no UEFI Firmware Settings/secure boot option on Asus x550cc

Questions about hardware, drivers and peripherals
Forum rules
Before you post read how to get help. Topics in this forum are automatically closed 6 months after creation.
Locked
Brahim Salem

no UEFI Firmware Settings/secure boot option on Asus x550cc

Post by Brahim Salem »

I want to dual-boot Linux Mint with Windows 8 on a new Asus x550c, but following the usual procedure I couldn't find anyway of disabling secure boot. What should I do? Should just install Linux Mint knowing that it's "boot mode" is set to "legacy" by default?

BTW when i prompt the bot menu, i see 2 options to boot from my USB drive: one line with my USB drive and the other is preceded by the word UEFI: name of my USB drive.

which one should i choose?
Last edited by LockBot on Wed Dec 28, 2022 7:16 am, edited 3 times in total.
Reason: Topic automatically closed 6 months after creation. New replies are no longer allowed.
Brahim Salem

Re: no UEFI Firmware Settings or secure boot on Asus x550c

Post by Brahim Salem »

BTW My PC boots from Linux MInt USB drive in booth ways. The only difference is that I get a grub menu before startup when I choose the second boot option (UEFI: name of my USB drive)
Brahim Salem

Re: no UEFI Firmware Settings/secure boot option on Asus x55

Post by Brahim Salem »

help plz before i put a foot through this brick!! thanks
Brahim Salem

Re: no UEFI Firmware Settings/secure boot option on Asus x55

Post by Brahim Salem »

this is my hardwatre details:

Code: Select all

$ sudo lshw 
mint                      
    description: Notebook 
    product: X550CC (ASUS-NotebookSKU) 
    vendor: ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. 
    version: 1.0 
    serial: DCN0WU005355493 
    width: 64 bits 
    capabilities: smbios-2.7 dmi-2.7 vsyscall32 
    configuration: boot=normal chassis=notebook family=X sku=ASUS-NotebookSKU uuid=A4271708-C8FE-42AD-86B5-BCEE7BC82B6E 
  *-core 
       description: Motherboard 
       product: X550CC 
       vendor: ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. 
       physical id: 0 
       version: 1.0 
       serial: BSN12345678901234567 
       slot: MIDDLE 
     *-firmware 
          description: BIOS 
          vendor: American Megatrends Inc. 
          physical id: 0 
          version: X550CC.217 
          date: 10/16/2013 
          size: 64KiB 
          capacity: 6080KiB 
          capabilities: pci upgrade shadowing cdboot bootselect socketedrom edd int13floppy1200 int13floppy720 int13floppy2880 int5printscreen int9keyboard int14serial int17printer acpi usb smartbattery biosbootspecification uefi 
     *-cache:0 
          description: L2 cache 
          physical id: 8 
          slot: CPU Internal L2 
          size: 512KiB 
          capacity: 512KiB 
          capabilities: internal write-through unified 
     *-cache:1 
          description: L1 cache 
          physical id: 9 
          slot: CPU Internal L1 
          size: 128KiB 
          capacity: 128KiB 
          capabilities: internal write-through data 
     *-cache:2 
          description: L3 cache 
          physical id: a 
          slot: CPU Internal L3 
          size: 3MiB 
          capacity: 3MiB 
          capabilities: internal write-back unified 
     *-memory 
          description: System Memory 
          physical id: b 
          slot: System board or motherboard 
          size: 4GiB 
        *-bank:0 
             description: DIMM DDR3 Synchronous 1600 MHz (0.6 ns) [empty] 
             product: [Empty] 
             vendor: 0000 
             physical id: 0 
             serial: 00000000 
             slot: ChannelA-DIMM0 
             width: 8 bits 
             clock: 1600MHz (0.6ns) 
        *-bank:1 
             description: DIMM [empty] 
             product: [Empty] 
             vendor: [Empty] 
             physical id: 1 
             serial: [Empty] 
             slot: ChannelA-DIMM1 
        *-bank:2 
             description: SODIMM DDR3 Synchronous 1600 MHz (0.6 ns) 
             product: ASU16D3LS1KBG/4G 
             vendor: Kingston 
             physical id: 2 
             serial: EB20FC87 
             slot: ChannelB-DIMM0 
             size: 4GiB 
             width: 64 bits 
             clock: 1600MHz (0.6ns) 
        *-bank:3 
             description: DIMM [empty] 
             product: [Empty] 
             vendor: [Empty] 
             physical id: 3 
             serial: [Empty] 
             slot: ChannelB-DIMM1 
     *-cpu 
          description: CPU 
          product: Intel(R) Core(TM) i3-3217U CPU @ 1.80GHz 
          vendor: Intel Corp. 
          physical id: c 
          bus info: cpu@0 
          version: Intel(R) Core(TM) i3-3217U CPU @ 1.80GHz 
          slot: SOCKET 0 
          size: 1300MHz 
          capacity: 3800MHz 
          width: 64 bits 
          clock: 100MHz 
          capabilities: x86-64 fpu fpu_exception wp vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe syscall nx rdtscp constant_tsc arch_perfmon pebs bts rep_good nopl xtopology nonstop_tsc aperfmperf eagerfpu pni pclmulqdq dtes64 monitor ds_cpl vmx est tm2 ssse3 cx16 xtpr pdcm pcid sse4_1 sse4_2 x2apic popcnt tsc_deadline_timer xsave avx f16c lahf_lm ida arat epb xsaveopt pln pts dtherm tpr_shadow vnmi flexpriority ept vpid fsgsbase smep erms cpufreq 
          configuration: cores=2 enabledcores=2 threads=4 
     *-pci 
          description: Host bridge 
          product: 3rd Gen Core processor DRAM Controller 
          vendor: Intel Corporation 
          physical id: 100 
          bus info: pci@0000:00:00.0 
          version: 09 
          width: 32 bits 
          clock: 33MHz 
        *-pci:0 
             description: PCI bridge 
             product: Xeon E3-1200 v2/3rd Gen Core processor PCI Express Root Port 
             vendor: Intel Corporation 
             physical id: 1 
             bus info: pci@0000:00:01.0 
             version: 09 
             width: 32 bits 
             clock: 33MHz 
             capabilities: pci pm msi pciexpress normal_decode bus_master cap_list 
             configuration: driver=pcieport 
             resources: irq:40 ioport:e000(size=4096) memory:f6000000-f70fffff ioport:e0000000(size=301989888) 
           *-display 
                description: 3D controller 
                product: GF117M [GeForce 610M/710M / GT 620M/625M/630M/720M] 
                vendor: NVIDIA Corporation 
                physical id: 0 
                bus info: pci@0000:01:00.0 
                version: a1 
                width: 64 bits 
                clock: 33MHz 
                capabilities: pm msi pciexpress bus_master cap_list rom 
                configuration: driver=nouveau latency=0 
                resources: irq:16 memory:f6000000-f6ffffff memory:e0000000-efffffff memory:f0000000-f1ffffff ioport:e000(size=128) memory:f7000000-f707ffff 
        *-display 
             description: VGA compatible controller 
             product: 3rd Gen Core processor Graphics Controller 
             vendor: Intel Corporation 
             physical id: 2 
             bus info: pci@0000:00:02.0 
             version: 09 
             width: 64 bits 
             clock: 33MHz 
             capabilities: msi pm vga_controller bus_master cap_list rom 
             configuration: driver=i915 latency=0 
             resources: irq:45 memory:f7400000-f77fffff memory:d0000000-dfffffff ioport:f000(size=64) 
        *-usb:0 
             description: USB controller 
             product: 7 Series/C210 Series Chipset Family USB xHCI Host Controller 
             vendor: Intel Corporation 
             physical id: 14 
             bus info: pci@0000:00:14.0 
             version: 04 
             width: 64 bits 
             clock: 33MHz 
             capabilities: pm msi xhci bus_master cap_list 
             configuration: driver=xhci_hcd latency=0 
             resources: irq:41 memory:f7a00000-f7a0ffff 
        *-communication 
             description: Communication controller 
             product: 7 Series/C210 Series Chipset Family MEI Controller #1 
             vendor: Intel Corporation 
             physical id: 16 
             bus info: pci@0000:00:16.0 
             version: 04 
             width: 64 bits 
             clock: 33MHz 
             capabilities: pm msi bus_master cap_list 
             configuration: driver=mei_me latency=0 
             resources: irq:46 memory:f7a1a000-f7a1a00f 
        *-usb:1 
             description: USB controller 
             product: 7 Series/C210 Series Chipset Family USB Enhanced Host Controller #2 
             vendor: Intel Corporation 
             physical id: 1a 
             bus info: pci@0000:00:1a.0 
             version: 04 
             width: 32 bits 
             clock: 33MHz 
             capabilities: pm debug ehci bus_master cap_list 
             configuration: driver=ehci-pci latency=0 
             resources: irq:16 memory:f7a18000-f7a183ff 
        *-multimedia 
             description: Audio device 
             product: 7 Series/C210 Series Chipset Family High Definition Audio Controller 
             vendor: Intel Corporation 
             physical id: 1b 
             bus info: pci@0000:00:1b.0 
             version: 04 
             width: 64 bits 
             clock: 33MHz 
             capabilities: pm msi pciexpress bus_master cap_list 
             configuration: driver=snd_hda_intel latency=0 
             resources: irq:47 memory:f7a10000-f7a13fff 
        *-pci:1 
             description: PCI bridge 
             product: 7 Series/C210 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port 1 
             vendor: Intel Corporation 
             physical id: 1c 
             bus info: pci@0000:00:1c.0 
             version: c4 
             width: 32 bits 
             clock: 33MHz 
             capabilities: pci pciexpress msi pm normal_decode bus_master cap_list 
             configuration: driver=pcieport 
             resources: irq:16 
        *-pci:2 
             description: PCI bridge 
             product: 7 Series/C210 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port 2 
             vendor: Intel Corporation 
             physical id: 1c.1 
             bus info: pci@0000:00:1c.1 
             version: c4 
             width: 32 bits 
             clock: 33MHz 
             capabilities: pci pciexpress msi pm normal_decode bus_master cap_list 
             configuration: driver=pcieport 
             resources: irq:17 memory:f7900000-f79fffff 
           *-network UNCLAIMED 
                description: Network controller 
                product: MEDIATEK Corp. 
                vendor: MEDIATEK Corp. 
                physical id: 0 
                bus info: pci@0000:03:00.0 
                version: 00 
                width: 32 bits 
                clock: 33MHz 
                capabilities: pm msi pciexpress bus_master cap_list 
                configuration: latency=0 
                resources: memory:f7900000-f79fffff 
        *-pci:3 
             description: PCI bridge 
             product: 7 Series/C210 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port 4 
             vendor: Intel Corporation 
             physical id: 1c.3 
             bus info: pci@0000:00:1c.3 
             version: c4 
             width: 32 bits 
             clock: 33MHz 
             capabilities: pci pciexpress msi pm normal_decode bus_master cap_list 
             configuration: driver=pcieport 
             resources: irq:19 ioport:d000(size=4096) memory:f7800000-f78fffff ioport:f2100000(size=1048576) 
           *-generic 
                description: Unassigned class 
                product: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. 
                vendor: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. 
                physical id: 0 
                bus info: pci@0000:04:00.0 
                version: 01 
                width: 32 bits 
                clock: 33MHz 
                capabilities: pm msi pciexpress msix vpd bus_master cap_list 
                configuration: driver=rtsx_pci latency=0 
                resources: irq:43 memory:f7800000-f780ffff 
           *-network 
                description: Ethernet interface 
                product: RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller 
                vendor: Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. 
                physical id: 0.2 
                bus info: pci@0000:04:00.2 
                logical name: eth0 
                version: 0a 
                serial: bc:ee:7b:c8:2b:6e 
                size: 10Mbit/s 
                capacity: 1Gbit/s 
                width: 64 bits 
                clock: 33MHz 
                capabilities: pm msi pciexpress msix vpd bus_master cap_list ethernet physical tp mii 10bt 10bt-fd 100bt 100bt-fd 1000bt 1000bt-fd autonegotiation 
                configuration: autonegotiation=on broadcast=yes driver=r8169 driverversion=2.3LK-NAPI duplex=half firmware=rtl8411-1_0.0.3 06/18/12 latency=0 link=no multicast=yes port=MII speed=10Mbit/s 
                resources: irq:44 ioport:d000(size=256) memory:f2104000-f2104fff memory:f2100000-f2103fff 
        *-usb:2 
             description: USB controller 
             product: 7 Series/C210 Series Chipset Family USB Enhanced Host Controller #1 
             vendor: Intel Corporation 
             physical id: 1d 
             bus info: pci@0000:00:1d.0 
             version: 04 
             width: 32 bits 
             clock: 33MHz 
             capabilities: pm debug ehci bus_master cap_list 
             configuration: driver=ehci-pci latency=0 
             resources: irq:23 memory:f7a17000-f7a173ff 
        *-isa 
             description: ISA bridge 
             product: HM76 Express Chipset LPC Controller 
             vendor: Intel Corporation 
             physical id: 1f 
             bus info: pci@0000:00:1f.0 
             version: 04 
             width: 32 bits 
             clock: 33MHz 
             capabilities: isa bus_master cap_list 
             configuration: driver=lpc_ich latency=0 
             resources: irq:0 
        *-storage 
             description: SATA controller 
             product: 7 Series Chipset Family 6-port SATA Controller [AHCI mode] 
             vendor: Intel Corporation 
             physical id: 1f.2 
             bus info: pci@0000:00:1f.2 
             version: 04 
             width: 32 bits 
             clock: 66MHz 
             capabilities: storage msi pm ahci_1.0 bus_master cap_list 
             configuration: driver=ahci latency=0 
             resources: irq:42 ioport:f0b0(size=8) ioport:f0a0(size=4) ioport:f090(size=8) ioport:f080(size=4) ioport:f060(size=32) memory:f7a16000-f7a167ff 
        *-serial UNCLAIMED 
             description: SMBus 
             product: 7 Series/C210 Series Chipset Family SMBus Controller 
             vendor: Intel Corporation 
             physical id: 1f.3 
             bus info: pci@0000:00:1f.3 
             version: 04 
             width: 64 bits 
             clock: 33MHz 
             configuration: latency=0 
             resources: memory:f7a15000-f7a150ff ioport:f040(size=32) 
     *-scsi:0 
          physical id: 1 
          logical name: scsi0 
          capabilities: emulated 
        *-disk 
             description: ATA Disk 
             product: HGST HTS545050A7 
             physical id: 0.0.0 
             bus info: scsi@0:0.0.0 
             logical name: /dev/sda 
             version: GG2O 
             serial: TMA55CPY1DAA1M 
             size: 465GiB (500GB) 
             capabilities: partitioned partitioned:dos 
             configuration: ansiversion=5 sectorsize=4096 signature=741d2acd 
           *-volume:0 
                description: Windows NTFS volume 
                physical id: 1 
                bus info: scsi@0:0.0.0,1 
                logical name: /dev/sda1 
                version: 3.1 
                serial: b632-e160 
                size: 348MiB 
                capacity: 350MiB 
                capabilities: primary bootable ntfs initialized 
                configuration: clustersize=4096 created=2014-03-06 15:17:33 filesystem=ntfs label=Réservé au système modified_by_chkdsk=true mounted_on_nt4=true resize_log_file=true state=dirty upgrade_on_mount=true 
           *-volume:1 
                description: Windows NTFS volume 
                physical id: 2 
                bus info: scsi@0:0.0.0,2 
                logical name: /dev/sda2 
                version: 3.1 
                serial: 9e3a2a2d-60a8-294b-9952-4a3f810e4f0e 
                size: 465GiB 
                capacity: 465GiB 
                capabilities: primary ntfs initialized 
                configuration: clustersize=4096 created=2014-03-06 15:17:35 filesystem=ntfs state=clean 
     *-scsi:1 
          physical id: 2 
          logical name: scsi2 
          capabilities: emulated 
        *-cdrom 
             description: DVD-RAM writer 
             product: DVD A  DA8A5SH 
             vendor: Slimtype 
             physical id: 0.0.0 
             bus info: scsi@2:0.0.0 
             logical name: /dev/cdrom 
             logical name: /dev/sr0 
             version: 1AA3 
             capabilities: removable audio cd-r cd-rw dvd dvd-r dvd-ram 
             configuration: ansiversion=5 status=nodisc 
     *-scsi:2 
          physical id: 3 
          bus info: usb@3:1 
          logical name: scsi6 
          capabilities: emulated scsi-host 
          configuration: driver=usb-storage 
        *-disk 
             description: SCSI Disk 
             physical id: 0.0.0 
             bus info: scsi@6:0.0.0 
             logical name: /dev/sdb 
             size: 3824MiB (4009MB) 
             capabilities: partitioned partitioned:dos 
             configuration: sectorsize=512 signature=00051712 
           *-volume 
                description: Windows FAT volume 
                vendor: SYSLINUX 
                physical id: 1 
                bus info: scsi@6:0.0.0,1 
                logical name: /dev/sdb1 
                logical name: /cdrom 
                version: FAT32 
                serial: 602a-32d6 
                size: 3822MiB 
                capacity: 3823MiB 
                capabilities: primary bootable fat initialized 
                configuration: FATs=2 filesystem=fat mount.fstype=vfat mount.options=ro,noatime,fmask=0022,dmask=0022,codepage=437,iocharset=iso8859-1,shortname=mixed,errors=remount-ro state=mounted 
mint@mint ~ $ 
gold_finger

Re: no UEFI Firmware Settings/secure boot option on Asus x55

Post by gold_finger »

Zorba wrote:I want to dual-boot Linux Mint with Windows 8 on a new Asus x550c, but following the usual procedure I couldn't find anyway of disabling secure boot. What should I do? Should just install Linux Mint knowing that it's "boot mode" is set to "legacy" by default?
Here is some good information dealing with UEFI-based computers and Linux installations to them. Highly recommend you read these if UEFI is new for you, especially the first link.
http://www.rodsbooks.com/linux-uefi/
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/UEFI

There should be some way to turn off secure boot in the UEFI Settings(Startup) Menu. Do a search for your motherboard's user manual to find that out. If there really is no way to turn it off, then I guess you don't have a choice but to try the install with it on. I believe Ubuntu install can work with it on, but not sure about Mint.

Basic steps before you install Mint (Some of these I'm sure you already know and probably have already done):
  • * Backup anything important and make rescue/recovery disks for Win 8 if you haven't already done so.
    * Turn off "Secure Boot" and "Fast Startup" for Win 8.
    * Make sure Win 8 is fully shutdown before attempting Mint install. (See here: http://www.thewindowsclub.com/force-ful ... -windows-8.)
    * If Windows partitions cover entire disk, use Windows disk manager to shrink main partition creating space for Mint installation. (Defragment that partition before shrinking.)
    * DO NOT create partitions for Linux using Windows disk manager.
    * Determine whether you have 32-bit or 64-bit Win 8 and whether it was installed in UEFI-mode or BIOS/Legacy/CSM-mode. (See here for description on determining that: http://www.rodsbooks.com/refind/bootmode.html
    * If 32-bit Windows, then must have been installed in BIOS/Legacy/CSM-mode with MBR partitioning on the drive.
    * If 64-bit Windows, can be either UEFI-mode with GPT partitions, or BIOS-mode with MBR partitions. You need to know which and install Mint using the same mode.
If you find out that it is 64-bit Windows in UEFI-mode and GPT partitions AND have taken above steps AND have Mint booted in UEFI-mode, see partitioning & installation instructions starting about 1/4 way down on this post: http://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.p ... 08#p834594. I'm guessing, based on your experience level, that you can skip much of that and adjust partition sizes to your liking. The most important part is near the bottom for installing bootloader. (Again -- these instructions only apply to 64-bit Windows computer booting in UEFI-mode.)

Good luck!
pdc_2
Level 10
Level 10
Posts: 3019
Joined: Mon May 11, 2009 1:21 am

Re: no UEFI Firmware Settings/secure boot option on Asus x55

Post by pdc_2 »

you have got some really good and detailed advice above;

I saw this review on Linux Today a few days ago

http://www.zdnet.com/hands-on-my-new-as ... 000027284/

a frequent reviewer had installed several distros on linux on an ASUS computer running windows 8; and whilst the review does not offer the excellent detailed advice given in the posts above, you may find something of interest or relevance to you
kurotsugi

Re: no UEFI Firmware Settings/secure boot option on Asus x55

Post by kurotsugi »

I want to dual-boot Linux Mint with Windows 8 on a new Asus x550c, but following the usual procedure I couldn't find anyway of disabling secure boot. What should I do? Should just install Linux Mint knowing that it's "boot mode" is set to "legacy" by default?
asus didn't have this option. the first thing you need to do is check whether if the gpt runs on hybrid or protected mbr. if it runs on protected mbr you can try to install mint on it. if it run on hybrid mbr then it will be better if you are not install mint on it.
BTW when i prompt the bot menu, i see 2 options to boot from my USB drive: one line with my USB drive and the other is preceded by the word UEFI: name of my USB drive.

which one should i choose?
you can choose the first option.
srs5694
Level 6
Level 6
Posts: 1386
Joined: Mon Feb 27, 2012 1:42 pm

Re: no UEFI Firmware Settings/secure boot option on Asus x55

Post by srs5694 »

kurotsugi wrote:
I want to dual-boot Linux Mint with Windows 8 on a new Asus x550c, but following the usual procedure I couldn't find anyway of disabling secure boot. What should I do? Should just install Linux Mint knowing that it's "boot mode" is set to "legacy" by default?
asus didn't have this option. the first thing you need to do is check whether if the gpt runs on hybrid or protected mbr. if it runs on protected mbr you can try to install mint on it. if it run on hybrid mbr then it will be better if you are not install mint on it.
PCs running Windows will not normally use a hybrid MBR. Those are normally used only on Macs that dual-boot OS X and some other OS (usually Windows, but sometimes Linux or something else). As explained on the linked-to page, hybrid MBRs are an ugly and dangerous hack.
BTW when i prompt the bot menu, i see 2 options to boot from my USB drive: one line with my USB drive and the other is preceded by the word UEFI: name of my USB drive.

which one should i choose?
you can choose the first option.
I strongly disagree with this advice, albeit with the caveat that my disagreement is based on the assumption that the computer is currently booting in EFI/UEFI mode. You do not want to install Linux in BIOS/CSM/legacy mode (which is what the described first boot option will do) if Windows is installed in EFI/UEFI mode. Although it's often possible to get an OS installed in one mode to coexist with another OS installed in the other mode, it's usually both better and easier to ensure that both your OSes are installed in the same mode.
kurotsugi

Re: no UEFI Firmware Settings/secure boot option on Asus x55

Post by kurotsugi »

I have an asus, x451ca, and it comes with hybrid gpt out of the box. I know that hybrid gpt could ruin our system if we want a dualboot system. that's why I told him to not install any other OS if his x550 also comes with hybrid gpt.
srs5694
Level 6
Level 6
Posts: 1386
Joined: Mon Feb 27, 2012 1:42 pm

Re: no UEFI Firmware Settings/secure boot option on Asus x55

Post by srs5694 »

kurotsugi wrote:I have an asus, x451ca, and it comes with hybrid gpt out of the box. I know that hybrid gpt could ruin our system if we want a dualboot system. that's why I told him to not install any other OS if his x550 also comes with hybrid gpt.
This is the first I've heard of any computer that ships from the manufacturer with a hybrid MBR (assuming that's what you meant by "hybrid gpt"; if not, please elaborate, since "hybrid gpt" is not a term with which I'm familiar). Hybrid MBRs actually violate the GPT specification, and they're useful mainly on Macs that dual-boot OS X and Windows. Even Apple doesn't ship its Macs with hybrid MBRs; Apple leaves creation of hybrid MBRs to its Boot Camp software. I don't know why a laptop that ships with Windows (according to the ASUS site on the product) would need a hybrid MBR. If you really got a laptop with such a configuration, my initial guess is that it was an open-box unit and the previous owner attempted a Hackintosh installation on it, then returned it in a modified state.
kurotsugi

Re: no UEFI Firmware Settings/secure boot option on Asus x55

Post by kurotsugi »

GPT have two mode for the mother boot record. hybrid mode and protected mode. for certain reason some vendor prefer to shipped their product with hybrid ones. my laptop is one of them and I know it's not the only one.
User avatar
austin.texas
Level 20
Level 20
Posts: 12003
Joined: Tue Nov 17, 2009 3:57 pm
Location: at /home

Re: no UEFI Firmware Settings/secure boot option on Asus x55

Post by austin.texas »

Zorba, are you sure that Windows was installed in UEFI mode?
I didn't see the evidence of that in your hardware specs. Maybe I just missed it.
Mint 18.2 Cinnamon, Quad core AMD A8-3870 with Radeon HD Graphics 6550D, 8GB DDR3, Ralink RT2561/RT61 802.11g PCI
Linux Linx 2018
srs5694
Level 6
Level 6
Posts: 1386
Joined: Mon Feb 27, 2012 1:42 pm

Re: no UEFI Firmware Settings/secure boot option on Asus x55

Post by srs5694 »

kurotsugi wrote:GPT have two mode for the mother boot record. hybrid mode and protected mode. for certain reason some vendor prefer to shipped their product with hybrid ones. my laptop is one of them and I know it's not the only one.
I'm the author of GPT fdisk (gdisk) and the maintainer of rEFInd, so I watch GPT and EFI issues pretty closely. For the benefit of clearer communication, here are some brief definitions:
  • Master Boot Record (MBR) -- The first sector of a hard disk. On a BIOS-based computer, the MBR typically holds both a BIOS-mode boot loader and a partition table. The MBR boot loader is used only by BIOS, not by EFI.
  • GUID Partition Table (GPT) -- A partition table intended to replace the MBR partition table. The GPT includes five sub-components: a protective MBR (see below), a primary/main GPT header, a primary/main partition table, a secondary/backup partition table, and a secondary/backup GPT header.
  • Protective MBR -- A GPT component that is an MBR partition table that defines a single partition of type 0xEE that spans the entire disk (or up to 2^32 sectors, on disks larger than that). The purpose of the protective MBR is to keep GPT-unaware tools from messing with the disk. The idea is that such tools will see this partition and think that the disk is already fully in use.
  • Hybrid MBR -- An illegal variant on the protective MBR in which the type-0xEE partition is shrunk and between one and three GPT partitions are duplicated in the MBR. Importantly, when confronted with a hybrid MBR disk, Windows treats it as an MBR disk (ignoring the GPT data), whereas OS X and Linux both treat it as a GPT disk (ignoring the MBR entries). This is important for dual-booting Windows on Macs, but it also makes a hybrid MBR worse than useless on a UEFI-based PC running Windows 8, since Windows refuses to boot in UEFI mode from an MBR disk (including a hybrid MBR disk).
  • Motherboard -- The main board in a computer, which holds the CPU and firmware and into which other components are plugged.
  • Protected mode -- A CPU operating mode in x86 and x86-64 CPUs. Protected mode helps implement features like virtual memory, paging, and multi-tasking. It has nothing to do with partitioning.
I've never heard the terms "mother boot record," or "hybrid mode," at least not in this context, and your use of "protected mode" is clearly incorrect. I suspect that you meant the following:
My interpretation of what you meant wrote:The GPT's master boot record can be either hybrid or protective. for certain reasons some vendors prefer to ship their products with hybrid MBRs. my laptop is one of them and I know it's not the only one.
If so, the first statement is sort-of correct, in that a hybrid MBR is a variant of the GPT's standard protective MBR that is recognized by many tools; however, a hybrid MBR is a clear violation of the GPT specification. Thus, a disk that uses a hybrid MBR technically does not use GPT. If the computer ships with Windows installed as the sole OS, it's also a completely brain-dead configuration, because Windows will see the disk as an MBR disk, making the GPT data worse than useless. Such a configuration can easily lead to lost data. Any manufacturer that ships a Windows-only PC with a hybrid MBR is incompetent.

I have yet to hear of any confirmed cases of manufacturers shipping computers with hybrid MBRs. I have heard of one or two cases of people getting computers with hybrid MBRs, and another two or three cases in which people have gotten computers with MBR disks that have leftover GPT data. (This second case differs from a hybrid MBR in that there is no type-0xEE partition in the MBR. This situation can arise if a GPT disk is repartitioned with a GPT-unaware tool.) These cases have all been "open-box specials" that have had previous owners. It's entirely possible that such a computer was first bought by somebody who created a hybrid MBR setup or who converted the disk from GPT to MBR, probably because they were following Hackintosh installation instructions or because they re-installed Windows in BIOS mode, but who returned the computer to the store without restoring it to its original state. This does not reflect the manufacturer's configuration. If you believe that you've received a factory-fresh computer with a hybrid MBR, please provide more details, such as view of the disk as you received it with gdisk and fdisk and information on what OS(es) came pre-installed on the computer.
kurotsugi

Re: no UEFI Firmware Settings/secure boot option on Asus x55

Post by kurotsugi »

deeply sorry but I can't give the detail what gdisk said. honestly, I already forgot it :3
when I found that my laptop have hybrid mbr I quickly convert it to mbr. it was about 2 month ago. as for the other information. it's an asus a451ca comes with:
- 500gb HD with three partition.
- DOS
since it has no usable OS I deleted all the partition, create new partitions (100MB for window's boot, 30gb for window's, 300gb for shared data, 20gb for linux system and 30gb for /home ). after that I installed win7 on it then a LMDE later. everything seems fine but I notice something is strange. all of the partition is primary partition so that since I have 5 primary partition I assume that I have gpt. on other hand my LMDE strangely could boot out of the box (LMDE didnt support gpt until UP8, it should not boot until I install grub-efi). upon my curiosity I use gdisk to check it and turns out that it's a hybrid mbr. after that I convert it to mbr and reinstall my LMDE.
Locked

Return to “Hardware Support”