Fingerprint reader in x201

Hello...

My x201 came in with a fingerprint reader (FPR), which I have thus far not activated. I wanted to know:

(1) How many of you whose machines are kitted out with the FPR use it on a daily basis?

(2) Is there (or can there) be a case/ situation where the FPR messes up (for whatever reason)? And, if yes, how can this security feature be bypassed to allow access to the machine?

(3) At the end of the day, is activating and using the FPR of any real benefit?

I do, at times, have confidential documents on my machine. But thankfully, thus far, I have not had a problem in terms of theft and/ or unauthorized access to my machine. Of course, none of this means that it can't happen anytime in the future.

Thanks in advance.

 

I think you could always enter your password if you do not want to scan or can't scan.

If I have a Thinkpad FPR, I would use the swipe to turn laptop on + auto login feature.

 

Fingerprint reader is only a convenience. (I use it to start and log on, straight to the desktop.) If your drive is not encrypted or those important documents are not individually encrypted, and in the event of theft, anyone can remove the drive, put it in a USB enclosure and freely inspect the contents.

I get nervous when people carry their "office" with them in the notebook! (I store virtually nothing on my X201.)

 

(1) I always use this feature on my X301 and seldom use on my T410.

(2) I got no issue using this on my X301. The only issue I encountered (usually on my T410) is dry fingers. When this happens I would just bypass the FPR and type the password.

(3) It saves me time typing the password, I will just swipe my finger and I'm in.

And I always store confidential files on removable drives/media.

 

Thanks. I don't have the luxury of having my confidential/ sensitive files on another drive, though I do have backups of the same which are synced regularly. This is because of my job. But yes, there is defintely a security issue involved.

Ok...so let me try this and see. How to activate the FPR? And, you are quite sure that if for some reason the FPR does not work, I can bypass it? Could you please explain how? Does it simply involve manually putting in the password?

 

The FPR should be available in the ThinkVantage toolbox, if you do not find it anywhere, the software and driver might not be installed. You can check the lenovo site for the installer or use system update to detect the missing drivers.

If the software is installed, just launch it and enroll the user, you can choose to enroll all your fingers, but I only choose my thumb, index and middle (just in case the others fail the swipe).

when you logon to your machine you should see the logon screen asking to swipe your finger, you can bypass this by selecting switch user and choose a user to type the password.

btw, I think you should also select to use both password and FPR setting somewhere in the the FPR application. I cannot check my settings since I'm currently using a mobile phone.

Hope this works for you.

 

@TheGreat...thanks for the pointers. What is the name of the FPR app? I have checked using System Update and there are no updates or missing drivers. I am assuming it is already on my machine. Thanks.

 

I only use mine to log on. It occasionally messes up, especially if there's something on you finger. At the end of the day I could live without it, but it is useful when using my machine in tablet mode.

 

The FPR software might be already be on your system. The icon like the one on this link Lenovo Support - ThinkVantage Technologies downloads should appear under the lenovo thinkvantage tools.
I have to check the FPR app executable file once I get hold of my TP.

 

Thanks. I went to the link that you provided. There was a link there that led me to this page. But at that page there is only a link to download the txt file. The exe file is missing OR I am missing it!

EDIT:

I checked in System Update (Installation History) and in Add/Remove Programs and both show that the FPR software is installed on my machine. But where is it? How can I activate it? It does not appear under ThinkVantage Tools. That folder only shows the System Update app.

EDIT:

Thanks guys. I worked it out. I searched for the app and it was on my system. I also activated it. It was a bit disorienting at first because it took some time to come up. But it worked. I'll try it for a few days and see how it works. If it is cumbersome/ problematic, I will just remove it. Thanks again.

 

i checked your link page and found two files for download, the first one is a .msi (fpr_594_6882_64ww.msi) and the next one is the .txt (fpr_594_6882ww.txt). Can you try to check the page again?


by the way, I did check my X301 and found this path: C:\Program Files\Lenovo Fingerprint Software. The application name is FPApp.exe

EDIT:

ooops, looks like you have it working now.

 

Yup...thanks!

 

There is, however, one question I do want to ask. When I click on the Start button and check in All Programs, I can't see the FPR software. It is not in the ThinkVantage folder (which only contains System Update). I found the FPR software by "searching" for it. It appears in the Add/Remove Programs List. It is installed - apparently - in Program Files on my C:

So, why does it not appear in the list of All Programs accessed from the Start button?

Thanks

 

I guess some system updates caused this disappearance from the 'Start' menu. I remember mine appearing in the start menu before.

Can you try re-installing the FPR software/drivers? I think there will be a prompt or checkbox asking if you want to include this app under the lenovo thinkvantage tollbox.

and another 'easy' solution (I use most of the time with others apps) is to add the FPR executable to the startmenu using 'Pin to startmenu' option.

 

Thanks. That did it. I "pinned" it to the start menu. But I may just reinstall the s/w to see if it does appear on the All Programs list.