Emulation Type
Possible values:
Auto, Floppy, Forced FDD, hard drive, CDROM
Description:
This option determines how the external drives With USB interface(Flash key fobs, external hard drives, optical disc drives, other similar devices). The best option would be to set the value Auto when the desired emulation type is selected depending on the type and size of the drive. If necessary, you can force floppy emulation ( Forced FDD), optical disc drives ( CDROM) or conventional hard drives (hard drive). Meaning Floppy intended for removable media.
What is the danger of choosing the wrong value? Depending on the type of emulation, the search for the main boot record(Master Boot Records), read partition information. So if you specified the wrong type or there was an error in it automatic detection, you will not be able to boot from this drive and, possibly, you will be deprived of access to the information stored on it. In general, nothing irreparable. If you still need to manually specify the type of emulation, it is quite clear from the given option names which type to use in a particular case. For Flash drives, the type of emulation depends on how you formatted and created them. boot sector: Hard disk emulation is usually used, occasionally it is necessary to present the drive as a floppy disk.
Most often, we remember about the BIOS (Basic Input / Output System) only when we need to reinstall the operating system and need to somehow set it to boot from a disk or flash drive. I often wrote about this in articles such as:, and others. Now I want to gather together and refer only to this article when necessary. This article will be useful for all BIOS versions and for different companies. A sort of single guide
The first thing you need to know is that the BIOS is divided by manufacturer and version.
To change boot method in BIOS- you need to enter it first.
You can, of course, find out what version and manufacturer of your BIOS is from the manual that comes with your computer.
You can also find out by looking at the line at the top on the black screen during boot (the manufacturer will be indicated there).
Well, then enter the BIOS, knowing what it is for you.
In some BIOS versions there is no such screen showing lines. There is just a logo there and something like "Press F2 to enter SETUP" is written below, which means we press F2. If there is just a logo and there are no inscriptions - press ESC, and then del or f2
Here is a small list of manufacturers and keyboard shortcuts for entering BIOS:
Also, at the bottom of the black screen, keys are written to enter the BIOS and to display a list that contains available devices for booting and so that you can boot from it. But about him at the end of the article.
As you can see - most often you need to press the key F2 or Del.
Now you need to put a USB flash drive or disk into the boot.
Let's look at several examples that differ from the BIOS manufacturer.
Configuring Award Bios to boot from a USB flash drive or disk:
The main window is like this, in which we need the second item:
Further depends on the firmware version. In one case, you will need to go to an item similar to "Boot Seq & Floppy Setup"
in another case, you don’t need to go anywhere - everything will be in front of your eyes anyway
clicks on First boot device(First boot device), click Enter and this window will appear
in which you need to select a disk or flash drive that will be launched first. You can specify the Second boot device, for example, but usually the BIOS itself fills in this data.
On a note:
If you choose a flash drive, then, among other things, you also need to go to the “Hard Disk Boot Priority” item and move our flash drive to the very top using the “+” and “-” or “PageUp” and “PageDown” buttons:
It is also worth remembering that in order for the BIOS to see the USB flash drive, you need to connect it before turning it on or before rebooting
Then press "F10" (see the exact key in the prompt at the bottom of the screen with the name "Save", "Exit") or go to the main BIOS menu and select the "Save and Exit Setup" item. In the red box, select "Yes" with the "Y" button on the keyboard and press "Enter"
The computer will restart and when booting from the Windows installation disk, you may receive such a request for a few seconds " Press any key to boot from CD or DVD…”
Which translates to "Press any button to boot from CD or DVD."
This means that if at this moment you do not press any button on the keyboard, the computer will continue to boot from the next device in the list.
Another variation of this bios:
I only met this on old computers ten years ago until 2003. The main menu looks like this:
To set the boot order, you need to go to the menu BIOS FEATURES SETUP:
At this point, we just select with the PageUp and PageDown buttons (or Enter and arrows) what to set first - a CDROM or a USB flash drive. DO NOT forget about the second and third device
And further:
How to choose what to boot from in AMI BIOS
If, upon entering BIOS, you see such a screen, then you have AMI BIOS:
Using the right arrow key on the keyboard, move to the Boot tab:
We go to "Hard Disk Drives" and in the line "1st Drive" (may be called "First Drive") select a disk or flash drive:
Next, go to "Boot Device Priority", go to "1st Boot Device" and select from the list what you chose in the previous tab (i.e. if you selected a USB flash drive in Hard Disk Drives, then you need to specify it here. This is important! )
To boot from a CD/DVD disc, you need to select "ATAPI CD-ROM" (or simply "CDROM") in this menu, and there is no need to go to the previous menu "Hard Disk Drives".
Now we save the results with the "F10" button or go to the "Exit" BIOS section and select "Exit Saving Changes".
Another AMI BIOS, but here everything is clear:
Setting up Phoenix-Award Bios to boot from a USB flash drive
If, upon entering BIOS, you see such a screen, then you have a Phoenix- Award BIOS:
Go to the “Advanced” tab and opposite “First Boot Device” set what you need (flash drive or disk):
Save with F10
Configuring EFI (UEFI) Bios with GUI to boot from flash drive
Now this is no surprise to anyone. Almost all new computers are supplied with a similar shell. You can read more about it in the article.
When loading, at the bottom of the screen there is a section "Boot Priority", where you can use the mouse (drag and drop) to set pictures correct order downloads.
You can also click on the right upper corner Exit/Advanced mode button and select Advanced mode in the appeared window.
Next, go to the "Boot" tab and in the section Boot Option Priorities in the "Boot Option # 1" field, set the USB flash drive, DVD-ROM, hard drive, or other available device as the default boot device.
How to boot from a USB flash drive or from a disk without entering BIOS
This is what I wrote about almost at the very beginning of the article.
This is when you need to press the key once and a window will appear with a choice of download. This method does not change the BIOS settings.
Usually Award BIOS offers to press "F9" to call the boot menu, and AMI asks to press "F8". On laptops, this may be the "F12" key.
In general - look at the bottom line and look for items like "Press F8 for BBS POPUP" or "Press F9 to Select Booting Device after POST".
Why can't I boot from a USB flash drive into the BIOS?
Possible reasons: 
On ancient computers, there is generally no way to boot from USB flash drives. If there is no newer BIOS, then the project can help.
1) Download from the link above latest version"Plop Boot Manager" and unpack.
2) The archive contains files: plpbt.img is an image for a floppy disk, and plpbt.iso is an image for a CD.
3) Write the image to disk and boot from it (or from a floppy disk).
4) A menu will appear in which we select our USB flash drive and boot from it.
Little decoding of disk designations when choosing:
Do not forget after you have done what you wanted (namely, why did you change the boot in the BIOS) - return the boot settings back so that the computer boots from hard drive.
Important Note: All materials are presented for informational purposes and for the sake of enlightening blondes.
Inset. Live CD(also LiveCD and CD Live Distro - English live CD, pronounced "living si-di") - an operating system that boots from removable media (CD, DVD, USB drive, etc.) that does not require operation of the installation on the hard disk. The same concept refers to media with such operating systems (sometimes they distinguish between LiveCD, LiveDVD and LiveUSB, depending on the media).
Petersburg ordeals, or why USB-CDROM
As I expected, the option to stupidly throw installation files operating system didn't work on the card. A more subtle approach is needed here. The study revealed significant differences (and part-time difficulties) recording a bootable USB flash drive, compared with a CD. Here they are:
1) The need to spend a little more time in the BIOS
Many people are generally frightened by the cyanotic color of this program and a lot of English words, and in our case we have to navigate through it. Moreover, USB turned out to be so "inferior" that it is often disabled by default, and in especially outdated versions it is completely absent (it is treated with a BIOS update). The BIOSes themselves can be very different from each other, each of them will have to be re-oriented.
2) Imitation of booting from a usb drive
Even if we were lucky enough to see in BIOS the ability to boot from usb, then there will be several options for such a download at once (although not always). Moreover, each of them is an imitation of downloading from other devices (for example, USB FDD and USB ZIP- imitation of loading from a floppy disk, USB-HDD- from the hard disk, USB-CDROM- from an optical CD). This introduces some confusion in the solution of the problem.
3) Correct formatting of the flash drive and binding to the manufacturer
Before writing information to a flash drive, it must be formatted. And this is done in a special way in order to correspond to one of the selected boot options, marked with the paragraph above. The piquancy is added by the fact that for each flash drive there is a specific set of utilities from the manufacturer, with the help of which formatting and direct recording of boot data is carried out.
Jumping ahead a little
I started my acquaintance with software tools for creating a bootable USB flash drive with flashboot- excellent multifunctional software. Its trouble is that it supported the progressive USB-HDD format, which was not presented in my BIOS. I do not give links, since this does not affect the subject of the article.
The second massive attempt involved a powerful contraption WinSetupFromUSB. Differs in support of imitation of floppy disks (USB-FDD and USB-ZIP). After stubborn battles with minimal knowledge and mastering the program, I managed to stir up a USB flash drive for download using the USB-ZIP method (which, in terms of intensity of passions, is worthy of reflection in a separate article). The system even wrote at startup, they say, Start booting and all that. After that, a black screen with this text froze for an indefinite time. I did not wait a couple of hours and rejected toys with a virtual floppy.
So I have the method USB-CDROM. Google gave out much less information about him. To implement it, you need to format the USB flash drive so that the system begins to see our device both as a CD drive and as an additional one. HDD, for example. The first one contains the operating system (in our case, LiveCD), the second partition is used as a drive where you can throw additional programs(for example, a fresh working antivirus). The beauty! This is the only way that really worked on my machine, and we will talk about it in the future.
Actually, I didn't search very well. The USB-HDD option is often found in the hard disk boot submenu
Preparatory stages
First, let's take care of what to write on the flash drive. That is, we need bootable distribution(image) of the operating system (file with extension .iso). You can find a ready-made image on the net or make it yourself by gutting the original Windows disk (we don’t take Linux into account), but this is worth a separate topic.
Dancing with the BIOS
Working in the BIOS is perhaps the most frightening and unexplored part of the common cause. It requires at least elementary knowledge of the English language, the ability to isolate among other foreign words such words as USB, Boot (Download), etc. Unfortunately, there are so many BIOS stamped that it is unrealistic to reflect all the modifications and their menus in the article. I will describe the stages of work using the example of my computer.
1. Get into the BIOS
You can jump there when you turn on the computer (when the letters run on a black background) by repeatedly pressing (to be sure) the Delete key (less often F2 or Escape).
As a result, we get to the BIOS main menu. For me it looks like this:
2. Turn on USB support.
It often happens that USB is disabled by default (Disabled value), and the BIOS "does not see" the inserted USB flash drive. It is clear that in this case any attempts to boot from it are doomed to failure. The main problem is to find the menu item in which the setting we need is located. In our example, she sits on the fourth line from the left - Integrated Peripherals(see picture above). If we go there, we will see the following picture:
As you can see from the figure, USB Controller and USB Device Legacy Support parameters are suspicious. In the figure, they are already enabled (Disabled - disabled, Enabled - enabled). However, usb settings can have completely different names, and you may not see such a picture on another computer. That is, all this will be called something else. Keyword for search, as you understand, this is USB. To help the inquisitive mind of the user, I recommend that you familiarize yourself with the list of possible settings and brief description each of them. The seeker will find.
3. Set the order of loading
By enabling USB, you need to force the BIOS to boot from it in the first place. The order of precedence in our example is determined by the settings group Advanced BIOS Features
Also quite often the load order is hidden in the menu item Boot or in combination with this word. The figure above as the first boot device(First Boot Device) CDROM is specified. Following the logic of the intended actions, change the value of the field to USB CDROM. The second device (Second Boot Device) can be left as Hard Disk. The work is completed, we exhale, save the settings and exit (usually F10 - Save & Exit). "Hot keys" and their purpose are indicated at the bottom of the screen.
It also happens like this: no matter how much we look for where to turn on USB, we do not find it. And in the order of loading there are no options from USB. Most likely, this is the most unpleasant case - the BIOS is outdated and does not support USB. In this case, soap the rope and stand on a stool, go to the BIOS manufacturer's website and update the version.
And finally. For those who want to get to know this funny animal called the BIOS a little closer, we have a little bonus in store.
Disassembly with a flash drive
Inset. Controller(English controller - regulator, control device) - control device in electronics and computer technology
If you have an exotic controller that is not on the list, you will have to go to the website of the controller manufacturer and scour in search of desired programs. A reasonable question arises: how to understand which controller our flash drive is on? This is done simply. Download the useful ChipGenius utility, insert the USB flash drive into the port and run the program. Here is what she gave out for my Kingston:
So, we have decided on the controller (skymedi), let's turn to software tools this manufacturer. They turn out to be (according to the corresponding instructions) a set of utilities SK6211BA-20090227.
After unpacking the downloaded archive on the desktop, run the file SK6211_20090227_BA.exe
My flash drive was defined on one of the 8 ports, which is symbolized by the inscription Ready. We press the button Advance ( Advanced settings). We get into a new window:
This is an empty window (with inactive fields). In the only active field Password(Password) enter 123456 and click Check. After that, the program will automatically select the settings, as in the screenshot below. However, you must manually enter PreCopyPath(select after pressing the Browse key the PreCopy directory, which is located in the folder with the downloaded program).
The setup is not finished yet. We press the button Multi-Partition and get into the third window, intended for additional settings. The most important here are the ticks Enable CDROM, Enable CDROM booting and field ISO Image, where we specify the path to the previously downloaded LiveCD image. Otherwise, the filling goes automatically, as in the screenshot:
By clicking OK, we roll back to the previous window, where we enter the name of our new configuration in the Config File field (for example, Kingston_4G). Next, finally save the settings (Save) and return to the main program window. Selecting a button Auto LLF and waiting...
Formatting and recording started.
Upon completion, we safely remove the device, and when reattached, the system already sees two devices instead of one flash drive.
We send the computer to reboot and boot safely from the USB flash drive. I must say, the newly-minted LiveUSB rose without problems, and besides, in terms of speed, it was several times ahead of the analogue on CD due to high-speed data exchange. If I understand correctly, the program for the skymedi controller from the considered example can knock out only 1 partition from the flash drive for the CD drive. This means that, alas, it will not be possible to burn a LiveCD and a full-fledged image to the card at the same time. However, as a test, nothing prevents you from throwing an assembly with an integrated LiveCD onto a USB flash drive and getting a bootable contraption "for all occasions" at the output. In addition, it is quite possible that this restriction can be bypassed on other controllers. Need to check.
Often, installing the Windows operating system with USB flash drives is the only possible solution for owners of devices (netbooks, nettops and others) where there is no disk drive, and external USB drives, although they are the most widespread in the consumer electronics market, are still not available to everyone. In addition, this method is largely justified and has a number of advantages (compactness, reliability of data storage, high speed reading) even compared to the traditional installation method with a CD\DVD drive.
So, in order to install Windows on a nettop or laptop (netbook) in the absence of a disk drive, or if you just want to have a distribution kit with one or another release of the operating system always at hand, you will need to burn a bootable USB flash drive. One of the simplest, and most importantly, working options is to burn a bootable USB flash drive using the UltraISO program.
Despite the fact that the program belongs to the category of shareware software, the free (trial) version of UltraISO (Russian version) is quite suitable for creating a bootable USB flash drive with the operating system, you can download the program.
Next, as an example, consider the process of creating a bootable USB flash drive for 64-bit Windows 8.1. Please note that the method described here is only suitable for Windows 7 and Windows 8 operating systems, for Windows XP this process is slightly different.
Download and run the program, such a window will appear, select here " Trial period …».
The main program window will open, in the menu select: File → Open,
after which we find the image file with the .iso extension (or may be different: IMG, MDF, NRG, etc.) in Windows Explorer(it is assumed that we already have a virtual image of the operating system on the hard disk of the computer) and click "Open".
At the next stage, select the menu item "Boot" → "Burn image of the Hard disk ..."
This window will appear (if you have not inserted a USB flash drive, now is the time to do it).
Here you need to pay attention to the “Writing Method” item, UltraISO developers recommend choosing USB-HDD +. Here it is worth explaining that the recording method offered by the program at this step, namely: USB-HDD, USB-ZIP, USB-HDD+, USB-ZIP+, USB-HDD+ v2, USB-ZIP+ v 2 are emulation modes of the corresponding devices. For example, the main difference between the USB-HDD method and the USB-HDD+ method is that when using advanced mode (USB-HDD+), the bootable flash drive is more likely to be compatible with BIOS addition or other computer (laptop), etc. than when using a basic USB-HDD. In turn, USB-HDD + v2 will ensure the compatibility of your bootable USB flash drive with almost any, even very specific BIOS, so we recommend using it right away.
We also note that when using UltraISO there is no need to format the USB flash drive in advance, the program will do everything by itself, the only thing before inserting a USB flash drive and starting recording, make sure that there is no important information for you on it. However, after you click "Record", the program will warn you about this with such a message.
We are waiting for the end of the recording process, upon completion we get a universal bootable USB flash drive with which we can easily install the operating system Windows system(in our case, Windows 8.1) to any computer, laptop, nettop, etc.
The actual process of installing the operating system from a USB flash drive is no different from that via a disk, however, in order for everything to work, you must correctly set the device boot priority in the BIOS of your computer.
Now the question of what it is - USB FDD, appears less and less on the Web. People stopped being interested in such devices, since disks first appeared, and later flash drives. But still, a floppy drive can be useful for those who have an outdated motherboard model.
Is it necessary?
Despite the fact that modern PCs no longer support floppy disks, special "adapters" can be purchased. Such floppy drives are connected to a PC via a USB interface. The question also arises whether it is realistic to put Windows on Raid if there is no floppy disk drive itself.
If suddenly the installation of the operating system requires special drivers from you, this requires a physical drive and a floppy disk. You can purchase either the drive itself, which is connected to the motherboard, or you can buy a USB drive.
Appearance
If you don't know what USB FDD is, chances are you've never seen a floppy disk. Previously, these storage media were often used instead of flash drives and disks, since those were not yet available.
The first floppy drive became known during its existence. It was five inches and used only one side. It fit on such a floppy disk 180 Kb. Later, double-sided floppy disks began to appear and doubled recording density appeared. The capacity of many reached 720 Kb.
It is interesting that at that time all this was enough, since an operating system like DOS or a second Windows versions used some space. The PC could only work with a floppy drive. He didn't need a Winchester.
Of course, a little later there was a need to create additional memory. Floppy disks have become even larger and have acquired 1.44 MB. 3.5-inch floppy disks immediately became known. Such drives got into the computer and were no different in general. Before there were operating systems on disks, they were placed on a floppy disk.
Inside
Before there was an external FDD USB, the use of an internal floppy drive was available. Older motherboards still support its connection. He joins through a special loop. Power is connected through the power supply. Most likely, if in principle you do not have the use of a floppy drive, you will have to activate its operation in the BIOS.
BIOS
Enabling the internal drive will depend on the BIOS version. Anyway, look for the Integrated Peripherals section. The menu will have a line with Onboard FDD Controller. Here you need to activate this controller by selecting Enabled.
Maybe there will be such a problem that everything is on, but the drive itself is not displayed anywhere in the system. To do this, in the first paragraph of the BIOS, we are looking for Standard CMOS Features. For Drive A, you will need to select the floppy drive options.
If you have more a new version BIOS, then you need to go to the second tab, find the Devices Configuration line there and turn on the controller using it. The drive is also activated on the first tab.
External device
Here we are directly close to understanding USB FDD: what it is and how to work with it. If you don't have a disk drive, and motherboard does not support connection internal device, then you can purchase There is a line in BIOS where you can optionally connect FDD as a USB device.
In the USB settings, this item is specified in different ways. Look for a combination of the words Legacy and USB. It will indicate whether the option is enabled or disabled next to it. Can be set to automatic. The outer floppy should work. But do not forget to immediately check that all existing USB controllers are connected, and the mode for them is set from 2.0.
Replacement
But to answer the question of what it is - USB FDD, it is possible in a slightly different way. It turns out that in the BIOS settings you can configure the floppy emulator. If you go to the USB Mass Storage menu, you can see the Emulation Type item there. In it you will find the Forced FDD parameter. In this case, you will be able to create a floppy drive emulation.
You will not need to purchase a floppy drive. They can be a simple flash drive. The only thing is that it will need to be used a little differently. If you need to put the Raid driver on the drive, then a simple format may not be enough.
Installation
This is due to the fact that the flash memory itself is somewhat unprepared for what USB FDD drives could do right away. For it to work correctly, you will have to install an additional program. You will need to download FlashBoot with the antivirus turned off and with administrator rights.
It must be said right away that paid program, but for one time you will be enough demo version. Select the floppy to USB conversion. After you need to select a floppy image. But remember that you will have to download it from the official website of the board manufacturer.
To get a floppy disk image, you can go to official resource. The resolution of the document will be ".img". Each of them contains a 1.44 MB floppy disk. If you yourself want to make an image from an existing floppy disk, you will need the Floppyimage utility
So let's continue. We select Wrap, and then we indicate on which flash drive all data will be written. Next on the line indicating file system you need to select FAT12, and then click on formatting. Everything is ready, you can work with the emulator.
In general, as practice shows, there are too many troubles in this case. It is much easier to buy a 3.5 FDD USB drive. Although many believe that such a device will lie idle for a long time, and are wondering if it makes sense to spend an extra $ 20 on it.
Programs
Of course, all the methods described are now less relevant than they were in 2012-2013. or even earlier. But the Internet can still ask similar questions. This is due to the fact that some programs find it difficult to work without a CD-drive or floppy disk drive. Such applications can store a small amount of data on the media. In this case, you need to “deceive” the system conditionally. This is done during emulation.
There are many programs for this business. For example, ImDisk can be considered a good option. It can be simply downloaded, without additional installations. Once you have found the file with the ".exe" extension, it will be enough just to run it. In the program, you need to select a floppy disk image. As in the case of setting up the BIOS, it will be enough to select drive "A", which used to be responsible for the floppy drive.
Ready device
Of course, there is an option for the laziest. You can try to purchase a 3.5 FDD USB drive emulator. It easily translates a system that specifically asks for 3.5-inch floppy disks. In general, this option is needed for all sorts of technological equipment. For example, machine tools, medical devices, etc.
Such an emulator is connected to a PC via a standard interface, but at the same time, not a floppy disk, but a flash drive is installed in it.
boot drive
If you have worked with bootable flash drive, then most likely you would like to know what USB FDD is in BIOS. You understand that if you just throw all the files of the operating system onto a USB flash drive, then nothing good will come of it. Therefore, you need to make a bootable version of the drive. To do this, you will have to not only work with programs on the desktop, but also go to BIOS.
Depending on what goals you are pursuing or what capabilities your PC has, you should choose the download option. When you get into BIOS, you will see that there is a whole list of options. If we talk about simulating boot from other devices, then there is the already familiar USB FDD, USB HDD, USB CDROM.
variability
The first option is needed to simulate a floppy disk (by the way, there is also a USB ZIP with it). The second option is to boot from the hard drive, and the last one helps you install the OS from an optical CD.
The choice of one of them will depend on the possibilities. For example, many programs that prepare a flash drive only work in USB HDD format. But this option does not support all BIOS versions. This situation can create a problem in which you simply cannot start the USB flash drive. The WinSetupFromUSB program works with floppy drives, hard drives and regular discs, so this utility is suitable for absolutely everyone.
How it works?
Regardless of which option you choose, you will need to verify that all controllers are working and enabled. After that, you will need to set the download order. For all PCs, loading starts from the hard drive. To select a flash drive, you need to move it up in turn. Then it is from her that the download will begin first.
But remember that if you are using a flash drive as a USB FDD imitation, then you will need to select a floppy drive from the list. In the First Boot Device line, specify the FDD USB option. Let the hard drive remain the second in the boot sequence.
One of the problems that can overtake you in this process is when the BIOS does not support booting from a flash drive. Then either use all the options described above (create an emulator, buy a floppy drive), or just try updating the BIOS version.