HP, Hdd swap, bios trouble

The BIOS could be set to do "Fast Boot" which would be why you can't enter it.

You will need to disable "Fast Boot from" the power button menu. The power button can be used if you encounter Fast Boot problems.

1. Make sure the laptop is turned off. Not in Hibernate or Sleep mode.

2. Press the power button and hold it down. The system should emit three short beeps from the speaker, or headphones if you have them plugged in.

4. After the beeps, release the power button 'before' the 4-second shutdown override.

5. The power button menu should now display.

5. Press F3 to disable Fast Boot and you should be able to access BIOS now.

To enable Fast Boot:

1. When the laptop boots up, enter the BIOS setup by pressing "F2".
2. Now go to the "Boot Configuration menu".
3. Choose the "Enable Fast Boot".
4. Press F10 to save the changes and exit.

Also...

1. You will need your Windows OS (Operating System) CD or bootable Windows OS USB device.
2. Connect the bootable USB device or insert the CD into your computer.
3. Now use the "F2, F12 and Delete" keys enter BIOS setup.
4. Click "Repair Your Computer" below the "Install Now" button.
5. While you are in the "Repair Your Computer" open "CMD" (Command Prompt).
6. When you are in "CMD" type “diskpart” then type “list volume”.
7. Next you will be in "list volume". All volumes should be shown.
8. Find your system volume, where the windows are installed and then type “select volume ###“(system volume C) shows on CMD. Ex. select volume 3.
9. After you have selected the volume, type “ACTIVE“. Your system partition is active now.
10. Now type ”exit” to leave diskpart and then type ”exit” again to close CMD.
11. That’s it now RESTART your computer.

This should work, if you follow the steps correctly.

NOTE: When typing in anything, do not include the quote "" marks, otherwise things will not work correctly.