The BIOSMBR Boot Process. Regardless of the computer or operating system, standard IBM compatible desktop PCs and laptops all power on and start up using one of two ways the traditional BIOS MBR method and the newer UEFI GPT method, used by the latest versions of Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X on newer PCs, laptops, and tablets. This article summarizes the process by which traditional BIOS PCs load an operating system, covering the basics and details of the BIOS, MBR, and bootsector. Drama Korea Flower Boy Next Door. This article has been unofficially dubbed Everything you ever wanted to know about how your PC boots, part one. Overview of the BIOSMBR Boot Process. In the diagram below, the boot sequence for all standard computers and operating systems is shown As you can see, the boot process is broken down into several major components, each of which is a completely separate subsystem with many different options and variations. The implementations of each component can differ greatly depending on your hardware and operating system, but the rules they follow and the process by which they work are always the same. Components of the Boot Process The BIOSThe BIOS is where hardware meets software for the first time, and where all the boot magic begins. The BIOS code is baked into the motherboard of your PC, usually stored on what is called an EEPROM 1 and is considerably hardware specific. The BIOS is the lowest level of software that interfaces with the hardware as a whole,2 and is the interface by means of which the bootloader and operating system kernel can communicate with and control the hardware. Through standardized calls to the BIOS interrupts in computer parlance, the operating system can trigger the BIOS to read and write to the disk and interface with other hardware components. When your PC is first powered up, a lot happens. Electrical components of the PC are initially responsible for bringing your computer to life, as debouncing circuits take your push of the power button and trigger a switch that activates the power supply and directs current from the PSU to the motherboard and, mainly through it, to all the various components of your PC. Screenshot/screenshot_EasyBCD%20_b625-6537bb8be2f2.jpeg' alt='Easybcd 2.2 Full Version' title='Easybcd 2.2 Full Version' />Easybcd 2.2 Full VersionAs each individual component receives life giving electricity, it is powered up and brought online to its initial state. The startup routines and overall functionality of the simpler components like the RAM and PSU is hardwired into them as a series of logic circuits ANDNAND and ORNOR gates, while more complicated parts such as the video card have their own microcontrollers that act as mini CPUs, controlling the hardware and interfacing with the rest of your PC to delegate and oversee the work. The POST Process. Once your PC has been powered on, the BIOS begins its work as part of the POST Power On Self Test process. It bridges all the various parts of your PC together, and interfaces between them as required, setting up your video display to accept basic VGA and show it on the screen, initializing the memory banks and giving your CPU access to all the hardware. It scans the IO buses for attached hardware, and identifies and maps access to the hard disks you have connected to your PC. The BIOS on newer motherboards is smart enough to even recognize and identify USB devices, such as external drives and USB mice, letting you boot from USB sticks and use your mouse in legacy software. During the POST procedure, quick tests are conducted where possible, and errors caused by incompatible hardware, disconnected devices, or failing components are often caught. Its the BIOS thats responsible for a variety of error messages such as keyboard error or no keyboard present or warnings about mismatchedunrecognized memory. At this point, the majority of the BIOS work has completed and its almost ready to move on to the next stage of the boot process. The only thing left is to run what are called Add On ROMs some hardware attached to the motherboard might require user intervention to complete its initialization and the BIOS actually hands off control of the entire PC to software routines coded into hardware like the video card or RAID controllers. They assume control of the computer and its display, and let you do things like set up RAID arrays or configure display settings before the PC has even truly finished powering up. When theyre done executing, they pass control of the computer back to the BIOS and and the PC enters a basic, usable state and is ready to begin. BIOS Boot Handoff. After having configured the basic input and output devices of your PC, the BIOS now enters the final stages where its still in control of your computer. At this point, youll normally be presented with an option to quickly hit a key to enter the BIOS setup from where you can configure hardware settings and control how your PC boots. If you choose nothing, the BIOS will begin the first step in actually booting your PC using the default settings. Earlier we mentioned that an important part of the BIOS work is to detect and map connected hard disks. This list now comes in handy, as the BIOS will load a very small program from the first hard disk to the memory and tell the CPU to execute its contents, handing off control of the computer to whatever is on the hard drive and ending its active role in loading your PC. This hard drive is known as the boot device, startup disk, or drive 0 and can usually be picked or set in the BIOS setup. The Boot Device. Regardless of whether the BIOS was configured to boot from a local hard disk or from a removable USB stick, the handoff sequence is the same. Once the BIOS POST and Add. Easybcd 2.2 Full Version' title='Easybcd 2.2 Full Version' />On ROM procedures have completed, the BIOS loads the first 5. MBR, or the Master Boot Record. The Master Boot Record MBRThe MBR is the first and most important component on the software side of things in the boot procedure on BIOS based machines. Every hard disk has an MBR, and it contains several important pieces of information. The Partition Table. First and foremost, the MBR contains something called the partition table, which is an index of up to four partitions that exist on the same disk, a table of contents, if you will. Without it such as on floppy disks, the entire disk could only contain one partition, which means that you cant have things like different filesystems on the same drive, which in turn would mean you could never install Linux and Windows on the same disk, for example. Bootstrap Code. Secondly, the MBR also contains a very important bit of code known as the bootstrap code. The first 4. BIOS will load it and execute its contents as is, kicking off the bootloader procedure. How small Well, to put things in context, 4. Mi. B floppy disk barely enough to fit any form of useful code and way, way too small to do something as complicated as call up the operating system kernel from the disk. Given how tiny the bootstrap code section of the MBR is, the only useful purpose it can really serve is to look up another file from the disk and load it to perform the actual boot process. Download Easy. BCD 2. For Windows 1. 0After three years of extensive development and testing, Neo. 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In addition to that, it now allows you easily enable or disable the metro boot loader or boot menu, making it easier to quickly switch between Windows 7 style boot menu and the new Metro or modern boot selection menu. The user interface of the application has not changed but its easy to use and navigate. The full EFI support makes it possible to prepare bootable USB drives for EFI environments. Easybcd 2.2 Full Version' title='Easybcd 2.2 Full Version' />ChrisPC Win Experience Index lets you rate your computer and check the Windows Experience Index on your Windows 8. Windows 10 installation. Recovering the Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8 or Windows 10 Bootloader. If your Windows bootloader has been damaged or corrupt in some way, youll have to get it reset. Internet Explorer Plugins. Adobe Flash Player 18. Adobe Flash Player 18. Easybcd 2.2 Full Version' title='Easybcd 2.2 Full Version' />Like previous versions, the latest version also allows you add, edit and mange Linux and Mac entries. 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