# US 2014/0208090 A1 · Systems and methods for command-based entry into basic input/output system setup from operating system > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2014/0208090 A1 - Document ID: US20140208090A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 13/746,979 - Filed: 2013-01-22 - Published: 2014-07-24 - Earliest claimed: 2013-01-22 - Assignees: Dell Products L.P. - Applicants: Dell Products L.P. - Inventors: Douglas M. Anson; Charles D. Robison; David Konetski; Frank H. Molsberry; Anand Joshi - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20140208090A1 ## CPC - G06F 21/575: {Secure boot} - G06F 9/4401: Bootstrapping (security arrangements therefor G06F21/57) - G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N) ## Abstract In accordance embodiments of the present disclosure, a method may include, during execution of an operating system on an information handling system and responsive to a user input indicating a desire to invoke a basic input/output system (BIOS) setup program for configuring a BIOS, prompting for and receiving user-provided credentials via a user interface communicatively coupled to the processor. The method may also include, during execution of the operating system, passing BIOS credentials to the BIOS based on the user-provided credentials. The method may additionally include, during execution of the operating system determining, by the BIOS, if the BIOS credentials are valid. The method may further include, responsive to determining that the BIOS credentials are valid, setting a flag to a value indicating that the BIOS setup program is to be invoked on a subsequent boot of the information handling system. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An information handling system comprising: a processor; an operating system comprising one or more instructions embodied in computer-readable media communicatively coupled to the processor, the instructions for causing the processor to, when read and executed by the processor: responsive to a user input indicating a desire to invoke a basic input/output system (BIOS) setup program for configuring a BIOS, prompt for and receive user-provided credentials via a user interface communicatively coupled to the processor; and pass BIOS credentials to the BIOS based on the user-provided credentials; and the BIOS comprising one or more instructions embodied in computer-readable media communicatively coupled to the processor, the instructions for causing the processor to, when read and executed by the processor: determine if the BIOS credentials are valid; responsive to determining that the BIOS credentials are valid, set a flag to a value indicating that the BIOS setup program is to be invoked on a subsequent boot of the information handling system; during a boot of the information handling system, determine the value of the flag; during the boot and responsive to determining that value of the flag is set, invoke the BIOS setup program prior to loading and executing an operating system on the processor; and during the boot and responsive to determining that value of the flag is not set, load and execute the operating system without invoking the BIOS setup program. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The information handling system of claim 1, wherein the BIOS credentials comprise the user-provided credentials. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The information handling system of claim 1, wherein the user-provided credentials comprise at least one of a username and a password. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The information handling system of claim 1, wherein: the user-provided credentials are in a format which the BIOS cannot process; and passing the BIOS credentials to the BIOS based on the user-provided credentials comprises passing BIOS credentials in a format in which the BIOS can process to the BIOS based on the user-provided credentials. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The information handling system of claim 4, wherein the passing the BIOS credentials to the BIOS based on the user-provided credentials comprises: indexing a database entry based on the user-provided credentials; and passing BIOS credentials present in the indexed database entry as the BIOS credentials. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The information handling system of claim 1, the BIOS further configured to cause the processor to store a timestamp associated with the flag and indicative of the time at which the flag was set. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The information handling system of claim 6, the BIOS further configured to cause the processor to: during the boot, determine the value of the timestamp; during the boot and responsive to determining that the value of the timestamp is below a particular value, invoking the BIOS setup program prior to loading and executing an operating system on the processor; and during the boot and responsive to determining that the value of the timestamp is above a particular value, loading and executing the operating system without invoking the BIOS setup program. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The information handling system of claim 1, wherein: the operating system may further cause the processor to digitally sign or encrypt the BIOS credentials; and the BIOS may further cause the processor to validate a digital signature of the BIOS credentials or decrypt the BIOS credentials. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The information handling system of claim 1, wherein: the BIOS may further cause the processor to digitally sign or encrypt the flag; and the BIOS setup program may cause the processor to validate the digital signature of the flag or decrypt the flag. ### Claim 10 A method comprising: during execution of an operating system on an information handling system and responsive to a user input indicating a desire to invoke a basic input/output system (BIOS) setup program for configuring a BIOS, prompting for and receiving user-provided credentials via a user interface communicatively coupled to the processor; during execution of the operating system, passing BIOS credentials to the BIOS based on the user-provided credentials; during execution of the operating system determining, by the BIOS, if the BIOS credentials are valid; and responsive to determining that the BIOS credentials are valid, setting a flag to a value indicating that the BIOS setup program is to be invoked on a subsequent boot of the information handling system. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, further comprising: during a boot of the information handling system, determining the value of the flag; during the boot and responsive to determining that the value of the flag is set, invoking the BIOS setup program prior to loading and executing an operating system on the processor; and during the boot and responsive to determining that the value of the flag is not set, loading and executing the operating system without invoking the BIOS setup program. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein the user-provided credentials comprise at least one of a username and a password. ### Claim 13 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein: the user-provided credentials are in a format which the BIOS cannot process; and passing the BIOS credentials to the BIOS based on the user-provided credentials comprises passing BIOS credentials in a format in which the BIOS can process to the BIOS based on the user-provided credentials. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein the passing the BIOS credentials to the BIOS based on the user-provided credentials comprises: indexing a database entry based on the user-provided credentials; and passing BIOS credentials present in the indexed database entry as the BIOS credentials. ### Claim 15 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, the BIOS further configured to cause the processor to store a timestamp associated with the flag and indicative of the time at which the flag was set. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The method of claim 15, further comprising: during the boot, determining the value of the timestamp; during the boot and responsive to determining that the value of the timestamp is below a particular value, invoking the BIOS setup program prior to loading and executing an operating system on the processor; and during the boot and responsive to determining that the value of the timestamp is above a particular value, loading and executing the operating system without invoking the BIOS setup program. ### Claim 17 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, further comprising: digitally sign or encrypt the BIOS credentials during execution of the operating system; and validating a digital signature of the BIOS credentials or decrypting the BIOS credentials by the BIOS. ### Claim 18 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein: digitally signing or encrypting the flag by the BIOS during execution of the operating system; and during the subsequent boot, validating the digital signature of the flag or decrypting the flag by the BIOS.