Safely disable secure boot

Unread post by **Duke** » 02 Jun 2026, 00:35

How to safely disable secure boot on a ~12 years old computer ?
There is no ON/OFF switch. I can either switch from UEFI to Legacy OS or delete the secure boot keys.

What is the best to do without losing data or destroying the boot ?
And please, I don't want AI answer but personal experience.

teknixstuff · Unread post by **teknixstuff** » 02 Jun 2026, 06:02

Clearing the secure boot keys will leave you in UEFI mode, with secure boot technically enabled but not active (anything will be accepted to boot, even if unsigned). Disabling UEFI will obviously leave you not in UEFI mode.

Unread post by **Duke** » 02 Jun 2026, 12:28

So you suggest to stay in UEFI mode and to delete the secure boot keys ?
Are you sure it will be able to boot without altering the OS ?

Knowing that one PC is running Windows 8.1 and the other one Windows 10.

teknixstuff · Unread post by **teknixstuff** » 02 Jun 2026, 12:32

Indeed. If it currently boots, it will certainly boot just fine after deleting the keys. You would only need to enable legacy mode if you plan to install Windows Vista or older on it.

Unread post by **Duke** » 02 Jun 2026, 12:35

Ok I'll try that, thanks for the answer.