Need advice on my recent Dell purchase

garioch7 · Sep 15, 2025

I don't have either SupportAssist or Dell Update programs on my computers. I got rid of them when the respective warranties expired. I go to the Dell Support website weekly, insert my Service Tag for the computer, and grab the updates that I want, not what Dell might tell me is available for some of their bloatware.

Regarding BIOS updates in Dell computers, the consensus of expert opinion is that the safest way to do that is via Flash Update, rather than using Dell Update or SupportAssist, both of which are less reliable, the latter more so than the former. RoHe is one of the senior experts on the Dell Forums, which I regularly visit. I have been using that method since Dell Update borked a BIOS update years ago. RoHe was kind enough to instruct me how to recover from that disaster, using the F12 method with a BIOS .rcv file on a FAT32 USB drive, with nothing else on it.

It should be stressed that the USB drive has to be formatted as FAT32. I have a small, older FAT32 USB drive that is dedicated to doing Dell BIOS updates and nothing else.

As always, it is your computer, so it is your decision, but a borked BIOS update can really ruin your day. I prefer safety over convenience. Just my opinion.

Have a great day.

Regards,
Phil

cereberus · Sep 15, 2025

cheaterslick said:
My initial inclination is to at least do the following:

1.) Don't use an email address to sign-in

2.) Disable OneDrive since I have no need for it

3.) Disable BitLocker since I have no need for it

I'll start from there and keep going...

1. If you do not use an MS account, you cannot transfer the digital licence to another device i.e. if mobo fails, you have to buy a new licence if you do not have a suitable key.

2. I do not understand the obsession with disabling onedrive - ok, you only get 5GB cloudspace but if used sensibly, it is like having a usb flash drive online and makes it easy to transfer files between devices and and/or users.

3. Each to their own, recognising your device may be less secure.

DJNelson · Sep 15, 2025

garioch7 said:
I don't have either SupportAssist or Dell Update programs on my computers. I got rid of them when the respective warranties expired. I go to the Dell Support website weekly, insert my Service Tag for the computer, and grab the updates that I want, not what Dell might tell me is available for some of their bloatware.

Ditto.

There's even a way to extract only the files necessary to run the hardware from the downloads and skip the GUI that sometimes comes with the driver, which further reduces hardware overhead without any effect on it's functions.

Using 7zip, I usually just extract the bare bones installers from the downloaded packages for some hardware. I don't need the interface that comes with the RTX driver for example, and it saves about 500 MB RAM and a half dozen background processes.

glasskuter · Sep 15, 2025

garioch7 said:
the consensus of expert opinion is that the safest way to do that is via Flash Update

All my devices are Dell. I have not used the "flash" method for updating my bios in many, many years.... Back in the day when bios updates could be hit or miss. OEMs have vastly improved the process since then so I don't feel it is any longer the "consensus of experts". This Dell has had 32 bios updates since 2020, all managed by DCU. While of course any bios update could still brick a system, I figure user error during a manual flash is more likely to tank a motherboard than a tool specifically designed for my machine and tied to my device's driver list making sure the RIGHT bios is downloaded.

I do not use bitlocker, but if I did I would temporarily disable it while DCU does a bios update.
Just my opinion.

TraderGary · Sep 15, 2025

glasskuter said:
All my devices are Dell. I have not used the "flash" method for updating my bios in many, many years.... Back in the day when bios updates could be hit or miss. OEMs have vastly improved the process since then so I don't feel it is any longer the "consensus of experts". This Dell has had 32 bios updates since 2020, all managed by DCU. While of course any bios update could still brick a system, I figure user error during a manual flash is more likely to tank a motherboard than a tool specifically designed for my machine and tied to my device's driver list making sure the RIGHT bios is downloaded.

I agree.

glasskuter said:
I do not use bitlocker, but if I did I would temporarily disable it while DCU does a bios update.
Just my opinion.

Since I am mobile much of the time and I make my living with my computer, security is imperative. My computer is securely encrypted with BitLocker.

Dell Command | Update looks to see if BitLocker is turned ON and if so, temporarily disables it before doing BIOS updates. I'm confident using DCU.

cheaterslick · Sep 15, 2025

glasskuter said:
I strongly suggest that you keep Dell Command Update to keep your drivers updated. You can set it to do so automatically or do like I do. I stop it from autostarting and run it manually every month or two.

Yeah, I've used it in the past with my Windows 10 Latitude.

I'm going to want it disabled from starting up and running in the background all the the time, though...

glasskuter said:
If you choose to do as I do, you would want to disable include drivers with windows update. Windows update tends to load old drivers and I darn sure don't want WU updating my bios. Enable or Disable Include Drivers with Windows Updates in Windows 11

And will it stay off?

That happened quite a bit with my old Lenovo. It's too bad this is still a problem after all these years of doing that.

~ ~ ~

I also notice now I will have to be more vigilant with monitoring BitLocker status since MS is trying to take away our choice as to whether to use it or not. Unless there's some kind of permanent way of disabling it?

glasskuter · Sep 15, 2025

cheaterslick said:
I'm going to want it disabled from starting up and running in the background all the the time

Open Dell Command Update as administrator. Click it's gear icon to get into settings. Under update settings change to manual.

cheaterslick said:
And will it stay off?

It has for me.

cheaterslick said:
also notice now I will have to be more vigilant with monitoring BitLocker status since MS is trying to take away our choice as to whether to use it or not. Unless there's some kind of permanent way of disabling it?

You do not have to worry about that in Pro. Device encryption, used in in HOME, is being automatically enabled when one uses a MS account. PRO uses Bitlocker. Drives are not encrypted until you encrypt them. Control Panel >Bitlocker Drive Encryption.

cheaterslick · Sep 16, 2025

glasskuter said:
You do not have to worry about that in Pro. Device encryption, used in in HOME, is being automatically enabled when one uses a MS account. PRO uses Bitlocker. Drives are not encrypted until you encrypt them. Control Panel >Bitlocker Drive Encryption.

I never use the HOME edition, only PRO.

Here's something else I read over at AskWoody concerning something new about BitLocker

When upgrading to Windows 11 24H2, keep BitLocker in mind. Depending up your circumstances and how the upgrade is applied, BitLocker may or may not be automatically enabled — silently.

If you are upgrading from Windows 10 or Windows 11 23H2 via Windows update, your BitLocker configuration will be preserved. It will not change in any way.

If you use a clean install to get to Windows 11 24H2 and are using a Microsoft account, BitLocker will be enabled.

If you use a clean install to get to Windows 11 24H2, are using a local account, and do not have BitLocker enabled, it will be staged. Should anyone log in to such a PC using a Microsoft account, BitLocker will be enabled. This behavior is new to 24H2 and is documented.

Notice that 3rd entry up above about new BitLocker's new behavior

Now I will have to log in one time in order to get Office Home & Student edition loaded (not Office365) since the link is attached to an email address, but I plan on staying logged out when using it.

glasskuter · Sep 16, 2025

I did some research and it seems your information is absolutely correct.
All my personal computers are Pro using a MS account. I did a clean install of 24h2 and Bitlocker was not enabled automatically.
It just dawned on me as to why. When I created my windows install drive using Rufus, I remembered checking the bitlocker exception box..I did not use the media creation tool which does not give you that option..

cheaterslick · Sep 18, 2025

The machine will arrive this weekend...

One other thing I'm gonna need to do is change the disk mode from RAID to AHCI so the machine will run better.

I think it's stupid for Dell to use RAID as a default, especially when you only have one internal hard drive (SSD) and no external RAID setup is being used. Most machines they sell are designed like that.

Any suggestions on that?

pseymour · Sep 18, 2025

I should point out that glasskuter and TraderGary mentioned Dell Command | Update, while garioch7 mentioned Dell Update. These have some things in common, but they are not the same. Dell Update is for consumer machines, while DCU is for business machines.*

That being said, I agree with these two amigos. I have DCU on thousands of devices and have done so for more years than I can recall; nary a problem in sight.

glasskuter said:
I strongly suggest that you keep Dell Command Update to keep your drivers updated. You can set it to do so automatically or do like I do. I stop it from autostarting and run it manually every month or two. It's a fantastic tool and has never failed me. Dell updates bios quite often so I depend on Dell Command Update for bios and drivers update. IT IS NOT A BLOAT APP.

TraderGary said:
I agree! Dell Command | Update is not bloatware! I've used it for decades with all my Dell Computers and I too depend on Dell Command | Update to keep my Dell BIOS updated and all my drivers updated. Seriously, the Dell engineers know what they are doing!

*:

Dell Update and Alienware Update - Overview and Common Questions | Dell US

Dell Command | Update | Dell US

glasskuter · Sep 18, 2025

cheaterslick said:
One other thing I'm gonna need to do is change the disk mode from RAID to AHCI so the machine will run better.

As the machine will come with RAID enabled (I can't figure out why Dell does it either. PIA) you can not just arbitrarily switch from RAID to AHCI on a working system. Your Windows WILL NOT boot.

There is a way to do it.. However I don't suggest one do it until they have a need to install windows when it can be done easily just from the bios. IRST works fine for non-raid disks.

The only time IRST gets to be a pain is when using a usb boot drive. (Such as a windows install drive, recovery media for imaging applications, drives containing bootable tools, etc) In those cases the IRST drivers have to be inserted into the bootable media. The only one I know of that gives you the option to install storage controller drivers manually is a windows install disk.

If you decide to tackle changing a working system from RAID to AHCI, it is risky. Do so at your own risk. There are many articles on the web about, some are incomplete. Here is a shared co-pilot link for the registry method.. If you do it, be sure to turn off Bitlocker or Device Encryption first. ~~how to switch from raid to ahci in working system~~ Link deleted as instructions are questionable. Use the following method instead.

Another method is using safe boot. Switch RAID to AHCI without reinstalling Windows 10

glasskuter · Sep 18, 2025

@cheaterslick I've been studying co-pilot's answer and believe it is incorrect for the registry method. I have done this once, and used the safe boot method succssfully. @pseymour would you please look at those registry entries copilot gave. IMO some are WRONG and some are missing. Please look at what I think the registry entries should be and tell me what you think. If they are wrong I want to delete the copilot link so anyone else won't get a hold of it..

these entries correlate to Windows RAID
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\iaStorV
copilot says start value to 0. shouldn't it be to 3 (OFF)

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\iaStorAV\StartOverride
Copilot has 0 (ON)should be set to 3 (OFF) OR value not set.

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\iaStor Copilot does not mention this entry., If it exists, shouldn't there also be a
change to start value of 3 (OFF)

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\iaStorAVC
This reg entry is also missing from co-pilot that I think should be start
value of 3 (OFF)

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\iaVROC
this entry correlates to VMD (if it exists) and is missing in copilot. If present should have start value of 3(OFF)

These entries correlates to Microsoft AHCI drivers
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\storahci
is correct in copilot set as 0 (ON)

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\storahci\StartOverride
is correct in copilot set to 0 (ON)

pseymour · Sep 19, 2025

@glasskuter I'm not sure what Copilot is referring to there. Those look an awful lot like the instructions for switching a SATA controller from IDE mode to AHCI (example).

Really the simplest method is the highest voted message in your SuperUser link. The only thing I would add is between steps 5 and 6, I would make sure Windows has installed the drivers for the controller before turning off safe boot, just to be safe (pun intended). Also, one can enable safe boot in MSConfig, on the Boot tab, if command lines make one nervous.

View attachment 145926

cheaterslick · Sep 19, 2025

pseymour said:
Really the simplest method is the highest voted message in your SuperUser link. The only thing I would add is between steps 5 and 6, I would make sure Windows has installed the drivers for the controller before turning off safe boot, just to be safe (pun intended). Also, one can enable safe boot in MSConfig, on the Boot tab, if command lines make one nervous.

View attachment 145926

Yeah, I just read that highest voted message in that link and that rang a bell! I seem to remember doing something like that a few years back for Windows 10 and changing it through the BIOS.

I would disable BitLocker before doing it (which I'm gonna do, anyway), and I would do it through a local account without any signing in (which would be 1. in my post #5 from last Sunday). I would have that local account set up so I don't have to enter a password and it would boot straight into Windows without entering one.

Later on, after I got all this done, then I would create a password for regular log ins.

cheaterslick · Sep 20, 2025

Well the machine came yesterday (with 24H2 Pro) and I managed to get my three main goals in post #5 done.

I should point out that that the instruction @glasskuter pointed out in post #11 still works although the command prompt wouldn't come up until I hit: Shift + Fn + F10 simultaneously. Otherwise all so good so far.

pseymour · Sep 21, 2025

Yep, all (maybe most) Dells ship by default with the Fn key being necessary to make the F keys work in the classic sense, e.g., F10 is really F10. You can change a setting in the UEFI to make it default to F-key mode, and then the Fn key would be used for the other function on the given key.

cheaterslick · Sep 21, 2025

pseymour said:
Yep, all (maybe most) Dells ship by default with the Fn key being necessary to make the F keys work in the classic sense, e.g., F10 is really F10. You can change a setting in the UEFI to make it default to F-key mode, and then the Fn key would be used for the other function on the given key.

Yeah I need the Fn key to toggle back & forth.

I remember an old HP I had years ago that actually had an Fn light that would let you know whether it was toggled on or off (similar to the CapsLock light), but it looks most everybody got rid of that.

hdmi · Sep 22, 2025

cheaterslick said:
Notice that 3rd entry up above about new BitLocker's new behavior

At the first OOBE screen, press Shift + F10 to open the command prompt.
Type:
reg add hklm\system\currentcontrolset\control\bitlocker /v PreventDeviceEncryption /t reg_dword /d 1 /f
Hit Enter.
Close the window and let OOBE continue.

Bye-bye automatic Device Encryption on Windows 11 Home.

cheaterslick · Sep 23, 2025

hdmi said:
At the first OOBE screen, press Shift + F10 to open the command prompt.

Type:
reg add hklm\system\currentcontrolset\control\bitlocker /v PreventDeviceEncryption /t reg_dword /d 1 /f

Hit Enter.

Close the window and let OOBE continue.

Bye-bye automatic Device Encryption on Windows 11 Home.

Well it's too late for that. I've already gotten past the OOBE screen and now can boot into Windows without having to use a password. What about after you've gotten past that point?

Need advice on my recent Dell purchase

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