I just cannot get into BIOS, no matter what I try.
Posted by knightsbridge-@reddit | buildapc | View on Reddit | 61 comments
I'm here in desperation.
My PC boots into Windows (Win11) just fine and is otherwise behaving normally... but I just can't get into the BIOS, at all.
Holding F11 when booting up (as suggested in my mobo manual as the designated key) does nothing. I've tried a few other common keys, all do nothing.
Windows Advanced Startup? I'm told I should be looking for the UEFI Troubleshooting/Firmware option, but it just doesn't exist. It isn't there. The options in that menu are all about restoring Windows, no option to boot to firmware.
I have no idea what's going on. I flashed the latest BIOS a few months ago, and all's been working fine since. I last accessed BIOS around that time, when I was making sure the BIOS update was all sound, and I could boot into it fine back then.
I have long-press power button BIOS enabled, and if I try to use that, it does seem to do something different - which is to say, nothing. The PC turns on, but I get no video signal, and it just sits like that until I reboot it back into Windows. I have no idea what's going on.
Is there anything I haven't tried?
One_Suggestion1563@reddit
If none of these steps work, it's possible there could be a hardware issue with your motherboard or something more serious going on. In that case, you may need to contact the motherboard manufacturer for further assistance.
MartyCZ@reddit
I don't know why but disconnecting my USB drive made booting into BIOS possible. Thanks, I guess!
Friendly_Cajun@reddit
ChatGPT is that you?
One_Suggestion1563@reddit
That’s the answer from ChatGPT!! Maybe this is
It sounds like a combination of issues might be preventing you from accessing the BIOS normally. Here are several troubleshooting steps you can try to get into the BIOS of your MSI Z490A-Pro motherboard:
1. Check Keyboard Connection
2. Clear CMOS
3. BIOS Flashback
4. Graphics Card and Integrated Graphics
5. Try Different Boot Key
6. Windows Recovery Environment
Troubleshoot > Advanced options > UEFI Firmware Settings. If not, try the following command in an elevated Command Prompt or PowerShell:shell shutdown /r /fwThis command forces the system to restart into the UEFI firmware settings.7. Disconnect Peripherals
8. Different Monitor/Cable
9. Update BIOS Again
10. Reseat Components
If none of these steps work, it might be a deeper issue with the motherboard itself. In that case, contacting MSI support for further assistance would be the next best step.
One_Suggestion1563@reddit
Hahaha Thank you for thinking that. But Nope. I will try thought to get an answer from ChatGPT if it has more to suggest.
AetaCapella@reddit
I was having a similar issue, recently. Found out that if I hold F2 when I shut down, and then just KEEP IT HELD DOWN and power up the computer it goes to bios. Never release that F2 key.
Pushing F2 from start up would result in a black screen.
Repeatedly mashing F2/F11/Del would just go to windows.
Holding down F2 through the full power cycle is the only thing that worked...
Ok-Leopard-8204@reddit
That works! You saved my life hero!
Ill-Bank5033@reddit
i hope you are good, may your pillow be cold anytime u want and every dry leaf you step on to has an amazing crack sound
Original-Mission-244@reddit
MY MAN! Reddit saves the day again.
AetaCapella@reddit
Glad this is still helping over a year later 😂
Different_Morning646@reddit
Tyyy work
Rare_Astronomer5341@reddit
Te amo bro *_*
rizlzizl@reddit
🥲🥲🥲 thank you
Javitafari@reddit
Te amo!!! Solucion definitivamente es ésta
lemon_887@reddit
Still a great fix! Thanks for the help.
ffernandez95@reddit
Me funciono! te quierooooooo
Bottleonyourfloor@reddit
Thank you!
ColonelBeer@reddit
This comment's still coming in clutch years later thanks mate!
AetaCapella@reddit
Heck, yeah! I love finding the answer in old threads.
Waste_Strawberry391@reddit
works!
Flamegod87@reddit
I love you so much
tzoni_montana@reddit
same happens to me. fresh build. weird thing is that when i first boot up.. i entered bios normally. then i boot and installed drivers etc.. when i tried to enter bios some hour ago.. this happens. i tried f2 , del .. nothing.. most of the times i dont even see the screen thats tells you what to press for what.. why . wtf happened?? im using hdmi to hdmi
kitty-cate@reddit
omg.. this worked for me. Thank you thank you for this comment
AetaCapella@reddit
Glad to help!
Specialist_Arm_2037@reddit
So we've been to space but can't make an enter bios button? Humanity is not long for this world...
Capable_Passenger960@reddit
Been dealing with a similar problem
Currently Desktop - s01-af2011 Laptop - fd0213nr
Laptop has Fedora Linux 41 installed on an ssd, can't make it to the bios. Went through all the "windows+v, b, and x" jargon, just a grey (Turned on) to black screen
Desktop - windows 10 installed on the ssd, Fedora Linux installed on a 1tb ssd to usb externally. Installed all the update's. Last night, the desktop went into a Nintendo 64bit old pay per view psychidelic screen, with an am fm sound's, needed to turn it off, after that, won't boot to windows 10 and Fedora Linux and can't access the bios. The moniter goes blue light to yellow
Capable_Passenger960@reddit
Been dealing with a similar problem
Currently Desktop - s01-af2011 Laptop - fd0213nr
Laptop has Fedora Linux 41 installed on an ssd, can't make it to the bios. Went through all the "windows+v, b, and x" jargon, just a grey (Turned on) to black screen
Desktop - windows 10 installed on the ssd, Fedora Linux installed on a 1tb ssd to usb externally. Installed all the update's. Last night, the desktop went into a Nintendo 64bit old pay per view psychidelic screen, with an am fm sound's, needed to turn it off, after that, won't boot to windows 10 and Fedora Linux and can't access the bios. The moniter goes blue light to yellow
Capable_Passenger960@reddit
Been dealing with a similar problem
Currently Desktop - s01-af2011 Laptop - fd0213nr
Laptop has Fedora Linux 41 installed on an ssd, can't make it to the bios. Went through all the "windows+v, b, and x" jargon, just a grey (Turned on) to black screen
Desktop - windows 10 installed on the ssd, Fedora Linux installed on a 1tb ssd to usb externally. Installed all the update's. Last night, the desktop went into a Nintendo 64bit old pay per view psychidelic screen, with an am fm sound's, needed to turn it off, after that, won't boot to windows 10 and Fedora Linux and can't access the bios. The moniter goes blue light to yellow
Capable_Passenger960@reddit
Been dealing with a similar problem
Currently Desktop - s01-af2011 Laptop - fd0213nr
Laptop has Fedora Linux 41 installed on an ssd, can't make it to the bios. Went through all the "windows+v, b, and x" jargon, just a grey (Turned on) to black screen
Desktop - windows 10 installed on the ssd, Fedora Linux installed on a 1tb ssd to usb externally. Installed all the update's. Last night, the desktop went into a Nintendo 64bit old pay per view psychidelic screen, with an am fm sound's, needed to turn it off, after that, won't boot to windows 10 and Fedora Linux and can't access the bios. The moniter goes blue light to yellow
Capable_Passenger960@reddit
Been dealing with a similar problem
Currently Desktop - s01-af2011 Laptop - fd0213nr
Laptop has Fedora Linux 41 installed on an ssd, can't make it to the bios. Went through all the "windows+v, b, and x" jargon, just a grey (Turned on) to black screen
Desktop - windows 10 installed on the ssd, Fedora Linux installed on a 1tb ssd to usb externally. Installed all the update's. Last night, the desktop went into a Nintendo 64bit old pay per view psychidelic screen, with an am fm sound's, needed to turn it off, after that, won't boot to windows 10 and Fedora Linux and can't access the bios. The moniter goes blue light to yellow
No_Concern_5988@reddit
For me it was a hdmi cable premium vs hdmi ultra hi speed cable. Certain Bios isn't compatible with certain hdmi cables parameters apparently and only shows when you're using the compatible one which for me was the PREMIUM HDMI cable on my 3070. This has been kicking my ass for a whole year SINCE I bought the ultra hi speed 8k cables with my system but then finally figured it out troubleshooting to get to bios after I wanted to add some more ram. Windows came most of the on or occasionally I wouldn't get no display at all, but never had bios startup. When I switch to to the 4k/60hz cables never had an issue again.
Hot-Work-8519@reddit
Hi everyone, I had this problem yesterday. My hardware is a Ryzen 7 700 series, a B650M Gaming Plus WiFi motherboard, an RTX 5070, and a 2K monitor connected via DisplayPort 2.1. The solution was as follows: I updated the graphics card firmware and installed the Nvidia Graphics Firmware Update Tool. I connected the DisplayPort 2.1 cable to the motherboard, restarted, and it let me into the BIOS. Once I was in, I performed a normal boot and downloaded the latest BIOS update for my motherboard. I updated the motherboard, and once everything was updated, I reconnected the DisplayPort 2.1 cable to the graphics card. The second time I turned on the PC, the BIOS appeared at startup! I hope this helps; these were the exact steps I followed. Good luck to everyone!
Hot-Work-8519@reddit
Hi everyone, I had this problem yesterday. My hardware is a Ryzen 7 700 series, a B650M Gaming Plus WiFi motherboard, an RTX 5070, and a 2K monitor connected via DisplayPort 2.1. The solution was as follows: I updated the graphics card firmware and installed the Nvidia Graphics Firmware Update Tool. I connected the DisplayPort 2.1 cable to the motherboard, restarted, and it let me into the BIOS. Once I was in, I performed a normal boot and downloaded the latest BIOS update for my motherboard. I updated the motherboard, and once everything was updated, I reconnected the DisplayPort 2.1 cable to the graphics card. The second time I turned on the PC, the BIOS appeared at startup! I hope this helps; these were the exact steps I followed. Good luck to everyone!
Lephra_666@reddit
For me the solution was also changing the DiplayPort exit on the gpu. It seems unrelated, but worked.
fabrilenteja@reddit
hola buenas, yo tenia este mismo problema y habia probado TODAS las soluciones posibles, estuve como 2 horas renegando a la madrugada y nada me funcionaba hasta que conecté mi compu a la tele mediante HDMI, ahi me dio imagen en la BIOS y pude configurarla, ojalá les sirva
ssr37@reddit
Gracias!! Esto es lo que me ha funcionado
VerdantSpecimen@reddit
To me got fixed when I connected my monitor with HDMI instead of DisplayPort when wanting to go to BIOS. Computer just hangs up when trying to use DisplayPort to BIOS. Well, probably it goes to BIOS but can't show screen
lando0300@reddit
That fixed it for me. Had one monitor hooked up HDMI and the other via DisplayPort. Unhooked the DisplayPort one and it worked fine
FastLaneNico@reddit
Almost throw my pc out the window after following multiple YouTube tutorials and step by step instructions in different threads. This however saved my sanity and I can’t believe how simple the solution was haha
Fr0zztyy@reddit
In my case, the issue turned out to be the display connection. I was using a DisplayPort cable plugged into the second port on my GPU, and the motherboard splash screen and BIOS wouldn’t show up. When I switched to an HDMI cable connected to the first GPU port, the BIOS and splash screen appeared correctly. It seems that during boot, the BIOS output is sometimes limited to the primary display port on the GPU.
Daburai@reddit
What worked for me was this:
Turn off fast startup.
Shut down pc.
Unplug power supply for a few moments.
Start PC back up.
I was able to use both methods of getting into bios (Del key and advanced startup option) after this.
Critical-Computer-68@reddit
cum dezactivez pornirea rapida ? Multumesc
SKILL5thatk1LL2@reddit
A
lockheed06@reddit
Kind of ran into this... after trying just about everything, I changed out my keyboard/mouse, apparently the shift key was stuck down so it was thwarting all other efforts. Just one more thing to double check!
lovetobeawomen@reddit
Good day all, i am running an Arktek H61 lga1155 motherboard and my bios is not showing and they say i must press esc or del button but do not work to enter the bios setting to reset it back to default what is there to do please, and have install a fresh copy of windows 10 pro to the system as well. Thank you your help will be appreciated
FewDirection7065@reddit
i took my cmos out and now my computer has no display and won’t boot
tzoni_montana@reddit
hey man, did u fixed it ? any update?
tzoni_montana@reddit
i dont know about OP but in my case.. fast boot was activated, i tried hundreds of things. i had to spam DEL from the moment i pressed POWER ON from the case.
tzoni_montana@reddit
litteraly. thats me ... I just cannot get into BIOS, no matter what I try.
Icy-Affect1851@reddit
Had the same problem, my monitor was not showing anything but a black screen when trying to enter the bios screen but Windows would come on just fine, then put A HDMI into my motherboard and there was the bios menu and I don't have integrated graphics, anyone having this problem try all your output ports when your screen is hanging.
tzoni_montana@reddit
mu gpu has 2 hdmi ports. i tried them both, nothing changed
Desperate_Curve_6744@reddit
You probably enabled fast boot.
TheOnlyItchy@reddit
For me what worked was making sure I was plugged into the correct video output, I had ym vr headset pluged onto DP1 and my monitor I to DP2. try different display ports or hdmi or via or whatever
No_Midnight7934@reddit
I had to use f2 on my laptop. Using the wireless keyboard would not get me to bios regardless of if I pushed if once, a couple dozen times, or held it down. A single push of f2 on the laptop keyboard and I was in.
TastyCh1ckenSoup@reddit
Is there anything I haven't tried? Yes providing the Motherboard Manufacturer and model number would be a massive help, Unless you want people to guess with the best method of fixing your issue.
StashAjay@reddit
I like how you made this condescending comment and then didn't even help when they told you lol
knightsbridge-@reddit (OP)
Whoops, excuse me. Got too excited. It's an MSI Z490 A Pro - I've added it to the post.
Prior-Currency-6919@reddit
You can get into BIOS using Windows.
https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000126121/access-uefi-bios-system-setup-from-windows-on-your-dell-system
I had a fast startup setting applied in my BIOS, making it hard to get in. Since then , I have just used this method.
TheMagarity@reddit
Do you have a wireless keyboard? If so, try a regular corded one.
Halbzu@reddit
in my experience, it's usually f2 and/or del and not f11.
have you tried cmos reset?
ForeverNo9437@reddit
Try to reboot into windows troubleshooting (search on the net how to do it) then in troubleshoot>advanced>boot into uefi may not be exactly like that.