How to Access the BIOS on Windows 10

As ordinary computer users, we rarely open UEFI settings. UEFI stands for Unified Extensible Firmware Interface. The function of UEFI is actually not much different from BIOS, which is to synchronize hardware settings with the operating system and also to check each installed hardware whether everything is working properly. It can even be said, UEFI is a replacement for BIOS with a more sophisticated system.

BIOS (Basic Input Output System) is a software that is installed on the motherboard of your system. You can not control all settings after getting into the Windows. Some settings like which windows to install, in which mode to run Windows, Boot order of device etc. In Windows earlier versions it was easy to directly access BIOS by pressing F2 or F8 or F12 etc function key.

But Windows 10 login is fast and the steps to get into BIOS is different. Now in some devices, you will get UEFI in place of BIOS. Let’s see how to access the BIOS or UEFI in Windows 10 in detail?

Method 1. How to Access the BIOS on Windows 10

Step 1. To access the BIOS, switch on your Windows 10 laptop and go to ‘Settings.’ You will find it somewhere in the bottom left side of the screen when you click on the Windows icon in the taskbar.

Step 2. In the ‘Settings’ menu, find ‘Update and Security’ and click on it.

Step 3. In the new page that opens, from the list menu on the left side, go to ‘Recovery’ and click on it.

Step 4. From the options that now show up on the right, under the ‘Advanced Setup’ section, click the ‘Restart Now’ button.

Step 5. A new menu will appear tilled ‘Choose an Option.’ Got to Troubleshoot and click on it.

Step 6. Once again, select ‘Advanced Options.’

Step 7. Doing this will take you to another set of options. Here, click on ‘UEFI Firmware Settings’.

Step 8. Last, you will be asked to restart your Windows 10 laptop to change your Firmware settings. Do so.

That is it. Once the PC restarts, you will be taken to the BIOS.

For those of you who use a laptop or computer with the default OS Windows 8 / Windows 10, usually, Windows is installed using a UEFI system. If your computer is running Windows 10 OS, you can use one of the methods below to access the UEFI settings that are embedded in the mainboard firmware of your PC.

Note: Not all mainboards have UEFI settings. If your PC supports only the standard BIOS, then the UEFI settings won’t appear in Windows 10.
If your Windows 10 will not boot / cannot enter the desktop, use method number 3. In this method, there is no need to enter Windows to open the UEFI settings.

Method 2. Open UEFI settings via Settings

Step 1: First of all, open Windows 10 Settings . Click the option Update & Security => Recovery page .

Step 2: In the Advanced startup section, click the Restart now button. Make sure there are no open applications before you click the button.

Step 3: Your Windows 10 PC will then enter recovery mode. Here, click the Troubleshoot option

Step 4: In the Troubleshoot screen, click on Advanced options.

Step 5: Here, a selection of tools will appear to repair damaged Windows 10. Click UEFI Firmware settings to open the UEFI settings. This setting will only appear if your PC motherboard supports UEFI.

Step 6: Finally, click on the Restart button to restart the boot process and enter the UEFI settings.

Method 3: How to open Windows 10 UEFI settings

Step 1: When your PC has entered the desktop, open the start menu and then press the Shift key along with clicking the Restart option on the left side.

Step 2: Your computer will then enter recovery mode . Here, go to Troubleshoot => Advanced options , click on UEFI Firmware Settings then click on the Restart button to restart the boot process and enter the UEFI settings.

Method 4: Open UEFI settings when Windows 10 is corrupt / won’t boot

Turn on your computer then press the dedicated button to enter the UEFI / BOIS settings. Usually, the mainboard manufacturer embeds these special keys into the F1, F2, Esc, F11, F12, or Delete keys on your keyboard. Press the key directly when the OEM screen appears (before entering Windows 10 boot process).

Method 5: Enter UEFI settings via Command Prompt

Step 1: Close all open applications first, because after entering the command below and pressing Enter, your computer will restart immediately.

Step 2: Open Command Prompt with administrator privileges ( Run as administrator ). The trick is to type cmd in the start menu then right click and click Run as administrator.

Click the Yes button when the User Account Control confirmation appears.

Step 3: In the Command Prompt window, type the below command followed by Enter afterwards to restart the boot process and enter the UEFI setup.