How To Get To Bios On Windows 10

How to Enter the BIOS on Any PC: Access Keys past Manufacturer

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Windows or Linux may be your operating system of choice, simply no matter which platform you choose, your figurer's BIOS (Basic Input / Output System) is calling all the shots behind the scenes.

The BIOS, sometimes referred to as UEFI firmware on newer computers, tells your PC what storage drives you accept and which ane to kick from and what components you take, among other key functions. To change your boot club, gear up a arrangement countersign, disable ports or built-in peripherals, or even to overclock, you may need to get into the BIOS menus.

There are a few different means to access the BIOS menus on a PC:

Method 1: Use a BIOS Primal

When you commencement power-on a calculator, it goes through a very quick Postal service (ability on cocky test). If y'all can hit the correct hotkey earlier the Post is completed (or hold it down equally you hit the power push button), you will get into the BIOS menu. However, some computers go through POST then fast that they don't recognize input from the keyboard in time for y'all to a hit key. For those, skip to method #ii below.

Annoyingly, different PC brands use different BIOS keys. Most modern motherboards use the DEL central, just ultrabooks, gaming laptops and gaming PCs are less consistent. For instance, striking F2 might work on an Asus, but you'll need F10 on an Acer reckoner.

If y'all don't know the hotkey for your computer, you can look and come across if a message comes up during POST, telling you what key to press or you lot can try striking one of the 12 office keys, the DEL key, the Enter key or the ESC cardinal since information technology is ever one of those. You may accept to effort a few times to determine which one it is. In our research, DEL and F2 were, by far, the nearly common.

BIOS Keys by Manufacturer

Hither'due south a list of common BIOS keys by brand. Depending on the age of your model, the key may exist different.

ASRock: F2 or DEL
ASUS: F2 for all PCs, F2 or DEL for Motherboards
Acer: F2 or DEL
Dell: F2 or F12
ECS: DEL
Gigabyte / Aorus: F2 or DEL
HP: F10
Lenovo (Consumer Laptops): F2 or Fn + F2
Lenovo (Desktops): F1
Lenovo (ThinkPads): Enter then F1.
MSI: DEL for motherboards and PCs
Microsoft Surface Tablets: Printing and hold book upwardly button.
Origin PC: F2
Samsung: F2
Toshiba: F2
Zotac: DEL

Unfortunately, some computers become through POST then apace that there's no time to striking a key. Some desktops won't even recognize input from a USB keyboard until after Postal service is completed (though they volition see input from an old PS2-mode keyboard). If y'all can't use a BIOS fundamental and you have Windows eleven or 10, you can use the "Advanced startup" feature to get there.

Note that the screen shots beneath are from Windows 11, but the same steps apply to Windows x.

1.Navigate to the Advanced Startup section of Settings. The easiest way to become in that location is by searching for "advanced startup" in Windows search and clicking the pinnacle effect.

Navigate to advanced startup — (Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

2. Click Restart at present under the Avant-garde startup header.

Click Restart Now — (Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

Your computer will reboot and a new carte eventually appears.

three.Click Troubleshoot.

4. Click Advanced options.

5. Click UEFI Firmware Settings.

half dozen. Click Restart to confirm.

Method iii: Use a Linux Command

If yous're running a modern version of Linux such every bit Ubuntu, you lot may be able to get to the BIOS by typing "sudo systemctl reboot --firmware" at the command prompt.

What if you lot can't kick your Os or hit a BIOS primal?

If your estimator can't load an operating organization, because information technology doesn't detect a bootable drive, information technology volition usually pause, beep and give you the pick to enter the BIOS, which it volition often call "setup."

However, the biggest issues occur when the organisation POSTs besides fast for you to hit a primal so Windows or Linux tries to boot and fails. I've had this problem when I had a missing or corrupted bootloader, I got the Windows splash screen and so a blue screen of decease.

To force the BIOS to appear nether these circumstances, yous tin can try using an emergency kicking disk, provided that yous tin either select a boot device at startup or your computer has set up an external USB drive as a college boot priority than its internal storage drive(s).

Yous can apply a Windows install disk as an emergency boot disk. Once the USB boots, you need to click "Repair your reckoner" instead of install and and then click Troubleshoot -> UEFI Firmware Settings -> Restart.

Finally, if y'all can't kicking off of an emergency disk, y'all tin try to cause a system halting error that would prevent your computer from attempting to boot off of its internal drives. Then, y'all'll exist given the option to enter the BIOS menu.

Many desktop computers will requite an error message if there'due south no keyboard plugged in (if you need assistance finding 1, check our out All-time Gaming Keyboards (opens in new tab) listing) or if the keyboard buffer is overloaded from holding down too many keys at start. Pulling out your primary internal storage drive would too cause an fault that would let you lot into the BIOS, simply if that drive has a not-booting OS on it, your problems might resume one time you plug information technology back in.

Bottom Line

Any method you use to access your BIOS, be careful when making changes to your settings at that place. You could end up disabling primal components.

Avram Piltch is Tom's Hardware's editor-in-chief. When he's not playing with the latest gadgets at work or putting on VR helmets at trade shows, y'all'll find him rooting his telephone, taking apart his PC or coding plugins. With his technical knowledge and passion for testing, Avram developed many real-earth benchmarks, including our laptop battery test.