Windows 8 install killed M58p Motherboard

Question

I was running a Thinkcentre M58p (9965) with Windows 7 just fine for a few years.  I disconnected my hard drive and put in a blank one.  I then proceeded to install Windows 8.1 Enterprise.  The install went fine, did a few updates and restarted.  When the system came back up, I entered the activation key and installed about a half dozen updates.  The system did all the normal update installs, shutdown...then NOTHING.  No restart; it stayed off.  No splash screen (no picture at all for that matter), no POST beep.  I get a few seconds of fan test and then the system shuts off. I ended up removing ALL extra hardware.  The only things left was the RAM, keyboard (PS/2) and monitor (connected to the on-board video). Nothing.  Clearing the BIOS did not help.  I downloaded the Flash BIOS ISO, set the clear CMOS jumper, reconnected the CDROM and was able to boot the CD. There was still no picture through the process, but I did get some random beeps.  Afer a few minutes the process completed, I moved the clear CMOS jumper back to the normal position. Nothing.  The fans spin up, stay on for a few seconds, then the system shuts down. No POST beep, no picture.
I relayed my experience to a friend who insisted he didn't believe it was Windows 8 that caused the problem.  The next day, he informed me he took one of his older Lenovo systems that was running Ubuntu v13 and upgraded to v14. His system also died on restart with all the same symptoms.
My first question is: since clearing CMOS and reflashing the BIOS didn't work, there must be a way to either reset or reflash the "protected" BIOS area.  What it appears to me is that, in at least my case, Windows 8 wrote the activation code to the BIOS, overwriting some critical area that normally cannot be (easily) reset.  I firmly believe there is nothing physically wrong with the motherboard.  I also noticed a number of undocumented jumpers and headers (CL_CMOSHW, CL_CMOSHW2, LEO_CHIP, C1).  Might one of these clear the issue?  If not, can some kind of "factory" utility be obtained to reset all the firmware back to its initial settings?
Second, while it's true this is an older system, the specs are more than enough to run Windows 8.  And even though it isn't on the "tested" list, the worst thing I would expect to happen is that Windows 8 (or even current Linux distros) would not run, not turn the computer into a brick.  Given this, will Lenovo come out with a BIOS update for systems to patch this problem?  I used to have a high regard for Lenovo systems and they were on my short list of systems recommened to clients.  But if systems only a couple years out of warranty can unexpectedly be turned into bricks at an OS update, I cannot continue to recommend them for any use.  It's one thing to say, "Sorry, the new software won't run on your old system.", but it's quite another to say, "Sorry, you tried to get further use out of our product so it must now self destruct."
Any help getting this MB back up would be great. At least if there were a way to bring the system back up, I could test for a work-around if the option of getting a BIOS fix was unavailable.

Answer 1

Iosmem,
I really do appreciate you trying to help, but again, I don't think you really read my post as it does detail suggestions you made were done.
No, there is NO POST BEEP.  The fans come on at power up, spin for a few seconds, then the system shuts down. No boot is possible, other than booting the flash BIOS CD when the jumper is in the clear CMOS position.
Yes, all non-essential devices were removed.  The only things attached are RAM, CD-ROM drive, monitor (to onboard video) and keyboard.
Yes, the CMOS battery was checked.
Yes, the RAM was checked.
No, the flash BIOS CD does NOT reflash protected areas of the BIOS (anti-theft area being one example).
Yes, this is probably not an issue with Windows 8, per se, as evidenced to the fact another Lenovo system suffered the same fate when upgrading Ubuntu.  This is (and verified by another non-Lenovo tech), that Lenovo systems actually have this issue due to the way Lenovo emplements their BIOS.
It would be my hope that someone from Lenovo can shed some light on this since they will not accept opening a ticket unless the system is under warranty (which ran out a few months ago).
Lastly, as I mentioned, I recommend systems for clients, but Lenovo is going to be on my avoid-at-all-costs lists (it used to be near the top of my recommend list) if I can't even get an answer (even if that answer is "yes, some models do that and it requires a factory fix") on this after a month.