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HP Recommended
HP Pavilion 15-n243cl Notebook PC

I want to boot from a USB drive (to upgrade to Windows 10 from 8.1).  I power-on and hit ESC.  I get the menu F1, F2, F9, F10.  F1 displays system info.  F2, F9, and F10 do nothing.  How do I get F9 and F10 to do what they are supposed to do?  F1 works either alone or in combination with the FN key; the others do nothing with a sincle key press or a combination key press.

3 REPLIES 3
HP Recommended

Hi @Barry_S_Finkel,

 

Welcome to HP Support Community.

 

Thank you for posting your query, I will be glad to help you.

 

If F9 (Boot Device Options) and F10 (BIOS Setup) are unresponsive on your HP Pavilion 15 during startup, there could be a few reasons behind it. Here are some steps you can try.

 

Ensure Fast Startup is Disabled:

  • If you have Fast Startup enabled in Windows, it might prevent you from accessing certain startup options. To disable Fast Startup:
    1. Go to Control Panel > Power Options > Choose what the power buttons do.
    2. Click Change settings that are currently unavailable.
    3. Uncheck Turn on fast startup and save changes.
    4. Restart your laptop and try pressing ESC and then F9 or F10 again during startup.

Use a Different USB Port or Device:

  • Sometimes, certain USB ports may work better for booting, so try plugging your USB drive into a different port, preferably a USB 2.0 port if available.

Try the F-Keys with Fn (Function) Key:

  • If your laptop requires pressing the Fn key with the F-keys, try holding down the Fn key while pressing F9 or F10 after hitting ESC.

Reset the BIOS to Default Settings:

  • If you can access the BIOS at all (or the HP Startup Menu), try resetting the BIOS settings to default. Sometimes, corrupted settings may interfere with the startup menu.
  • Power on your laptop, press ESC, then try F10 to access the BIOS if possible, and choose the option to load Default Settings.

Disconnect External Peripherals:

  • Disconnect any peripherals (except for the USB drive you want to boot from) before starting up, as external devices can sometimes interfere with startup options.

Use the HP Diagnostics UEFI Firmware:

  • If you still cannot access the boot menu or BIOS setup, you might have HP's UEFI Diagnostics available:
    1. Power off your laptop.
    2. Power it back on while holding the Windows key and B key, then press the Power button for a few seconds.
    3. Release the Power button but continue holding Windows + B until the HP BIOS Update screen appears.

 

I hope this helps.

 

Take care and have a good day.

 

Please click “Accepted Solution” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution. Click the “Kudos/Thumbs Up" on the bottom right to say “Thanks” for helping!

 

Alden4

HP Support 

Raj_05
HP Support Community Moderator
HP Recommended

Alden, thanks for the reply.  I had a USB mouse in one port, and when I removed it, I was able to get to the BIOS and boot order.  Legacy boot is disabled, and UEFI boot order is

OS

Internal CD

USB Disk

USB CD

! Network adapter

 

I moved USB Disc to the top, and I was able to boot normally into Win 8.1.  This weekend I will attempt to install Windows 10, and I will report on the success or failure.

HP Recommended

Hi @Barry_S_Finkel,

 

Thank you for your response, 

 

Please feel free to reach out to us. We are here to assist you and provide any necessary support.

 

I will be archiving this case for now however, you can respond to the same thread to continue the conversation.

 

Please click “Accepted Solution” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution. Click the “Kudos/Thumbs Up" on the bottom right to say “Thanks” for helping!

 

Take care and have a great day ahead!

 

Alden4

HP Support 

Raj_05
HP Support Community Moderator
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