Beginner’s Guide: How to Enable Secure Boot on Windows 8

Secure boot is a security feature provided by Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) that prevents your system from being vulnerable to malware during the start-up process.
By using the secure boot, you can only boot your system from the trusted software of the equipment manufacturer. Your system allows such software to boot.
In this article we want to explain How to enable secure boot windows 8.
Enabling Secure Boot on computer in Windows 8
Secure Boot is enabled by default on computers built with Windows 8.
If your Secure Boot is disabled, the following are the steps to enable Secure Boot in Windows 8.
1.Turn off the computer.
2. Hit the power button to turn on the computer, then immediately hit Esc repeatedly, about once every second, until the Startup Menu opens.
Figure 2: Startup Menu
3. Hit F10 to open BIOS Setup.
4. Use the right arrow key to choose the System Configuration menu, use the down arrow key to click Boot Options, then hit Enter.
Figure 3: Boot Options selection in the System Configuration window
5. Use the down arrow key to click Secure Boot, hit Enter, then use the down arrow key to modify the setting to Enabled.
Figure 4: Secure Boot: Enabled
6. Hit Enter to save the change.
7. Use the left arrow key to click the File menu, use the down arrow key to select Save Changes and Exit, then Hit Enter to click Yes.
8. The Computer Setup Utility closes and the computer restarts.
Disabling Secure Boot on computers in Windows 8
You may want to disable Secure Boot to boot or install hardware on a CD or DVD.
You can do the following steps to disable secure boot:
1. Turn off the computer.
2. Hit the power button to turn on the computer, and immediately hit Esc repeatedly, about once every second, until the Startup Menu opens.
Figure 5: Startup Menu
3. Hit F10 to open BIOS Setup.
4. Use the right arrow key to choose the System Configuration menu, use the down arrow key to click Boot Options, then hit Enter.
Figure 6: Boot Options selection in the System Configuration window
5. Use the down arrow key to click Secure Boot, hit Enter, then use the down arrow key to modify the setting to Disabled.
6. Hit Enter to save the change.
7. Use the left arrow key to click the File menu, use the down arrow key to click Save Changes and Exit, then hit Enter to click Yes.
8. The Computer Setup Utility closes and the computer restarts. When the computer has restarted, the Operating System Boot Mode Change screen appears, prompting you to confirm the Boot Options change.
9. Type the code shown on the screen, then hit Enter to confirm the change and continue to Windows.
Using Secure Boot on computers with Windows 8 and Windows 8.1
The following steps can be used to enable or disable Secure Boot on your computer using Windows 8 and Windows 8.1.
Enabling Secure Boot on recent computers that include Legacy Support in Windows 8 and Windows 8.1
1. Turn off the computer.
2. Hit the Power Button to turn on the computer and hit Esc repeatedly, about once every second, until the Startup Menu opens.
3. When the Startup Menu displays, hit F10 to open BIOS Setup.
Figure 8: Startup Menu
4. Use the right arrow key to choose the System Configuration menu, use the down arrow key to click Boot Options, then hit Enter.
Figure 9: Boot Options selection in the System Configuration window
5. Use the down arrow key to click Legacy Support and hit Enter, click Disabled if it is enabled and hit Enter.
Figure 10: Legacy Support
6. Use the up and down arrow keys to click Secure Boot and hit Enter, then use the up and down arrow keys to click Enabled and hit Enter.
Figure 11: Secure Boot
7. Hit F10 to accept the changes and use the left arrow key to click Yes and hit Enter to Exit Saving Changes.
Figure 12: Exit Saving Changes
Disabling Secure Boot on recent computers that include Legacy Support in Windows 8 and Windows 8.1
You may want to disable Secure Boot to boot or install new hardware from an external bootable device such as a USB, DVD, or CD.
Step 1: Disable Secure Boot and enable Legacy Boot
Follow these steps to disable Secure Boot and enable Legacy Support:
1. Turn the computer off completely.
2. Turn on the computer by clicking the Power button and immediately hit Esc repeatedly, about once every second, until the Startup Menu opens.
3. When the Startup Menu appears, hit F10 to click BIOS Setup.
Figure 13: Startup Menu
4. Use the right arrow key to choose the System Configuration menu, use the down arrow key to click Boot Options, and then hit Enter.
Figure 14: Boot Options selection in the System Configuration window
5. Use the down arrow key to click Secure Boot, hit Enter, then use the down arrow key to modify the setting to Disabled, hit Enter.
Figure 15: Secure Boot
6. Use the up and down arrow keys to click Legacy Support, hit Enter to change the setting to Enable and hit Enter again.
Figure 16: Legacy Support
7. Use the left and right arrow keys to click Yes on the confirmation window and hit Enter to enable Legacy Support.
Figure 17: Confirmation window
8. Use the down arrow key to click a device in the Legacy Boot Order menu, and hit F5 and F6 to move the device down or up.
Figure 18: Legacy Boot Order
9. Hit F10 to accept the changes and use the left arrow key to click Yes and hit Enter to Exit Saving Changes.
10. As soon as the computer starts, a message may appear indicating that the boot mode has changed, if so, type the four-digit code shown in the message, then hit Enter to confirm the change. Otherwise, continue with the next step.
Figure 19: Boot mode change message
Step 2: Click the drive as the boot device
To start your computer from a valid bootable USB drive or disc, such as an HP recovery disc, use the Boot Menu to click drive as the boot device.
1. Turn the computer off completely, wait a few seconds, then turn on the computer by clicking the Power Button and immediately hit Esc repeatedly, about once every second, until the Startup menu opens.
2. When the Startup Menu appears, hit F9 to open the Boot Device Options.
3. When the Boot Manager Window opens, use the up and down arrow keys to click a boot device and hit Enter to click an option.
Figure 20: Boot Manager Options
4. The computer starts from the bootable device clicked.
5. If you need information on how to perform a System Recovery from a CD/DVD or USB drive on Windows 8 and 8.1, please refer to the HP support document: Performing an HP system recovery (Windows 8).
Using Secure Boot on a desktop computer with Windows 8
Use the steps in this section to disable and enable Secure Boot on your desktop computer with Windows 8.
Enabling Secure Boot on a desktop computer with Windows 8
1. Turn off the computer.
2. Turn on the computer and immediately hit F10 repeatedly, about once every second, until the Computer Setup Utility opens.
3. Use the left and right arrow keys to click the Security menu.
Figure 21: Secure Boot Configuration selection in the Security window
4. Use the up and down arrow keys to click Secure Boot Configuration, and then hit Enter.
5. The Secure Boot Configuration warning displays. Hit F10 to continue.
Figure 22: Secure Boot Configuration window
6. Use the left and right arrow keys to disable Legacy Support if it is enabled.
Figure 23: Secure Boot Configuration window
7. Use the up and down arrow keys to click Secure Boot, then use the left and right arrow keys to enable it.
8. Hit F10 to accept the changes.
9. Hit F10 again, then hit Enter twice to restart the computer with Secure Boot enabled.
Figure 24: Save Changes and Exit selection
Disabling Secure Boot on a desktop computer with Windows 8
1. Turn off the computer.
2. Turn on the computer and immediately hit F10 repeatedly, about once every second, until the Computer Setup Utility opens.
3. Use the left and right arrow keys to click the Security menu, then use the up and down arrow keys to click Secure Boot Configuration, and then hit Enter.
Figure 21: Secure Boot Configuration selection in the Security window
4. The Secure Boot Configuration warning displays. Hit F10 to continue.
5. Use the up and down arrow keys to click Secure Boot, then use the left and right arrow keys to change the setting to Disable.
Figure 22: Secure Boot Configuration window
6. Use the up and down arrow keys to click Legacy Support, then use the left and right arrow keys to change the setting to Enable.
Figure 23: Secure Boot Configuration window
7. Hit F10 to accept the changes.
8. Hit F10 again, then hit Enter twice to restart the computer.
9. As soon as the computer starts, a message appears indicating that the boot mode has changed.
Figure 24: Save Changes and Exit selection
- Type the four-digit code shown in the message, then hit Enter to confirm the change.
Last Words
In this article, we have explained how to enable and disable fast startup in Windows 8 by following the steps you can secure your computer. I hope the content is helpful for you.
What other solutions do you know to enable secure boot in Windows 8?
Do you use these steps?