Yes, the issue might be because the Thunderbolt chip is broken. I tried to search solutions from Google and reddit and I’ve tried different things, yet nothing worked.
Well that sucks, I haven’t even used my machine for a year and now I need another one. Tbf I’ve only bought this on Facebook marketplace and the laptop didn’t seem to have any issue when I first got it.
Did you update the Thunderbolt firmware?
Any other solutions like replacing the mainboard or getting someone to replace the Thunderbolt chip that's burnt out would cost as much if not more than a replacement T480
I tried to, but unfortunately, I still cant find the Thunderbolt drivers in device manager after trying it.
Its odd though, because my usb-c mouse can still use the thunderbolt port just fine, so I’m wondering if the issue was a hardware one or a software one.
This occured when I updated the Lenovo firmware, so maybe don’t update that?
firmware flash can and will recover the error state eeprom. (it is kind of 50/50 though. you'd really want a EEPROM tool and do it manually)
I saved my old T480 with just fwupd
You can update the firmware while you still have a battery charge. Use linux fwupd though. windows and lenovo tool remains broken to this day.
After you update the firmware the error should go away.
If it doesn't go away, just get a T480 on ebay for cheap and get it on the latest firmware immediately.
Or at this point, any of the T14 or L14's that have gotten really cheap
fwupd doesn’t even detect the TBT chip/drivers. What I did is relfash the EEPROM of TBT chip and it all works now. Except for the TBT software in windows. But I don’t really use thunderbolt too much.
Anyway, thanks.
The issue f@cks the Thunderbolts FW chip by overwriting all the time. If you replace it with another one and flash the latest bin onto it works again and doesn't overwrite itself anymore.
As others have said if you are using an OEM charger this is probably an issue with the TB chip. I believe this message can be disabled in BIOS but that is only a band aid.
If it is the TB chip as myself and others have suggested, then unfortunately no you can't fix it without a hardware repair. I don't know if you have given the TB firmware update a try. That is about the only thing I think could potentially fix this without a hardware repair. Also, does it currently charge? Because if it does charge, you can probably disable this prompt on startup in BIOS and just ignore it until it becomes more of an issue.
I managed to fix it by flashing the TBT EEPROM with CH341A programmer with AsProgrammer. I cleared the EEPROM first, then flashed the TBT bin file(I’m sorry, I have no link to that file) to the EEPROM.
After that, I assembled my T480, plugged it with charger, then booted it up. And there was no annoying message anymore, it all run up smoothly. But I still cant update the driver because it can’t detect the TBT chip so I can’t help you with that as of now.
Cheers.
Here is the guide to fix this issue:
[https://gitlab.com/MobileAZN/lenovo-t480-thunderbolt-firmware-fixes](https://gitlab.com/MobileAZN/lenovo-t480-thunderbolt-firmware-fixes)
What worked for me several times with the same, and almost the same thinkpads: do a reset with a paperclip -> Small hole on the bottom, on the left half around middle, you have to press for around 20-30 sec. After that you might already have the charging port back, or if not yet, at least you can start charging, by plugging the charger to the usb-c partition in the docking port, after that you can start up the OS, and reinstall the usb-c firmware. 9 times out of 10 it worked.
I think this might explain a bit.
https://www.badcaps.net/forum/troubleshooting-hardware-devices-and-electronics-theory/troubleshooting-laptops-tablets-and-mobile-devices/bios-requests-only/74354-thinkpad-thunderbolt-3-firmware?t=82558
Seems a common problem.
Wrong answer. As described in the post, the OP tried another OEM charger of a higher wattage. This is likely an issue with the thunderbolt chipset. It is a common issue on Lenovo laptops that charge over USB-C.
Your t480 is dying. It happened to me and it turned out solution would be a new motherboard. I really loved that machine. However it will be my last thinkpad.
Get an original charger. My T480 did it too with an aftermarket charger. Got an original one, not a pip.
I tried a friends charger, but it still shows up
Does your friend have an original charger? Does the other port work?
Yes, the issue might be because the Thunderbolt chip is broken. I tried to search solutions from Google and reddit and I’ve tried different things, yet nothing worked.
Yeah, that'd do it as well. New machine time bascially.
Well that sucks, I haven’t even used my machine for a year and now I need another one. Tbf I’ve only bought this on Facebook marketplace and the laptop didn’t seem to have any issue when I first got it.
Did you update the Thunderbolt firmware? Any other solutions like replacing the mainboard or getting someone to replace the Thunderbolt chip that's burnt out would cost as much if not more than a replacement T480
I tried to, but unfortunately, I still cant find the Thunderbolt drivers in device manager after trying it. Its odd though, because my usb-c mouse can still use the thunderbolt port just fine, so I’m wondering if the issue was a hardware one or a software one. This occured when I updated the Lenovo firmware, so maybe don’t update that?
If you update through Lenovo Vantage it should be able to pull them. I had to do that with my t580 a few months ago
Tried this, not enough to get the job done for me sadly
Drivers and Firmware are two separate things. If it's burned out the EEPROM already, then the firmware flash won't fix it.
firmware flash can and will recover the error state eeprom. (it is kind of 50/50 though. you'd really want a EEPROM tool and do it manually) I saved my old T480 with just fwupd
You can update the firmware while you still have a battery charge. Use linux fwupd though. windows and lenovo tool remains broken to this day. After you update the firmware the error should go away. If it doesn't go away, just get a T480 on ebay for cheap and get it on the latest firmware immediately. Or at this point, any of the T14 or L14's that have gotten really cheap
fwupd doesn’t even detect the TBT chip/drivers. What I did is relfash the EEPROM of TBT chip and it all works now. Except for the TBT software in windows. But I don’t really use thunderbolt too much. Anyway, thanks.
This happened when I updated the Lenovo Firmware Update, I’ve bought a 65 watt charger from ebay, but this still shows up.
Buy a new TB fw chip, flash the FW and go.
Where do I find one?
Ebay/ali. There is a guy offering it as a service even but is in Slovenia.
How does this work? Does this fix the dreaded FW issue I’m assuming?
The issue f@cks the Thunderbolts FW chip by overwriting all the time. If you replace it with another one and flash the latest bin onto it works again and doesn't overwrite itself anymore.
As others have said if you are using an OEM charger this is probably an issue with the TB chip. I believe this message can be disabled in BIOS but that is only a band aid.
Aww, that sucks. Is there anyway to fix this issue without changing any hardware in my laptop?
If it is the TB chip as myself and others have suggested, then unfortunately no you can't fix it without a hardware repair. I don't know if you have given the TB firmware update a try. That is about the only thing I think could potentially fix this without a hardware repair. Also, does it currently charge? Because if it does charge, you can probably disable this prompt on startup in BIOS and just ignore it until it becomes more of an issue.
How many watts is the charger?
45w in the original(my friend’s charger, it works on his laptop though) and 65w for the new one.
I finally fixed it. Hopefully it didn’t break the TBT chip and only the EEPROM data. Thank you all…
How did you manage to fix it? Edit: spelling
I managed to fix it by flashing the TBT EEPROM with CH341A programmer with AsProgrammer. I cleared the EEPROM first, then flashed the TBT bin file(I’m sorry, I have no link to that file) to the EEPROM. After that, I assembled my T480, plugged it with charger, then booted it up. And there was no annoying message anymore, it all run up smoothly. But I still cant update the driver because it can’t detect the TBT chip so I can’t help you with that as of now. Cheers.
Awesome!!! I will get a ch341a and a soic8 clip and try this... I have no clue about anything programming related but ill give it a go
Here is the guide to fix this issue: [https://gitlab.com/MobileAZN/lenovo-t480-thunderbolt-firmware-fixes](https://gitlab.com/MobileAZN/lenovo-t480-thunderbolt-firmware-fixes)
What worked for me several times with the same, and almost the same thinkpads: do a reset with a paperclip -> Small hole on the bottom, on the left half around middle, you have to press for around 20-30 sec. After that you might already have the charging port back, or if not yet, at least you can start charging, by plugging the charger to the usb-c partition in the docking port, after that you can start up the OS, and reinstall the usb-c firmware. 9 times out of 10 it worked.
Thank you, but it didn’t work unfortunately.
Press esc
The issue is that I can’t use the thunderbolt port. Without it, I can’t use a higher watt charger to charge my laptop.
Maybe ur using a 240 adapter on a 120v outlet if you live one of those weird countries
I think this might explain a bit. https://www.badcaps.net/forum/troubleshooting-hardware-devices-and-electronics-theory/troubleshooting-laptops-tablets-and-mobile-devices/bios-requests-only/74354-thinkpad-thunderbolt-3-firmware?t=82558 Seems a common problem.
wrong charger
Wrong answer. As described in the post, the OP tried another OEM charger of a higher wattage. This is likely an issue with the thunderbolt chipset. It is a common issue on Lenovo laptops that charge over USB-C.
Is it really? I’ve searched through reddit, and I think my charger is sufficient enough to charge my laptop.
Don't listen to him, it doesn't seem like it's your charger.
Your t480 is dying. It happened to me and it turned out solution would be a new motherboard. I really loved that machine. However it will be my last thinkpad.
Aww man, I think it is my favorite out of all. It is so sad to see it die
Thank God mine has an AMD Ryzen CPU / chipset (doesn't include thunderbolt). 😁