Returning your PC to normal use

Your YOM NANO lives alongside your regular drives, not in place of them. Returning to your normal Windows or Linux install takes one change in the BIOS boot order. Two minutes total. None of your existing data is touched.

when you’d want to do this

• You’re playing a game yourself and don’t want your machine doing double duty
• You need to update your regular OS or install software that requires a reboot
• You’re traveling and won’t have stable network for hours
• You’re shutting the machine down for an extended period

Hosting is opt-in by boot. As long as you boot from your regular drive, you’re not on the network.

the steps

step 1: shut down properly

If your NANO is currently running a session, give it a moment to finish gracefully:

1. Open app.yom.net/my-hosts on your phone
2. If a session is active (status streaming or similar), wait for it to end. Most sessions are under an hour.
3. Once the host shows online with no active session, you’re safe to shut down

Then power down the PC normally (long-press the power button if needed).

step 2: enter the BIOS

Power on and hit your BIOS key during the boot screen. Common keys:

• F2 or F10: Dell, Lenovo, HP
• DEL or F12: ASUS, Gigabyte, MSI, ASRock
• F1: some legacy systems

You’re looking for the Boot Order or Boot Priority menu.

step 3: change the boot order back

Move your regular drive (the one with Windows or Linux) to the top of the boot order. The NANO can stay second, third, or wherever. It only matters that your regular drive boots first.

Save changes and exit.

step 4: boot as usual

Your PC will start into your normal OS. The NANO sits idle, plugged in but not running. No background processes, no impact on performance.

when you want to host again

Same steps in reverse:

1. Shut down
2. Enter the BIOS
3. Move the NANO back to the top of boot order
4. Save and exit

The NANO retains its claim to your wallet, so you don’t redo any setup. Your host shows back up in My hosts within a minute of coming online, and the network starts routing sessions to you again.

one note about updates

The YOM Node OS updates itself automatically the next time you boot from the NANO. If you’ve been gone from hosting for a long time (weeks or more), expect the first boot to take 5-10 extra minutes for the update to apply. After that, normal operation resumes.

physically removing the NANO

If you want the NANO out of your PC entirely (selling the machine, building a new one), power down first, then unplug the USB device. Your existing drives and OS are entirely separate and unaffected.

The NANO’s claim to your wallet stays valid. You can plug it into a different qualifying PC and host from there with no re-setup. The hardware is portable.