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Electrical and Computer Engineering
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BIOS Configuration

HP BIOS Configuration

Whenever you image a machine, whether it’s through a boot stick or FOG, you’ll need to make some changes to the BIOS. This can be done by mashing one of the function keys as the computer boots up before it loads the OS. If the Windows loading dots begin circling or the purple Ubuntu screen shows up, you’ve missed your window and need to reboot the machine and try again.

On an HP device, there are three function keys that you’ll need to know: F9 opens the quick boot menu, F10 opens the BIOS, and F12 jumps into PXE boot.

For any machine bought before 2018 (EliteDesk 800 G1 and older), the BIOS will be a blue menu and can only be navigated with a keyboard. Take the following steps:

  1. Under the “File” Tab 

    1. If you need to put the MAC address in the MAD, navigate to “System Information.”  
    2. Roughly in the middle of the window, you’ll see the MAC address under “Integrated MAC” 

  2. Under the “Storage” tab 

    1. Open “Boot Order” 
    2. Make sure UEFI is enabled and Legacy is disabled1 

    3. Rearrange the boot order so it resembles the following: 

      1. IP4 Intel(R) Ethernet Connection I217-LM2
      2. USB Hard Drive 
      3. ATAPI CD/DVD Drive 
      4. USB Floppy/CD 
      5. Windows Boot Manager/ubuntu 
      6. IP6 Intel(R) Ethernet Connection I217-LM3
    4. Press F10 to save the order before moving onto the next step

  3. Under the “Security” tab 

    1. The Setup Password might be old, so update it by opening “Setup Password” 

    2. The System IDs may also be incorrect, so fix those as well 

      1. The “Asset Tag” is the EE-tag 
      2. The “Ownership Tag” is the computer name4

    3. At the bottom, open “Secure Boot Configuration” 

      1. Make sure both Legacy Support and Secure Boot are disabled 
      2. Press F10 to save 
  4. Return to “File” to save and exit

For any machine bought in 2018 or after (EliteDesk 800 G2 or newer), the BIOS will be a white menu and can be navigated with either mouse or keyboard. Take the following steps:

  1. Under the “Main” tab 

    1. If you need to put the MAC address in the MAD, navigate to “System Information” Open “Show Advanced System Information” and scroll to the bottom to get the MAC address 

    2. The System IDs may also be incorrect, so fix those

      1. The “Asset Tag” is the EE-tag 
      2. The “Ownership Tag” is the computer name4
  2. Under the “Security” tab,
    1. The BIOS Administrator Password might be old, so update it by opening “Change BIOS Administrator Password”

  3. Under the “Advanced” tab 

    1. Open “Boot Options” and rearrange the boot order so it resembles the following: 

      1. Network Boot IPv4 Intel(R) Ethernet Connection I219-LM5
      2. USB 
      3. SATA CD hp DVDRW 
      4. SATA0 Windows Boot Manager/ubuntu 
      5. Network Boot IPv6 Intel(R) Ethernet Connection I219-LM3
    2. Navigate to “Secure Boot Configuration” and make sure Legacy Support and Secure Boot are both disabled 
  4. Save Changes and Exit

1Pressing F5 will toggle between enable and disable for whichever boot option the arrow is pointing at

2If you do not see the IP4 or IP6 options under UEFI, skip to step 3. After finishing step 4, boot back into the BIOS and return to step 2

3This should be disabled as well, we don’t use IPv6. If there is not option to disable, don’t worry about it

4This changes so often that it’s not really worth it to ever change it unless it’s an undergraduate lab machine

5If you do not see the IPv4 or IPv6 options under UEFI, skip to step 3b. Once you complete step 4, boot back into the BIOS and return to step 3a