the entire system - but most of the critical components are on the motherboard.

You now have a hybrid of an OptiPlex motherboard and your old disk/gpu etc from the XPS. If you changes the service tag then when doing a search for drivers on the dell support site it would try to give you chipset drivers for the XPS - but you need OptiPlex ones.

Windows activation is not related to the service tag. You need to go through the phone activation with Microsoft. It usually works with just a mobo change, but not always.

Slight puzzle for me about the motherboards is that the OptiPlex PC is a PC in a case and the XPS 17 9700 is a laptop? They are not similar at all and I wonder what has been done by the online seller to give it an OptiPlex tag! If it was a motherboard from an XPS then it should have a tag number for the laptop and there should not be this issue. Perhaps someone more knowledgeable than me will comment.

Here is my only thought, open the command prompt in Windows and type "wmic bios get serialnumber" without the quotes.

This should give you the Service Tag of the motherboard you currently have installed.

Go to the Dell website and enter that Service Tag for support.

Dell has a tool called "Dell OS Recovery Tool" for reinstalling the OS on most of its newer PCs but you will need that Service Tag during the installation for it to work.

Back up all of your data and reinstall the OS using the USB media created with the "Dell OS Recovery Tool."

Check Windows for activation.

If all is good, attempt to install the correct drivers for your PC.

I am honestly not sure of the licensing status from a legality standpoint, it is a WEIRD scenario but you are technically installing the Dell OS onto Dell hardware so maybe it is a valid license???