Cannot Access BIOS on Win 10 Reboot

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I have a home-built computer, and I have been able to access the BIOS on a reboot via F2.  That is what is displayed on the monitor when I reboot.  With Windows 10, I cannot use F2 to access the BIOS.  I installed Win 10 in March, 2020 (my machine is still dual-boot Win 7), and my manual log shows that on November 29, 2020 I was able to access the BIOS.  Is this a problem with Windows 10?  I do not know what processes are inv0lved during the boot process before Win 10 displays the dual-boot menu.  I know that I can change a setting in Win 10, then reboot to get into the BIOS.  I am running Win 10 Professional 21H1.  Thanks.

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If you have fast startup enabled try disabling it.

--Joe

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Hold Shift down when yo click Restart and you will be offered alternative startup options, one of which will be BIOS.

cheers, Paul

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I had the same problem. I received many logical suggestions from various Forums. None of them worked.
Black screen with blinking cursor was as far as could get.

I decided to disconnect one of my monitors. I have VGA and HDMI connected . I disconnected the HDMI and rebooted to BIOS (on my GIGABYTE MB it is continuously hitting Delete key). Behold my joy when I saw my BIOS Screen.

Hoping this helps.

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The monitor that your BIOS has as primary may not be the same one that Windows has as primary.

On my latest Asus motherboard, the primary GPU port for BIOS is DisplayPort (appears to be hard coded). On my previous board it was HDMI. But now HDMI is the secondary port.

So this caused a bit of confusion while trying to set up the BIOS for a new hardware install, although Windows graphics were fine. I had 2 monitors connected to both DisplayPort and HDMI, but was expecting to see the BIOS on the HDMI connected screen.

Windows 10 Pro 22H2

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check the manufacturers website for a bios/firmware update

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You should be able to if F2 is the right key.  If you set your keyboard to use media keys, usually done in BIOS, hold the FN key while spamming F2 on boot.

I have a dell desktop that usually shows the dell logo before going into windows.  Right after the logo disappeared, if needed I’d hit F2 for Setup, F12 for boot options.   For a while, not sure why, the logo didn’t appear, just went into windows.   If I just spammed the F2 key from the moment the monitor came on, I could get into Setup.  I relaoded the BIOS and all was OK again.

There’s some legend that says timing for F2 has to be perfect, not too soon.  Silly.  Too late is what matters, then you’re into windows.

TLDR>  reinstall BIOS.

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I live in fear of not getting into the BIOS. When I get a new PC, as a part of getting it going, I figure out how to get into the BIOS, then I slow it down. In other words, I make the BIOS boot time slower, so I have a chance to get into it, if ever need be. I have done this with HP, Dell, & Asus. The shipped default for getting into the BIOS relies too much on exact timing, taxing my abilities.

Windows 10 22H2 desktops & laptops on Dell, HP, ASUS; No servers, no domain.

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I recently had a problem in which I could not (even after 20 attempts) update my Windows 10 to the 20H2 version.  Finally, the problem was solved by Macrium Reflect (free) backup software.  You might install it if you do not already have it.

Macrium Reflect works by first booting from external media (such as a USB stick or DVD).  That uses Windows PE, a light version of Windows that is independent of your hard drive.  Once you boot that way, you get a menu that offers not only a way to install the backup you created, but also an option to “Fix Boot Problems.”  I used that option.  After a few minutes, the program told me that “Boot Problems Have Been Fixed.”  And that solved my update problems.

In the event Macrium Reflect cannot fix your problems, no harm will be done.  It is clear that the people who wrote the program understand things such as double-booting UEFI, BIOS issues, etc., very well.

If you want to give it a shot and have not used Macrium Reflect before, I will be happy to help you through it.  Good luck!

1 user thanked author for this post.

JohnW

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