Enable extra mini-PCI-e

[nkar]

I have an 8710p
I soldered a seat at the extra mini-PCI-e port but the port is not
enabled
Tried Vidock but could not make it work
Any ideas to enable it ?
I plan to install a sata controller for extra Sata disk at the dvd-rom bay

[nando4]

Originally Posted by nkar

I have an 8710p
I soldered a seat at the extra mini-PCI-e port but the port is not
enabled
Tried Vidock but could not make it work
Any ideas to enable it ?
I plan to install a sata controller for extra Sata disk at the dvd-rom bay

Can you see if pin 23,25,31,33 (pci-e/wifi) and 36,38(usb/wwan) have tracks on them? If there's no tracks then there is no way it would ever work. If they are attached then you'd probably also need to apply unwhitelisting to them. Best way to do that would be to find an ICH8M machine with that port enabled and working, "save" it's port data (pcieport.px), then load that on your system.

Based on the lspci output here, I can see the 8710P has:

port1=root port (probably unconnected)
port2=wifi
port5=another port - probably expresscard

Interestingly, looks like the 8710P/W and HDX9000 shares the same drive caddies. The HDX9000 has mPCIe port layout here.

The other way of getting a native sata controller would be to tap the ICH8M I/O chip's sata lines. Tricky to do though as would need to fish Here's an idea of what's involved.

Is there a mPCIe sata controller available? 2510P owner's might want to know about that.

[nkar]

8710 does not have Expresscard
It has Cardbus instead

I can see a miniPCIe port with the intel wifi (port2 in which I succesfully installed a USB3 controller)
and
next to it it had the signs of a mini-PCI-e connector. In which I installed
a mini PCIe connector.

I tried putting both the original (HP whitelisted) wifi card and the usb3 controller at
(soldered connector) with no success . Nothing is recognised .
I think this port is NOT crippled (all pins are connected) since it has exactly the same
pins connected as the working and tested miniPCI-e (number 2) with the installed USB3
port.
Any idea where to get the pciport.px from an ICH8m with that port enabled?

[moral hazard]

Maybe you need to short out some pins:
eee 901 3G miniPCI-e slot (partially) activated!!! PCI-e WiFi working! (Page 1) / Hacks and Modifications / EeeUser Forum

[nkar]

But where do i find the right pins to short out...

[moral hazard]

I have no idea, I would follow the tracks that come from the miniPCIe slot, that might lead you somewhere. Though I have never done this so I'm not sure how the guy on that website found the right things to short out.

[nkar]

Mini PCIe sata controller
But I am not sure if the height of the sata connectors
are too big

Pridopia -- The Special I/O and Service Website

[nkar]

MPX-3132| 1507890 | Mini-PCI Express (mini-PCIe) Serial ATA RAID Card

Low profile version
Only thing that worries me is how to give power to
the disks

[nando4]

You have a working wifi card. Suggest use a DMM to measure the resistence of the pci-e pins relative to GND and compare against your working wifi's pci-e pins. They both go back to the same ICH8M I/O controller so would be the same if connected. If any of the pins have very high readings then they are not connected and should be traced to see if the track can be joined at some point. It may well be that the manufacturer did not include some resistors since the connector was unused.

[nbruser]

very interesting, did you manage to get it work?

i've got 8710p as well, would be good to have an additional mini pci-e slot.