Dell XPS 15 9500 Service Manual
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Dell XPS 15 9500 Service Manual

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XPS 15 9500
Service Manual
Regulatory Model: P91F
Regulatory Type: P91F001

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Summary of Contents for Dell XPS 15 9500

  • Page 1 XPS 15 9500 Service Manual Regulatory Model: P91F Regulatory Type: P91F001...
  • Page 2 A WARNING indicates a potential for property damage, personal injury, or death. © 2020 Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries. All rights reserved. Dell, EMC, and other trademarks are trademarks of Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries. Other trademarks may be trademarks of their respective owners.

  • Page 3: Table Of Contents

    Contents 1 Working inside your computer....................... 5 Before working inside your computer..........................5 Safety instructions................................5 Electrostatic discharge—ESD protection.......................... 6 ESD field service kit ................................6 Transporting sensitive components............................ 7 After working inside your computer............................ 7 2 Removing and installing components..................... 8 Recommended tools................................8 Screw list....................................
  • Page 4 Recovering the operating system............................. 60 Flashing the BIOS................................60 Flashing BIOS (USB key)..............................61 Backup media and recovery options..........................61 WiFi power cycle.................................. 61 Flea power release................................61 6 Keyboard shortcuts of XPS 15 9500..................... 63 7 Getting help and contacting Dell....................65 Contents...

  • Page 5: Working Inside Your Computer

    You should only perform troubleshooting and repairs as authorized or directed by the Dell technical assistance team. Damage due to servicing that is not authorized by Dell is not covered by your warranty. See the safety instructions that is shipped with the product or at www.dell.com/regulatory_compliance.

  • Page 6: Electrostatic Discharge-Esd Protection

    Due to the increased density of semiconductors used in recent Dell products, the sensitivity to static damage is now higher than in previous Dell products. For this reason, some previously approved methods of handling parts are no longer applicable.

  • Page 7: Transporting Sensitive Components

    Transporting sensitive components When transporting ESD sensitive components such as replacement parts or parts to be returned to Dell, it is critical to place these parts in anti-static bags for safe transport.

  • Page 8: Removing And Installing Components

    Removing and installing components Recommended tools The procedures in this document may require the following tools: • Phillips screwdriver #0 • Phillips screwdriver #1 • Torx #5 (T5) screwdriver • Plastic scribe Screw list NOTE: When removing screws from a component, it is recommended to note the screw type, the quantity of screws, and then place them in a screw storage box.

  • Page 9: Major Components Of Xps-15 9500

    Component Secured to Screw type Quantity Screw image Graphics card-processor System board M2x2 thermal shield cover Type-C bracket Palm-rest and M2x4 keyboard assembly Display-assembly cable System board M2x2 bracket Display-assembly cable Palm-rest and M1.6x3 holder keyboard assembly Left hinge System board and M2.5x5.5 palm-rest and keyboard assembly...
  • Page 10 1. Base cover 2. Battery 3. Heat sink 4. Memory module 5. Right fan 6. USB Type-C bracket 7. System board 8. Graphics card-processor thermal bracket 9. Speaker 10. Display assembly 11. Palm-rest and keyboard assembly 12. Wireless-card bracket 13. I/O-board shield 14.

  • Page 11: Base Cover

    NOTE: Dell provides a list of components and their part numbers for the original system configuration purchased. These parts are available according to warranty coverages purchased by the customer. Contact your Dell sales representative for purchase options. Base cover Removing the base cover Prerequisites 1.
  • Page 12 Removing and installing components...
  • Page 13 Steps 1. Remove the eight screws (M2x3) that secure the base cover to the palm-rest and keyboard assembly. CAUTION: Do not pull on or pry the base cover at the side where the hinges are located; doing so may damage the base cover.

  • Page 14: Installing The Base Cover

    NOTE: Disconnecting the battery cable, removing the battery, or draining the flea power clears the CMOS and resets the BIOS settings on your computer. NOTE: After your computer is reassembled and powered on, it prompts for the Real Time Clock (RTC) reset. When the RTC reset cycle occurs, the computer restarts several times and then an error message is displayed–...

  • Page 15: Battery

    Steps 1. Connect the battery cable to the system board, if applicable. 2. Align the screw holes on the base cover with the screw holes on the palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 3. Starting from the bottom-right corner snap the base cover. Work your way around to the middle of the base cover and then to the bottom-left corner and snap the base cover into place.

  • Page 16: Installing The Battery

    2. Remove the base cover. NOTE: Disconnecting the battery cable, removing the battery, or draining the flea power clears the CMOS and resets the BIOS settings on your computer. About this task The following image indicates the location of the battery and provides a visual representation of the removal procedure. Steps 1.

  • Page 17: Memory Modules

    Steps 1. Align the screw holes on the battery with the screw holes on the palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 2. Adhere the tapes that secure the speaker cable to the battery. 3. Replace the four screws (M2x3) that secure the battery to the palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 4.

  • Page 18: Installing The Memory

    Steps 1. Use your fingertips to carefully spread apart the securing-clips on each end of the memory-module slot until the memory module pops 2. Slide and remove the memory module from the memory-module slot. NOTE: Repeat step 1 and step 2 to remove the other memory module if available on your computer. Installing the memory Prerequisites If you are replacing a component, remove the existing component before performing the installation procedure.

  • Page 19: Solid-State Drive

    Steps 1. Align the notch on the memory module with the tab on the memory-module slot. 2. Slide the memory module firmly at an angle, into the memory-module slot. 3. Press the memory module down until it clicks into place. NOTE: If you do not hear the click, remove the memory module and reinstall it.

  • Page 20: Installing The Solid-State Drive1

    Steps 1. Remove the screw (M2x2) that secures the solid-state drive thermal bracket and the solid-state drive1 to the system board. 2. Slide the solid-state drive thermal bracket from the alignment post and lift it from the system board. 3. Slide and remove the solid-state drive1 from the solid-state drive slot. NOTE: The size of the solid-state drive thermal bracket varies based on the storage type.

  • Page 21: Removing The Solid-State Drive2

    Steps 1. Align the notch on the solid-state drive1 with the tab on the solid-state drive slot. 2. Gently slide the solid-state drive1 into the solid-state drive slot. 3. Slide the solid-state drive thermal bracket into the alignment post on the system board. 4.

  • Page 22: Installing The Solid-State Drive2

    Steps 1. Remove the screw (M2x2) that secures the solid-state drive thermal bracket and the solid-state drive2 to the system board. 2. Slide the solid-state drive thermal bracket from the alignment post and lift it from the system board. 3. Slide and remove the solid-state drive2 from the solid-state drive slot. NOTE: The size of the solid-state drive thermal bracket varies based on the storage type.

  • Page 23: Installing The M.2 2230 Solid-State Drive

    Steps 1. Align the notch on the solid-state drive2 with the tab on the solid-state drive slot. 2. Gently slide the solid-state drive2 into the solid-state drive slot. 3. Slide the solid-state drive thermal bracket into the alignment post on the system board, and align the screw hole on the solid-state drive thermal bracket with the screw hole on the system board.

  • Page 24: Fans

    2. Secure the M.2 2230 solid-state drive to the bracket with a M2x2 screw. 3. To install the M.2 2230 solid-state drive card to the solid-state drive card slot1, see installing the solid state drive1. To install the M.2 2230 solid-state drive card to the solid-state drive card slot2, see installing the solid state drive2.

  • Page 25: Installing The Left Fan

    Steps 1. Disconnect the fan cable from the system board. 2. Remove the two screws (M2x4) that secure the fan to the system board and palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 3. Slide the fan out of the heat sink and then lift it from the palm-rest and keyboard assembly. Installing the left fan Prerequisites If you are replacing a component, remove the existing component before performing the installation procedure.

  • Page 26: Removing The Right Fan

    Steps 1. Connect the fan cable to the system board. 2. Slide fan below the heat sink and align the screw holes on fan with the screw holes on the system board and palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 3. Replace the two screws (M2x4) that secure the fan to the system board and palm-rest and keyboard assembly. Next steps 1.

  • Page 27: Installing The Right Fan

    Steps 1. Remove the two screws (M2x4) that secure the I/O-board shield to the fan and palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 2. Lift the I/O-board shield off the system board. 3. Remove the screw (M2x4) that secures the fan to the system board. 4.

  • Page 28: Heat Sink

    Steps 1. Slide fan below the heat sink and align the screw hole on fan with the screw hole on the palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 2. Replace the screw (M2x4) that secures the fan to the system board. 3. Connect the fan cable to the system board. 4.

  • Page 29: Installing The Heat Sink

    Steps 1. In reverse sequential order (as indicated on the heat sink), loosen the four captive screws that secure the heat sink to the system board. 2. Lift the heat sink off the system board. Installing the heat sink Prerequisites If you are replacing a component, remove the existing component before performing the installation procedure.

  • Page 30: Speakers

    Steps 1. Align the screw holes on the heat sink with the screw holes on the system board. 2. In sequential order (as indicated on the heat sink), tighten the four captive screws that secure the heat sink to the system board. Next steps 1.

  • Page 31: Installing The Speakers

    Steps 1. Peel the tape, and disconnect the speaker cable from the system board. 2. Peel the tapes that secure the speaker cable to the battery. 3. Remove the two screws (M2x2) that secure the speakers to the palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 4.

  • Page 32: I/O Board

    Steps 1. Using the alignment posts and rubber grommets, place the speakers on the slots of the palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 2. Route the speaker cable through the routing guides on the palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 3. Adhere the tapes that secure the speaker cable to the battery. 4.

  • Page 33: Installing The I/O Board

    Steps 1. Disconnect the I/O-board cable from the system board and I/O board. 2. Lift the I/O-board cable from the system board. 3. Disconnect the screw (M2x4) that secures the USB Type-C port bracket to the system board and lift the bracket off the I/O board. 4.

  • Page 34: Display Assembly

    Steps 1. Place the I/O board on the palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 2. Align the screw hole on the USB Type-C port bracket with the screw hole on the system board. 3. Connect the screw (M2x4) that secures the USB Type-C port bracket to the system board. NOTE: Ensure to connect IO marked side of the I/O-board cable to the I/O daughter board and the side marked MB to the system board.
  • Page 35 Removing and installing components...

  • Page 36: Installing The Display Assembly

    Steps 1. Loosen the three captive screws that secure the display-assembly cable bracket to the system board. 2. Lift the display-assembly cable bracket off the system board. 3. Remove the two screws (M1.6x3) that secure the display-assembly cable holder to the palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 4.
  • Page 37 Removing and installing components...
  • Page 38 Steps 1. Slide the palm-rest and keyboard assembly under the display-assembly hinges. 2. Align the screw holes on the palm-rest assembly with the screw holes on the right and left display-assembly hinges. 3. Replace the four screws (M2.5x5.5) that secure the left hinge to the system board and the palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 4.

  • Page 39: System Board

    System board Removing the system board Prerequisites 1. Follow the procedure in Before working inside your computer. NOTE: Before disconnecting the cables from the system board, note the location of the connectors so that you can reconnect the cables correctly after you replace the system board. NOTE: The Service Tag of your computer is stored in the system board.
  • Page 40 Removing and installing components...

  • Page 41: Installing The System Board

    Steps 1. Loosen the three captive screws that secure the display-assembly cable bracket to the system board. 2. Lift the display-assembly cable bracket off the system board. 3. Remove the two screws (M1.6x3) that secure the display-assembly cable holder to the palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 4.
  • Page 42 NOTE: Replacing the system board removes any changes that you have made to the BIOS using the BIOS setup program. Make the appropriate changes again after you replace the system board. After your computer is reassembled and powered on, it prompts for the Real Time Clock (RTC) reset. When the RTC reset cycle occurs, the computer restarts several times and then an error message is displayed- "Time of day not set".
  • Page 43 Removing and installing components...
  • Page 44 Steps 1. Align the screw holes on the system board with the screw holes on the palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 2. Replace the two screws (M2x4) that secure the system board to the palm-rest and keyboard assembly. 3. Connect the keyboard-control board cable to the system board and close the latch to secure the cable. 4.

  • Page 45: Palm-Rest And Keyboard Assembly

    8. Install the battery. 9. Install the speakers. 10. Install the base cover. 11. Follow the procedure in After working inside your computer. Palm-rest and keyboard assembly Removing the palm-rest and keyboard assembly Prerequisites 1. Follow the procedure in Before working inside your computer.

  • Page 46: Installing The Palm-Rest And Keyboard Assembly

    Installing the palm-rest and keyboard assembly Prerequisites If you are replacing a component, remove the existing component before performing the installation procedure. About this task The following image indicates the palm-rest and keyboard assembly and provides a visual representation of the installation procedure. Steps Place the palm-rest and keyboard assembly on a flat surface.

  • Page 47: Drivers And Downloads

    Drivers and downloads When troubleshooting, downloading or installing drivers it is recommended that you read the Dell Knowledge Based article, Drivers and Downloads FAQ SLN128938. Drivers and downloads...

  • Page 48: System Setup

    Boot Sequence allows you to bypass the System Setup–defined boot device order and boot directly to a specific device (for example: optical drive or hard drive). During the Power-on Self Test (POST), when the Dell logo appears, you can: •...

  • Page 49: One Time Boot Menu

    Depending on this computer and its installed devices, the items that are listed in this section may or may not be displayed. Table 3. System setup options—System information menu Overview XPS 15 9500 BIOS Version Displays the BIOS version number. Service Tag Displays the Service Tag of the computer.
  • Page 50 Overview Minimum Clock Speed Displays the minimum processor clock speed. Current Clock Speed Displays the current processor clock speed. Core Count Displays the number of cores on the processor. Processor ID Displays the processor identification code. Processor L2 Cache Displays the processor L2 Cache size. Processor L3 Cache Displays the processor L3 Cache size.
  • Page 51 Boot options Default: Always Except Internal HDD Table 5. System setup options—System Configuration menu System Configuration Date/Time Date Sets the computer date in MM/DD/YYYY format. Changes to the date take effect immediately. Time Sets the computer time in HH/MM/SS 24-hour format. You can switch between 12- hour and 24-hour clock.
  • Page 52 System Configuration Enable Fingerprint Reader Device Enables or disables the Fingerprint Reader Device. By default, Enable Fingerprint Reader Device is selected. Enable MediaCard Enables to switch all media cards On/Off or set the media card to read-only state. By default, Enable Secure Digital (SD) Card is selected. Keyboard Illumination Configures the operating mode of the keyboard illumination feature.
  • Page 53 Security PPI Bypass for Enable Commands Enables or disables the OS to skip BIOS Physical Presence Interface (PPI) user prompts when issuing TPM PPI enabled and activate commands. Default: OFF PPI Bypass for Disable Commands Enables or disables The OS to skip BIOS PPI user prompts when issuing TPM PPI Disable and Deactivate commands.
  • Page 54 Passwords System Password Max Specify the maximum number of characters allowed for System password. Default: 32 Admin Password Sets, Changes, or deletes the administrator (admin) password (sometimes called the "setup" password). System Password Sets, Changes, or deletes the system password. Enable Master Password Lockout Enables or disables the master password support.
  • Page 55 Enables the computer to turn on and go to boot when AC power is supplied to the computer. Default: OFF Wake on Dell USB-C Dock Enables connecting a Dell USB-C Dock to wake the computer from Standby. Default: ON Auto On Time Enables the computer to automatically power on for defined days and times.
  • Page 56 Power Management Default: ON Table 13. System setup options—Wireless menu Wireless Wireless Device Enable Enable or disable internal WLAN/Bluetooth devices. By default, WLAN is selected. By default, Bluetooth is selected. Table 14. System setup options—POST Behavior menu POST Behavior Numlock Enable Enable Numlock Enables or disables Numlock when the computer boots.
  • Page 57 POST Behavior Default: ON MAC Address Pass-Through Replaces the external NIC MAC address (in a supported dock or dongle) with the selected MAC address from the computer. Default: System Unique MAC Address. Table 15. System setup options—Virtualization menu Virtualization Intel Virtualization Technology Enables the computer to run a virtual machine monitor (VMM).

  • Page 58: Clearing Cmos Settings

    Clearing BIOS (System Setup) and System passwords About this task To clear the system or BIOS passwords, contact Dell technical support as described at www.dell.com/contactdell. NOTE: For information on how to reset Windows or application passwords, refer to the documentation accompanying Windows or your application.

  • Page 59: Troubleshooting

    Troubleshooting Specifications of XPS 15 9500 System diagnostic lights When static, the power and battery-charge status light indicates the power mode that your computer is in. When blinking in different patterns, the power and battery-charge status light indicates the respective issues that your computer is encountering.

  • Page 60: Supportassist Diagnostics

    You can also download it from the Dell Support website to troubleshoot and fix your computer when it fails to boot into their primary operating system due to software or hardware failures.

  • Page 61: Flashing Bios (Usb Key)

    Backup media and recovery options It is recommended to create a recovery drive to troubleshoot and fix problems that may occur with Windows. Dell proposes multiple options for recovering Windows operating system on your Dell PC. For more information. see Dell Windows Backup Media and Recovery Options.
  • Page 62 NOTE: The battery must be disconnected from the system board (see Step 3 in removing base cover 3. Press and hold the power button for 15 seconds to drain the flea power. 4. Install the base cover. 5. Turn on your computer. Troubleshooting...

  • Page 63: Keyboard Shortcuts Of Xps 15 9500

    Keyboard shortcuts of XPS 15 9500 NOTE: Keyboard characters may differ depending on the keyboard language configuration. Keys used for shortcuts remain the same across all language configurations. Some keys on your keyboard have two symbols on them. These keys can be used to type alternate characters or to perform secondary functions.
  • Page 64 The Fn key is also used with selected keys on the keyboard to invoke other secondary functions. Table 22. List of keyboard shortcuts Function key Behavior Pause/Break Toggle scroll lock System request Open application menu Toggle Fn-key lock Keyboard shortcuts of XPS 15 9500...

  • Page 65: Getting Help And Contacting Dell

    Getting help and contacting Dell Self-help resources You can get information and help on Dell products and services using these self-help resources: Table 23. Self-help resources Self-help resources Resource location Information about Dell products and services www.dell.com My Dell Tips Contact Support In Windows search, type Contact Support, and press Enter.

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P91f

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