How to Adjust BIOS Settings to Boot From a CD Drive
- 1). Reset your computer. You can only access the BIOS by pressing a key while the computer is booting up.
- 2). Watch the screen for a message telling you which key to press. The screen will generally display: "Press X to Enter Setup" or "X = Setup," where "X" is the key you need to press. Various BIOS versions use different keys, but you'll typically need to input either "Del," "F1," F2" or "F10." Some computer will have a splash screen instead of text messages. If you don't see any text, press the "Esc" button to close the splash screen. Press the designated key while the message appears on the screen while your BIOS loads.
- 3). Locate the "Boot Sequence" or "Boot Priority" setting in the BIOS. Each BIOS will have a different method of navigation, but most will require to navigate with the arrow keys. Your mouse hasn't loaded yet, so you'll need to do all your navigation with your keyboard. The "Boot Sequence" setting is generally in the "BIOS Features" area, but this could vary based on your system. Some BIOS versions will even have the first, second and third boot devices listed, instead of a dedicated boot menu.
- 4). Change the order of the listed devices so that the CD-ROM is at the top of the list. The process for changing the order of the boot devices will vary by BIOS, but most require you use the "+" and "-" keys to move devices up and down the list. Many BIOS versions will display instructions on how to change settings at the bottom of the screen.
- 5). Press the key to save your changes and exit, which is usually "F10" or "Esc." Your computer will start to boot again, but this time it will check the CD-ROM first.
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