Rebranding The Atheros 928x Cards - The Guide

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Rebranding the Atheros 928x cards - The guide

Discussion in 'HP ProBook' started by philip_petev, Nov 6, 2013.
Page 1 of 25 1 2 3 4 5 6 → 25 Next >
#1
Nov 6, 2013 at 9:20 AM
WARNING !!! Do not try to change the

Vendor/Product IDs! You may change them even to
any other manufactuter IDs, but after that, there's
no turning back, because on the next boot, the
philip_petev Atheros EEPROM Tool won't recognize the card as
Atheros and you won't be able to restore the
Joined: Nov 10, 2011
Messages: 1,480
previous EEPROM state !!! Use it only to rebrand
Mobo: GA-H77N-WIFI F4 one Atheros 928x card to another Atheros 928x
CPU: i7-3770 @ 3.4 GHz card !
Graphics: Intel HD 4000
Mobile Phone:
WARNING!!! For advanced users only! Do not try
this unless you know what you're dealing with! The
following operation is dangerous and may destroy
your WiFi card ! I've warned you !!! I don't take
any responsibility, if you have bricked your card !!!
Read the whole guide carefully, before doing
anything !
EDIT: A RECOVERY GUIDE IS AVAILABLE, CHECK

HERE.
This guide is mainly for all 4x30s owner, but can be used by
1 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
anyone with whitelist in BIOS.
You'll need the following:

- Windows XP or later (Windows 7 recommended) -
obviously, the tools, used in this guide, works only on
Windows XP or later, so you'll need another computer,
running Windows XP or later **or** you can use your
ProBook with installed Windows XP or later and the
modified FanReset.dylib file by RehabMan (required for
cards, not present in the whitelist, like AR9280).
- this Atheros EEPROM tool. It's modified to extract the
first 512 bytes of the WiFi card's EEPROM.
- An Atheros 928x based card, running with the stock
Atheros driver.
- A hex editor (I've used this one, because it's free and
doesn't require installation, but you can use any hex
editor).
VERY IMPORTANT: all Windows 7 and later users

should disable temporarily the Windows 7's driver
signature enforcement. Select Windows 7 in your
Chameleon menu and then press quickly F8, then
select Disable Driver Signature Enforcement in the
menu. After selecting it, Windows 7 will continue
its boot process. This is not a one-time operation,
on the next boot the driver signature enforcement
will be enabled again. This step is a must, because
without doing it, the drivers, bundled with the
Atheros EEPROM tool, will not be loaded and you
may damage your card !!!
1. So, let's begin! The first thing is to check your

current card's IDs. In this manual I've used an Atheros
9280 based card:
2 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
The first line is quite enough for us:

PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_002A&SUBSYS_3041103C&REV_0
1
That means 168c:002a 103c:3041

These should be changed to 168C:002b 103c:1461 for
ProBook 4x30s (the IDs of the HP Atheros 9285 card).
2. Now we should extract a 512 bytes dump from the

card's EEPROM. Download and extract the Atheros
EEPROM tool in some folder. Open Command prompt
as an administrator (right click on Command Prompt
and Run As Administrator), go to the folder, where the
tool is located (cd C:\somewhere\aet_rw512) and run
the following command:
Code (Text):
[B]atheros_eeprom_tool.exe /r512[/B]
When you press OK, a new file will be created in the
3 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
tool's folder, called eeprom_dump.rom:
It's recommended a copy of this dump to be made, if

you want to restore the EEPROM to its previous state
later.
3. Now the dump should be edited properly. Open it in

the hex editor:
NOTE: All IDs in this dump are flip-byted !!! Keep
4 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
that in mind, when you search for them !!!
First, to change the SubVendor/SubProduct IDs. In this

case, they are 103c:3041. That means we are looking
for hex values 3c10 4130. In my case I won't change
the SubVendor ID, because it's already set to HP
(103c), but the owner of cards from another
assemblers like Dell Wireless 1515 will have to change
it as well. First, the SubProduct ID (unmark the two
checkboxes):
And when you find it, change it to 6114 (the flip-byted

value of 1461):
NOTE 2: you'll probably find the

Subvendor/Subproduct IDs in more than one place
in this dump, you should change them in all places
(in this card they were on two places)!!! If you are
not sure if any hex value you may find in the dump
is a Product/SubProduct ID or not, look at the
previous two values and if they are the flip-byted
5 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
Vendor/SubVendor IDs, you are on the right path.
Same goes for the SubVendor ID (only if needed).
Now it's time for the main Vendor/Product IDs.

Actually, we need to change only the Product ID,
because the Vendor ID is already set to Atheros
(168c). You could use the Replace function as well:
and change the Product ID from 2a00 (Atheros 9280)

to 2b00 (Atheros 9285):
All needed edits have been made. Now, save the file.
4. It's time to upload the modified dump on the card.

In Command prompt, run the following command:
Code (Text):
[B]atheros_eeprom_tool.exe /w512[/B]
6 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
5. Reboot your computer. The card will be recognized

again, the driver will be installed and now you should
see the following:
The funny part is in OS X:
7 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
As you can see, the card appears like Atheros 9285,

but acts just like Atheros 9280: same channels, same
speed. I'm using it for already a week and haven't seen
any problems so far. Of course, in order to work, the
current Atheros 9285 DSDT patches / kext injectors
should be used, because this trick only avoids the
whitelist in BIOS, but for OS X it's still unsupported
Atheros 9285 card.
NOTE 3: During the extraction/writing process you

may see this:
This is only a warning message, it shows that an

unsigned driver has been loaded and you may
ignore it.
8 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
The problem would be if you see this:
That means you haven't disabled the driver

signature enforcement. Don't try anything, close all
programs, reboot your computer and disable it (the
first note in this guide, marked as VERY
IMPORTANT) Continuing the procedure in this case
(especially if you're trying to write the dump) may
brick your card !!!
This guide can be used for rebranding of all Atheros based card,
supported by this EEPROM tool (as far as I know, the whole
AR92xx series).
Credits:
eugene - for the modified Athero EEPROM tool.
edukees - for the initial Atheros 9285 rebranding guide.
Last edited by a moderator: Feb 23, 2017
#2
Nov 6, 2013 at 2:16 PM
Thank you for include me in the credits i was banned

right after the post of the "guide"
Your card obviosly seems to be working great in Mac,

but what is happening in windows?, the driver detect it
eduk33s
like an ar9285 does work ok?, a modification of the
driver can be done for that, but my doubt is about
another IDs that can be work in our 4530s. I found this
9 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
Joined: Oct 30, 2013 in the win driver:

Messages: 28
Mobo: Hp ProBook 4530s HP laptop
CPU: i3 2350m
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_001C&SUBSYS_303F103C -->
Graphics: Intel HD3000
"Qualcomm Atheros AR5007 802.11b/g WiFi Adapter"
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_001C&SUBSYS_3040103C -->
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_001C&SUBSYS_137A103C -->
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_001C&SUBSYS_137B103C -->
"Qualcomm Atheros AR5006 802.11a/b/g WiFi
Adapter"
"Qualcomm Atheros AR5006 802.11a/b/g WiFi
Adapter"
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_002A&SUBSYS_1381103C -->
"Qualcomm Atheros AR5009 802.11a/g/n WiFi
Adapter"
Adapter"
Adapter" (Philip's original card (don't work)
Adapter"
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_002B&SUBSYS_303F103C -->
"Qualcomm Atheros AR9285 802.11b/g/n WiFi
Adapter"
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_002B&SUBSYS_3040103C -->
Adapter"
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_002B&SUBSYS_1461103C -->
Adapter" (Combo Probook) (working)
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_002E&SUBSYS_1462103C -->
Adapter"
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_002E&SUBSYS_1626103C -->
Adapter"
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_0030&SUBSYS_1628103C -->
Adapter"
10 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM

Adapter"
Adapter"
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_0032&SUBSYS_179F103C -->
Adapter"
Adapter"
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_0032&SUBSYS_191A103C -->
Adapter"
"Qualcomm Atheros AR9462 802.11a/b/g/n WiFi
Adapter"
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_0036&SUBSYS_18E3103C -->
"Qualcomm Atheros QCA9565 802.11b/g/n WiFi
Adapter"
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_0036&SUBSYS_217F103C -->
"Qualcomm Atheros QCA9565 802.11b/g/n WiFi
Adapter"
BTW: I rebrand with this method an Acer ar9285, and

a Sony (AIO) AR5B195. No problem at all.
#3
Nov 6, 2013 at 2:49 PM
Hi
I was lucky to catch your guide from the google cache
and made some tests. Regarding the work of the card
in Windows, actually this is the easy part, no driver
modification is required, all you have to do is to set the
philip_petev
driver manually to Atheros 9280 and you're good to go,
Joined: Nov 10, 2011 no matter the IDs. My concern was that the kext in OS
Messages: 1,480 X will recognize it like AR9285 and the card will work
Mobo: GA-H77N-WIFI F4
with limited functionality. Well, that didn't happen. As
CPU: i7-3770 @ 3.4 GHz
you can see on the shot, the card is shown as Atheros
Mobile Phone:
9285 and yet, the channel list is full with 5GHz
channels. My guess is that the kext determines the
card functionality not by its IDs, but by querying the
chipset directly. For already a week I've tested the card
and it works just like any AR9280 card: speeds above 8
MB/s, the WiFi scanner apps indicate the 5 GHz
networks around me etc.
11 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
#4
Nov 6, 2013 at 2:59 PM
Great!
This is a really good alternative for those who don't
want Bluetooth (HP Combo Ar5b195), and better yet,
use a diferent and "advanced" card.
eduk33s
A note that can be important: this modified aet
Joined: Oct 30, 2013 requires the msvcr100d.dll, and i have dificulties to
Messages: 28 make it work with WIN 8 .
Mobo: Hp ProBook 4530s
CPU: i3 2350m
I will try this two Ids for the ar9285 and report if
work/don't work with the 4530s
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_002B&SUBSYS_303F103C
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_002B&SUBSYS_3040103C
msvcr100d:
http://rghost.net/49717779
#5
Nov 6, 2013 at 3:04 PM
eduk33s said: ↑
I will try this two Ids for the ar9285 and report if work/don't
work with the 4530s
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_002B&SUBSYS_303F103C
philip_petev PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_002B&SUBSYS_3040103C
Messages: 1,480
Don't bother, the only accepted IDs for all 4x30s
ProBooks are these:
CPU: i7-3770 @ 3.4 GHz
Mobile Phone: PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_002B&SUBSYS_1461103C
If you're going to rebrand any Atheros 92xx based

card, you should change its IDs to these and these
only. You may want to check here for more
information.
#6
Nov 6, 2013 at 4:24 PM
philip_petev said: ↑
Don't bother, the only accepted IDs for all 4x30s ProBooks
are these:
12 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_002B&SUBSYS_1461103C
eduk33s
Joined: Oct 30, 2013 If you're going to rebrand any Atheros 92xx based card, you
Messages: 28 should change its IDs to these and these only. You may want
Mobo: Hp ProBook 4530s to check here for more information.
CPU: i3 2350m
Yes you're right i check it out the 68SRR.BIN (from
BIOS f.41) in HEX, just in case if any other card was
added recently (very strange coming from Hp) but ...
nothing. Only atheros 168C:002B 103C:1461
#7
Nov 6, 2013 at 4:48 PM
eduk33s said: ↑
Yes you're right i check it out the 68SRR.BIN (from BIOS

f.41) in HEX, just in case if any other card was added
recently (very strange coming from Hp) but ... nothing. Only
atheros 168C:002B 103C:1461
philip_petev
You know, in theory, you could change all card IDs to
Messages: 1,480
the IDs of any other card from the list, even the
CPU: i7-3770 @ 3.4 GHz
Broadcom and Realtek ones and with the proper kext
Graphics: Intel HD 4000 injector / DSDT patch you could achieve the same
Mobile Phone: effect
#8
Nov 7, 2013 at 2:11 AM
philip_petev said: ↑
WARNING!!! For advanced users only! Do not try

this unless you know what you're dealing with!
The following operation is dangerous and may
Joyfult destroy your WiFi card ! I've warned you !!! I
Joined: Mar 26, 2012 don't take any responsibility, if you have bricked
Messages: 748 your card !!! Read the whole guide carefully,
Mobo:
before doing anything !
HP ProBook 4540s OS X 10.11 BIOS
F.60 A
CPU: This guide is mainly for all 4x30s owner, but can be used by
Intel Core i3-3110M / Intel HM76
anyone with whitelist in BIOS.
Graphics: Intel HD 4000 / 1366x768
Mobile Phone:
You'll need the following:
- Windows XP or later (Windows 7 recommended) -
obviously, the tools, used in this guide, works only on
Windows XP or later, so you'll need another computer,
running Windows XP or later **or** you can use your
ProBook with installed Windows XP or later and the modified
FanReset.dylib file by RehabMan (required for cards, not
13 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
present in the whitelist, like AR9280).

- this Atheros EEPROM tool. It's modified to extract the first
512 bytes of the WiFi card's EEPROM.
- An Atheros 928x based card, running with the stock
Atheros driver.
- An hex editor (I've used this one, because it's free and
doesn't require installation, but you can use any hex editor).
VERY IMPORTANT: all Windows 7 and later users

should disable temporarily the Windows 7's
driver signature enforcement. Select Windows 7
in your Chameleon menu and then press quickly
F8, then select Disable Driver Signature
Enforcement in the menu. After selecting it,
Windows 7 will continue its boot process. This is
not a one-time operation, on the next boot the
driver signature enforcement will be enabled
again. This step is a must, because without
doing it, the drivers, bundled with the Atheros
EEPROM tool, will not be loaded and you may
damage your card !!!
1. So, let's begin! The first thing is to check your current

card's IDs. In this manual I've used an Atheros 9280 based
card:
View attachment 72905
The first line is quite enough for us:

PCI\VEN_168C&DEV_002A&SUBSYS_3041103C&REV_01
That means 168c:002a 103c:3041

These should be changed to 168C:002b 103c:1461 for
ProBook 4x30s (the IDs of the HP Atheros 9285 card).
2. Now we should extract a 512 bytes dump from the card's

EEPROM. Download and extract the Atheros EEPROM tool in
some folder. Open Command prompt as an administrator
(right click on Command Prompt and Run As Administrator),
go to the folder, where the tool is located (cd C:\somewhere
\aet_rw512) and run the following command:
Code (Text):
[B]atheros_eeprom_tool.exe /r512[/B]
When you press OK, a new file will be created in the tool's
folder, called eeprom_dump.rom:
14 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
It's recommended a copy of this dump to be made, if you

want to restore the EEPROM to its previous state later.
3. Now the dump should be edited properly. Open it in the

hex editor:
NOTE: All IDs in this dump are flip-byted !!!

Keep that in mind, when you search for them !!!
First, to change the SubVendor/SubProduct IDs. In this case,

they are 103c:3041. That means we are looking for hex
values 3c10 4130. In my case I won't change the SubVendor
ID, because it's already set to HP (103c), but the owner of
cards from another assemblers like Dell Wireless 1515 will
have to change it as well. First, the SubProduct ID (unmark
the two checkboxes):
And when you find it, change it to 6114 (the flip-byted value
of 1461):
NOTE 2: you'll probably find the

Subvendor/Subproduct IDs in more than one
place in this dump, you should change them in
all places (in this card they were on two
places)!!! If you are not sure if any hex value
you may find in the dump is a
Product/SubProduct ID or not, look at the
previous two values and if they are the flip-
byted Vendor/SubVendor IDs, you are on the
right path.
Same goes for the SubVendor ID (only if needed).
Now it's time for the main Vendor/Product IDs. Actually, we

need to change only the Product ID, because the Vendor ID
is already set to Atheros (168c). You could use the Replace
function as well:
and change the Product ID from 2a00 (Atheros 9280) to

2b00 (Atheros 9285):
15 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
All needed edits have been made. Now, save the file.
4. It's time to upload the modified dump on the card. In

Command prompt, run the following command:
Code (Text):
[B]atheros_eeprom_tool.exe /w512[/B]
5. Reboot your computer. The card will be recognized again,

the driver will be installed and now you should see the
following:
The funny part is in OS X:

As you can see, the card appears like Atheros 9285, but acts
just like Atheros 9280: same channels, same speed. I'm
using it for already a week and haven't seen any problems so
far. Of course, in order to work, the current Atheros 9285
DSDT patches / kext injectors should be used, because this
trick only avoids the whitelist in BIOS, but for OS X it's still
unsupported Atheros 9285 card.
NOTE 3: During the extraction/writing process

you may see this:
This is only a warning message, it shows that an

unsigned driver has been loaded and you may
ignore it.
The problem would be if you see this:
That means you haven't disabled the driver

signature enforcement. Don't try anything, close
all programs, reboot your computer and disable
it (the first note in this guide, marked as VERY
IMPORTANT) Continuing the procedure in this
16 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
case (especially if you're trying to write the

dump) may brick your card !!!
This guide can be used for rebranding of all Atheros based

card, supported by this EEPROM tool (as far as I know, the
whole AR92xx series).
Credits:
eugene - for the modified Athero EEPROM tool.
edukees - for the initial Atheros 9285 rebranding guide.
philip, 2 questions:
1: I have an 9285 card that is working with the kext

injection and in the info, the supported channels are
only from 1 to 13 and not like your image here (from 1
to 13 and more till 140). Is this normal?
2: Which are the real benefits of this rebrand?
Thanks!
#9
Nov 7, 2013 at 5:37 AM
Joyfult said: ↑
1: I have an 9285 card that is working with the kext

injection and in the info, the supported channels are only
from 1 to 13 and not like your image here (from 1 to 13 and
more till 140). Is this normal?
philip_petev
Yes, it is, because your card is an ordinary AR9285
Messages: 1,480
adaptor (1x1+BT) and mine is Atheros 9280 based
CPU: i7-3770 @ 3.4 GHz
card, rebranded to match the IDs of your card. It
Graphics: Intel HD 4000 appears like Atheros 9285 in System Information, but
Mobile Phone: acts like Atheros 9280 (because it has the support in
the chipset), that's why System Information shows all
these channels.
Joyfult said: ↑
2: Which are the real benefits of this rebrand?
IMO:
1. You can rebrand any Atheros 9285+BT adaptor from
any vendor (not only HP) with the IDs from the
17 of 19 1/6/2018, 12:20 AM
whitelist and use it on the 4x30s ProBook.
or
2. You could try the above scenario (if you don't need
BT) and rebrand any Atheros 9280 card to look like the
Atheros 9285 with the IDs from the list and use it on
the 4x30s ProBook.
#10
Nov 7, 2013 at 7:15 AM
i have 4540s laptop now am using wifi card iAR9285

my system info test wlan any problem laptop ?
riyadku
Joined: Sep 27, 2012
Messages: 100
Mobo: hp probook 4540 s
CPU: i7-3632QM
Mac:
Mobile Phone:
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Rebranding the Atheros 928x cards - The guide

Page 1 of 25 1 2 3 4 5 6 → 25 Next >

WARNING !!! Do not try to change the

EDIT: A RECOVERY GUIDE IS AVAILABLE, CHECK

anyone with whitelist in BIOS.

You'll need the following:

VERY IMPORTANT: all Windows 7 and later users

1. So, let's begin! The first thing is to check your

The first line is quite enough for us:

That means 168c:002a 103c:3041

2. Now we should extract a 512 bytes dump from the

When you press OK, a new file will be created in the

tool's folder, called eeprom_dump.rom:

It's recommended a copy of this dump to be made, if

3. Now the dump should be edited properly. Open it in

NOTE: All IDs in this dump are flip-byted !!! Keep

that in mind, when you search for them !!!

First, to change the SubVendor/SubProduct IDs. In this

And when you find it, change it to 6114 (the flip-byted

NOTE 2: you'll probably find the

Vendor/SubVendor IDs, you are on the right path.

Same goes for the SubVendor ID (only if needed).

Now it's time for the main Vendor/Product IDs.

and change the Product ID from 2a00 (Atheros 9280)

4. It's time to upload the modified dump on the card.

5. Reboot your computer. The card will be recognized

The funny part is in OS X:

As you can see, the card appears like Atheros 9285,

NOTE 3: During the extraction/writing process you

This is only a warning message, it shows that an

The problem would be if you see this:

That means you haven't disabled the driver

Last edited by a moderator: Feb 23, 2017

Thank you for include me in the credits i was banned

Your card obviosly seems to be working great in Mac,

Joined: Oct 30, 2013 in the win driver:

"Qualcomm Atheros AR9380 802.11a/g/n WiFi

BTW: I rebrand with this method an Acer ar9285, and

If you're going to rebrand any Atheros 92xx based

Yes you're right i check it out the 68SRR.BIN (from BIOS

WARNING!!! For advanced users only! Do not try

present in the whitelist, like AR9280).

VERY IMPORTANT: all Windows 7 and later users

1. So, let's begin! The first thing is to check your current

View attachment 72905

The first line is quite enough for us:

That means 168c:002a 103c:3041

2. Now we should extract a 512 bytes dump from the card's

View attachment 72882

View attachment 72883

View attachment 72884

It's recommended a copy of this dump to be made, if you

3. Now the dump should be edited properly. Open it in the

View attachment 72885

NOTE: All IDs in this dump are flip-byted !!!

First, to change the SubVendor/SubProduct IDs. In this case,

View attachment 72886

View attachment 72887

NOTE 2: you'll probably find the

Same goes for the SubVendor ID (only if needed).