Sony VGN-BX640P laptop

Hard drive crashed, had to reinstall everything.

One thing it has is a fingerprint reader. I was able to get the driver off of sony's website and it installed fine but I think I need the security suite by UPEK.

Looking at Sony's website for this laptop I do see a larger download for the suite but when I try to install it, it says it is only for windows Vista.

I have looked on google and basically there are results that say windows xp/vista but they lead to the same file that seems to be only for vista.

I would think they would make the security suite available for people that have to reformat their machines for XP but it does not seem to be the case so far. Anyone else had this issue?

Maybe I'm missing something on their page

http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/swu...0P&region_id=1

04/18/2006 Security UPEK® TouchChip FingerPrint Coprocessor Driver

UPDFPD-00962001-US.EXE
Version :
1.8.1.0055


Did you get that one?

About number 7 from the bottom.
http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/swu...&mdl=VGNBX640P

Yeah, I believe that I did. The actual device is now installed properly in the device manager, but I don't see how to set it up so that when you boot the system it will ask you for your fingerprint.


Which is why I think I might need the suite software to set that up.

Now for that part, I have no idea.

I suggest emailing Sony and see what they have to say.

Have you checked [dug into] the Program files?

Just to let you know, I talked to a support rep from sony, I was right you do need the security suite.

I will post back if I'm able to get a link to this software that works with windows XP.

Thanks for the update!

Well I don't know what to do, I think the Sony chat rep is lying to me but I don't know for sure

Someone go to this link and download the software and see if you can install it or if you get an error that it only works on vista.

http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/swu...d=2636&os_id=7

There are 2 options here, either the chat tech is lying to me or sony has some sort of crap on the machine that would prevent the installation of this software if it's not a sony machine but instead of giving a proper error message explaining that it needs to be a sony machine tells you that you need windows Vista.

Ok, found out the issue. They provide the driver but do not provide the suite used to take advantage of the device.

Seems kind of silly to be to provide the driver but then not provide the software that makes the device usefull.

Perhaps there is third party software that can use the finger print reader.

On another note I'm pretty sure the tech did lie to me though. He said he was able to install the software on his computer just fine and he told me he had windows XP. That software as he later admitted does not work for XP it only will update the software on a computer to be Vista compatible if the computer has already been updated to vista. Now it could be that perhaps if you already had the security suite installed on XP that file download might work to update the software but I don't think that is the case since on both XP machine's it stopped me and told me that it would only work for vista.

He then came clean and admitted that they do not provide the secuirty suite for windows XP for download.

I think that perhaps he did not know this was the case and he learned something new today.

I agree on the person learned something today.

Be darn if I know what to do now.
Walk into a shop??