I have installed Windows 7 (x64) in triple-boot with Vista and Windows 7 (x86) operating systems. Windows 7 SP1 (x64) is my primary operating system and I boot into Windows 7 (x86) and Vista just once or twice in a month. Though I am happy with Windows 7, I get irritated whenever I reboot my PC to complete Windows update installation or to finish other software installation.
The problem is Windows Boot Manager which appears when you have two or more boot entries. Though one can reduce the boot menu timeout in the System Configuration tool, you can’t completely skip or hide the boot menu using System Configuration utility.
If you are running Windows 7 in dual boot with Vista or Windows 8, you might want to hide the boot menu especially if you are not using other operating systems. For example, if you use Windows 7 on a regular basis, you can set Windows 7 as the default, and then skip or hide the boot menu to avoid selecting the OS every time you turn on your PC.
Since System Configuration utility in Windows doesn’t allow you skip or hide the boot menu, you need to use the native Startup and Recovery utility. You can also use popular EasyBCD software for the same job.
Skip the boot menu in Windows 7 and Vista
Step 1: Right-click on the Computer icon present on your desktop and select Properties to open the System Properties window. You can also use Windows + Pause/Break keys to quickly launch System Properties.
Step 2: In the left pane, click Advanced system settings to lunch System Properties dialog- box.
Step 3: Under Advanced tab, click Startup and Recovery Settings and then disable Time to display list of operating systems option. You can also change the default operating system in the boot menu (boot manager) by selecting another operating system entry in the drop-down list. Click the OK button to save the change.
Step 4: You are done! From now onwards, the Boot Manager will not appear during startup. The default OS will automatically be loaded every time you switch on or restart your PC. Enjoy!
belal says
If win 7×64 which is default os get corrupted then how can i boot through other os ?????
Mohamed Sukry says
Fine…. your articles. It is very useful. But have a different kind of problem here.
I have only one OS (Win-7 Home Edition) but when i boot my computer the boot menu is appear. My Win-7 will start after I select the Boot Option.
Please help me… If you have any ideas.
Thank you
Sukry
click-click says
I’ve come to the conclusion that the only way to get rid of seeing the flashing bootmenu is to /export the original BCD that shows all entries and then remove all but the default system entry. If you want to select a different system, you need to import the original BCD back again.
click-click says
That can be done with bcdedit too:
bcdedit /set {} displaybootmenu No
Bootmenu still flashes at you.
admin says
Click-click, you can use EasyBCD software to hide Windows Boot Manager.
click-click says
By ‘Skip’ or ‘Hide’, I don’t expect the boot menu to show at all. This is not the case on my Win7 because it still flashes briefly during the boot process. Is there a way to get rid of that too?
admin says
Yes, I have separate licenses.
alfie says
if you boot into win7x64 and x86 does that mean you have two seperate licenses? i have x64/x86 disks but i believed that only one could be used with the one license i have?
admin says
@Robert
You can see Windows Boot Manager option by enabling “Time to display list of operating systems” option in Startup and Recovery.
Robert says
The problem comes around is if you do happen to use it for than one OS that you want accessable to you. How do you get to them?