Windows 8.1 Boot Manager: Booting to USB drive

gjacobse

So in the quest to perform tasks I normal perform by smacking F12 for the boot menu, I found that it's not the same with the newer BIOS and I have to look at the Windows Boot Manager.

Reading over it, it's pointed at cases of dual booting a HDD install OS (Win7, Vista etc), but NOT a USB device.

Computer:
Acer Aspire 2-n-1
Windows 8.1 OS

MattSpeller

No proper BIOS? Like nothing?

gjacobse

It does have BIOS via F2 - and I moved the USB HDD to position 1, meaning that the USB HDD (thumb drive) should be seen before the Windows Boot Manager.

It was skipped.

MattSpeller

@g.jacobse just to be sure, have you booted to that stick with anything else?

nadnerB

I thought F12 was boot from network adapter and F10 was boot menu...
Maybe it's just out Intel boards

scottalanmiller

@nadnerB said:

I thought F12 was boot from network adapter and F10 was boot menu...
Maybe it's just out Intel boards

Those key combos are completely unique to the boards in question. And sometimes to the optional other boards attached to them.

gjacobse

Here is the BIOS Screens -

Hitting F2:

Selecting the BOOT option:

Yes, I have used this drive before - however valid point.. Checking.

nadnerB

I'm not too familiar with UEFI but that setting Secure Boot: [Enabled] might be causing the issue. Can you disble it?

What OS are you booting from the USB HDD?

gjacobse

This is hitting F12 with the USB drive in.

@nadnerB said:

I'm not too familiar with UEFI but that setting Secure Boot: [Enabled] might be causing the issue. Can you disble it?

What OS are you booting from the USB HDD?

I have a tools USB Drive with Hirens on it,.. also Linux Mint.

Neither boot.

JaredBusch

@nadnerB said:

I'm not too familiar with UEFI but that setting Secure Boot: [Enabled] might be causing the issue. Can you disble it?

What OS are you booting from the USB HDD?

As noted, you have to turn off secure boot.

gjacobse

@JaredBusch said:

@nadnerB said:

I'm not too familiar with UEFI but that setting Secure Boot: [Enabled] might be causing the issue. Can you disble it?

What OS are you booting from the USB HDD?

As noted, you have to turn off secure boot.

Amazing how many time you can look at something - and not see it.

I think I have seen that, but the cursor jumps over it. Next boot I'll try to check.

Dashrender

Secure boot in UEFI was one of the big selling points - it's suppose to help ensure you're not hijacked before booting.

Does anyone know if any of the Linux distros support it? or is it something they can't support because money has to be paid to the UEFI people or the OEMs so that something is embedded? Frankly I'm not exactly sure how it works.

JaredBusch

@Dashrender said:

Does anyone know if any of the Linux distros support it? or is it something they can't support because money has to be paid to the UEFI people or the OEMs so that something is embedded? Frankly I'm not exactly sure how it works.

I know for CentOS 7 in Hyper-V generation 2 I have to disable secure boot if I want the system to install.