How to run BIOS for Windows 8.1.

Before wondering how to enter BIOS (BIOS) on Windows 8, you should understand what is hidden under this abbreviation and whether there is a need to do it at all.

What is BIOS (BIOS)?

Basic input / output system, or BІOS for short, is a microcircuit located on the motherboard of a computer and necessary to perform its initial boot. How does this happen. BІOS contains a program code with primary drivers and settings, with the help of which the computer hardware is started and checked, its basic configuration is carried out and the installed operating system (OS) is loaded. Many parameters stored in the BIOS system can be changed by the user. To do this, you need to go to a special interface called BIOS Setup, with which most users associate the concept of BIOS. Here, in addition to the basic settings, the date and time are set, the components integrated into the motherboard are turned on and off, the drive from which the operating system is loaded is selected, the voltage and clock frequencies of the processor, RAM timings and much more are changed. To enter BIOS Setup, a certain key combination is used, which may be different for different models of computers and laptops.

BIOS chip with embedded program code

Table: Keyboard shortcuts for entering BIOS Setup for various BIOS manufacturers

Manufacturer	Shortcut keys
American Megatrends (AMІ)


ATi Radeon BIOS (ARІ)
Advanced Logic Research (ALR)
Advanced Micro Devices (AMD)
Dalatech Enterprises (DTK)

Usually, to enter the BIOS of a computer, it is enough to press one of the keys at the very beginning of its boot: F1, F2, Del, Esc.

On modern motherboards, another microcircuit is installed, called the Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI). It performs the same functions as BIOS, but has a more advanced programming interface, better interacts with the OS loader, and has many other advantages.

Since Windows 8 is mainly installed on computers with modern motherboards, you should consider in more detail the type of BIOS - UEFI. Entering such a BIOS is not easy because it boots up very quickly.

How to enter BIOS UEFI through the control panel

Direct entry in this case is impossible. In the control panel, we can change some settings in order to increase the time for testing the computer by a few seconds before starting Windows 8. Now you will see on the screen options for loading the OS and "hot keys" to enter BIOS UEFI and any other, which can be done right away ...

Click in Windows 8 "Start -> Control Panel -> Power Options".
Selecting a power section
In the window that opens, sequentially click on the links "More information about power schemes -> Power button action".
Selecting additional settings
On the tab that opens, turn on the function of changing unavailable parameters in front of the icon with the shield image, at the bottom, uncheck the checkbox for enabling quick start of the computer and click the "Save changes" button.
Disable Fast Startup

Now it will not be difficult to get into BIOS during computer boot, since all the necessary options for key combinations and prompts will be visible.

Login via parameters

This option is used to log into BIOS UEFI.

Open the right side panel and select "Settings -> Change computer settings".
Parameter selection
A tab will open where at the end of the list select the Update and Recovery link.
Go to recovery mode
In the new window on the left side, select "Recovery", and in the section for special boot options, click "Restart now".
Choosing a boot option
After restarting the computer, a window will open where select "Diagnostics" and then "Advanced options".
Selecting additional parameters
Next, click on the UEFI Firmware Settings tab and confirm to restart your computer.
Go to BIOS parameters
The computer will reboot again and will automatically log into BIOS UEFI.
System settings

Video instruction: how to enter BIOS on Windows 8

Command line login

First, go to the Windows 8 main menu and select "Applications".

Command line selection

In the window that opens, type in the command line - shutdown.exe / r / o and press Enter on the keyboard. The computer will reboot in the boot options selection mode, where you can specify the parameters required to enter BIOS, as in the option shown above.

The set of the executable command

other methods

You can use reboot in safe mode to enter BIOS, for which press the “Reboot” drop-down list item from the “On / Off” menu, which can be accessed through the main “Start” menu, while holding down the Shift key. After rebooting, the menu with the entry point to BIOS.Acer will become available.

HP (Hewlett-Packard)

[from DOS -> Ctrl + Alt + F11]

Possible problems and ways to solve them

There are usually no problems with entering the BIOS, except for a situation if the entrance is password protected and the password is lost. Also, users often try to inadmissibly increase the speed of the computer (overclock) using special programs or directly through BIOS, as a result of which equipment malfunctions occur, which can lead to disruption of Windows 8.

In these cases, the best way out of the situation is to reset the BIOS settings to factory defaults. This is not difficult to do. Log into BIOS using one of the methods discussed above and press the Esc key. A window will appear with a list of links, one of which will contain the word Defaults. This link will need to be clicked, after which the BIOS settings will be reset to factory settings and the computer will reboot. But if the input is password protected, then you simply cannot enter the BIOS in this way. Are there any other options.

You can also reset the settings using a jumper on the motherboard, the location of which can be found according to the motherboard diagram found in the instructions that came with the computer.

Jumper for resetting BIOS settings

The BIOS will also be reset if you remove and then reinsert the coin battery on the motherboard.

BІOS battery

The article discusses in detail the options for how you can enter BIOS on Windows 8 and not only. Having a list of hot keys constantly at hand, the user of any computer or laptop can easily get into BIOS and this procedure will take very little time.

The release of Windows 8 and the creation of new PCs specially designed for this system was accompanied by many innovations, which include a change in the procedure for switching to the BIOS. Now you no longer need to press any key when loading the OS, since in Windows 8 you can enter the BIOS through a special option in the boot menu of the system.

Please note that the above option is available only for PCs that were purchased already with the G8 installed, using UEFI instead of BIOS.

If the system was installed on a computer using the inherited BIOS, then access to the latter can be obtained only in the old proven way - by pressing a certain key, as a rule, F2 or Delete, during OS boot.

It is worth noting that if any of these keys is not displayed on the monitor when you turn on the computer, then you need to refer to the user manual for your PC.

Enter BIOS in Windows 8: Video

Changing UEFI BIOS Boot Options

There are several ways to get to Windows 8 boot options. The easiest way to do this is through the "PC Settings" - an interface that is, in essence, the second control panel. You can call it by pressing the Win + C keys at the same time, and in the sidebar that appears, go to the "Settings" - "Update and recovery" path.

In the window that opens, you need to make the "Recovery" category active and select the "Restart now" button located under the "Special boot options" option. After that, the computer will reboot, and you can open the BIOS on Windows 8, as well as make changes to other settings.

You can also, by holding down the "Shift" button while restarting the computer, go directly to the boot menu of the system. This is one of the easiest and fastest ways to restart the system and go to the boot menu.

For PC users working with the command line, it will be useful to know the "shutdown.exe" command, which also allows you to reboot your device directly to the boot menu: Shutdown.exe / r / o.

Accessing the UEFI BIOS

The main task in creating the G8 boot menu was the integration of some of the most commonly used parameters, which determined the need for the transition to the BIOS. For example, turning on BIOS on Windows 8 in order to boot a computer from USB, CD, DVD or other device is much easier than in previous operating systems of the developer, since for this you only need to click on the required option with the designation of the required device.

By accessing the computer's UEFI BIOS and clicking on "Troubleshoot", you can get to the "Advanced options" settings window. There are many additional tools, among which there is also the item "UEFI Firmware Settings", which redirects the user directly to the BIOS of the computer.

The absence of a tile with the "UEFI Firmware Settings" option indicates that the computer in question does not use UEFI technology. In this case, how to enter the BIOS on Windows 8 was described at the beginning of this article, that is, it is possible only in the traditional way.

Of course, Windows 8 has many controversial design decisions and controversial points, but the developers did an excellent job in the issue of access to the BIOS, and the implementation of such a method has long been necessary.

ERD commander for Windows 8: Video

BIOS is a kind of operating system for managing the components of the motherboard. Such a control is an essential part of any computer. You can enter and configure it even from a PC that does not have Windows installed. This can be done at the initial stage of the download. But everything was so easy only for motherboards of the old generation. The new version of BIOS - UEFI has made this task very difficult for PCs and laptops of the latest generations. For many, even power users, such updates have become a big problem. But there are always solutions.

BIOS with one finger

For all PCs manufactured before 2012, it is possible to enter the BIOS by pressing one key. Different motherboards have their own "hotkeys" for entering - DEL, F2, F12. You need to press rhythmically several times immediately after pressing the start button during the testing procedure:

IMPORTANT! Do not change the settings in the BIOS that you are not sure about or do not know, this can lead not only to boot failures, but also to the failure of motherboard components (processor, video card, RAM).

UEFI BIOS in Windows 8

The tricky part of entering a modern BIOS on a Windows 8 PC is that it boots up in a matter of seconds, and the boot options are not even displayed. The situation can be corrected with standard controls and settings. You need to enter the control panel and find the "Power supply" section:

In this section, in the menu on the left, we find the item "Actions of the power buttons". In the window that opens, you need to unlock additional settings. To do this, click on the line "Changing parameters that are currently unavailable":

It is necessary to disable the "Enable fast startup (recommended)" item, save the changes and reboot the system. The computer will also boot Windows 8 quickly, but when it is turned on (for a few seconds), it will display boot options as well as hotkeys.

Another option for entering is in a special order of rebooting the operating system of Windows 8. In the side panel (usually located on the right and is automatically hidden), select "Settings" (Settings). Next, find "Change PC settings" and select "General settings" (General). In the menu that appears, we go down to the very bottom and click "Advanced startup options", select "Troubleshoot". Next, select "Advanced options" and select "UEFI firmware settings". We confirm the restart of the computer, after which the long-awaited BIOS will automatically load on the screen, where it will be possible to make changes.

UEFI provides a wide range of settings, including performance. Entering the BIOS is not as difficult as setting it up correctly. Do not change questionable parameters. If you need to improve performance, you can use the ready-made configuration sets.

Good time!

Not many users know that you can enter UEFI (BIOS) without using and pressing the special. keys (the same Delete or F2). This can help out a lot if you have gone over all the possible buttons, and the computer does not react in any way to your presses ...

Note that you can use this method only under the conditions that:

you have a modern OS Windows 8, 8.1, 10 installed (the rest of this option is not available);
this OS is loaded, and you can enter its parameters (if the OS is not installed, I recommend that you familiarize yourself with it for devices from different manufacturers).

And so, now closer to the topic ...

From Windows 10

I will consider all actions step by step (for greater clarity and accessibility).

First you need to go to Windows options (you can use the combination Win + i, you can use the START menu);
Options (Windows 10)
then you need to open the section Update & Security / Recovery and find subsection "Special download options" : press the button in it "Restart now" ... See example below (numbers 1, 2, 3).
Update and security - recovery (clickable)
then open the section "Troubleshooting";
then subsection "Additional parameters";
then the tab "UEFI firmware parameter" (example in the photo below);
well, the last thing left is to agree to a reboot;
after restarting your computer (laptop), you will automatically be logged into the UEFI settings (example below). No additional buttons need to be pressed!