How to Boot ASUS Laptop From USB

You may need to boot your ASUS laptop from a USB if you are planning to upgrade or install an operating system through USB. It can also come in handy while updating the BIOS or when the laptop has no optical disk drive.

In this article, we’ll show you how to make a bootable USB first and then boot your ASUS laptop from it. You will need the following things to get started:

• A working computer with an internet connection
• USB drive with a capacity of at least 16 GB

Step 1: Prepare the USB Drive

Note: This process will remove all files stored in the USB drive. Make sure to backup any important files before proceeding.

First, ensure you have a working computer and sufficient USB storage to download the files.

Then, format the USB drive to the FAT32 file system on your PC. This not a requirement,however, if you are using a Media creation tool to make a bootable USB. But, if you are trying to flash/update the BIOS, this step may be necessary. 

Normally, downloading the necessary files and storing them on the USB won’t make the drive automatically bootable.

For instance, if you’re trying to install Windows into your ASUS laptop, you will need to download and run the Windows Media creation tool to make that happen. You can also use specific tools like Rufus. You can read more about this in our comprehensive guide to install Windows from USB.

Step 2: Select the Boot Device

After making the USB boot compatible, change the boot media from the Boot menu. This is a separate menu in ASUS devices that allow you to select the boot media directly without the need to access the BIOS.

1. On startup, press the Boot menu key repeatedly before the logo screen appears.
   
2. From the list, select the USB device as the boot drive and press Enter.
   
3. Your laptop will now boot from the USB drive.

The Boot menu key and the BIOS key prompt will differ according to models. Here we have listed the key prompts for some popular ASUS laptops:

Laptop ModelBIOS keyBoot menu keyVivobook SeriesDelete key, F2 keyEsc key, F8 keyROG SeriesF2 keyEsc keyTUF SeriesF2 keyEsc keyZenbook SeriesF2 keyEsc KeyX-SeriesDelete keyF8 KeyF-SeriesF2 keyEsc KeyProArt Studio Book SeriesF2 keyEsc key

Problems While Booting from USB

While performing Step 2, your device may still not boot from the USB. It is possible that the USB drive might not get detected in the boot menu at all.

To fix this, you will need to disable some security features like Secure Boot and Fast boot. You may also need to enable CSM (Compatibility Support Module) to boot the laptop if it does not support UEFI.

1. Insert the bootable USB into your ASUS laptop and turn on your device
   
2. Press the BIOS key repeatedly before the logo screen appears to enter the BIOS
3. Press the F7 key to access Advanced Mode menu
   
4. Navigate to the Security tab and select Secure Boot Control
   
5. Click on the drop down menu and select Disable
6. Next, on the Boot tab, change Fast boot to Disabled
   
7. Again, on the Boot tab, change the CSM support to Enabled(if available)
8. Press the F10 key to save the changes and exit.
9. Press the F8 key while the system is turning on and select the USB drive as the default boot media.
10. The device should now boot from the USB drive.