Do you need to change or set up your computer’s BIOS settings? If you’re unsure about a specific setting, it’s best to consult your system manual or manufacturer’s support page. Always proceed with caution when making changes in the BIOS, as improper settings can cause system instability. Accessing the BIOS on Windows 10 and 11 can be done in several ways depending on the manufacturer and your system configuration. Check the Safe Boot option, click OK, and restart your computer.
You will now see a “Choose an Option” screen. Make sure you save any unsaved work before restarting your PC. In this prompt, click “Restart Now” to restart your PC. In the “Recovery” menu, next to “Advanced Startup,” click “Restart Now.” The advantage of this method is that you can use this even when your Windows OS doesn’t load. It’s advanced low-level software that offers more features than traditional BIOS.
Click Restart now under the Advanced startup header. Note that the screen shots below are from Windows 11, but the same steps apply to Windows 10. Unfortunately, some computers go through POST so quickly that there’s no time to hit a key. Depending on the age of your model, the key may be different.
After you complete the steps, the device will access the BIOS or UEFI firmware, depending on the motherboard support. You should only access the motherboard firmware when you have a good reason. The only caveat is that the BIOS is a startup environment, meaning you can’t access it when Windows 10 is running. This wikiHow will show you how to access and adjust the BIOS settings for your Windows 8, 10, or 11 computer.
First, open the “Start” menu and search for “Windows Terminal”. Once you make all of the changes you want, your PC will finish restarting normally. Instead of restarting normally, your PC will open up the Advanced Boot Menu. Windows 11, like Windows 10 before it, allows you to boot into the Advanced Boot Menu from within Windows.
Here’s a list of common BIOS keys by brand. Most modern motherboards use the DEL key, but ultrabooks, gaming laptops and gaming PCs are less consistent. Annoyingly, different PC brands use different BIOS keys. Get into the UEFI / BIOS setup menu and make changes. However, checking the manufacturer’s documentation is important to understand the features the motherboard supports and those you can configure. (These are the instructions for accessing the UEFI on Windows 11.)
In this how-to guide, I’ll explain how to enter your computer’s BIOS/UEFI to change advanced system settings. This command will restart your computer into the Advanced Startup Options screen. Turn on the computer, and immediately press the Setup key (commonly F2, F12, or Del) when the manufacturer logo appears.
To use this method, you will have to find the key that lets you enter BIOS on your specific computer. An easy way to enter BIOS on your Windows 11 PC is to use a key on your keyboard while powering on the computer. Then, you’ll be given the option to enter the BIOS menu. I’ve had this problem when I had a missing or corrupted bootloader, I got the Windows splash screen and then a blue screen of death. However, the biggest problems occur when the system POSTs too fast for you to hit a key and then Windows or Linux tries to boot and fails.
Below are the various methods to access BIOS on Windows 10 and 11 systems. Some newer systems use UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface), which may have different methods for accessing and using the BIOS. Accessing the BIOS allows you to change several system settings, such as boot priority, security settings, and overclocking features.
If you can’t get the computer to access the firmware using the keyboard, you may need to check your device manufacturer to find out which key you need to press during boot. If you don’t see the information on the startup screen or the computer boots quickly, restart the device again, and as soon as the boot starts, press the required key multiple times quickly. The most common way to access the BIOS settings is to press a specific key at startup. This is a particularly useful method if you can’t access BIOS using the traditional key press at startup. There are a few different ways to access the BIOS menus on a PC whether it involves hitting a hotkey at POST time, using Windows’ Advanced Startup menu or issuing a Linux command.
However, if you have to change some system settings, there are multiple methods to access the motherboard firmware. However, sometimes, you may still need to enter the motherboard BIOS to troubleshoot problems, enable or disable features (such as virtualization, RAID array, and secure boot), adjust memory and processor advanced settings, and more. It’s responsible for basic operations, such as booting and configuring hardware (mouse, keyboard, memory, processor, and other components). After pressing the key, the BIOS setup screen should appear, allowing you to make changes to your system settings. You’ll usually see a message on the screen that says, “Press key to enter setup” during boot. If you can’t find the keyboard key to enter BIOS, or you prefer using graphical options, use Windows 11’s Settings app to enter BIOS.
The firmware usually works without user interaction if you use a Windows 10 device. Although these are different technologies, modern devices now use UEFI, but sometimes, the term “BIOS” is still used to refer to both types of firmware. If you need to change your computer’s UEFI (BIOS) settings, this guide will show you two ways to do so on Windows 10. The key varies depending on what kind of computer you have, but it’s typically F2, F10, Del, or Esc. Since the BIOS is tied to a computer’s motherboard, the appearance of each BIOS will vary slightly by manufacturer.
In Windows 10 and 11, you can access the BIOS directly from the Settings menu. Here, you can configure settings like boot order, secure boot, or system time. Once you’ve successfully pressed the key, you should see the BIOS or UEFI interface. Make sure to press the key right after powering on, before Windows begins loading. The BIOS key can vary depending on your computer’s manufacturer. The most traditional way to access BIOS is during the initial boot BIOS process.
If your computer can’t load an operating system, because it doesn’t detect a bootable drive, it will usually pause, beep and give you the option to enter the BIOS, which it will often call “setup.” Your computer will reboot and a new menu eventually appears. If you can’t use a BIOS key and you have Windows 11 or 10, you can use the “Advanced startup” feature to get there. Some desktops won’t even recognize input from a USB keyboard until after POST is completed (though vegas casino app they will see input from an old PS2-style keyboard).
Do this by pressing Windows+i keys at the same time. On most computers, this key is F2, but you should check on your computer’s splash screen to confirm. You could end up disabling key components. Pulling out your primary internal storage drive would also cause an error that would let you into the BIOS, but if that drive has a non-booting OS on it, your problems might resume once you plug it back in. Finally, if you can’t boot off of an emergency disk, you can try to cause a system halting error that would prevent your computer from attempting to boot off of its internal drives. You can use a Windows install disk as an emergency boot disk.