How to activate add-on TPM v2.0 module

suatcini54 · Jul 27, 2024

Hi all.

My motherboard is about 10 years old (Asus H97 Pro Gamer) and is incompatible with Windows 11 together with the CPU. It has a TPM header on it and therefore I bought an add-on TPM module version 2.0 with correct pin count and pin details and attached it to the motherboard. My BIOS recognized TPM module but was not able to configure it. Therefore, Windows 11 considers my add-on TPM module unavailable by reading "No TPM found". I attach the related screenshots. I believe this is my hardware limitation. Has anyone in this forum encountered such a situation and resolved it by some magical means ? By the way, I can install the latest Windows 11 PR builds as yet using workarounds over the internet but I want to do everything by the book. Building a brand-new PC is not an option.
Have a nice weekend.

FreeBooter · Jul 27, 2024

Merhaba dostum!

I see the settings but they are not configured to be active.

suatcini54 · Jul 27, 2024

FreeBooter said:
Merhaba dostum!

I see the settings but they are not configured to be active.

Merhaba.

Yes, you're right. The two drop-down boxes close to the bottom of the BIOS page are grayed out and cannot be clicked to make a selection. So I cannot make the TPM module work to good use. Currently, it is no problem. I will go as long as I am allowed to install Windows 11 thru internet workarounds.

FreeBooter · Jul 27, 2024

Try upgrading the BIOS firmware.

suatcini54 · Jul 27, 2024

FreeBooter said:
Try upgrading the BIOS firmware.

The latest BIOS firmware update was released on 2016 and I am already on it. As far as I know, TPM version 2.0 was released about the same year as my motherboard was manufactured. Therefore, my chances to make TPM 2.0 module work on my motherboard are quite low, it seems.
Thanks for sharing your ideas.

FreeBooter · Jul 27, 2024

Don't look at year of BIOS firmware same year there could be more than one update

Using the Command Prompt in Windows to check BIOS version.

Type CMD in the search box. Select Command Prompt or CMD.
The Command Prompt window appears. Type wmic bios get smbiosbiosversion and then press Enter. The string of letters and numbers following SMBBIOSBIOSVersion is the BIOS version. Write down the BIOS version number.

Step 1:Turn off the computer.

Step 2: Disconnect the AC Power Cord and keep the system unplugged for about 30 seconds.

Step 3: Press and hold the Power button for 30 seconds.

Step 4: Reconnect the AC Power Cord to the system and enter the BIOS setup by pressing the F12 key.

Step 5: After restoring TPM, tick the Enabled radio button.

https://geekflare.com/fix-tpm-device-not-detected/

suatcini54 · Jul 27, 2024

FreeBooter said:
Don't look at year of BIOS firmware same year there could be more than one update

Using the Command Prompt in Windows to check BIOS version.

Type CMD in the search box. Select Command Prompt or CMD.

The Command Prompt window appears. Type wmic bios get smbiosbiosversion and then press Enter. The string of letters and numbers following SMBBIOSBIOSVersion is the BIOS version. Write down the BIOS version number.

Step 1:Turn off the computer.

Step 2: Disconnect the AC Power Cord and keep the system unplugged for about 30 seconds.

Step 3: Press and hold the Power button for 30 seconds.

Step 4: Reconnect the AC Power Cord to the system and enter the BIOS setup by pressing the F12 key.

Step 5: After restoring TPM, tick the Enabled radio button.

https://geekflare.com/fix-tpm-device-not-detected/

Thanks for your efforts to make my TPM work. But unfortunately, it is not working. As you can see from the BIOS screenshot, TPM is detected in BIOS. It is just that BIOS could not configure the TPM module. That's most probably due to the fact that TPM version 2.0 is more complex than my motherboard can handle. TPM version 1.2 may be more suitable but TPM 1.2 is not accepted in Windows 11 latest versions. Secondly, my BIOS version is the latest. See Asus support screenshot and msinfo32 screenshot, which show the latest BIOS offered by Asus and my installed BIOS. I also did power disconnection and reconnection procedure. It did not work, either.

bobkn · Jul 27, 2024

A quick check of the manual for your motherboard doesn't list the TPM revision.

Just for fun, I tried an MS Copilot search. It claims that it has TPM 1.2, but that it can take a TPM 2.0 module for Windows 11 support. I'm skeptical about the latter. Generative AI has a proclivity to MSU (make stuff up).

suatcini54 · Jul 27, 2024

bobkn said:
A quick check of the manual for your motherboard doesn't list the TPM revision.

Just for fun, I tried an MS Copilot search. It claims that it has TPM 1.2, but that it can take a TPM 2.0 module for Windows 11 support. I'm skeptical about the latter. Generative AI has a proclivity to MSU (make stuff up).

You are correct. Motherboard does not list the TPM revision number. That's most probably because rev. 1.2 was in effective use at that time. When I decided to buy the rev. 2.0 module, I checked the pin designations of the rev. 2.0 module against the pin view of the module header on the motherboard. They were an exact match. The module was detected and recognized by the motherboard and a new heading appeared in BIOS settings in Advanced section: Advanced\Trusted Computing. I could enable two of the sub items under trusted computing but could not go further than that.

hsehestedt · Jul 28, 2024

On one of my motherboards, I've run into the same situation and I recall having to basically re-initialize the TPM by clearing the current state. I'm not in front of that system so I cannot try it now. Try dropping down "TPM State" and see if there is any such option.

I seem to also recall in the back of my head that it may have meant temporarily turning off secure boot or resetting something in the secure boot area of the BIOS.

Apologies for not being able to be more specific. I can tell you that I struggled with this a little bit, but I'm sure that you will find it

suatcini54 · Jul 28, 2024

hsehestedt said:
On one of my motherboards, I've run into the same situation and I recall having to basically re-initialize the TPM by clearing the current state. I'm not in front of that system so I cannot try it now. Try dropping down "TPM State" and see if there is any such option.

I seem to also recall in the back of my head that it may have meant temporarily turning off secure boot or resetting something in the secure boot area of the BIOS.

Apologies for not being able to be more specific. I can tell you that I struggled with this a little bit, but I'm sure that you will find it

TPM State has two options, either Enabled or Disabled. I put both settings under Trusted Computing (Security Device Support and TPM State) on Disabled and saved settings. On next boot into BIOS, I will re-enable them and see if it changes anything. Thanks for the advice.

Edit: After enabling both settings one by one and saving the settings each time, my BIOS was not able to activate the TPM module. Still, tpm.msc in Windows reads "cannot find a compatible TPM module".

hsehestedt · Jul 28, 2024

Are you SURE that the TPM that you purchased is compatible with your MB? There are several factors to consider:

Some TPMs use a different communications interface. You need to make sure that yours matches what the MB expects.

Also, the BIOS on some older MBs may not understand how to talk to a TPM 2.0 module. It is possible that it may only support version 1.2.

hsehestedt · Jul 28, 2024

I took a look at the user guide for your MB. The TPM header uses the older interface type, as opposed to the newer SPI interface.

Also, as an H97 based MB with support for 4th and 5th gen Intel CPUs, I rather doubt that this MB supported TPM 2.0. Don't quote me on this, but I don't think that MBs for 4th and 5th gen Intel CPUs had TPM 2.0 support. The earliest that I seem to recall TPM 2.0 support wass on 6th gen systems, but again, that would need to be verified.

suatcini54 · Jul 28, 2024

hsehestedt said:
Are you SURE that the TPM that you purchased is compatible with your MB? There are several factors to consider:

Some TPMs use a different communications interface. You need to make sure that yours matches what the MB expects.

Also, the BIOS on some older MBs may not understand how to talk to a TPM 2.0 module. It is possible that it may only support version 1.2.

I am not sure that the TPM module I purchased is compatible with my motherboard. I just checked the pin count and pin designations. They were exact match. These are the module's pin descriptions

These are the motherboard TPM header's pin descriptions.

This is the picture of the TPM module.

Please be advised.

suatcini54 · Jul 28, 2024

hsehestedt said:
I took a look at the user guide for your MB. The TPM header uses the older interface type, as opposed to the newer SPI interface.

Also, as an H97 based MB with support for 4th and 5th gen Intel CPUs, I rather doubt that this MB supported TPM 2.0. Don't quote me on this, but I don't think that MBs for 4th and 5th gen Intel CPUs had TPM 2.0 support. The earliest that I seem to recall TPM 2.0 support wass on 6th gen systems, but again, that would need to be verified.

If my motherboard TPM header uses the older interface type, then the TPM module also uses the older interface type, too, or so I think. The pin designations of both physical module and motherboard header are the same.

GadgetBuilder · Aug 2, 2024

If you're sufficiently enthused it is possible to try to query the TPM chip directly. I did this to update an older TPM chip so the firmware revision was acceptable for Win11. The method and tools I used are described here: How to Update TPM Firmware using Windows

You can ignore most of my notes since Win11 doesn't see your TPM. You only need to substitute -info for -update... when running TPMFactoryUpd. The -info command should list the TPM firmware version. The program may allow you to flog the chip so Windows recognizes it. The TPMFactoryUpd program's manual is linked at my site so, assuming your TPM is an Infineon chip, you may be able to see what's going on with the TPM chip.

suatcini54 · Aug 3, 2024

GadgetBuilder said:
If you're sufficiently enthused it is possible to try to query the TPM chip directly. I did this to update an older TPM chip so the firmware revision was acceptable for Win11. The method and tools I used are described here: How to Update TPM Firmware using Windows

You can ignore most of my notes since Win11 doesn't see your TPM. You only need to substitute -info for -update... when running TPMFactoryUpd. The -info command should list the TPM firmware version. The program may allow you to flog the chip so Windows recognizes it. The TPMFactoryUpd program's manual is linked at my site so, assuming your TPM is an Infineon chip, you may be able to see what's going on with the TPM chip.

Thank you for your response to help solve my TPM problem. I ran the TPMFactoryUpd executable with the -info switch, a log file was created. The Log file is added here as a screenshot for your evaluation. I guess the executable couldn't detect the TPM chip. I don't know if I made a mistake while running the TPM update executable. Have a nice weekend. Regards

suatcini54 · Aug 23, 2024

Update: I bought a TPM rev.1.2 module and installed it. The motherboard recognized the module and activated it properly. Now Windows 11 sees the module. I upgraded my Windows 11 from build 26100.1457 to build 26100.1586 without using the /product server switch. Still as a workaround I just used [HKLM\SYSTEM\Setup\MosSetup] "AllowUpgradesWithUnsupportedTPMOrCPU" reg trick to smoothly upgrade Windows 11 since TPM rev.1.2 and my CPU are not compliant with Windows 11. Previously I couldn't upgrade build 26100.xxx without /product server switch and blank 0-byte appraiserres.dll file trick did not work, either. So I made a big progress !
As a side note: My TPM rev.1.2 module can be upgraded to TPM rev.2.0 using the manufacturer firmware upgrade utility. But I do not intend to do it because my motherboard cannot configure TPM rev.2.0. My first TPM module was rev.2.0 and my motherboard was not able to activate it.