This browser is no longer supported.
Upgrade to Microsoft Edge to take advantage of the latest features, security updates, and technical support.
![](data:image/svg+xml, %3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' height='64' class='font-weight-bold' style='font: 600 30.11764705882353px "SegoeUI", Arial' width='64'%3E%3Ccircle fill='hsl(128, 8%, 22%)' cx='32' cy='32' r='32' /%3E%3Ctext x='50%25' y='55%25' dominant-baseline='middle' text-anchor='middle' fill='%23FFF' %3EA%3C/text%3E%3C/svg%3E)
I am trying for the first time to boot my Windows 8.1 laptop from the internal CD-DVD drive. I have a bootable CD in there, and yes, I do have the bios set with CDROM drive as first in the list to boot from. But when I try to boot from the CD, it won't boot, instead the computer gives me this message:
"ATAPI CDROM has been blocked by the current security policy."
(Its actually a DVD drive.) All it lets me do at that message is hit the Enter key to OK the message, and then it boots from the hard drive.
I have no idea where "security policy" settings are or what they are set for. What do I have to do to get this to boot?
This is a Gateway laptop, 2.2 MHz Intel Pentium processor, 4 GB RAM, 64 bit OS, with Windows 8.1 fully updated, and Windows Defender running and fully updated.
I have already looked everywhere I can find, but nothing seems to address this message or issue, as follows:
*I went to Help menu to look up "Security Policy." While the computer is giving me the message about "security policy," the Help menu has no idea what "security policy" is, it just comes up blank!
*I went to Control Panels/System and Security/Action Center/Change Windows Settings/Smart Screen/... All I found in there that might be involved is a setting to block anything downloaded from the Internet until I give administrator access. Well, the booting issue didn't allow me to give administrator access (yes, I am the administrator) when I tried to boot, I only could hit the enter key to OK. Nonetheless, I changed to: notify me but proceed (not a quote).
With that, I tried again, but it still would not boot from the CD, got the same message, so that setting is not it. I changed the setting back.
I see no other setting there that could be related by even a stretch. And the control panels should be dealing with the OS anyway, and this is happening while trying to boot from the OS on the CD, not the hard drive. That is, this is something in the root.
*I then went into bios area (UEFI Firmware) by sweeping in from the right and into Settings/Change PC settings ..., and found a tab in bios for Security. Looking there, there is a list of things, but it lets me access only "Supervisor Password." It was currently set as "clear," meaning no password. I left it as that -- surely I can't need a password just to boot from a CD, and the message I got in trying to boot from the CD did not allow me to enter a password.
Other settings in the Security tab were not accessible. The only ones they included that might be remotely related were:
*Password on Boot, which was set as no password. But again, the message I get with this issue does not ask for nor allow me to enter a password.
*Secure Boot Mode: Standard (It does not let me access to change that.)
Some others also were in the list that are not worth listing, not even vaguely related.
I then went into some other things elsewhere in the main settings called Startup Settings. The only thing in there that sounded the least bit vaguely related was "Enable boot logging." I punched F2 to go into that, but the machine instead restarted, and did not start from the CDROM, same message again. I went back to it, and it is still listed as Enable boot logging, does not instead say Disable - so I don't know if anything even got changed. I did not touch it again, left it as-is.
So, that's it. I've checked all the settings I know about. Nothing about this bit about "ATAPI CDROM has been blocked by current security policy."
I tested with two DVDs that I have booted from in the past on other Windows machines -- they also would not boot, but they did not give me that message.
I note, all three CDs/DVDs are being read fine by the DVD drive once the machine is booted in Windows 8.1 from the hard drive - so the issue is not that the DVD drive can't read the disks.
Where is this "security policy" set?! What do I need to do to get this to boot from the CD?
Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.
Hi,
So everything is back to normal... or at least working to your satisfaction ?
You seem to know more about manipulating your email than I do, but though I may be able to help by describing what my screen looks like !
I know how that kind of conversation goes... Not so much with Microsoft, but with my internet provider sometimes..
Thanks for those links -- guess I should get them and have them, just in case.
Also, I realized on thing from the pan I had to Recover the image on my external drive to the external drive. My external drive is smaller than the internal. So, if I try to Recover the full partition image to the external drive, the full partitions will not fit on the external drive! I could do it only for a files-only image, but you say that won't be bootable. In the end, it means I can't for a recovery in order test it. As such, no point in making the drive GPT and imaging again, since can't Recover a bootable version on that external drive. (Just to confirm, you said I can't boot a files-only image that I Recover. Or, were you saying I can't boot a Recovery that I recovered by files-only?)
Hi,
You might find these links useful... They are concerning making Gateway Recovery Disks and using the built in feature to restore the machine to it's Out Of Box condition...
The disks would be a VERY good thing to have...
Make Recovery Disks... http://gateway-us.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a\_id/12866/related/1
Using Recovery Disks... http://gateway-us.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a\_id/29935
Recover From Partition... http://gateway-us.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a\_id/2631/session/L3RpbWUvMTQ0NzE3MzU3MS9zaWQvQ1dTTnU5Qm0%3D
Hi,
I'm not sure about the Gateway Imaging... That may be Gateway's feature to restore your machine to factory from the 15GB partition you mentioned...
I doubt that it will actually make an image, but maybe... What it also may do is create a set of DVD's to restore your machine to it's out of box condition...
If that is the case, it would be a very good thing to have. In a way it would be better than Acronis... just because you have been using the computer for awhile, and something might have gotten corrupted... Acronis would reload the corrupted image...
Gateway's process would be better in that example...
When I mention not selecting the entire disk when using Acronis to "RECOVER', that applies only to Recover, not creating an image "BACKUP"... You can select one or all partitions to Recover, but not the "MBR" or possibly "GPT" box...
As far as I know, this applies only to Acronis... The Windows Imaging feature doesn't have that particular check box... I don't know about stuff like Macrium...
I had never seen that option on any other methods..
Acronis uses the term Recover because you are "Recovering" an image...
It certainly get confusing when various processes intermix their terms...
When using Acronis for the purpose you are using it for, I would ignore the fact that the "FILE" stuff even exists... You can backup whichever partitions you choose, or all of them..
There is a very good possibility that if you were to save an image as "FILES", that when you later try to use it to Recover, it may not be bootable...
Backing up and Recovering PARTITIONS will boot... but that just applies to the EFI and Windows partitions... Things need to be in a specific location and order for the machine to reliably be bootable... Imaging a Partition will maintain this, File backup and recovery may not...
You can use multiple methods to make a backup image, but you must use the program that created the image to recover\reload it... Acronis can't recover an image made by Windows for instance...
If you were to use the Windows Imaging you would need to reload\recover it either by selecting Windows Recovery in the Boot Options, or booting from Windows installation media and selecting "REPAIR" at the bottom of the window where you see the button to "INSTALL"
If your machine will boot from a Win 8.1 DVD or Flash drive, you are all set... they are easy to get\make... It may be possible that it won't... That is where the tool called RUFUS would come into play... It CAN make a Flash that will boot..
I don't actually know how the Windows method compares to the Gateway method...
The end result may be similar, but more likely apples and oranges...
Normally the manufacturers provide a method to restore the machine to it's Out Of Box condition in some fashion...
You are correct that Restoring\Recovering an image to a 100GB partition on the external drive is a bit in conflict with Not doing this... But it would be a way to test if your backup images will work...
But it is risky, but not as risky as 3-4 bootable partitions... I don't even know if your machine will even boot to a USB HDD for sure...
My main machine is a Desktop... I can easily unhook my main HDD to test stuff without corrupting Windows... Then I have a better idea of what works and what doesn't when using my laptop or tablet... It's pretty hard, if not impossible to unhook the drive in them..
I don't actually know what type of machine your gateway is... If I did, I forgot.
You can not make just one partition GPT or MBR... The actual DRIVE is GPT or MBR...
About my images... I keep a lot of images so that I don't need to do time consuming things over again... And I always keep my old images just in case a change I made, or a Windows Update that was installed, might cause a problem that I didn't know about until it was too late..
I built most of my machines myself... obviously not the laptop or Tablet !!!
As a result I had to install windows from scratch... It can be an extremely long and time consuming process that I don't want to have to start over... it's much easier making and keeping the images..
In addition to that, because of the forums, I need to be able to return my machine to a previous conditions to troubleshoot other peoples problems...
I probably forgot to answer one of your questions, so remind me if I did.
Sorry for the delay in getting back -- I had the image made, and I was burned out on all these details and needed a break. I'm back and fresh -- and following it better than I did when it came in yesterday. :)
The one significant question, I think we are missing each other on the communication. About doing the "recovery," (which my brain refuses to think of as actually recovering anything):
I believe you previously said not to do a full disk recovery, to instead do a partition OR file recovery. I think you are now saying not to do a file recovery, to do the full partition recovery. I think either way I will be doing the partition recovery, but let me get clear on what you are saying. (And from what you say, I will not do file-only images.)
I have not done a Recovery yet (and if lucky will never have to), so I haven't seen the choices I will get in the windows when I do. This might all be perfectly clear if I had seen the choices in the windows.
I will put a note in with my Acronis CD to remind me.
And we're talking about Acronis only? Or about any application I use for recovery? Which, BTW, is another question: I did the image back up with Acronis. Do I HAVE to use Acronis for the Recovery, or can I use any imaging software for that, such as the OS software, to do the Recovery? (Well, if I'm Recovering, the OS software is probably not accessible! :) Are all Recovery images exactly the same tech, or do different brand applications run off in their own direction, and thus requiring you to use their software to do the Recovery?
OK, I now read you saying that if I had done simply the imagining of files only, when I recovered it would not boot. I thought you had said otherwise previously. OK, then I will always want to do the full partitions imaging, and there is no point holding the file-only version I made.
OK about multiple boot partitions on a single drive or even on multiple drives -- but then you suggested restoring to a partition on the external drive and booting. That seems in conflict -- but maybe you meant after doing what you previously had said to avoid the conflicts -- I will simply unplug the internal and see if the external boots. I know how to pick the boot drive in bios, but not the partition itself. Will it automatically pick the boot partitions on that drive, and if I had multiple, how would it know which one (in Mac, you can have as many as you want, and you choose the partition -- actually, the volume -- to boot, not the drive)? Once tested, I would know the image worked fine, kill out that boot partition, and keep the image. Seems like a lot of effort just to test and confirm the image is not corrupted -- they need to invent an easier way to test the image.
Can I make only a partition GPT? Or do I have to do the entire drive? If the latter, then I would have to start again, make e the drive GPT and make two partitions. Do the full partitions image again, and then recover it to the second partitions. OK. Once successful, I could kill that second partition. If I need a bootable drive for an emergency, I could just Recover the image to that partition again.
I'm not sure why you keep so many images. I figure I just need one, and I would want thee most recent.
BTW, last night I found I also have Gateway software on the machine to do imaging. Not sure if using the Windows version or the Gateway version would be preferable. I'm thinking Windows maybe, since Windows is the one require UEFI for booting.
