Check if the computer is using BIOS or UEFI on Windows 10

Although the BIOS has been around for years and helps the operating system interact with the hardware, it’s a system with some limitations like disk partitioning support, slow boot times, and it doesn’t provide security.

UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) is a newer system alternative to BIOS that comes with its boot manager, provides faster boot times, improved network support, support for large partitions on drives disc, and includes security features to protect your system against bootup and other applications Malware attacks during startup.

While most devices today support UEFI, many computers (especially older ones) still use BIOS. If you want to know what type of system your computer, laptop, or tablet is using, you can check this information in at least two different ways on Windows 10.

In this tutorial, you will learn two ways to check if your device uses BIOS or UEFI.

Method 1: Check if your computer uses BIOS or UEFI by using System Information

The easiest way to tell whether your computer uses UEFI or BIOS is to check Windows 10 System Information.

1. Open Start.

2. Search for System Information and click the result.

Quick Tip: Alternatively, you can also use the Windows + R keyboard shortcut to open the Run command, type msinfo32, and press OK to open System Information.

3. Under “ System Summary ”, find the BIOS Mode. If it says BIOS or Legacy, then your device is using BIOS. If it reads UEFI, then you are running UEFI.

Method 2: Check if your computer uses BIOS or UEFI by using setupact.log

Alternatively, you can also check the setupact.log file to determine if your device uses BIOS or UEFI.

1. Use the Windows + R keyboard shortcut to open the Run command.

2. Type the following path and click OK.

% SystemRoot% Panther

3. Open the setupact.log file with Notepad.

4. Use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + F to open Find.

5. On Find, search for Detected Boot Environment

– If the line says Callback_BootEnvironmentDetect: Detected boot environment: BIOS, your computer uses the BIOS.

– If the line says Callback_BootEnvironmentDetect: Detected boot environment: UEFI, your device is using UEFI.