I think a tiny part has fallen of my laptop but not sure from where :)

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1

Hey there,

My laptop wouldn’t turn on and I was following these instructions to resolve the issue Fully Resetting the Mainboard State - Framework Guides when suddenly I saw that a small piece had fallen off.

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tiny-part-2879×1047 381 KB

The pictures above show it next to the track pad for size. The little black arm that sticks out from the top is sprung. Not 100% sure it fell off this laptop (as I have never seen it attached) but seems the most likely explanation. The laptop appears to be working fine by the way so not mission critical.

Does anyone know what it is and if / how I should replace it?

PS. the laptop did take a knock on bottom right hard corner and got bent out of shape so that there is now a small gap in that corner (see below). Not sure if this is related but thought I would mention it in case it helps with the sleuthing!

Bonus question: can you buy a replacement case? I couldn’t see one in the marketplace. Will most likely wait until this one has taken a few more knocks but would be good to know for the future.

Thanks, all!

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I can only attach one image per post so here are the other images referenced in the post

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tiny-part1032×1020 427 KB

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Finally…

cover-gap
cover-gap1000×430 122 KB

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Have you considered taking a closer picture of the part & doing an image search via Google Lens or so?

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Good thinking!

It looks like it is a detector switch. Maybe even this specific model. But where is it used in the laptop? Wholesale Sub-miniature Long travel detector switch,Sub-miniature Long travel detector switch Factories

"KAM4236" framework laptop - Google Search doesn’t return any results. “framework Long travel detector switch” doesn’t either. :thinking:

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Oop, that’s the “case open” detect switch. When you use the mainboard outside a case, that thing lets the laptop make a fuss and blink the status LED red a whole bunch.

Otherwise it doesn’t affect the function of the laptop. If something had to break off, that’s not the worst part in the world.

E: It’s this one, edited repair guide image, shabby MSPaint red circle

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image1600×1200 216 KB

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Hi.

The case.

There is a report of someone who bent the caselid back to shape as near as the could.

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If something had to break off, that’s not the worst part in the world.

@Paul_Combe - thanks! :+1:

that thing lets the laptop make a fuss and blink the status LED red a whole bunch

Ah! That explains why I didn’t see blinking red LEDs here: Fully Resetting the Mainboard State - Framework Guides

Now with the Battery still disconnected and the RTC Coin Cell still removed, plug your Power Adapter back into the laptop. At this point, you should see the LEDs on the left and right sides of the Mainboard start to blink red. This confirms that the board is powered on and in a reset state.

I decided to proceed anyway and see what happened. It did turn on and all is well.

And thanks for the link @amoun! Will probably skip the manual adjustment for now but good to know it has worked for others. PS. I think you meant to link to Hard shell | case for framework laptop wanted - #6 by GFOM

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