[LUNA] various boot questions/notes

[Allen Krell]

OK, I figured it out.  Here are my lessons learned.

1.  In Windows 8.1, restart is not the same as powering off the machine.
Let it do a complete power down (perhaps even remove the battery and power
cord).  For Dell, when the logo is shown hit F2.
2.Most hits you will receive on a typical google search on the subject of
UEFI and Linux are out of date or apply to BIOS from 2010-2012 time
frames.  For Dell at least, the newest BIOS supports legacy or UEFI, but
not both.  If you want legacy, you have to go into BIOS, load a different
ROM, then reboot.
3.  On this Dell bios, it won't see other legacy boot options (CD/USB)
unless a bootable ISO image is already on the device.  If no image is
present, it won't show it as an option.
4. My take at this point, go ahead and get a distribution with a UEFI
signature.   No reason to go legacy unless your favorite distro doesn't
support it.

Now, after saying all that, I haven't completed the install yet.  Instead
of dual boot, I am considering buying a SSD, and physically removing the
windows drive.


On Sat, Nov 22, 2014 at 1:44 PM, Allen Krell <allen.krell at gmail.com> wrote:

> I have been doing some digging, and I realized my problem may not be
> directly related to UEFI.   It seems  that some newer laptops do not have
> the option to boot from anything except the hard drive, even in legacy
> mode.  Even in legacy mode, the BIOS doesn't seem to have an option to boot
> from external CD/DVD or USB.   I'll keep playing with it, I'll let you know
> if I find anything.
>
>
>
> On Sat, Nov 22, 2014 at 12:09 PM, Allen Krell <allen.krell at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>> I just got in my Dell Inspiron, and this is my first experience dealing
>> with windows 8.1 machines and newest laptops.
>>
>> Already I noticed one thing, a windows 8.1 restart isn't really a
>> complete restart.  If you want to get to BIOS/UEFI, you have to power
>> down.  F2 doesn't respond on restart.
>>
>> Now, I am trying to get up to speed on Legacy Boot/UEFI.   I have a basic
>> understanding on how UEFI works, but I am not clear on which distributions
>> support it.   Does anyone have a one paragraph explanation or a good link
>> on the best way to proceed to get a dual boot machine?
>>
>>
>>
>> Allen
>>
>>
>>
>
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