How To Boot Surface Pro 4-8 and X From A USB Drive
In this article, we will show you how to boot your Surface Pro 4, Surface Pro 5, Surface Pro 6, Surface Pro 7, Surface Pro 8, and Surface Pro X from a USB Drive in three different methods.
Booting a Surface Pro from a USB Drive can be a little frustrating if you didn’t follow its specific procedure especially when your device can’t boot to Windows. In this article, we have everything you need to know to boot your Surface Pro from a USB Drive.
To boot Surface Pro from a USB drive, insert the bootable USB drive into the Surface Pro’s USB port. Then press and hold the volume down button, while holding, press and release the power button. When the Surface logo appears, release the volume button.
Before you move on, we have also written this tutorial for other Surface lineups as well with individual specific instructions as you can find here.
- How to Boot Surface Go 1-3 from a USB
- How to Boot Surface Book 1-3 from a USB
- How to Boot Surface Laptop 1-4 from a USB
If you have a Surface Pro 4, Surface Pro (5th Gen), Surface Pro 6, Surface Pro 7, Surface Pro 8, or a Surface Pro X PC, read on for a more in-depth guide on how to boot your Surface Pro from a USB Drive.
- Why Boot Surface Pro From A USB Drive?
- Surface Pro Boot From A USB: Preparation
- Surface Pro Boot From A USB: When Surface is Off
- Surface Pro Boot From A USB: When Surface is On
- Surface Pro Boot From A USB: With No Password
Why Boot Surface Pro From A USB Drive?
There are several reasons that you need to boot your Surface Pro from a USB Drive.
- Resetting your Surface Pro with a USB Recovery Drive.
- Fresh Windows Installation.
- Running Windows To Go.
- Installing or running Linux-based OS (Ubuntu, Fedora, Redhat, …).
- Loading bootable recovery or disk partition tools.
Surface Pro Boot From A USB: Preparation
Before proceeding to the next step, here are some preparations you need to do before booting your Surface Pro from a USB Drive.
- Bootable USB Drive
It’s important that you have a proper bootable USB Drive. In case you want to reset your Surface Pro with a recovery drive, you will need to download the recovery image for your Surface and create a recovery drive before you can boot it up on your Surface Pro. On Surface Pro 8 and Pro X, you will also need a USB-C to USB-A adapter if you have only a full-size USB drive. - Disable Secure Boot
Secure Boot blocked all third-party boot loaders from booting off your Surface devices. Disable Secure Boot lets you load third-party OS other than Windows 10 that’s included older versions of Windows and Linux on your Surface Pro. Here’s how to disable secure boot on Microsoft Surface Pro. - Backup Your Data
Save yourself later by backing up your important data to a MicroSD card or external hard drive. - Having a Wired Mouse & Keyboard
There is a chance that your Surface won’t support touch or pen input when you do a clean Windows installation or load Linux OS on your Surface. Having a wired mouse, keyboard, and a network dongle can help you in this situation. - Connected to the Charger
To prevent any unexpected shutdown during installation, make sure you have connected your Surface Pro to an external power source.
Surface Pro Boot From A USB: When Surface is Off
- Shut down your Surface Pro.
- Insert your bootable USB or recovery drive to the Surface Pro’s USB port.
- Press and hold the Volume Down button on your Surface Pro, then press and release the Power button.
- When you see the Surface logo screen appear, release the Volume Down button.
Button Pressing Sequences to Boot Surface Pro 8 and Pro X from USB
Buttons Pressing Sequences to Boot Surface Pro 4-7 from USB.
Surface Pro Boot From A USB: When Surface is On
There is an easier way to boot your Surface Pro from a USB drive when you can sign in to Windows 10 or Windows 11. Here is how to do that:
- Insert your bootable USB or recovery drive to the Surface Pro’s USB port.
- Open Windows Settings
First, you need to access Windows Settings by going to Start and opening the Settings app with the gear icon (or by using Win + I shortcut key). - Go to Windows Updates > Advanced options
On the left pane of the settings, select “Windows Updates“. Then select the “Advanced options” from the more options section.
- Select the “Recovery” option
Under the “Additional options”, select “Recovery”.
- Restart your Surface Pro in “Advanced Startup” mode.
Under recovery options, click the “Restart now” button to restart your Surface Pro in advanced startup mode which will allow you to change startup settings.
- Select “Use a device”
After your Surface Pro is restarted, you will see a blue screen with the following options. Select “Use a device”.
- Select “USB Storage”
It will list all possible ways to boot including all connected storage devices. Select “USB Storage”.
Now your Surface Pro will reboot with boot files from the inserted USB drive.
- Insert your bootable USB or recovery drive to the Surface Pro’s USB port.
- Open Windows Settings
First, you need to access Windows Settings by going to Start and clicking the Gear icon (or by using Win + I shortcut key). - Go to Update & Security
In Windows Settings, select “Update & Security“.
- Go to Recovery
On the left side of the settings, select Recovery.
- Restart your Surface in Advanced Startup
Under the “Advanced startup” section, click Restart now to restart your Surface in an advanced startup mode.
- Select Use a device
After your Surface Pro is restarted, you will see a blue screen with the following options. Select Use a device.
- Select USB Storage
It will list all possible ways and connected storage devices. Select USB Storage.
Now your Surface Pro will reboot with your connected USB drive.
Surface Pro Boot From A USB: With No Password
There are so many times that users might want to reset their Surface Pro when they forgot the account password that prevents them from login in. Here is how to do that on Surface Pro with or without a keyboard attached.
- Open On-Screen Keyboard (skip this if you have a keyboard attached)
On the Windows 11 login screen, Go to the Accessibility icon and stay right next to the power icon. Then select the “On-Screen Keyboard”.
- Press and hold Shift Key
On the Surface Type Cover, press and hold the Shift key (on the On-Screen Keyboard, just click the shift key and it will hold by itself). - Go to Power > Restart
On the right-bottom of the screen, click the power icon, and select Restart. It will reboot your Surface Pro in Advanced startup mode.
- Select Use a device
After your Surface Pro is restarted, you will see a blue screen with the following options. Select Use a device.
- Select USB Storage
It will list all possible ways and connected storage devices. Select USB Storage.
- Open On-Screen Keyboard (skip this if you have a keyboard attached)
On the Windows login screen, Go to the Ease of access icon and stay right next to the power icon. Select On-Screen Keyboard.
- Press and hold Shift Key
On the Surface Type Cover, press and hold the Shift key (on the On-Screen Keyboard, just click the shift key and it will hold by itself). - Go to Power > Restart
On the right-bottom of the screen, click the power icon, and select Restart. It will reboot your Surface Pro in Advanced startup mode.
- Select Use a device
After your Surface Pro is restarted, you will see a blue screen with the following options. Select Use a device.
- Select USB Storage
It will list all possible ways and connected storage devices. Select USB Storage.
More on Surface Pro Tips & Tricks
Here are some related articles for Microsoft Surface Pro tips & tricks you might want to read:
- The 3 easy ways to adjust screen brightness on Surface Pro
- How to download and install the latest Surface Pro 7 drivers and firmware updates
- Ultimate Tips and Tricks for Mastering Microsoft Surface Pro 7
- How to download the official Surface Pro 7 recovery image
- The 6 easy ways to take a screenshot on Surface Pro in 2022
- How to Configure Surface Pro UEFI/BIOS Settings
COMMENTS
Let us know what you think!
We appreciate hearing your thoughts, questions, and ideas about “How To Boot Surface Pro 4-8 and X From A USB Drive”.
Hi Evan,
I used your instructions
Surface Pro Boot From A USB: With No Password
With your instructions I was able to reinstall Win 10, brilliant!
Kindest regards,
Owen Keogh