When your Mac powers up, it normally uses the system on its internal hard drive unless you change this behavior by choosing System Preferences@@→Startup Disk. You can also change what your Mac does by holding down the following keys or key combinations during startup. Print these boot option keys, because they’re particularly helpful to have. You don't without modifying things on a low level or adding custom software like the awesome Boot Runner.When a mac can't find the first viable image to boot, it's programmed to get the prohibitory icon - not the boot picker. Intel Macs have the following basic behavior at boot time when the chime indicates a successful POST. If you have more than one bootable drive (or partition) on your Mac, you know you can get to the boot menu by holding down the Option key at boot time. Learn another less-expected way to get to. Alternatively, you could use the rEFIt Boot menu refit.sourceforge.net – bluewoodtree Mar 30 '13 at 22:53 @bluewoodtree That's what I was thinking, then I tried rEFInd (the fork of rEFIt) and now my mini is stuck in a boot loop.:( – trusktr Mar 31 '13 at 3:47.
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Most of the times, people usually talk about the arch rivalry between Apple and Windows, but the fact that Apple allows you to install Windows alongside Mac OS X is a big surprise. Being a windows user, it was difficult for me to get used to the Mac Os X in my initial days of owning the Macbook air. But thanks to Bootcamp, i was able to install Windows on the Macbook air without any troubles.
Well, lets leave that aside for the moment and move on to the topic, i,e how we can set the default boot operating system on a Mac when we have more than two operating systems installed on it, for. So for those of you who have installed more than one operating systems on your Mac, you would have already seen that your Mac will by default boot to the last installed OS, instead of Mac OS X.
This however isn’t a big problem, since you can press the option key on your mac immediately after turning it on ( while it starts to boot ) and choose between all the operating system installed on your Mac. But this can become a tedious task if you somehow forget to press the option key when your Mac boots and you will have to go all over the boot process again. So ultimately, it’s always an better option if you set the default boot operating system on your Mac. Doing this will ensure that your Mac always boots to the primary operating system chosen by you.
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In my case, I installed Windows 7 on my Mac and every time I turned on my Macbook air, it automatically used to boot into Windows instead of Mac OS X (which was my primary OS on the Macbook ). Fortunately Mac OS X does allow you to choose the primary boot operating system and for those who want to do so, simply follow the instructions provided below.
How to set the default boot Operating System on Mac OSX.
- Step 1: Navigate to System Preferences > Startup Disc.
- Step 2: Wait for a few seconds and you should be able to see all the operating systems that are installed on your Mac. Select an Operating system and click on restart to set that operating system as the primary boot OS of your Mac.
That’s it, now your mac will always boot to the primary OS selected by you. Alternatively, you can also set the first boot OS on your Mac without the need of booting into the OS. Here’s how you can do that.
How to set the default boot Operating System on Mac OSX from the boot menu.
- Step 1: Hold down the Option key when booting, and when you see the system choices.
- Step 2: Move the mouse over the ↑ under the system you want to be the default.
- Step 3: Hold down the Ctrl key and you should see the ↑ icon change to a “power on” icon.
- Step 4: Left click on that “power icon” and that system will boot and that system will also be your default boot system.
Well, these were the two methods by which you can change the first boot operating system on the Mac OS X. Keep following our blog to get the latest tips on the Mac OS X.
Every operating system can crash at one time or another. While it's safe to say that macOS is more stable than Windows, it can still be affected by issues that prevent your computer from booting up. In such cases, you might need to boot your Mac from a USB flash drive to fix the problem. This article shows you two ways to boot Mac from external USB stick, as well as some troubleshooting tips in case Mac won't boot from the target USB.
Boot Mac from USB Option l: Startup Manager
If your Mac won't boot up normally, you can set it to boot from a different drive, such as a USB stick containing macOS installation files in bootable format. The drive will have to contain a version of the OS that is compatible with the Mac. As long as you have the bootable installation USB, you can start your Mac from the USB by accessing the Startup Manager. Here are the steps to be followed:
Step 1: Insert the bootable USB into Mac and power it on.
Step 2: As soon as the startup process begins, hold down the Option (alt) key and keep it depressed until you see the Startup Manager on your screen. If there is a firmware password on your Mac, hold down the Option key until you're asked to enter that password.
Step 3: You will now see the various startup disk options, and your USB will be listed there. If you click on the Up arrow right below the icon for the USB, the computer will only startup once using this disk. If you press and hold down the Control key while making your selection, it will be saved, and your computer will boot from the USB every time, as long as it is left in the computer.
At this point, you can also use the Mac installation disk to boot your Mac from. It will appear as EFI Boot, and it works on all computers running macOS 10.9 or higher.
Boot Mac from USB Option 2: Safe Mode/Recovery Mode
As an alternative, you can start your Mac in Safe Mode (Recovery Mode). This will allow the system to automatically detect and repair directory issues. Safe Mode will only allow required kernel extensions to load, preventing login items and startup items to load automatically. It can also help you isolate the issue depending on whether or not the issue goes away in Safe Mode. If the issues you have during normal startup don't show up in safe mode, they are most likely fixed. That means you can reboot normally and your system should be back to normal.
Step 1: Start your Mac and hold down the Shift key. You will see the Apple logo on your screen.
Step 2: When you see the login screen, you can release the Shift key and login to your Mac.
Step 3: To check whether your Mac has booted into Safe Mode, click on the Apple logo on the top left and then on About this Mac. In the window that opens, click on System Report… You should be able to see this:
How to Fix Mac Won't Boot from USB Drive
Macos Boot From Usb
Sometimes Mac won't boot from USB as expected. If you are unable to select a different startup disk, it's possible that your disk is not showing up in Startup Manager. If you try Method 1 above but don't see your USB drive listed there, it could mean one of the following problems:
Compatibility: It is possible that the version of macOS or Mac OS X that you have on the USB drive is not compatible with the hardware. That means you won't be able to see it in the Startup Manager so, of course, you won't be able to boot from it. In such cases, you may need to burn a compatible macOS version on USB drive in order to be able to boot Mac from it.
Startup Security Utility: In certain cases where your Mac has the Apple T2 Security Chip (2018 and later devices), it may be your Startup Security Utility settings that are preventing you from booting from USB. In this situation, restart your Mac and hold down the Command + R keys when you see the Apple logo. This will put your Mac into Recovery mode. In macOS Utilities, go to Utilities >Startup Security Utility and sign in as admin. Under External Boot, select the second option - Allow Booting from External Media.
Boot Menu For Macbook Pro
Option ROM Firmware: Another known issue is that Option ROM firmware will not load in Startup Manager until you press certain keys manually. To do this, use Method 1 to access Startup Manager. Once you are there, press Option-Shift-Command-Period. You should now be able to see the USB drive. This is not exactly a problem as much as a feature. If the USB contains Option ROM firmware, you will need to press those keys everytime to boot from your pen drive.
Macos Boot Options
These two methods and the troubleshooting tips should allow you to boot from USB or in Safe Mode so you can then isolate the problem that's preventing your Mac from booting up normally.