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About to change from Windows to Ubuntu but can't change BIOS to boot from USB
In all the YouTube videos and all the articles I've read online, I understand that you need to change the BIOS in order to tell the computer to boot up from the USB stick (where my Ubuntu OS sits waiting to be installed). I have entered the BIOS (by pressing F2) making sure that secure boot is disabled, but every video then says, "just choose which order you want to boot from: DVD or USB or..." etc. However, there is no boot list. There are no options to choose from. Under Boot in the BIOS I have the following options only:
Windows 8 Fast Boot
USB Hot key Support
Secure Boot
Load Legacy Option ROM
Boot List Option
Add Boot Option
Under all these options there is no list of what objects I can choose boot from and in what order (eg USB, DVD, hard Drive etc). Where can I find this *** list to tell the BIOS I want to boot from the USB?! I've been trying to do this for 5 hours now and it's WASTING MY LIFE AWAY!!
I am on an Alienware 17 Laptop and ready and willing to change from Windows to Ubuntu, but I'm completely stalled because I can't find a way to make the computer boot from the USB stick. :-(
Alienware - Rodrigo
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September 16th, 2015 11:00
Hi,
To boot from a USB drive, you have to access the Boot menu first by tapping the F12 key during boot. In this menu, it should list the devices that the system can boot from.
zengirl
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September 16th, 2015 12:00
Thank you. I tried that already and it didn't work because I have two faulty USB ports (on this new laptop gggggrrrrrrrrr). But now I've found a technique of shoving the USB stick in and wedging it there with a broken alarm clock, so I hope the machine will see it as an option from which to boot. Will try the F12 method again and report back.
zengirl
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September 16th, 2015 13:00
Boohoo. Sadly F12 didn't offer me anything. I took two photos with my phone - one is of the Boot screen in the BIOS and the other is of the results of pressing F12:
What option is the one to press to tell the Laptop to boot from a USB stick?!
Alienware - Rodrigo
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September 17th, 2015 15:00
Hi,
What do mean by the USB ports are faulty? Are they not detecting any devices? I suppose you could try to reimage the USB drive with the Ubuntu operating system in case something went wrong the first time. It is definitely not seeing the drive as a bootable drive and it appears like you are following the correct steps to boot from a USB drive. You could also try posting this on the Ubuntu Community forums for assistance.
zengirl
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September 18th, 2015 03:00
Thank you. For future reference, from the screen shots I took above, where is the place in the BIOS that I tell the computer to boot from USB rather than hard drive or CD? In the screen shots you can see the boot manager and also the results of pressing F12 during boot up - within these, what option do I alter to change the order of boot up from hard drive (which it must be doing now) to USB or CD?
Tesla1856
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September 18th, 2015 14:00
While it should work with UEFI/SecureBoot-On,
http://askubuntu.com/questions/493409/is-disabing-secure-boot-needed-for-ubuntu-14-04-dual-boot-with-windows-8-uefi
I'm not sure the point (especially if having problems) if not running a Dual Boot including Windows-8 or higher.
http://askubuntu.com/questions/206950/how-to-understand-ubuntu-uefi-secure-boot-install
... why not just set to Legacy/SecureBoot-Off?
Alienware - Rodrigo
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September 18th, 2015 14:00
Hi,
If you set the Boot List Option to UEFI, it should bring up an option on the bottom called Add Boot Option, with that option I believe you can set the system to boot from another device.