This article will take you through how to access the safe mode feature in order to boot your Windows.

 

How to Start Windows 10 in Safe Mode

  • In the search field at the bottom of your screen, type the command msconfig .
  • At the top of the search results, click System Configuration or just press Enter.

 

  • Alternatively, click the Start button, scroll down the apps list and open the folder for Windows Administrative Tools.
  • Click the shortcut for System Configuration.

 

  • In the System Configuration window that appears, your current setting is most likely Normal Startup or Selective Startup. Click the second option for Diagnostic startup, which loads only basic drivers and services.
  • Note that the drivers and services for audio, networking, and certain other functions won't load with this option, so you won't be able to use or test those features. 

 

  •  Click OK. At the System Configuration message, click the Restart button to immediately reboot your computer.

 

Also Read:  How To Successfully Install Direct X On Windows 10.

 

Safe Boot

Immediately your PC restarts, sign back into Windows and try to reproduce the problem you were experiencing. Whether or not the trouble persists, you'll still have to perform further testings to narrow it down.

  1. Open the System Configuration tool again.
  2. Click the Boot tab.
  3. Select the checkbox for Safe boot.
  4. Under Safe Boot are four different options: Minimal, Alternate shell, Active Directory Repair, and Network.
  • Minimal  loads only the very minimum drivers necessary for Windows to work but still lands you at the GUI so you can navigate using your mouse.
  • Alternate shell  starts Safe Mode with the command prompt, so for this one you'll need to know how to load Windows without the GUI available.
  • Active Directory Repair  is an option for computers in an enterprise environment that connect to Microsoft's Active Directory.
  • Network  loads the necessary network drivers in the Windows GUI so you can access and test network connectivity.

 

Among these, Minimal and Network are probably the most useful options for the average person troubleshooting a problem. Select Minimal, reboot, and try to reproduce the problem. Do the same with Network.

 

If the problem goes away, you can always open System Configuration again and try booting into Normal mode and see if the trouble is really gone. Otherwise, some of the other options in the Boot section of System Configuration can be helpful. No GUI, Boot log, Base video, and OS boot information can be used with Diagnostic startup or Safe boot. You can enable any or all of these four options.

 

Also Read: How To Backup And Restore Sticky Notes On Windows 10?

 

Quick Boot Into Safe Mode in Windows 10 (or 8.1)

If you're running Windows 10 or 8.1, you have other options for booting into Safe Mode.

In Windows 10, click the Start button > Settings > Update & security > Recovery . In the Advanced Startup section, click the button to Restart now.

 

If you still have Windows 8.1, launch the Charms bar, then click the Settings charm > Change PC Settings > Update & recovery > Recovery. In the Advanced Startup section, click the button to Restart now.

 

From this point in both Windows 10 and 8.1, your screen will display a blue menu. Choose Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Settings > Restart. At the next Startup Settings screen, press one of the keys from 1 through 9 to select a specific startup type—for example, 1 to Enable debugging, 4 to Enable Safe Mode, or 5 to Enable Safe Mode with Networking. Then click the Restart button.

 

FINAL VERDICT

Having followed the steps laid out in this utorial, you should be able to fix your windows that is malfunctioning through safe boot.