How to boot from USB on a Dell laptop?

Alright, I give up.

So, I grabbed this Dell Inspiron today, thinking I’d just wipe the Linux crap off it and install Windows 10 from a USB. I figured it would be a breeze. Turns out, I was dead wrong.

I set F12 to pull up the boot menu, but the USB isn't even showing up. I went into the BIOS and moved the USB priority way ahead of the hard drive, but still... zilch. It won't even list the USB drive or its name. It's like the machine doesn't even know it exists. Total garbage.

It's just a standard 8GB Sony thumb drive, nothing fancy, definitely not USB 3.0. I tried plugging it into every single port on the thing, but nothing happens. To make matters worse, I tested it on an old, beat-up laptop I had lying around, and that thing picked it up instantly and booted fine. (An HP laptop). Please don't tell me I just got stuck with a lemon.

My plan to get Windows running today is officially circling the drain. If anyone knows what's going on, help me out. Yeah, it has a DVD drive, but I haven't touched a disc in a century. Is there any actual way to get this damn thing to boot from the USB?

Yeah, I’ve got another USB drive lying around. It’s some no-name 4GB thing I just got as a freebie. Could the issue be the USB itself?

Yeah, I actually spent some time messing around with that one. Now I'm trying to use the official Microsoft tool to make a bootable USB drive on that other thumb drive I've got lying around. Honestly, maybe that ISO I grabbed off Pirate Bay was just a dud.

Double-check how you set up that bootable drive—try plugging the USB in while you're still running Windows and see if it shows up by its actual name rather than just appearing as a CD

For instance, it shouldn't show up as "E: Sony" or something like that; it should actually reflect the Windows 10 installer you downloaded

Thanks for the assist, everyone. Managed to pull it off 🙂 turned out to be a Microsoft issue. Some weird luck where this random freebie I snagged from a phone shop works perfectly, but that Maxell one I actually paid for? Total dud. My computer wouldn't even acknowledge it existed, whereas this generic little thing just popped up and everything's running smooth. Gonna dive back into work tomorrow. Honestly, feels like there’s some glitch with certain brands or maybe I just botched something on my end, but hey, it's working now 🙂 thx