One Time Boot Menu can't get in

Framework Laptop 13
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I’m trying to boot my laptop from a USB stick. I’ve tried multiple different boot drives, including a flash drive I use to start another laptop (UEFI). Multiple images too, including straight up Ubuntu as per the Ubuntu guide

When I try to hit F12 during the timeout window (I set it to 3 seconds) (I’ve also set the text mode boot instead of the logo boot for more information), the computer stops accepting input. I can no longer hit F2 to get to the regular “BIOS” menu. The only resolution is powering down (a short press on the power button) and then powering up again.

I’ve also tried the described 35 second cooldown from the Ubuntu guide. No success.

If I wait, I get to the “Boot Manager” which never has anything on its list, allowing me only to hit Escape and then get told “No bootable device – Please restart system”

1 Like
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Maybe try disabling Secure Boot?

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Disabled secure boot before starting and even wiped all the keys eventually (they are still available if I reset that menu to the factory defaults, a nice touch)

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Does your USB stick have a viable bootable system on it? Can you verify with another system, or recreate it?

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I have a USB stick that I can verify boots a UEFI mode laptop. No joy on the framework.

I’ve recreated a different set of sticks several times. I think the problem I have is F12 freezing the machine, and that may be tied to why I can’t boot from a flash drive.

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Do you have an OS on the main drive?

Maybe the frame work people will chime in soon.

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I at least don’t, so in theory I could find a way to install to the main drive and then transplant it back.

I got the drive online, a western digital, it’s as of yet unused.

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Do any of the keys feel like they’re sticking? One user had a loose keyboard screw jamming a key.

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Afraid not. I do notice one case screw doesn’t go out as far as the other screws when opening up, but all the keyboard keys seem fine.

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That one bottom screw is normal. It doesn’t come out all the way so it pops up the input cover a bit to make room for a fingernail or spudger in the gap.

Does an external keyboard work? And you’ll need to be careful, but something I’ve done on other (non-Framework) laptops with defective keyboards is power on the laptop, then unplug the keyboard and use an external keyboard to test from there.

1 Like
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What an interesting question!

The answer is the external keyboard does work, I can get into the various menus. I also plugged in an ethernet dongle and my “Boot Manger” menu does show the pxe options (I enabled v4 and v6).

I might try pxebooting.

Hitting F12 on the external keyboard has the same effect as when I hit it on the built in keyboard: the machine freezes and waits for me to turn it off.

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I have now tried pxebooting. Not with success. Still working on it, but I’m not hopeful: so far I haven’t been able to make it ask the tftpd for the file.

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Solved my initial problem:

When F12 is pressed during boot, and there are NO boot options, the Boot Manager menu does not come up and the laptop freezes.

The One Time Boot menu is the Boot Manager menu you get if you just let it continue a bit (having no current boot options).

Turns out plugging the flash drive in to a dongle instead of the USB A expansion card worked. I… just don’t know how.

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If I take my SSD out and then power on, without any keyboard input it comes to a “Default Boot Device Missing or Boot Failed…” error.

And if I power on and start tapping F12, then I get the Boot Manager menu but with no options available. Just thought of something, I didn’t reset the BIOS to default so I’m not sure if that’s changing the behavior.

So it sounds like maybe a defective USB-A expansion card, but the behavior with the boot keys still sounds odd to me. I take it the installer is working now if plugged into the dongle?

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Two defective USB A expansion cards or 3 defective USB drives. (My normal boot drive for another laptop where my /boot and grub are on this flash drive, my normal live ISO flash drive, and another one I use for live ISOs when I can’t find the other one).

Really weird.

Yep I am booted into Linux via the dongle, able to run through installation. A great place to be.

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I’d be curious if the USB drives work without issue once the OS is loaded.

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@Vaelatern that is indeed strange. Definitely interested in hearing if any issues persist as you use the laptop.

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IIRC you should be able to get into the regular BIOS with F2 and change the EFI boot order there as well (without using the F12 option).

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I’ve installed a Linux and now I can’t get into the F12 menu, or even the F2 menu at all!

So weird. May be because I set the efi boot order with efibootmgr, but I don’t know how that would affect early boot procedures (I have a 3 second delay for the Framework logo to display before boot proceeds).

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@Vaelatern does it now also not work with an external USB keyboard? @Kieran_Levin thoughts?