BIOS settings
 

I plan to load SUSE 11 onto my Dell computer which already has Win XP Pro. I would like to access the BIOS settings for my computer thru SUSE. I cannot access the BIOS now since my serial port is dead and my computer does not recognize my USB keyboard on startup. Is it possible to reboot from a floppy disc and gain access to the BIOS settings under SUSE? If I can access the BIOS, I can make my computer recognize my USB keyboard (for both SUSE and Windows).

Thank you.

Welcome to LQ

To access the BIOS, you need to press a key during boot, before anything is loaded.
Depending on the computer you need to press F2 or F12 or escape...
In general there is a message on the screen wich key to press.

The only way I know to access bios is with a keyboard just as the boot process starts.
You might try a wireless keyboard since your serial port doesn't function.
I use a wireless keyboard on my Dell and it is seen by every distro I have ever ran.

If the USB support is native to your BIOS, you can take out bios battery and reset it. But if serial is native, better not try this.

Is Legacy USB enabled in BIOS?

By default, on systems that sold with a PS/2 keyboard and mouse, it usually is not.

Hope this helps.

Actually, I've reset many systems that way, and have never seen any negative effects (outside of changing customized settings back to default). I'd do that before anything else with a dead port.

Cheers