If you ever have to diagnosis your Windows 10 computer you may need to boot into Safe Mode. So, here are 5 ways to boot into Safe Mode in Windows 10. What is Safe Mode? In simple terms Safe Mode boots your computer with minimal required settings and hardware/software combination. It is mainly used to fix problems with computers such as system errors. Problems such as BSOD (Blue screen of death) and removal of harmful software may require you first to boot into safe mode before you try to fix them. There are 5 ways to boot into Safe Mode in Windows 10. Having alternative ways at times come in handy as mentioned in the article below. Note: This guide will also work for Windows 8/8.1 PCs. Method 1: Boot into Safe Mode with System Configuration The easiest and the best possible way to start your PC into Safe Mode is using the System Configuration tab. Press Windows Logo Key R. It will open Run dialogue box. Type msconfig in the Run dialogue box and hit enter. Now System Configuration dialogue box will appear. Here click on Boot tab. Under, Boot options, check Safe Boot and click on Apply and click on OK. Now you will be prompted to restart your PC. Click on Restart button. Now the PC will restart, and you will boot into Safe Mode. Note: After you are done using the PC in Safe Mode make sure to uncheck the Safe Mode option before you restart your PC next time. Method 2: Shift Restart Another easy way to Boot into Safe Mode in Windows 10 is using the restart function with the help of Shift key. All you have to do is press and hold the shift key and click on restart. You can do this both from the lock screen and the desktop area. Click on Start >> Power >> Press and hold Shift key and click on Restart. Now you will be shown the Choose an Options window. Click on Troubleshoot >> Advanced Options. Click on Startup settings and select Restart. Your PC will now restart with Startup Settings. Press F4/4 on your keyboard to enable Safe Mode. Method 3: Enable Legacy Advanced Boot Menu You can Boot into Safe Mode by accessing Advanced Boot Menu in Windows 10. The Advanced Boot Menu was enabled by default in Windows 7 and older versions of the Windows OS. However, with Windows 10 you have to manually enable this option from the Command Prompt. To do this, open the command prompt as Administrator. Right-click on Start and click on Command Prompt (Admin). Now in the Command Prompt window enter the following line of command: BCDEDIT /SET {DEFAULT} BOOTMENUPOLICY LEGACY Hit enter to run the command. If the command is executed successfully, it will display a message ” Operation successfully completed.” Troubleshooting Tips: If you receive an error “The boot configuration data store could not be opened. Access is denied” then make sure that you run the Command Prompt as Admin. To test it, shut down your PC. Now press the power button to restart it. As soon as the black screen appears, start pressing the F8 key until you see Advanced Boot Menu. Once in the Advanced Boot Menu, you can select the Safe Mode option. Method 4: Boot into Safe Mode using Advanced Startup Windows 10 allows you to boot into Safe Mode using the Advanced Startup option. This is one of the most convenient ways to boot into Safe Mode in Windows 10. Click on Start and go to All Settings. Under All Settings, click on Update and Security. Next, click the Recovery tab. Under the Advanced Startup section, click on Restart Now. Your PC will now restart, so let it restart. After the restart, you will see three options listed: Continue Troubleshoot Turn Off your PC This is known as Recovery Mode. Click on Troubleshoot to proceed. Under Troubleshoot, there are two options: Reset this PC Advanced Options Click on Advanced Options to proceed. Under Advanced Options, there are a couple of settings including Command Prompt, Recovery, Startup Repair, etc. Click on Startup Settings to proceed. Click on Restart and it will restart your PC showing Startup Settings. When the PC restarts, you will see a blue screen with few options. Press F4 / 4 to Start your PC in Safe Mode. There are other options including Start PC in Safe Mode with Comand Prompt and Start PC in Safe Mode with Networking. Select the appropriate option and press the key. Method 5: Use Bootable Media At times you may not be able to access your system due to some error such as Blue screen of death. In such situation, none of these methods will work as it requires you to boot Windows first. However, if you have bootable installation media ready, you can still boot into Safe Mode in Windows 10. Here is how to do it. Insert bootable Windows 10 USB flash drive or Disc to your computer. Now restart your PC and if asked to press any key, simply press any random key to continue. A Windows setup dialogue box will appear. Click on Next. Select Repair your computer option. Next, go to Troubleshoot and from Advanced Options, click Startup Settings. Now restart your PC and you will be taken to Advanced Boot Menu. Select Safe Mode and press enter to boot into Safe Mode in Windows 10.
