Installing Windows from a bootable BIOS flash drive. Set the BIOS to boot from a flash drive. Booting from a flash drive in the BIOS on the motherboard from msi

Hi all! Yesterday I got my hands on it new laptop ASUS X501A. It was necessary to install Windows and everything necessary, turnkey in short :). I turned it around and discovered that it does not have a CD/DVD drive. This means that you need to create a bootable USB flash drive and install Windows 7 from it. The drivers for it are also included on the disk, and you also need to copy them onto the USB flash drive. It’s actually strange that the laptop doesn’t have a drive, but the drivers are on the disk. You need to put the included drivers on the flash drive, or an external drive :).

Anyway. I created a bootable USB flash drive. First created using special program Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool(I wrote about this), but I’ll say ahead of time that for some reason the installation of Windows 7 from this flash drive did not work. The white cursor simply blinked and the installation did not continue. I recorded it and everything worked. Why this is so, I didn’t bother to figure it out :).

That's it, the flash drive is ready. Now you need to set the BIOS to boot from this flash drive. Now I’ll tell you how to do this.

We set boot from a flash drive on an Asus laptop

We go into the BIOS. For me, and most likely for you, this is the key F2 (if not, then try DEL). Press it immediately after starting the laptop.

The flash drive should already be connected to the laptop!

As you can see (in the screenshot below), under me Boot Option #1 costs HDD. And under Boot Option #2 flash drive. You need to install a flash drive under #1.

To do this, click on Boot Option # 1 and select the flash drive. And the hard drive will automatically take second place.

You can return to the previous menu by clicking on Esc and you will see that a USB device is installed under Boot Option #1.

Don't forget to click F10 And Yes to save settings.

That's it, after rebooting the laptop it should boot from the flash drive. (if it is created correctly).

There is one caveat. Perhaps I made a mistake when setting the parameters in the BIOS; there I probably just needed to create another boot rule (Add New Boot Option). But it's okay.

If you did everything like I did, then most likely during the Windows installation process, after a reboot, booting from the flash drive will begin. And you need with drive C to continue installation. I'm just at the point of rebooting pulled out the flash drive. And when the download started from drive C, I inserted it back (although it seems that it is no longer needed for installation, the files have already been copied, but I could be wrong).

Possible problems when installing Windows 7 from a USB 3.0 flash drive

You may have noticed that my USB drive with the new USB interface 3.0. But Windows 7 does not support USB 3.0, special drivers are required.

If the drive itself is USB 3.0, then it's okay. Just plug it into the laptop connector USB 2.0 and everything will work.

This is what a USB 2.0 connector looks like on a laptop:

And this is what the USB 3.0 connector looks like:

The third one is blue and there are two letters SS next to the icon.

Well, if you have everything USB 3.0, then you will have to integrate the drivers into Windows 7. This is a topic for another article. Perhaps I’ll write how to do this. In the meantime, you can find this information on the Internet.

You can also find and download an assembly with Windows 7, which already has integrated drivers for USB 3.0. There are such people.

This site probably has all the information that may be useful for installation. operating system and to resolve problems that may arise during the installation process. You can use the site search. And if you can’t find something, then ask in the comments, I’ll tell you :). Good luck!

Also on the site:

How to set to BIOS loading from a flash drive? Some tips for Windows installation 7 s USB flash drives 3.0 updated: February 7, 2018 by: admin

Sometimes there are quite unpleasant situations when the operating system crashes. And to restore you need the original disk. If you don’t have one available, you can write the image to a regular flash drive. But here's the problem - what to do when the BIOS does not allow booting from a flash drive? Many users simply do not know what to do and are lost in this matter. Let's try to dot all the i's.

How to enable it in BIOS using the simplest method?

To set these parameters, you must first decide how exactly you will enter the BIOS. The most common way is to use the Del, F2, F12, etc. keys.

However, on the same Sony laptops Vaio is accessed using a special ASSIST button located on the keyboard panel. On some laptops, the BIOS can only be accessed by calling the primary boot menu using the Esc key.

How can I set the BIOS to boot from a flash drive? Yes, very simple. After calling the I/O system, you need to go to the boot section. Here you need to find the boot priority line, which may have different names, depending on the developer and manufacturer of the BIOS (Boot Device Priority, Boot Sequence, etc.). In any case, something like this will be present. But that's not the point.

What to do if the BIOS does not allow booting from a flash drive?

It also happens that the bootable flash drive is not recognized by the primary I/O system. With what it can be connected? There are usually several reasons for this:

• incorrectly recorded image or installation distribution;
• damage to the USB drive itself.

To make sure that all the steps for booting from a flash drive are completed correctly, there are several steps you need to take. For now, let’s leave the question of how to enable booting from a flash drive in the BIOS in the background, and move on to pressing problems.

Checking in Device Manager

Let's start with the last point. When checking the device itself for its functionality, there can be two options: either it is faulty itself, or the accompanying driver responsible for recognizing the flash drive by the operating system is missing or incorrectly installed.

In case of malfunctions everything is clear. The device will simply have to be replaced. But what to do when it is in working condition (at least detected on another computer or laptop)? We need to check its functionality. And to do this, in the simplest version, you just need to insert it into the appropriate USB 2.0/3.0 port, and then call the standard “Device Manager” through the “Control Panel” or use the devmgmt command in the “Run” menu bar (Win + R).

Let's assume that after inserting into a port, it may either not be displayed in the manager or be displayed with yellow icon, on which it is present. In the second case, everything is simple: you need to install or produce re-installation drivers. It may very well be that the system itself does not find suitable driver, although it should do it automatically. But this mostly applies to non-standard devices. Flash drives like Transcend are usually recognized immediately.

If the device is not displayed in the corresponding manager, there may also be two reasons: either the corresponding universal USB controller driver is not installed, or the port itself is faulty. Again, you should install the driver (the controller is indicated yellow or is not in the manager at all), or try to plug the flash drive into a different port. It is worth considering that if the device is designed exclusively for data transfer only with USB support 3.0, when connected to standard port 2.0 it will not be determined.

Formatting USB device partitions

Let’s leave aside the question of how to boot from a flash drive in the BIOS for now, and let’s move on to the procedures, without which even recording an image to install the system on the device may be in vain.

First of all, if the device has problems in operation or no action can be taken with it, you should first format it. However, it is not advisable to do quick cleaning table of contents, or better yet produce full formatting. Only in this case will the file system contained on it ensure correct data transfer and reading.

This operation is performed in standard Explorer. On the device you just need to right-click and select the appropriate line from the menu. In the new window, be sure to uncheck the quick formatting line, and then activate the start of the process. Depending on the total volume, this may take a long time.

Creating a bootable distribution

If we consider the question of how to set boot from a flash drive in the BIOS even more broadly, we cannot ignore the issue of creating boot image and transferring it to the drive. This can be done using the UltraISO utility or similar.

However, the source must use the original installation disk Windows. Actually, it’s not that difficult, so there’s no point in dwelling on this in detail. And if the BIOS does not allow booting from a flash drive, in the future it all comes down to correctly transferring the image or unpacked distribution files to the drive. Here you will have to tinker a little.

Media preparation

If you use your own system tools, even after formatting with a USB device, you still need to perform a series of additional actions(assuming the image has already been created with original disc using the same UltraISO programs or even 7-Zip, and the flash drive is in working condition and connected to a computer or laptop).

First we call command line(cmd in the “Run” menu), always on behalf of the system administrator. In the console that appears, enter and press the enter button.

After this, use the list disk command, again, followed by pressing the Enter key, after which we look through the available disks and remember the number of the USB device. To accurately check the USB drive number, you can use the diskmgmt.msc command entered in the Run menu.

Now in the console you need to enter the select disk command and, separated by a space, indicate the number of the disk you are looking for. Next, the device should be cleared of its contents using the clean command.

The next step is to create a primary boot partition. This is done using the create partition primary command followed by entering. After confirmation of a successful operation appears on the screen, use the select partition 1 command, then - active (to activate the selected partition) and finally - format fs=ntfs quick for formatting with selection If you need to create a file FAT systems 32, a similar one is used format command fs=fat32 quick.

The next step is to assign a name to the device using the assign command (the name will be assigned automatically). Finally, enter exit and finish the job. The bootable USB device is ready to use. All that remains is to correctly transfer the distribution files to it.

Transferring data to a flash drive

On at this stage no more configuration required. We don’t yet need a BIOS to boot from a flash drive, but we will need the 7-Zip program. In the very simple version with its help you can correctly copy installation files to the media (roughly speaking, extract them from the image).

Let's launch Zip utility File Manager from the standard “Explorer”, then select the installation distribution image previously created or downloaded from the Internet, specify the USB flash drive as the final device and confirm the actions by pressing the OK button. At the end of the process, the media will be completely ready for use.

Start download

Now let’s move on to the question of how to set the BIOS to boot from a flash drive directly. We reboot the system and at the initial stage press a key or key combination to enter BIOS settings. Usually these are Del, F2, F12 (for ASUS laptops, BIOS loading from a flash drive is done this way), but other keys or combinations described above can also be used. Depending on the manufacturer of the equipment, you may first need to call up the main menu. This situation is typical for laptops like HP - booting from a flash drive (BIOS) is installed somewhat differently, although the operations themselves are very similar.

In the download section (Boot) we look for the item Boot Device Priority and look at the line 1-st Boot Device. By pressing the PgDn key, we select the desired device, after which we exit and save the parameters (as a rule, this is done using the F10 key). This is followed by a reboot, and the installation starts automatically.

However, it is not enough to know how to select boot from a flash drive in the BIOS. It is important to remember that you should call up the settings of the primary input/output system only when a USB device is connected before starting to boot your computer or laptop. Otherwise, the flash drive simply will not be detected.

How to fix problems?

Now let's look at a situation where the device seems to be working, since all the steps described above were supposedly performed correctly, but in fact there is still no boot from a flash drive in the BIOS. How to enter in this case?

We use the same command line. Let's assume that the USB device in the system is designated by the letter F, and the optical drive by E. Now you need to enter the command E:\Boot\bootsect.exe /nt60 F: (F is a flash drive in our case, and E is a disk drive).

Alternative method

If this does not work, enter the following one by one:

F:\Boot\bootsect.exe /nt60 F:

After this, everything will definitely work as expected.

Compatibility issues

If none of the above methods help, first you should pay attention to the state of the drivers. In the very optimal option you can use programs like Driver Booster, which are able to update drivers automatically.

If everything is fine with them, the reason may be that the user is trying to install a 32-bit system over a 64-bit one. In addition, the file system on the USB drive and the installation distribution may also differ in terms of bit depth. Actually, the flash drive itself may not support USB ports 3.0, in which it is included. Here you need to be very careful.

Instead of a total

That, in fact, is all that concerns how to set boot from a flash drive in the BIOS. Of course, many users may have questions about the advisability of using the system’s own tools for preliminary actions, after all automated programs make it much faster and easier. But here I would like to note that such knowledge is extremely important, and programs in case of failures in Internet access are also not always available.

But prerequisite, as is already clear, is a disk image that is created based on the original or downloaded from the Internet. You can't go anywhere without him. It remains to add that attention should also be focused on the bit depth of the installed system, since the 32-bit version is on top of the 64-bit version without formatting system partition will not install. This is only due to the fact that OS versions require 32 bits and 64-bit modifications require at least NTFS. And the flash drive itself must contain the corresponding file systems FAT or NTFS, not UDP, as is sometimes the case. As for the volume, 4 GB will be quite enough for any system, including even the tenth modification that is gaining popularity.

Already recorded bootable USB flash drive, but don’t know how to boot from a flash drive? There is nothing complicated here. Booting Windows from a flash drive is very simple, and all you need to do is go into the BIOS and change one setting.

If you have not yet recorded a licensed digital copy of Windows, I recommend reading – ?

If you simply connect the USB flash drive to your PC or laptop and reboot it, Windows installation won't start. After all, to do this you need to enable booting from a flash drive in the BIOS.

This is easy to do. But there is one nuance here. The fact is that Windows download from a flash drive on PCs and laptops is done differently. Firstly, it depends on the BIOS manufacturers. And, secondly, from the laptop brand (Asus, Acer, Samsung, Lenovo, HP, etc.).

However, loading from a flash drive into the BIOS follows the same principle. Yes, the BIOS menu will always be different, and this can cause difficulties. But below we will look at several examples so that you understand how to install booting from a flash drive and can independently navigate the BIOS menu (in case you have another option).

So, let's begin. To enter the BIOS, you must immediately press a certain button on the keyboard when you turn on your computer or laptop. Which one? This can be found on the loading screen.

You can find out that you have entered the BIOS by seeing the corresponding menu in front of you. The following options are usually found:

If loading the BIOS failed, then wait until your PC or laptop turns on, reboot it and try again by pressing a different key.

In this case, the “Boot” item was selected, and then “Boot Device Priority” (i.e., device startup priority). As a result, a menu similar to this will open:

As you can see, they are different, but in each case there are the lines we need - First (1st), Second (2nd) and Third (3rd) Boot Device. It indicates which device boots first, which – second and third in turn. As a rule, the hard drive (HDD) always comes first, followed by the disk drive (CR-ROM).

When you connect the flash drive, the USB-HDD option will also appear. And to configure booting from a flash drive, you need to select the option USB-HDD in the First Boot Device item. Example:

Next, you must save the changes, otherwise you will have to repeat everything all over again. Which save button? This information is written at the bottom of the screen. For example, in the screenshot above: F10 – “Save”, ESC – “Exit”. Save the changes and exit the BIOS. Congratulations, setting up the BIOS to boot from a flash drive is complete.

The computer (or laptop) will automatically reboot, after which the following line will appear:

Press any button and Windows installation will begin.

If you have a UEFI BIOS (i.e. you recently bought a new PC or laptop), then Windows boot From a flash drive it’s as easy as shelling pears.

Go to BIOS and you will see something like this:

To configure booting a flash drive into UEFI, we are interested in the “Boot Priority” item. Drag the USB device icon to the top of the list (so that it is first) and exit (the exit button is in the right top corner). When you exit, the system will ask you whether to save the changes. You agree, after which the PC or laptop will reboot and Windows will begin loading from the flash drive.

By the way: it doesn’t matter at all what kind of image you have on a USB flash drive - Windows 7, 8, 10 or XP. This doesn't affect anything. The OS will start loading from the flash drive in any case (provided, of course, that it is recorded correctly).

And finally one more very important point. When unpacking Windows files will be completed - the computer will reboot.

After this, you need to go into the BIOS again and return the previous device startup priority. That is, put the hard drive (HDD) in first place, and the USB flash drive in last place. There shouldn’t be any problems with this, because you already know how to boot from a flash drive, right?

In principle, you don't have to do this. In this case, when the black screen appears, NOTHING don't press.

Otherwise, the Windows installation will boot again and you will install the operating system again.

But when Windows is installed, you still need to go into the BIOS and return the previous device startup priority. Otherwise, the computer (or laptop) will always load data from the flash drive first (provided it is connected).

Reinstalling the operating system from a flash card is practiced due to the refusal optical drives. Enough a large number of devices, ranging from netbooks to budget models system units, does not include a DVD-ROM as part of the assembly.

Besides, external drives used for a number of specific, but not often performed tasks:

1. Resetting or changing the administrator password in the Windows operating system.
2. Loading a mini operating system (to clean your computer from viruses or registry errors).
3. Installation/reinstallation of the system.
4. Launching specific utilities (for testing hardware, working with a hard drive).

You can boot from a flash drive in the following ways:

This menu becomes available during the POST procedure, when the computer starts/restarts. Login methods differ for different models motherboards. The main methods and key combinations are shown in the table.

Some manufacturers, such as Lenovo, form special button to enter the BIOS or bootloader. It is usually located next to the device's power button.

After entering the bootloader, you must select the primary device. In the figure, this device is a Kingston flash card.

Important! Depending on the bootloader menu, it may change and acquire new features, such as: mouse control, loading via network card, etc. You should be guided by the name of your flash drive.

Changing boot order in UEFI

UEFI (from English Unified Extensible Firmware Interface, unified extensible firmware interface) is the successor to BIOS. Essentially, this is the same non-volatile memory firmware, adapted for modern operating systems. Given software most often has GUI user. UEFI is focused on regular user, unfamiliar with the working methods of programmers and system administrators. Logging into UEFI is carried out in the same way as in BIOS.

Step 1. Launch the UEFI interface.

Step 2. Select the device that should have the highest boot priority and designate it as the primary startup device.

Important! Most common boot orderUEFI is changed by dragging the mouse, that is, you need to hover the pointer over the icon (or line) corresponding to the flash card, and, while holding down left button mouse, move it to the far left (or top - depending on the firmware version and the manufacturer of the computer's motherboard) position.

The basic I/O system in Russia is represented by three developers:

To enter, the “F2” or “Delete” keys are usually used, however, by analogy with the “Boot” menu, there may be other options - “Esc”, or a special button.

Important! Launch methods basic system I/O are displayed on the screen while the computer boots. Refer to the “Setup” or “Settings” markings.

Changing AMI BIOS boot priority

Step 1. Enter BIOS.

Important! The flash card must be inserted intoUSB connector before starting the computer, otherwise the BIOS will not be able to recognize it, since the functionPlug&Play (insert and play) is not provided in it.

Step 2. Using the “right” and “left” keys, switch to the “Boot” menu (from English - download).

Step 3. Go to the submenu " Hard Disk Drives" (from English - drives hard drives). Highlight the first line (“1st Drive”) and press Enter. In the window that opens, using the “up” and “down” buttons, highlight the line corresponding to your flash card and press “Enter”.

Step 4. Return to the “Boot” tab and enter the “Boot Device Priority” submenu (from English - boot device priority). As a device with top priority, as in the previous step, you should specify the flash card.

Step 5. To record changes to non-volatile memory use the “F10” key and confirm saving the changes made.

Changing AWARD/Phoenix BIOS boot priority

Step 1. Enter BIOS.

Step 2. Use the up and down keys to switch to the Advanced menu BIOS Features"(from English - advanced BIOS settings). In the “First Boot Device” line, select the flash card you need, similar to the AMI BIOS method.

On a note! Depending on the firmware version, either the name of the flash card or simply its symbol(USB-HDD or USB-Flash).

Step 3. To write changes to non-volatile memory, use the “F10” key (or select the “Save & Exit Setup” line on the first BIOS screen) and confirm saving the changes made.

Conclusion

The article discussed several options for booting a computer from a flash drive. These methods can be used for a whole range of tasks - from installing an operating system to working with already installed system, or individual hardware parts. After completing the work, do not forget to set the normal (default) priority boot devices to avoid problems turning on your computer.

Video - How to boot a computer from a flash drive

You have bootable DVD or a flash drive, now you need to make sure that the computer can boot from them.

There are 2 ways to boot your computer from a DVD or flash drive:

• Selecting a device in the boot menu
• Changing boot priority in BIOS

Each method has pros and cons.

If you need, for example, to install Windows, then it is more convenient to choose the first method. And if you constantly work with boot disks, That more convenient way second.

Features of selecting a device in the boot menu

• On older computers (motherboards) this function is missing. In this case, you will have to change the priority in the BIOS.
• When you select a device in the menu, the computer boots from this device 1 time. This is convenient when installing Windows - there is no need to return booting from the HDD after the first reboot.

Features of changing priority in BIOS

• Works on both new and old computers.
• The priority change is constant, i.e. lasts until the next change, and not one load as in the case of the menu. This is not very convenient when installing Windows from a flash drive; you have to return booting from the HDD after the first reboot.

How to enter the boot menu or BIOS?

There is no universal button for entering the boot menu or entering the BIOS. It all depends on the computer manufacturer (motherboard), they are all different - the keys are also different. Most The right way find the desired key- read the instructions from the computer (motherboard). For some of the most common boards, the keys are listed below.

The only time when you need to press these keys is during self-test immediately after turning on the computer (English - Power-On Self-Test or POST). Without going into details, POST lasts from turning on the computer until the operating system starts loading (the logo or OS selection menu appears). The POST pass looks something like this:

A prompt appears on the screen: Press DEL to run Setup, which means - click DEL to login BIOS Setup. DEL is the most common key, but there are many others - more on that below.

During POST you may see graphic screensaver with the name of the computer or motherboard manufacturer.

Keys to enter the boot menu and brief instructions

As noted above, each manufacturer has its own key to enter the boot menu. Here is a short list of the most common ones:

The boot menu looks something like this:

All you have to do is choose required device from the list. If everything is done correctly, the disk or flash drive is written correctly, the download/installation should begin.

Keys to enter BIOS and brief instructions for changing boot priority

To enter BIOS Setup, use the key corresponding to the manufacturer of the computer or motherboard, here is a small list of them:

You can find less common hotkeys for entering the BIOS.

In addition to the fact that there are several main BIOS manufacturers (AMI, Phoenix - Award), computer (motherboard) manufacturers also modify the BIOS to suit specific model. As a result, it is impossible to create universal instructions Even by changing one function (boot priority), there will be differences on each computer. You can only roughly show how this is done, but look for exact instructions in the documentation for your computer ( motherboard).

To navigate through the BIOS and change settings, use the arrow keys on your keyboard. Enter And + \- .

AMI

Use the arrows to move to the tab Boot, let's go to Boot Device Priority:

In the following figure we see that booting is performed sequentially: from a floppy drive ( Floppy Drive), hard drive (Hard Drive), and the third device is not used (Disabled).

If we want to boot from a DVD, we need to change the priorities so that the first device is the DVD drive. Use arrows to switch to the first device ( 1st Boot Device), press Enter and select from the menu that appears CDROM. Everything is the same with a flash drive.

Click F10 and confirm the exit with saving (Save and Exit) by selecting .

Phoenix Award

We enter Advanced BIOS Features:

If we want to boot from a DVD, we need to change the priorities so that the first device is the DVD drive.

Use arrows to switch to the first device ( First Boot Device), change to CDROM. Everything is the same with a flash drive.

Click F10 and confirm exit with saving (Save and Exit).

Do you know other keys or want to find out more? Comments are open!

Enjoy using it!