Restart To BIOS Shortcut

[WalksInSilence]

I read somewhere else recently that it was possible to create a desktop shortcut which would restart the PC but go straight into the BIOS. I did not know that this was possible. I would find that quite a useful tool instead of going through the lottery of hitting the DEL button at the right time during the restart sequence.

I was also thinking that surely a restart into Safe Mode shortcut may be possible too.

Problem is that the info out there on creating the Restart To BIOS shortcut does not appear to work with Win7. The web info I've found does not actually specify what Windows OS this works with but the paths I've discovered for the shortcut are given as either:-

shutdown /r /fw

or

shutdown /r /fw /f /t 0

or

shutdown /r /fw /f /t 00

or

shutdown /r /o /f /t 00

However testing these paths on a Win7 PC I found none of the shortcuts worked. So I tried instead using CMD (Admin)/Powershell to see where the problem was and all gave unrecognised CMD line syntax errors, /fw in particular.  

What does work is the basic shutdown /r which, after a flagged up one minute delay, will, as you'd expect, shutdown and restarts the PC. What any of those other CMD commands do I'm not sure either.

So is this Restart To BIOS shortcut just a Windows10/11 thing or is there a Win7 specific path that should be used, likewise the Restart Into Safe Mode shortcut idea?   

Edited July 30, 2023 by WalksInSilence

[UCyborg]

I'm pretty sure /fw parameter applies only to Windows 8+ installed in UEFI mode, not legacy BIOS mode. If it was possible on BIOS, I'm sure we would have known about it since the days of DOS.

[jaclaz]

The /fw switch is shorthand for firmware, but what is not said anywhere is that they intend UEFI, and not BIOS (though it may work for UEFI in CMS mode ) it is very likely that it was introduced post Windows 7.

You just run:

shutdown /?

to list the available switches to the command.

Should be like this (no /fw switch present):

https://www.computerperformance.co.uk/windows-7/shutdown-command/

jaclaz

[UCyborg]

/fw parameter description on Win10: Combine with a shutdown option to cause the next boot to go to the firmware user interface.

But if you do it from the GUI, it does say UEFI:

Source: https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/5831-boot-uefi-firmware-settings-inside-windows-10-a.html

[jaclaz]

20 minutes ago, UCyborg said:

 

But if you do it from the GUI, it does say UEFI:

 

To be picky (as I am) it depends on which GUI path you take, the same thread you mentioned shows also the Settings->Recovery->Advanced startup uses "firmware" like the command line, and BTW the "Advanced Options" -> "UEFI firmware settings" you are referencing is "backwards" (it only tells you that the PC will restart in the "final" screen).

It's 2:1, command line+GUI1=firmware vs. GUI2=UEFI firmware, democracy at its best .

All is normal and the usual way the good MS guys are historically used to mis-label things in their OS's (and documentation).

As a side note, the given link:

https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/5831-boot-uefi-firmware-settings-inside-windows-10-a.html

says, (last choice about shutdown /r /fw) :

Quote

... the PC automatically restarts and boots directly to your BIOS or UEFI firmware settings.

so maybe it is not just UEFI, but also BIOS (i.e. firmware is more appropriate)

It would need to be tested (by someone with two installs, one in BIOS and one in UEFI or with similar machines set in the two modes to be able to make a comparison), I think that the feature uses some specific UEFI (surely described on one of the more than 2,200 pages of the specifications) parameter/switch/whatever but for all I know it could simply stuff the keyboard buffer with F2's (or whatever key is used to access the firmware at boot time).

jaclaz