How to Change Your PC's Boot Sequence (Change BIOS)

Different computers have different ways to enter the BIOS (setup). Turn on the computer and look for text that says something like "Press F2 to Enter Startup". If you do not see this screen and it comes up with the windows logo automatically, shutdown completely and as soon as you power on the PC (before you see anything on your screen) start pressing the appropriate key (see below for a list of keys for different manufacturers).

If the keyboard being used is a USB Keyboard, it may not be functioning during efforts to enter BIOS. If this occurs, a standard PS2 keyboard is required. If the Windows Logo appears, the wrong key is being used or it has been pressed too late. Restart and try again.

Common Keys to access the BIOS:

• Acer: F1, F2, CTRL+ALT+ESC
• Compaq: F1, ESC, older versions prior to 2002 use F10
• Dell: F1 or DEL
  • As the PC loads, before Windows, press F12 - this will load the Boot Options Menu and then you can choose USB or DVD/CD-ROM
• eMachines: TAB, DEL (older eMachines may use F2)
• Fujistsu: F2
• Gateway: F1, F2
• HP: F1, F2 ESC
• IBM: F1, F2
• Micron: F1 or F2, or DEL
• NEC: F2
• Packard Bell: F1 or F2, or DEL
• Sony: F1, F2 or F3, DEL
• Toshiba: F1, ESC
  • After the Toshiba Splash Screen, immediately press and hold the "C" key and the Toshiba will then boot to the CD.

Setting the PC's BIOS to Boot to CD or USB

The first BIOS screen will show many computer settings. The mouse will not work in the BIOS screens. Navigation is handled using menus and the arrow keys on the keyboard. Typically, the bottom of the screen will show the keys for navigation and changing the settings.

Look for a setting that says Boot Order, Boot Sequence, First Boot Device, Boot Management, or something similar and select it.

Boot Order Screen:

1. The Boot Order screen will show a list of devices that the computer can boot from
   • Here are some videos from YouTube that show how to set BIOS to boot to a CD: Video #1, Video #2, Video #3.
   • Here are some YouTube videos showing how to set BIOS to boot to a USB device: Video #1 and Video #2
2. Change the order of these devices so that either your USB device or CD/DVD-ROM is first in the list.
3. Make sure to leave the C:Drive (Or HDD) and other drives in the list below the first, do not disable any devices
4. If only the manufacturer of the drive is showing, this can be determined by loading Windows and going into your Device Manager to compare the model # to the actual device.

Once the Boot Order has been changed, save and exit the BIOS screen. Most computers use either the F10 key or the ESC key to Save and exit. When asked to save the changes and exit select "Yes".

BIOS Screen Examples

Phoenix AwardBIOS and American Megatrends are the two most common BIOS makers and here are examples of what their BIOS screens look like:

American Megatrends

Phoenix BIOS