How to delete old boot options in boot menu on Windows 10

Have you ever started another operating system with Windows operating system? Dual booting is a great way to try the new operating system without affecting the Windows version. You can choose between operating system versions using the built-in boot manager.

However, after a while you decided not to use the second operating system anymore, so what to do? Is there an easy way to delete the added operating system entry from the boot manager so as not to confuse every time you start your computer? This article will show you ways to delete old boot options from the boot menu.

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What is Windows Boot Manager?

The Windows Boot Manager is a small piece of software, running during system startup. The bootloader code will load when starting the Active system partition, sometimes it is labeled System Reserved so you do not accidentally overwrite it. The boot manager helps to install Windows startup.

When only one version of Windows in the boot manager, the system will boot into this operating system without displaying the boot screen selection screen. However, when you install another operating system, this process will change, allowing you to run the operating system you want.

Boot configuration data

Modern Windows versions store Boot Configuration Data (BCD) in the same database as the registry. Previously, you managed boot screen options using a small boot.ini file (and Windows NT boot loader, ntldr ). However, an unsafe text file is vulnerable to attack, so this has been changed to a more universal, secure solution.

In addition, BCD provides both BIOS-based and EFI-based systems to modify configuration data using the boot options editing tool like BCDEdit. Here are 4 ways to remove boot options from the boot menu.

How to delete the boot option from the boot menu

1. Hide options

This first solution does not completely remove the startup item, but you can hide this option by using the Windows Advanced statup menu.

Press the Windows + I key to open the Settings panel, access Update & Security> Recovery and in the Advanced startup select Restart now (or press Shift while selecting Restart in the Start menu. Note, this operation will start the system now. immediately, so you need to be sure to save important documents before pressing this button.

Select Use another operating system> Change defaults . Here you can set the Windows Boot Manager timer screen, as well as choose Choose a default operating system . Selecting the default operating system does not remove the other settings, but the Boot Manager will not display that operating system each time the system boots.

Alternative method: Use MSConfig

You can achieve the same result by using Windows System Configuration window. Perform by typing mscon in the Start menu search bar and select the appropriate result, then open the Boot tab. You can set the default operating system, standby screen and other boot options. Alternatively, you can delete the old item from the boot process, but this operation does not actually delete it from the system.

2. Use BCDEdit to remove the boot option in the boot manager

BCDEdit is a built-in boot manager editing tool. Note, if deleting the boot menu item can lead to serious consequences, so you should carefully check each edit here before pressing Enter .

Type cmd in the Start menu search bar, then right-click Command Prompt , select Run as administrator . When the Command Prompt window opens, type bcdedit / export c: bcdbackup to create a backup of your BCD settings. Next, type bcdedit / v to list the available boot loaders on the system. The image below is the result when running the command on a computer's system.

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The Windows Boot Manager section describes the location of the boot manager, along with other identifiers. The Windows Boot Loader section describes the Windows 10 bootloader for this system, the unique identifier, where to find the winload.exe to continue to find the boot process, whether the partition is turned on or not and the system root directory. .

If you install multiple Windows operating systems, this is where to find the bootloader information. The type of operating system will appear with the description. In addition, Legacy OS Loader will appear in a separate frame.

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Copy the identifier (long alphanumeric string) of the bootloader you want to delete. Now, type bcdedit / delete {identifier} . Make sure you have the correct entry, then press Enter to delete.

3. Use Visual BCD Editor

If you feel that Command Prompt is too difficult for you, you can use Visual BCD Editor. Visual BCD Editor implements a series of BCDEdit commands in an easy-to-use intuitive interface. You get the same experience and functionality as using BCDEdit in Command Prompt, but don't have to worry about entering the command correctly.

To delete an old startup item, download and install Visual BCD Editor, then open it. This tool will take some time to scan the system. In the left option, you will see Bcdstore> Loaders> [your bootloader options] , select the bootloader you want to delete and then click Delete at the bottom of the right information panel.

4. Remove the EFI boot manager option with BCDEdit

If the EFI boot manager has a bunch of old Linux startup items (although they don't cause any problems, but over time will make users uncomfortable), you can delete these entries using Use BCDEdit.

The EFI bootloader is part of the UEFI firmware management package. You will see this booter if you have ever booted from USB or alternative media and are often accessed by pressing the function key during the boot process.

1. How to set up BIOS to boot from USB / CD / DVD, external hard drive

To delete old EFI items, open Command Prompt as admin, type bcdedit / enum firmware and press Enter . Unlike the command used for Windows Boot Manager, the ' enum firmware ' command will list all the objects in the BCD repository, including Linux installations. The image below is a list of a laptop's firmware:

There are sections for Ubuntu and openSUSE is no longer used. Copy the identification number of the firmware entry you want to delete and run the following command bcdedit / delete {identification number} .

The Windows Boot Manager is now clean with no old boot entries.

I wish you all success!

See more:

1. Remove the boot menu component in Windows 7
2. Dual boot (Dual boot) with virtual machine: Which one should you choose?
3. How to fix boot errors on Windows 8