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4 January 2021  John Weaver  Senior Program Developer
 

Summary
BCDEdit is a command line tool for managing boot configuration data. What are the often-used BCDEdit commands? And what are their functions? Get more about how to use the BCDEdit Command Line Tool in Windows 10 here.



Windows 10

What Is BCDEdit?

BCDEdit is a command line tool for managing boot configuration data. If you intend to use BCDEdit to change BCD, you will need administrator privileges to enable Command Prompt or command prompt in Windows RE.
BCDEdit Windows 10

BCDEdit Command Line Options

BCDEdit /createstoreCreates a new empty boot configuration data storage (BCD).
BCDEdit /exportExports the contents that system stores into a file which could be used to restore the state of the system store.
BCDEdit /importRestores the system store using a backup file created by /export option.
BCDEdit /copyMakes a copy of a boot entry in the system store.
BCDEdit /createCreates a new entry in the boot configuration data store.
BCDEdit /setSets an entry option value.
BCDEdit /deleteDeletes a boot entry.
BCDEdit /defaultSpecifies the default entry that the boot manager selects when the timeout expires.
BCDEdit /displayorderSpecifies the display order of boot options.
BCDEdit /timeoutSpecifies how long the boot manager displays.

How to Use the BCDEdit Command Line Tool in Windows 10?

Note: You will need administrator privileges to enable Command Prompt. If you don’t have an administrator account, it’s recommended to use Renee Passnow to create it.

Use the BCDEdit Command Line Tool When Windows Boots Properly

Step 1: Type “cmd” in search box. Right click the “Command Prompt” and select “Run as administrator”.
run command prompt as administrator in start menu
Step 2: In the Command Prompt, type in the BCDEdit command that you need. Press “Enter”. After executing the command successfully, you can shut down the command prompt.
open command prompt

Use the BCDEdit Command Line Tool When Windows Fails to Boot

Step 1: Connect a Bootable USB drive to the PC. (Read this page about how to create a bootable USB drive).
connect usb to laptop
Step 2: Turn on the PC. Change the boot order in BIOS setup and put “Removable Devices” as the first boot choice.
change boot order
Step 3: After you enter the Windows installation screen, click “Repair your computer” in the bottom-left corner.
Repair your computer
Step 4: Then select “Troubleshoot”> “Advanced Options”> “Command Prompt”.
command prompt
Step 5: In the Command Prompt, type in the BCDEdit command you may need. Press “Enter”.

Enable Windows Boot Manager via BCDEdit Command Line Tool

Step 1: Type “cmd” in search box. Right click the “Command Prompt” and select “Run as administrator”.
Step 2: In the Command Prompt, type in: bcdedit /set {bootmgr} displaybootmenu yes and bcdedit /set {bootmgr} timeout 30. Please press “Enter” after you type each command.
enable bootmgr with command prompt
If you want to disable Windows Boot Manager, just type in: bcdedit /set {bootmgr} timeout 0.

Add a Boot Option via BCDEdit Command Line Tool

For example, you want to add a boot entry (Windows XP) to Windows Boot Manager, please follow steps below:
Step 1: Type “cmd” in search box. Right click the “Command Prompt” and select “Run as administrator”.

Step 2: In the Command Prompt, type the following commands. Please press “Enter” after you type each command.

Bcdedit /create {ntldr} /d “Windows XP”
Bcdedit /set {ntldr} device partition=C:
Bcdedit /set {ntldr} path \ntldr
Bcdedit /displayorder {ntldr} -addlast
Bcdedit /set {ntldr} description “Windows XP”

After executing the above commands successfully, the boot entry (Windows XP) will be an option in Windows Boot Manager.

Create Administrator Account Using Renee PassNow

System rescue tool- Renee PassNow
Enable/Create Windows user accountCreate/Enable the user account (Administrator, local account, etc).
Reset Windows login PasswordWhole password reset process just takes five minutes without damaging account’s data.
Remove Windows login passwordRemove the password of administrator and local account from Windows 10/8.1/8/7/XP/Vista.
Simple operationYou can complete the password reset process by yourself.
Solve the Windows problems from every possible aspectIt provides functions like disk cloning, data transfer, disk erasing, disk detection, files rescue.

Step 1: Download and install Renee PassNow in any workable Windows computer. 

press to the download button

Step 2: Choose creation method, USB or CD/DVD.

Select one option from [Crate a Live USB] and [Create a Live CD]. Then, select [x64] or [x86] according to your computer. Next, click on [Download Now] to download the licensed ISO. Remember to activate the software beforehand. After that, click on [Create USB] to create the boot media.
use renee passnow to create usb to reset passnword

Step 3: Boot the target PC from the created password reset USB/CD/DVD.

You will boot the target computer via a new created reset disk. Firstly, please hold a hot key to enter the BIOS menu and put CD-ROM or Removable Devices as the first choice. Please click here to know about how to change the boot order of your computer. After changing it successfully, please remember to save your setting and then restart your PC.

steps to change the boot order in BIOS

Step 4: Select “PassNow!”.

Reset password

Step 5: Click “Create new account” to create a new administrator to quickly access your PC.

The created administrator account named “Reneelab” with administrator rights, and its default password is “123456789”. You are able to change the password of target account with this new created administrator.

Create new account