Inspiron 7567, Used Legacy Boot, can't get UEFI w/Sec. Boot back

Question

Specs: Laptop: Dell Inspiron 7567 (brand new) Processor: i5-7300HQ GPU: GeForce GTX 1050 Ti HDD: 256gb SSD OS: Windows 10 Home Drivers: Up to date Summary: I got a new laptop, so I wanted to wipe the SSD and install a clean copy of Windows 10 Home. I used Parted Magic to 'wipe' the drive by issuing TRIM command from LiveUSB (created using Unetbootin). I then used the Microsoft Media Creation Tool to create a Live USB with Windows 10 Home. I changed from UEFI with Secure Boot to Legacy Boot (BIOS) so I could change the boot order to load the Live USBs. The wipe of the drive and installation of clean Windows 10 Home went fine. But now the UEFI choice is missing under the 'Repair' option (the normal way to get into UEFI Boot menu from a running Windows 10). So, I used F2 to get into BIOS and I manually change Legacy Boot back to UEFI with Secure Boot. However, upon reboot I'm greeted with the error 'No bootable devices found.' (The boot order is diskette drive > M.2 SATA SSD > USB > yada > yada > yada.) So, I went back into BIOS (still Legacy Boot) and chose 'Restore Settings.' I tried both 'BIOS Defaults' and 'Factory Settings,' hoping one of them would get me back to UEFI. No joy. Questions: Can I get UEFI back? And, why should I bother? What's wrong with Legacy Boot? Can I get Secure Boot back? And, why should I bother? Will computer performance be better without it running? (Assuming I only get driver updates from Microsoft or directly from Intel and Nvidia.)

jphughan · Accepted Answer

Windows installs itself differently depending on whether it will be booted in Legacy or UEFI. The way that you booted the Windows installation media itself depends on how the OS that gets installed is set up. So it sounds like you booted your install media in Legacy mode, in which case Windows set up your disk in MBR partition layout intended for Legacy booting. You can't just switch your boot mode to UEFI and have that environment continue to boot, because the setup for UEFI booting looks completely different. However, if you're running the latest release of Windows 10, there is an MBR2GPT utility you can run within Windows that can often perform an in-place conversion of the disk to support UEFI. You can Google that name for details, but basically you run that utility, then Windows won't boot AGAIN until you go into your BIOS and switch to UEFI booting. But if the tool won't run on your system, unless you want to jump through a fair number of hoops with an imaging solution, some custom restore work, and some command-line work, getting to UEFI would basically require performing a clean install, making sure to boot your installation media in UEFI mode.

In terms of whether it's worth it, systems that boot in UEFI mode often boot a bit faster, and you get the option to enable Secure Boot, which is only available for UEFI. That's a nice additional security measure because it basically prevents the system from loading any bootloader that isn't signed by a trusted authority (by default Microsoft, although that includes some third-party bootloaders they've signed). That makes it much more difficult for threats that hide from the OS by compromising the bootloader, like rootkits, to load. Like any security measure, it's not completely foolproof, but it's better than nothing and doesn't have any performance impact once the system starts. Honestly one of the biggest weak points of the system is the user, i.e. if a user's bootloader gets infected, they'll see an error that their system won't boot because the bootloader isn't trusted and Secure Boot is enabled -- so they decide to "fix" it by disabling Secure Boot. Then their system boots, and they're happy, except of course they're now loading a malicious piece of code.

Another perk of UEFI is that because it uses disks with the GPT partition layout rather than MBR, you can have a lot more partitions if that matters to you. MBR disks are limited to 4 primary partitions. Using an extended partition can get around that to a degree, but they have some quirks and limitations.

Lastly, you really don't need to wipe your SSD that way before performing a clean install. Pre-TRIMming the entire SSD only gives you faster write performance the very next time you write to a particular SSD cell. It does NOT give you better write performance for every subsequent write, because Windows itself will handle TRIM after it's installed. And you can do a basic wipe of the disk within Windows Setup.

overtheh2o · Answer

Wow, that's just great! Thanks for taking so much time. That's very informative. I think I'll stick with BOIS, as it's running very fast and I'm happy with it now.

By the way, would you suggest I go back into BIOS and utilize the "Restore Settings" feature? If so, should I choose "BIOS Defaults" or "Factory Settings"?

Again I tried to give you Kudos and it wouldn't work. Sorry.

overtheh2o · Answer

@jphughan wrote:

If time is the concern, a full reinstall of Windows 10 is going to take a LOT more time than running MBR2GPT. If the utility works, it takes about 3 seconds, then you just need to go into the BIOS and switch it to UEFI, and optionally enable Secure Boot (which you should if you're only running Windows 10 as opposed to dual booting with other OSes that don't support Secure Boot). But if you still decide to go the clean install route, then yes switching your BIOS to UEFI and enabling Secure Boot before you even boot from your install media will make your system install Windows in UEFI mode. To wipe your disk in Windows Setup, press Shift+F10 when it loads but before you choose to proceed. That will open Command Prompt, then enter the following:

diskpart
list disk
select disk X (substitute X for the number corresponding to your internal disk based on the output above, probably 0)
clean
exit

Then close Command Prompt and proceed. Good luck!

Thanks!

I'm sitting here on my other laptop typing to you, and working, while the one I'm working on is next to me. So it's easier and less time waste to just use what I have, then spend time making and learning Windows PE, etc.

So, I hit Shift+F10 once the the USB loads? And then enter those commands in the terminal window that will appear?

jphughan · Answer

I should clarify the above post to mention that MBR2GPT can be run from within your live Windows environment as long as you specify the command-line switch to allow this.  Again, if you Google that name you should find the TechNet documentation showing how to use it.  There's no need to create a **bleep** boot environment just to run it.

jphughan · Answer

If you intend to stick with Legacy boot mode, I would leave the BIOS settings as they are.  Resetting to any sort of defaults will likely put the system back to UEFI mode with Secure Boot enabled, which will prevent your OS from loading until you re-enable Legacy mode.  Those reset options are intended mostly for people who don't even remember what changes they made and maybe don't have a working system as a result, and also possibly when troubleshooting with Dell Support.  But if your system is working as expected, then leave it alone.  Some BIOS settings you may actually want to change from their factory default.  For example, some systems have a USB PowerShare feature that allows one or more USB ports on the system to remain powered even when the system is fully off, allowing you to charge your smartphone from your laptop on the go, for example.  That's usually disabled by default (I guess to avoid unexpected battery drain for people who don't know about this feature?), but it might be handy to manually enable.

overtheh2o · Answer

@jphughan wrote:

I should clarify the above post to mention that MBR2GPT can be run from within your live Windows environment as long as you specify the command-line switch to allow this. Again, if you Google that name you should find the TechNet documentation showing how to use it. There's no need to create a **bleep** boot environment just to run it.

Oh, I didn't realize I could run it from a live system. Oh well, I've already started the clean install.

I'm just happy you got me straightened out! Thanks again

overtheh2o · Answer

After reading your message again I decided to switch to UEFI. But, I don't want to take the time to create a WinPE boot disk or USB, to use MBR2GPT, so I'm going to put BIOS into UEFI mode and restart with the Windows 10 LiveUSB intserted. Then do clean install. I think, after reading what you wrote, that should make Windows install with UEFI and Security Boot.

Also, thanks for the info about the Restore Settings feature, and the USB PowerShare, very cool!

jphughan · Answer

If time is the concern, a full reinstall of Windows 10 is going to take a LOT more time than running MBR2GPT. If the utility works, it takes about 3 seconds, then you just need to go into the BIOS and switch it to UEFI, and optionally enable Secure Boot (which you should if you're only running Windows 10 as opposed to dual booting with other OSes that don't support Secure Boot). But if you still decide to go the clean install route, then yes switching your BIOS to UEFI and enabling Secure Boot before you even boot from your install media will make your system install Windows in UEFI mode. To wipe your disk in Windows Setup, press Shift+F10 when it loads but before you choose to proceed. That will open Command Prompt, then enter the following:

diskpart
list disk
select disk X (substitute X for the number corresponding to your internal disk based on the output above, probably 0)
clean
exit

Then close Command Prompt and proceed. Good luck!

JMB-Mage · Answer

Keep it simple: 1) don’t change UEFI settings in BIOS or change the BIOS back to UEFI 2) boot from Windows Media (usb) 3) Create new partition and install windows 4) Don’t take Windows Media out until Windows boots. This step seems strange but just leave the USB in until everything is done and working . 5) If it doesn’t boot, run Repair my Computer >> Startup repair from Windows media. Keep it simple, it is!

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Inspiron 7567, Used Legacy Boot, can't get UEFI w/Sec. Boot back

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