About The Default Boot Sequence - HP Compaq Series Hardware And Software Manual

MultiBoot

About the Default Boot Sequence

By default, when more than one bootable device is in the system,
the notebook chooses the startup device by searching enabled
devices and locations in a predetermined sequence.
On every boot, the system looks for bootable drive A devices
first. If it fails to find a bootable drive A device, it searches for
bootable drive C devices. Drive A devices include optical drives
and diskette drives. Drive C devices include optical drives and
primary hard drives.
The hard drive can only boot as drive C. The NIC does not have a
drive letter assigned to it.
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An optical drive device (such as a CD-ROM) can boot either
as drive A or drive C, depending on the format of the CD. Most
bootable CDs boot as drive A. If you have a CD that boots as
the C drive, the system will boot the diskette drive before it
boots the CD.
By default, the notebook selects the startup device by searching
enabled devices and locations in a predetermined sequence.
You can change the sequence in which the notebook searches for
a startup device by enabling MultiBoot and entering a new startup
sequence, also called a boot order. Or, you can use MultiBoot
Express to set the notebook to prompt you for a startup location
each time the notebook is started or restarted.
8–2 Hardware and Software Guide