why 3 Options on Bootcamb?

By Ramy, 30 January, 2024

Forum
macOS and Mac Apps

Hello all:
I have mac book pro 2015, and i installed windows 10 via Bootcamb, everything is working ok, but when i need to change between windows and mac, i got confused, i have 3 options not 2, and i can not find an accessible way to move between 2 systems smoothly,
Any ideas?

Options

Comments

By Brian on Friday, January 26, 2024 - 05:24

First off, you mentioned 3 options. Do you have a thumb drive plugged into your Mac? An external hard drive perhaps?

Do you have another partition you made for whatever reason? Check Disk Utility (on your Mac desktop, press Command + Shift + U).

Finally, there are a couple ways to swap between macOS and WindowsOS.

The Temporary Way

  1. Reboot/Power on your Mac while holding down (Option) until the startup chime finishes playing.
  2. Press right arrow, then press Enter. Note, you will NOT have any speech here. This may take some trial and error.
  3. If done correctly, Windows will boot to the Lock Screen.
  4. if you have not already set this up, press Control + Command + Enter to enable Narrator.
  5. now you should have some speech, login and enjoy Windows.

The Pseudo Permanent Way

  1. On your Mac, go to System Settings > General > Startup Disk. If running macOS Monterey or earlier, you can go to System Preferences and it will just be the last item in the list.
  2. Inside Startup Disk will be some options and a 'grid'. Interacting with the grid will let you choose which OS to restart the Mac into. You may be asked to put in your login password for your Mac to continue.
  3. Choose Windows or Bootcamp Windows, then stop interacting and navigate to the 'Restart' button.
  4. You will be asked if you are sure, with a warning that you are about to reboot into your chosen OS, in this case Windows. Choose Ok and wait.
  5. You will hear the Mac startup chime, then the Windows lock screen will load shortly after. From this point on your Mac will (always) boot into Windows.
  6. If you wish to boot back into Mac, you can just follow the 'Temporary Way' steps above, or while on the Windows desktop, press Command + B to enter your system tray, and arrow down to the Boot camp icon. Press enter on this, then choose the 'Reboot into MacOS option. This will 'reset' the default boot, so your Mac will once again automatically boot into macOS.

HTH.

PS My head hurts now. . .

By Sebby on Friday, January 26, 2024 - 05:24

Here's an article from Apple Support which just reiterates essentially what Brian says. I'm sure I remember other keystrokes, but whatever. Note the rather interesting comment toward the end, asking screen reader users to contact Apple Support. Odd!