Common BIOS Settings Explained
Techquickie
·Techquickie
·2018-05-06
·
1,031 words · ~5 min read
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so you know that huge menu of options you can get to by pressing a key like
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delete or F2 immediately after powering up your system it's called the BIOS and
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we went into detail about what it actually is in this episode but the gist
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of it is that it's the firmware that controls basic low-level essential
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functions of your computer so that's cool um but how do you use it ah good
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question today we're going to have a look at some of the more common settings
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that both novices and veterans should be keeping their eyes on to keep their
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systems running optimally we'll start with what's probably the first thing you
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should look at if your computer isn't turning on correctly the boot priority
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menu which is sometimes simply labeled as boot order you see when you boot up
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your computer it will look for a drive with a boot loader typically paired with
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an operating system on it typically this will mean a hard drive or SSD with
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Windows on it or maybe Linux if you're hardcore but there are situations where
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you might want to boot from a USB drive or even an optical disc to run system
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repairs or some special application adjusting your boot priority so that the
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media you want to load is listed first will allow you to boot from the location
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that you want speaking of booting you might also see an option called secure
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boot this is a newer feature designed to keep root kits which you can learn more
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about up here from infecting your bootloader which can cause you problems
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that your anti-malware software won't ever find you should usually keep this
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turned on but if you need to load some operating system like Linux turning it
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off might solve your problems if you're having them as secure boot can also keep
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non- genuine Microsoft os's from working
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and sticking with the booting up theme for just a little bit longer enabling a
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setting called Fast boot or quick boot will cut down on Startup Times by
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skipping error cheing but it may keep you from booting up properly if there is
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a problem moving on if your computer has a feature that seems to just not work at
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all there's a chance is simply disabled in the BIOS options like SATA hot
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swapping for hard drives and ssds onboard audio Ethernet USB ports
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specific PCI Express slots and even the
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RGB bling built into your motherboard can all potentially be turned on or off
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with a setting in the BIOS usually it's a good idea just to leave everything on
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but turning these things off can be useful to prevent the system from
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utilizing these built-in features if you have let's say a separate sound or
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network card and you don't want extra options cluttering up your audio
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settings menu which is very valid if you're rocking a slightly more advanced
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setup though here are a few extra things to look out for make sure you find the
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toggle under storage options that lets you select raid if you want to use
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multiple drives as a single unit and an easy step to forget if you set it up
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previously and you're recovering from a failed overclock or something like that
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and you can't figure out why the heck it isn't working working I've been there
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and if performance is what you're chasing most modern bioses allow you to
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select an XMP profile from the menu this will quickly and easily get your high
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performance RAM modules running at their advertised speed and timings if you're
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overclocking look for options like eist
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speed step or C States disabling these optimizations may help if you're having
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a hard time hitting the clock speed you want though remember that not allowing
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your CPU to throttle can can result in increased heat output and power
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consumption of course if you want to learn more about changing these exact
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settings that will overclock your CPU check out this episode finally let's
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talk about security you've probably been using a Windows password but the BIOS
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will allow you to set another password for an added layer of security as it
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will ask for the separate password every time you try to enter the BIOS or boot
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from any operating system definitely useful but remember that except in speci
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cases these passwords are usually cleared by removing the Button cell
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battery from the board and they don't keep an intruder from just opening up
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your computer and walking off with your hard drive so are there other things
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that you've seen in your BIOS that you feel a little clueless about let us know
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in the comments and perhaps we'll cover them in a future episode but for now go
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forth and tweak to your heart's content just try not to break
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anything do you find yourself often trying to control two computers at at
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once well Synergy is the solution for you Synergy is a software tool that
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solves the problem of having two or more keyboards and mouse hooked into two or
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more computers you see Synergy allows you to share just one mouse and keyboard
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across multiple computers and multiple screens no more messing around with
4:47
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include clipboard sharing and drag and drop between computers custom hotkeys
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and more Synergy is offering a 25%
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discount to Techquickie viewers just click on the link in the video
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description below to check it out thanks for watching guys if you like
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this video like it if you dislike it dislike it get subscribed hit the little bell to see all of our content check out
5:15
s super fun they have super cool stuff there I'll see you guys next time bye