Abstract: A method and apparatus for programming electrically reprogrammable non-volatile memory associated with a processor which is also conventionally associated with read/write memory, both of which memories are necessary to operate the processor in a determined manner, optionally within some larger unit. In order to load the permanent data required for operation of the processor into the non-volatile memory, a memory-activation signal provided by the processor is switched to a temporarily connected auxiliary memory in order to start up the processor on the basis of initiation data contained in the auxiliary memory, to transfer into the read/write memory data that is present in the auxiliary memory and that corresponds to the data for recording in the non-volatile memory, and then to transfer the data from the read/write memory into the non-volatile memory after the processor has deactivated the auxiliary memory.