Secure boot is a feature of UEFI which ensures that your PC boots only through the firmware that is trusted by the manufacturer. If needed, you can disable the secure boot option through the UEFI menu, but the actual way of disabling this depends on the PC manufacturer.
Before getting into the exact steps, let’s first understand the basics, if you do not already know!
What is the need to disable secure boot?
Basically the secure boot system keeps the booting sequence limited to pre-installed hardware devices.
But, when you dual boot a system you may need to boot from an external installation disk or a USB device of an operating system such as Linux. To boot into that installation media, first, you need to disable the secure boot in your PC.
And, sometimes to run some PC graphics card and other hardware components, the secure boot needs to be disabled.
What is UEFI?
Like the BIOS interface, Unified Extensible Firmware Interface(UEFI) is installed at the time of PC manufacturing. It is the first program that runs when PC is turned on.
UEFI replaces the legacy BISO firmware interface. It can support remote diagnostic and repair of the computer even if no operating system is installed.
How to disable secure boot?
To disable secure boot in your system, use the following steps –
- Turn on your system or if it already on then restart it and press Esc, F1, F2, F12, or Del key. The key that is to be pressed depends on the manufacturer of your PC.
For example:
– In Acer PC press Esc key to launch the BIOS or UEFI menu
– In a Dell Laptop press the F2 key to launch the same - Windows users can hold the Shift key while selecting Restart to enter the Advanced Boot Menu. Then select Troubleshoot > Advanced Options: UEFI Firmware Settings.
- Now in the security or boot tab find the secure boot option and set it to disabled.
- Save and exit.
Now secure boot has been disabled in your system.
How to Re-Enable secure boot?
You might want to re-enable secure boot option in your system because it does help to protect your PC from malicious or unauthorized code. Now follow the steps below to re-enable it –
- Remove the operating system, drivers, or hardware that is not compatible with secure boot.
- Restart your system and press Esc, F1, F2, F12, or Del key to open the BIOS or UEFI menu, In security or boot tab find the secure boot option.
- Set the secure boot to enabled from the disabled.
- Save and exit.
Secure boot is successfully enabled in your system.
Conclusion
By using this guide you can enable or disable the secure boot in your system. We will recommend you to follow the manufacturer’s instructions if you find any difficulties in enabling or disabling the same.