Fixed: Windows 10/11 Bootable USB Drive Not Working (5 Quick Ways)

User Case: Windows 10 bootable USB not working in boot menu

I'm having a problem with my Toshiba L875-S7308 where I cannot boot my USB while in UEFI mode.  I've formatted the USB (tried MBR and GPT) and restored the ISO using the Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool. When I try booting from USB, the laptop ignores it and continues booting Windows. I've tried changing boot order, or manually selecting USB with no positive result.

A Bootable USB is a media that contains everything required to boot Windows. Normally you can use it to start up your computer, whether it's bootable or not, and then clean install a fresh copy of Windows, perform an in-place upgrade to Windows 10 from the previous version, or troubleshoot a faulty computer. But sometimes you will find Windows 10 won't boot from a USB drive, even with no response, just like in the following case.

If you happen to be in a similar situation, you could stay for a while to learn more about Windows 10 bootable USB not working and then fix the error with the given solutions. Read the following solutions for troubleshooting issues with a Windows 10 bootable USB that isn't functioning correctly.

👉How to solve Windows 10 not booting from a USB stick (5 ways)

However, if your goal is to swiftly restore your computer without going through the process of reinstalling Windows 10, you can utilize the complimentary backup software, AOMEI Backupper Standard. This tool allows you to generate a new bootable USB and system image encompassing all necessary components.

🔥Quickly restore the computer without reinstalling Windows 10

 Why is Windows 10 bootable USB not working?

Windows 10 bootable USB not working in the boot menu issue may be caused by the wrong boot mode or file system. Most of the old computer models support Legacy BIOS while modern computer like Windows 8/10 uses UEFI boot mode. BIOS boot mode requires an NTFS file system while UEFI (CSM disabled) requires FAT32. There are other reasons that may cause Windows 10 not to boot from USB, please refer to the following scenarios:

⭐Bootable USB is not detected as a boot device. This means your USB stick is either corrupted or unbootable itself, or the USB boot is not supported on the computer. 
⭐Bootable USB not showing up in BIOS. This may happen because of an incorrect boot order. By default, your computer only boots from the first boot option. 
⭐Bootable USB not showing up in the boot menu. This is because your USB drive is old USB 1.0 or 2.0, which is not supported by Windows 10. 
⭐You can't boot from USB in Windows 10, not even select the right boot option. In this case, the USB drive is likely to be damaged or corrupted. You may receive an error message like "no bootable devices found".

It allows you to boot both UEFI or BIOS computers and then restore your computer to an earlier date if you create a system image with it. And you can use it on all Windows systems, including Windows 7/8/10/11, etc.

How do I know if my USB drive is bootable in Windows 10?

The Windows USB not working in the boot menu issue could be caused by computer configuration or the USB drive itself. To fix it effectively, the first thing you need to do is to check where the problem is coming from.

👉 Try this bootable USB on another PC that supports booting from USB. If it's bootable, this may be a configuration issue of your computer👉 Similarly, you can use a different USB boot drive on your PC to see if it's bootable. If yes, then the problem may be caused by your own USB drive.

You have two ways to boot the computer, namely using the Windows 10 quick boot menu "Use a device" or manually changing the boot order and then boot. The previous option does not require you to change the startup sequence in the BIOS. 

Boot from the quick boot menu - Use a device

Step 1. Press and hold the "Shift" key while clicking "Restart" button. Then, your computer will reboot to the Advanced Startup Options screen, and click "Use a device".

Step 2. Select the boot USB drive, wait, and see if your computer boots from this drive.

Manually change boot order - set boot priority to a USB drive

Step 1. Shut down your computer and then start it.

Step 2. Press a specific key when you see a prompt at the first boot screen, like this, "Press ESC to enter BIOS". Also, if your computer is in fast boot mode, you don't need to press any key.

Step 3. Go to the "Boot" tab and set the USB drive as the first option using the up arrow.

Step 4. Press "F10" to save changes and restart your computer with a USB drive. 

How to solve Windows 10 not booting from USB (5 ways)

Before you start, you need to know that USB drive as a boot option is supported in newer OS like Windows 8/10/11. But if the flash drive itself is not actually bootable, your computer will try to boot from the next bootable device in the priority boot sequence of BIOS.  This is why your computer continues to boot Windows without any prompts. 

Then, continue to learn how to fix the Windows 10 bootable USB not working in the boot menu.

Fix 1. Make sure the file system of the USB drive is formatted as FAT32

Format the drive with the NTFS file system if the computer is in Legacy BIOS mode. Meanwhile, format your USB with FAT32 if your computer boot mode is UEFI.

To format the USB drive, please press "Windows + E" to open file explore, right-click the USB drive and select "Format", then select FAT32(Default) file system and click "Start" to begin.

Fix 2. Be sure the USB drive is set to be the first boot option

You can restart your computer, press the key (eg: F2, F11, ESC) on the first screen to enter BIOS, find out Boot Options or something like that, and set boot priority to USB drive. 

If you cannot see the USB boot option, your computer may not support this option. You need to try different ways.

Fix 3. Enable CSM or legacy boot mode, and disable secure boot control

You can enter the BIOS screen click Boot > Launch CSM and enable it. Next, click Security > Secure Boot Control and disable it.

Fix 4. Change UEFI or Legacy BIOS boot mode 

You can enter the BIOS screen and click UEFI/BIOS Boot Mode or Launch Storage OpROM Policy, then select the right mode. If the bootable drive is FAT32, select UEFI. But if it's NTFS, please choose Legacy. 

Fix 5. Create a bootable USB with Windows media creation tool

Up till now, if you haven't fixed Windows 10 bootable USB not detected or showing up via the given solutions, you can choose to create an installation disc with the Windows 10 media creation tool provided by Microsoft's official website. Please follow the steps below. 

Download the media creation too first and then launch, select "Create installation media for another PC" and follow the on-screen instructions to complete this task.

Now, you may already fixed this error and have a bootable USB drive, so you can start to check if you can boot from USB in Windows 10 and then repair Windows 10 with a bootable USB. The following is a simple guide for you.

1. Connect the bootable USB and set boot priority in the BIOS.

2. After the Windows files loading is completed, click Next until you see "Repair your computer" and tap on it. 

3. Click "Troubleshoot" -> "Advanced options" and then you will see several recovery tools. You can select one among them and follow the instructions to start repair.

Also, you can install SSD on Windows 10 with a bootable USB, but the steps are slightly different. After booting from USB, you click "Install Now" instead of "Repair your computer" on the first Windows Setup interface. Then, just follow the prompt of the clean installation wizard.

That's the entire process of fixing Windows 10/11 bootable USB not working in the boot menu and how to use it. Unfortunately, sometimes you may find this way is not working. For example, when you restore the system image to a smaller drive, you will be told this disk is too small, please replace it with a larger one. Then, you need the help of professional backup software.

Quickly restore the computer without reinstalling Windows 10

Except for installation media or built-in Recovery Drive, you can use a third-party media creation tool - AOMEI Backupper Standard to do a big favor when your computer is not behaving properly.

AOMEI Backupper

Free Windows Media Creator

• Bootable USB, CD/DVD, or ISO file creation: It supports various methods for creating bootable media.
• BIOS or UEFI support: Compatible with both modes, with no file system restrictions.
• System backup and scheduling: Allows creation and scheduling of system backups for maintaining the latest computer status.
• Disk space management options: Offers multiple methods to address backup disk full issues, such as compression levels, intelligent sector backup, and incremental backup.

Download Freeware
Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7

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Well then, let's get started to create a universal bootable USB with AOMEI Backupper Standard.

Step 1. Download the freeware, install it, and launch it. Then click Create Bootable Media under the Tools tab.

Step 2. Select Bootable Disc Type. It’s recommended to select Windows PE. This option is suitable for everyone and offers you more operations than Linux.

Step 3. Tick the USB Boot Device and then click Next to move on.

Step 4. Wait for the process and click Finish when it reaches 100%.

Now, that the bootable USB has been created successfully, you can use it to boot your computer and repair it at any time. But how to repair it? You need a system image created by AOMEI Backupper. If you don't have one, please follow the steps below to create one. 

Step 1. Go back to the main page of AOMEI Backupper. Click System and System Backup in order. 

Step 2. It will select everything you need for system restoration. Select a destination path below to store the backup image.

Step 3. Confirm the operation and click Start Backup. 

Notes:✎...

If you have a higher requirement for backup security and flexibility, you can customize this task using "Options", "Schedule Backup", and "Backup Scheme". And I'll introduce you to a few of the features I find most useful.

 Schedule Backup: It allows you to set fixed intervals to run the backup tasks automatically, such as Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Event trigger, and USB plug-in. The last two are supported by the professional version.

 Incremental Backup: It can backup only changed files since the last backup, which requires less backup time and disk space.

Backup Scheme(Advanced):  You can choose 3 different backup methods, except for incremental backup, you can also choose Full backup or Differential backup based on your own needs. You can enable the backup cleanup feature to directly delete old backups regularly. This resolves the backup disk full issues completely.

Now everything is ready, you can use the bootable USB and system image to repair your computer at any time. Please boot your computer from this media, go to Restore > Select Task or Image File, select a backup image you want to restore and destination, and finally click Start Restore. 

Notes:✎...

For detailed steps, please refer to: Restore Windows 10/11 System Image to New Hard Drive | 2 Ways.

 If your computer has failed to boot without any previous backup or bootable drive, you can also use AOMEI Backupper to create a bootable media and system backup on another working Windows 10 PC, then use them on the problematic computer to perform a dissimilar hardware restore (advanced).

Fixed: how do I fix Windows 10 USB not working on startup?

To address issues with a Windows 10 USB not working on startup, you can try the following troubleshooting steps:

• Check USB Connection: Ensure that the USB device is properly connected to the computer. Try connecting it to different USB ports to rule out a port-specific issue.
•  Restart Computer: Sometimes, a simple restart can resolve USB-related issues. Restart your computer and see if the USB device works after rebooting.
• Update Drivers: Make sure your USB drivers are up to date. You can do this by going to Device Manager (right-click on the Start button, then select Device Manager), locating the USB controllers section, right-clicking on each USB controller, and selecting "Update driver."

•  Check USB Power Management Settings: In Device Manager, under the USB controllers section, right-click each USB Root Hub, select "Properties," go to the "Power Management" tab, and uncheck the option that allows the computer to turn off the device to save power.
• Disable Fast Startup: Fast Startup can sometimes cause issues with USB devices. You can disable it by going to Control Panel > Power Options > Choose what the power buttons do, then click on "Change settings that are currently unavailable," and uncheck "Turn on fast startup (recommended)."
• Try a Different USB Device: If possible, try using a different USB device to see if the problem is specific to the original device or a more general USB issue.
•  Run Hardware Troubleshooter: In Windows 10, you can run the built-in Hardware and Devices troubleshooter by going to Settings > Update & Security > Troubleshoot > Hardware and Devices.
• Check USB Device Compatibility: Ensure that the USB device is compatible with your version of Windows and your computer's hardware.

By following these steps, you should be able to diagnose and fix issues with a Windows 10 USB not working on startup.

FAQs about Windows 10 USB not showing up in boot menu

1. How to force boot from USB on Windows 10?

To force your Windows 10 computer to boot from a USB drive, restart your computer and enter the BIOS or UEFI settings by pressing a specific key during startup (commonly F2, F12, or Del). Once in the BIOS/UEFI settings, go to the "Boot" menu and set the USB drive as the primary boot device. 

2. Why is my Windows 10 install USB not booting?

If your Windows 10 install USB is not booting, it could be due to incorrect BIOS/UEFI settings, a faulty USB drive, or corrupted installation files. First, ensure the USB drive is properly inserted and recognized by the computer. Check the BIOS/UEFI settings to make sure the boot order includes the USB drive. If necessary, recreate the Windows 10 install USB using a reliable tool.

3. Why is my Windows 10 download USB not working?

If your Windows 10 download USB isn't working, it might be due to corrupted files, incorrect formatting, or hardware issues with the USB drive. Try recreating the Windows 10 download USB with the official Media Creation Tool, ensuring the USB is properly formatted and the download completes successfully. If the issue continues, attempt using a different USB drive. If these steps don't resolve the problem, contact Microsoft Support for further assistance.

Conclusion

That's all for the Windows 10 bootable USB not showing up in the boot menu, you can choose to fix it with the given solutions. But if you just want your computer back quickly instead of reinstalling Windows 10, you can create a brand-new bootable USB and system image including everything you need with a free backup software - AOMEI Backupper Standard.

You can enjoy many useful features in this software, such as differential backup, backup scheme, real-time sync, disk clone, etc. I cannot mention all these features, please download it to explore yourself.