I'm looking to erase my laptop's Windows 11 installation and set up Linux Mint (22.2) instead. However, my laptop, a Lenovo IdeaPad 3 with an Intel i7-1165G7 CPU, isn't recognizing the USB drive in the BIOS. The only boot option visible is the Windows Boot Manager. I've already made sure that Fast Boot is disabled, Secure Boot is off, and USB boot is enabled. Interestingly, just last month I was able to boot into Linux Mint (22.1) from this same USB drive without any issues. I've tried using different USB ports, including USB-C with an adapter, and have switched between MBR and GPT settings for the USB flash drive, but nothing seems to work. Any advice on how to proceed?
1 Answer
It sounds like your laptop might have a legacy boot option hidden in a different setting. On some models, it could be labeled as UEFI/CSM. Try looking for that option and see if changing it helps you boot from the USB.
I don't see any UEFI or CSM options in my BIOS. Are those settings usually buried in advanced configurations?