A computer implemented method, apparatus, and computer program product for booting a computer using a boot list. A determination is made as to whether a boot list is present in a non-volatile memory of the computer. The boot list is a set of paths, in which each path in the boot list is a path of a storage device. If the boot list is not present, a search is performed for the boot list in a reserved area of each storage device in a set of storage devices. When the boot list is found in the reserved area of a storage device in the set of storage devices, the boot list is copied from the reserved area of the storage device in the set of storage devices to form a copied boot list. The copied boot list is stored in the non-volatile memory to form a stored boot list. The computer is booted using the stored boot list in the non-volatile memory.