Boot menu keys for Dell, HP, Lenovo, ASUS, Acer and more
To start a computer from a USB drive you usually press one key as it powers on. The key depends on the brand. These are the common ones; if yours differs, a hint is often shown on the first start-up screen.
Common boot menu keys
- Dell: F12
- HP: Esc, then F9 (some models use F9 directly)
- Lenovo: F12, or the small Novo button on some laptops
- ASUS: Esc or F8
- Acer: F12 (it may need to be enabled in BIOS first)
- MSI: F11
- Gigabyte and Aorus: F12
- Samsung: Esc or F10
- Microsoft Surface: hold the volume down button while powering on
Tips
- Tap the key repeatedly right after pressing the power button, rather than holding it.
- If Windows starts instead, shut down fully (hold Shift while choosing Shut down) and try again.
- Intel-based Macs use the Option key at start-up. Newer Apple silicon Macs cannot start a standard Linux USB drive.
Full walkthrough: how to boot from a USB drive. Ready to try something? See {lk('800016537860','Ubuntu')} or {lk('800016421272','Linux Mint')}.
Boot instructions by brand
- How to boot from USB on Dell
- How to boot from USB on HP
- How to boot from USB on Lenovo
- How to boot from USB on ASUS
- How to boot from USB on Acer
- How to boot from USB on MSI
- How to boot from USB on Gigabyte and Aorus
- How to boot from USB on Samsung
- How to boot from USB on Microsoft Surface
- How to boot from USB on Toshiba and Dynabook
- How to boot from USB on Apple Mac (Intel)