So, you need to change the boot order on your Windows computer so that you can boot from USB in order to run the offline antivirus scanner? Or maybe you need to change the boot sequence so you can boot from the Windows DVD in order to run System Restore?
Whatever the reason for the change in the boot sequence, the process for accessing the BIOS may vary from computer to computer. The difference will depend on whether your computer has an older BIOS or a newer UEFI BIOS, or both.
I will not go into details about the differences between the two types of BIOS, other than how to access them. Once you enter the BIOS on your computer, you can change the boot order.
Everyone is probably familiar with the legacy BIOS because it can be accessed by pressing a specific key such as DEL, F2, F8, F12, or ESC when you first start your computer.
The first thing to do is restart your computer and then keep pressing one of the keys on your keyboard while the computer boots up. Usually, a message appears quickly below which keys to press. Here are two examples of a Dell machine and a custom machine I have at home:
The motherboard on my custom PC is from MSI, so the boot process loads the MSI screen with the option to press DEL to launch BIOS setup or press F11 to launch the boot menu. Note that if you go into BIOS setup, you can also change the boot order from there. Since changing the boot order is such a common task, they usually have a separate key for this (in this case F11).
On my Dell, I get a different set of keys to access BIOS setup (F2) and boot options (F12). Now, if you don’t see this type of pop-up message at all at boot, it could mean that your BIOS is configured for UEFI only.
The UEFI BIOS cannot be accessed by pressing keys on the keyboard. Instead, you have to restart Windows in a special way and then go through some menu items. To restart Windows, click Start and then Settings (gear icon).
Then click on Update & Security.
Then click on “Recovery” in the left menu and then click on the “Restart now” button under the “Advanced Startup” section. This will restart your computer and load the Advanced Recovery Options screen. Here you want to click Troubleshoot.
Under the heading Troubleshoot, select Advanced Options.
On the last screen, you should see the UEFI Firmware Settings option.
If you do not see this option, it means that your computer does not have a UEFI BIOS. Instead, you will have to boot using the deprecated method by pressing keys at startup. Please note, if your BIOS has UEFI + Legacy BIOS installed, you will be able to access both BIOS.
Change the boot order
Now that we’ve figured out how to access the BIOS, let’s change the boot order in Windows. If your computer is using an older BIOS version, remember to press a key to select boot options or boot order, as this will take you directly to the boot sequence screen.
For example, on my Dell computer, when I pressed F12 for boot options, I got the following screen:
At the top, it tells me that my boot mode is set to UEFI + Legacy and then it gives me the Legacy options and the UEFI options. If your computer doesn’t have any hard drives or UEFI devices, you’ll just see Windows Boot Manager. Now I can just choose which device I want to boot from.
On my user’s computer, pressing F11 in the boot menu brings me to the following screen:
As mentioned earlier, you can either go directly to such boot options, or enter the installer and then go to the download section. Sometimes customization gives you more options. For example, on my personal computer, I went into BIOS setup, then Settings and then Boot.
As you can see from the list below, there are many options. Essentially, the BIOS lists all UEFI boot options and legacy versions. Therefore, if you have a UEFI hard drive and an old hard drive, you can choose the boot order for all devices.
When you go to the BIOS boot order screen, you will see instructions for changing the order. Sometimes you use the up and down arrow keys, sometimes the PgUp and PgDown keys, other times you just select boot option # 1 as above and choose which device boots first, etc. The method depends on the motherboard manufacturer. so follow the instructions. on-screen instructions.
Again, if you don’t have the UEFI Firmware Settings option and can’t see it. Press this key to display a setup message during startup, then simply try restarting your computer and press one of the above keys a few times while the computer boots up. up. Don’t hold the key, just keep pressing it. If one key prevents you from entering BIOS, restart again and press another key. If you have any problems entering BIOS or changing the boot order, please leave a comment and we will try to help. Enjoy!
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