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Windows 10 Safe Mode Keyboard Shortcut

Hi all! In the last article we learned how. In today's article, we will learn how to enter Windows 10 safe mode if the system does not boot due to any errors.

Friends, as a result of what usually our operating system stops loading? That's right, because of damaged system files and critical drivers, but most often Windows does not boot due to programs and drivers we have installed that are not designed to work in our operating system. I'll explain in a little more detail.

How to enter Windows 10 safe mode if the operating system won't boot

Recently, one person contacted me; he successfully updated his Windows 7 to Windows 10, but after the update, the drivers for his video card and TV tuner were lost. I updated the drivers for the video card, but with the TV tuner it turned out to be more and more difficult; on the official website of the device, drivers were posted only for Windows 7, there were not even drivers for Windows 8.1. The support told me that there are no 100% working drivers for Win 10 yet, but there are beta drivers and they are suitable for some and not for others.

I downloaded and installed the drivers along with the software on the TV tuner, without even creating a restore point just in case. The driver installed and asked to reboot, after the reboot blue death (blue screen) appeared on the monitor, several reboots led to the same effect - the system boot ended with a blue screen.

What happened. The blue screen of death is Windows’ protective reaction to incorrectly working code, that is, the system was automatically protected by a blue screen from a malfunctioning TV tuner driver. To remove the incorrect driver, I decided to use safe mode.

  • Note: everything would be easier if I had installed the driver before installing .

We all know that safe mode is specially designed to fix various operating system problems. In Safe Mode, Windows 10 starts with a minimal set of processes that are Microsoft-owned and can be trusted. Therefore, we can use safe mode to remove incorrectly working drivers or programs that lead to Windows boot failure or unstable operation.

All this is clear, but how to enter safe mode if Win 10 does not boot!?

In the initial system installation window, click keyboard shortcut Shift + F10.

A command line window will open, enter the command (suitable for any computer, including laptops with the UEFI interface enabled and the Secure Boot option):

bcdedit /set (globalsettings) advancedoptions true

The command will make a change to the boot store configuration file (BCD).

The operation was completed successfully.

Reboot your computer and the Special Boot Options window will open.

Press the key F4 or 4 to enter safe mode, you can also use other special modes used when troubleshooting Windows 10.

If you want to enter the operating system in the usual way, then press Enter on your keyboard.

Here we are in Windows 10 safe mode.

We remove an incorrect driver or program in the usual way.

Typically, drivers are installed into the operating system along with the software.

Open the Computer window and click Uninstall or change a program.

Find the name of the software that is not working properly and click Remove.

If you installed the driver manually without an installer, uninstall it directly in Device Manager - right-click on it and select Uninstall.

If you want to prevent the Special Boot Options window from appearing when loading, then Boot from the Windows 10 bootable USB flash drive into the recovery environment, launch the command line, enter the command:

bcdedit /deletevalue (globalsettings) advancedoptions

This command will undo previously made changes to the boot store configuration file (BCD).

For insurance, before work, you can do.

If your operating system has stopped loading, errors or viruses have appeared in its operation, then only safe mode will help you cope with them (in English it sounds like Safe Mode). Use this boot option to debug the system. Unlike normal OS startup, in safe mode a number of functions are simply disabled, which allows you to access system files and find the problem. In this article we will look in detail at how to enable safe mode in Windows 10, what it is and why it is needed at all.

Safe mode is a special option for launching Windows operating systems. With its help, you can do things that cannot be done in normal mode, for example, fix problems with the system starting or its operation. Safe Mode provides only basic functions, services, and programs. Only the basic driver components that are needed for Windows to function are loaded. As soon as the system starts in safe mode, you will see the corresponding messages on the PC desktop. Sometimes the video driver does not load, as evidenced by incorrect monitor resolution.

What is it needed for

Using safe mode, you can often boot the system when the normal option no longer works. For example, one of your drivers is “broken”. The system tries to boot and when it comes to a non-working component, it crashes. In safe mode, this driver simply does not load - you can log into the system and fix it. You can look for a problem using the method of elimination. You need to turn off various components one by one and try to restart the PC in normal mode until the source of the failure is found. Just enable and disable various programs and drivers, and when it comes to the faulty one, Windows will boot again and the problem will be solved.

Activation methods

After we understood what safe mode is and why it is needed in general, it was time to move on to the instructions for activating it. In previous versions of Windows this was easier. Previously, to enter Windows Safe Mode (up to version 10), you just had to press the F8 key while the computer was turning on. In the latest version of Windows, this feature was disabled by the developers. Now it’s more difficult to get to the settings, but there are still 5 ways to do this. We will look at each of them in detail.

Options for running Windows 10 in SafeMode:

  • via reboot;
  • using the msconfig utility;
  • using the command line;
  • special loading options;
  • using a flash drive or Windows disk.

Attention! At the very bottom of the article there is a video instruction describing the process of entering the mode we need.

Use the reset key to get into SafeMode

This method is the simplest and most convenient, which is why we put it in first place. The sequence of actions will be as follows:

  1. We do everything as with a normal PC reboot: open the “Start” menu and select the restart item, but at the same time hold down the “Shift” button. After this, the picture on the screen will change color and a notification will appear indicating that you need to wait a little.

  1. We will be offered several points. The first allows you to start the OS in normal mode, the second opens a new menu, and the third simply shuts down. We need exactly the second way. It's called: "Troubleshooting".

  1. In the next step, select “Advanced options”.

  1. Many different options will appear, but we need the boot parameters. Click on the item indicated in the screenshot.

  1. Everything is ready, you can now start Windows 10 in safe mode. All that remains is to restart our system. Click “Reboot”.

  1. We will have a screen with a choice of options. There are 3 safe modes at once, these are: simply SafeMode, with network and command line support. To select the one you need, press the corresponding number on the keyboard.

  1. Windows will reboot into Safe Mode.

  1. Voila! SafeMode is running, as evidenced by the inscriptions in the corners of the desktop. You can move on to solving the problem that is bothering you.

Launch using msconfig

The msconfig utility is a very useful and functional tool included in Windows. It is she who will help us visit safe mode if the previous method did not work for some reason. Let's get started.

  1. To launch the utility, we will use the “Run” tool included in Windows. This program is capable of launching many useful functions that many users are not even aware of. We launch “Run” by simultaneously pressing two Win + R buttons and enter “msconfig” in the window that appears, then press the key labeled “OK”.

Note: You can also find the Run tool through the Start menu or Windows search.

  1. The system settings window opens. There are 5 tabs in total, each of which contains different functions. We need the “Boot” section - this is where you can activate safe mode the next time you start it.

  1. First, let's select the operating system we want to run in easy mode. To do this, simply left-click on its name. In our case, this is just one record. In the “Boot Options” section, you need to check the box next to the “Safe Mode” entry. There are several variations of it, these are: minimal, another shell, Active Directory recovery and network.

  1. Safe mode booting can be supplemented with some options, such as disabling the GUI, boot logging, basic video, or displaying OS information. A little to the right there is an option to set the SafeMode launch delay time.

  1. After you have finished setting up Safe Mode, you can click the “OK” button. The system will notify us that we need to restart the PC. This can be done later. We click "Reboot".

  1. Windows 10 will begin to reboot, but we just have to wait a little.

  1. Ready! Safe Mode is running and ready to troubleshoot your computer.

You can now exit Windows 10 Safe Mode. Reset your msconfig settings and start the system.

Using the command line

Let's describe another method for rebooting a PC or laptop into safe mode. This time we will use a more sophisticated method, namely the command line.

  1. You can launch it in different ways, but we will choose the simplest one. Left-click on the search button (the icon in the form of a magnifying glass on the taskbar) and enter the words “command line” into the search field. We should run the tool in administrator mode, otherwise we simply won’t have enough authority. To do this, call up the context menu and select “Run as administrator.”

  1. The program we need opens. Enter the following command into it (copy the text and paste): bcdedit /copy (current) /d “Your name”. Instead of “Safe Mode”, write anything (a name that is clear to you).

  1. This command will add a new parameter to the “Boot” section of the msconfig utility, which will be called as you wrote it in quotes when entering it into the command line.

  1. Now you can reboot into safe mode through the entry you created. There is no need to change the boot option of the main system. Let's check how it works. Select the added mode and click “OK”. We will again be asked to restart Windows immediately or postpone the action.

  1. The computer will reboot and the next time it starts it will show two operating systems at once, one of which will be the one we created via the command line. We select it and go to reboot again.

  1. As you can see, everything works. We once again found ourselves in safe mode, which was activated via the command line.

  1. This function will be present on your PC or laptop on an ongoing basis. Now it will be much more convenient for you to reboot into safe mode (this may often be needed when debugging Windows). But after we fix the system, we need to disable safe mode and the second OS. To do this, run the msconfig utility again and go to the “Download” section.

  1. Select the entry we created and press the key labeled “Delete”.

After this, the unnecessary mode will disappear and the system will start automatically, without selecting it.

How to login via F8

The good thing about the described methods is that if one of them doesn’t work, the second one will help, the second one doesn’t work, then the third one. But how to fix this annoying misunderstanding and revive Windows 10 safe mode when booting using F8? Let's deal with this issue, and the command line will help us with this again, naturally, launched in administrator mode.

In order to return the launch of the mode we need using F8, we need to make some changes to the “Tens” registry.

  1. Launch the command line with administrator privileges. To do this, enter the phrase “command line” into the Windows 10 search located on the left side of the taskbar. Click on the found entry and select “Run as administrator.”

  1. Paste the following contents: “bcdedit /deletevalue (current) bootmenupolicy” (without quotes) and press Enter. If we did everything correctly, the message “Operation completed successfully” will appear.

  1. Now you can close the window and restart your computer. As soon as the system starts, click the F8 key until you get into the Windows startup settings mode. From here we can select the safe mode we need. Select it using the arrow keys on your keyboard and press Enter.

To cancel booting Windows 10 into Safemode by pressing the F8 button, you need to open your favorite command line again and paste the code “bcdedit /set (current) bootmenupolicy standard” into it (don’t forget to remove the quotes). After pressing Enter, the system will no longer respond to the F8 key.

Special download options

To complete the picture, we will describe another option for starting Windows 10 in safe mode.

  1. We need to open system settings. To do this, expand the notification center and click on the “All settings” item.

  1. In the window that opens, look for the “Updates and Security” item and click on it.

  1. Next, find and click “Recovery”.

  1. Click the “Reboot Now” button. Be careful, the computer will restart, save all data and close the programs.

The computer will offer us a choice of boot mode, which we described in detail in the section “Using the reboot key.” Then simply select the item (activated by pressing the number button on the keyboard) and go to safe mode.

Using the installation distribution

If the system does not start, applying one of the above methods, naturally, will not work. But even in such a case, we have an option - you need to use Windows 10 installation media. Moreover, what it will be - a DVD or a flash drive - does not matter at all. Follow our instructions.

  1. First you need to acquire the same carrier. You should not download Windows 10 via torrent or from third-party resources. The “Ten” image should be taken exclusively from the official Microsoft website. We will help you with this: a little lower you can download a program that will automatically download the image and create a bootable USB flash drive. After the media is ready, insert the flash drive into the USB port of the computer or, accordingly, the disc into the DVD and boot from it.

  1. This is the first stage of Windows installation. Here we just need to click “Next”.

  1. Now click on “System Restore”.

  1. Next, select the “Troubleshooting” item (navigation is carried out using the arrows on the keyboard, selecting with the Enter button).

  1. At the next stage, select the “Command Line” tool.

  1. Enter an operator like this in the black window: “bcdedit /set (default) safeboot minimal” (don’t forget to remove the quotes) and press Enter.

  1. Reboot the computer. You can use the mechanical reset button, there will be no harm. Our Windows 10 will start again, but in safe mode.

When the system is fixed, you can turn off safe mode and return the boot to its original state. To do this, again in the command line, enter “bcdedit /deletevalue (default) safeboot” without quotes and press Enter.

If the process will be carried out from the command line under running Windows, do not forget to run the utility as an administrator.

This concludes our story about how to launch Safe Mode in Windows 10. We tested all the methods described in this manual on our PC and each of them worked for us. Depending on the situation, the hardware, or the degree of damage to the system, everything may be different, but in any case, one of the methods we have described will definitely help you.

Video

Any OS, including Windows 10, is not immune to sudden malfunctions. Only often they “treat” such problems solely by reinstalling, without even worrying about more loyal solutions. Needless to say, the classification of such “thousand programmers” leaves much to be desired.

It’s much easier to go into Windows 10 safe mode and try to solve everything differently. This option will fix many problems:

  • reinstalling/uninstalling the problematic driver;
  • rollback to last known known configuration
  • virus cleaning;
  • reset user password;
  • account activation;
  • fight against BSoD.

There are several ways to access safe mode in the top ten. The simplest is to reboot and then press “F8”, but in Win10 it, alas, no longer works. But there is one trick. For now we will choose from the following:

  • options;
  • command line;
  • System Restore.

The last method works even if the system does not boot. True, you need a boot flash drive with the system, but more on that later.

Launch via "special boot options"

This method can be interpreted in two ways. To enter the settings, your Windows must be running, or at least starting. The overall picture looks like this. To get started, click on the icon with notifications and click “All settings”.

Here you need to enable “recovery”, and on the right, where the “special boot options” field is located, you need to start a reboot.

After the system has restarted and entered the menu with parameters, you can do 3 operations:

  • exit the menu and start Windows in normal mode;
  • find and eliminate faults (required parameter);
  • turn off the PC.

You need to select the second item, and then click “advanced options”. After this, click on item 5 (2 in column 2), which is responsible for the system boot parameters on a PC or laptop.

Now you have access to a full-fledged safe mode, which will appear when you turn it on after a restart. Here we are interested in teams 4,5 and 6. Select one of them by pressing keys F4-F6 respectively.

Login via command line

The second method is somewhat simpler than the previous one, since it does not require lengthy fiddling with parameters, settings and numerous sub-options. The configurator will help here msconfig" To activate it, click " Start", or a combination Win+R, write in the line “ msconfig" and click OK.

Here we are waiting for another dialog box with 5 tabs. We are interested in the second one, which is called “Loading”. We do the following:

  1. select the OS that should start in safe mode;
  2. check the box next to this item;
  3. select the desired configuration (minimal, with shell, network).

The same principle applies here as with keys. F4-F6. “Another shell” - command line support.

Next, we reboot in normal mode by selecting the desired item through “ Start" Remember that to exit this option you need to follow the same steps. In other words, until you uncheck the “safe mode” box, you will not return to normal mode.

System Restore

The last method in the list will only work if you have a bootable USB flash drive with the system. You can create it yourself, but this is the topic of a separate article. To begin, do the following:

  1. We go through bios and reconfigure the device startup priority. The USB-HDD should start first, then the HDD;
  2. We follow all the instructions for starting Windows until we reach the option with a single “Install” button.

You need to enter one of two commands to choose from:

  • bcdedit /set (default) safeboot minimal– normal mode;

  • bcdedit /set (default) safeboot network– network support.

Returning F8

Why was the old way of selecting boot and restore commands removed? Windows developers say that the system has started to start up so quickly that it simply does not have time to react to clicking a button. But the process is reversible and the command can be returned. A small drawback is the sacrifice of a few seconds of OS startup time.

To return you will need a working Win10. Right-click on the “ Start" In some versions, you can select "Command Prompt (Administrator)". If there is none, then open Start and enter “ CMD", then right-click on the search result and click "as administrator".

Next we write the command bcdedit /set (current) bootmenupolicy legacy and press Enter. Now we are back to the classic version, familiar from previous versions of Windows. There is one caveat: the “Last Known Good Configuration” item is not provided here, since all the parameters are a text variation of the graphical representation, which is the default in Win10.

To return to the original mode, a reverse command is provided, which is also entered exclusively under the administrator: bcdedit /set (current) bootmenupolicy standard.

Option “for the lazy”

Few people know that safe mode can be displayed as a separate boot menu item. If you use the function often, you will like this upgrade. Wherein F8 won't be needed anymore.

First, you should go to the command line, and only as an administrator. Required command bcdedit /copy (current) /d “Safe Mode”. In other words, the entry will copy an existing account in safe mode. By the way, the inscription in quotation marks can be changed at your discretion.

Here we go to “Download” and we already see 2 entries:

  • our "safe mode";
  • standard Windows 10.

We are interested in the newly made copy. In the parameters, set the “safe…” mode and additionally specify a timeout for choosing between two options (minimum 3 seconds).

Save changes and reboot. Now you will see 2 OS (formally). During the timeout, you can switch between 2 accounts. Windows 10 sends you to Standard Boot. Well, “safe” calls the mode that we set in the configurator.

If you want to remove your own modification, re-enter msconfig via Win+R and delete the additional line.

The downside is that the loading time increases in direct proportion to the timeout you set initially.

Entering Safe Mode on a Windows 10 computer can cause some difficulties for users. The fact is that pressing the usual F8 key (or another key depending on the device manufacturer) during the boot process may no longer launch the troubleshooting mode.

There are several ways to boot into Safe Mode. Some of them are simple, while others are more suitable for experienced PC users. Advanced users will appreciate special commands that can be used in scripts and batch files (.bat) to conveniently launch Safe Mode.

1. Easy way

The easiest way to restart the system in Safe Mode is to click the Start menu, go to power options and, while holding down the Shift key, click the Restart link. This will restart your computer and display the advanced options screen as the operating system boots. On this screen, select a section Troubleshooting > Advanced Options > Boot Options > Restart.

You will then be able to select the required boot options in Safe Mode.

The Advanced Boot Options screen also appears automatically if the system fails to boot after several attempts.

2. Start manually

If the first method seems too easy for you, then you will probably like the manual method. Launch the classic System Configuration application by clicking the Start menu and typing msconfig.exe. Then go to the tab. Enable the option Safe mode and, if necessary, select one of the available environment options: Minimal, Other Shell, Active Directory Recovery, or Network. Reboot.

To exit Safe Mode, repeat the steps above and disable the Safe Mode option. The next time you reboot, the system will boot in normal mode.

3. For advanced users

You can use the Command Prompt or Windows PowerShell to boot into Safe Mode. Launch Command Prompt or Windows PowerShell with administrator rights (right-click on the Start menu, select Command Line (Administrator) or Windows PowerShell (Administrator)) and enter the following command:

Shutdown /r/o

Your system will reboot and a boot options screen will appear during boot. Select Troubleshooting > Advanced Options > Boot Options > Restart.

4. For the most advanced

This is the most complex method - it uses commands that must be used in a command prompt with administrator rights.

To run an elevated Command Prompt, press the Windows key, type cmd.exe, hold down Shift + Ctrl and select the application Command line.

note

It is important to keep in mind that using these commands will boot the system into Safe Mode an infinite number of times. To exit the boot loop in Safe Mode, you need to use a separate command (listed below).

If you use additional login methods (such as a PIN), after entering the command, you will need to use your Microsoft account password or local account password to log in.

Launch Command Prompt and enter the following command if you want to enter Safe Mode with standard settings:

Bcdedit /set (default) safeboot minimal

If you need to enter Safe Mode with Networking:

Bcdedit /set (default) safeboot network

After using the above commands, reboot the system.

5. Boot type selection mode as in Windows 7

Another command is available that allows you, after a reboot, by pressing the F8 key to get into the standard boot type selection mode as in Windows 7:

Bcdedit /set (default) bootmenupolicy legacy

After entering the command, the boot selection mode will be turned on exactly after pressing the F8 key before starting the system, and not constantly, as in previous commands.

To return to Windows 10's standard boot mode, launch Command Prompt in Safe Mode and enter the command:

Bcdedit /deletevalue (default) safeboot

Found a typo? Press Ctrl + Enter

It is no secret that failure situations often arise when, in order to restore system functionality or carry out some diagnostic measures, it may be necessary to use the so-called Safe Mode. Let's see how to enable it on Windows 10 on a laptop or computer. It’s worth immediately taking into account that the technique described below is radically different from everything that was in old systems.

How to enable on Windows 10: basic methods

As it turned out, the new “top ten” introduced quite a lot of innovations that, to put it mildly, many users did not like. It was also possible to interfere with the operation of the system bootloader in safe mode. The fact is that the classic old-fashioned method of pressing the F8 key at startup does not work here. It is unclear why they abandoned it. However, the question of how to enable Safe Mode on Windows 10 has some interesting solutions compared to the old methods.

In this case, we are talking about using system configuration settings, keyboard shortcuts and commands, system recovery, and even changing the corresponding settings in the updated Control Panel. But first things first.

How to enable safe mode on Windows 10 at boot: MSConfig utility

First, let's look at a universal method using settings called up from the Run menu using the msconfig command.

In the settings window that opens, go to the download tab. The download options will be shown below. Here you just need to check the box next to the line indicating safe mode, then save the changes and reboot the system.

You should immediately note that this method is good for solving the problem of how to enable safe mode (on Windows 10) when turning on a computer or laptop. There is some inconvenience here due to the fact that every time you start the system will always boot in safe mode. If it is not needed, you will have to disable it in the same way.

Using specific keyboard shortcuts and commands

Another interesting solution to the problem is how to enable safe mode on Windows 10, which involves rebooting while holding down the Shift key. The only thing worth considering here is that this technique is also suitable if you select safe mode in the login window.

To begin, select the shutdown section from the Start menu, but stop at the reboot line. Hold down the Shift key and click on the reboot command, after which in the new dialog box we go to Troubleshoot and select first Advanced Options, then Boot Settings. And finally, click on the Restart button.

After restarting, a window will appear on the screen indicating 9 options for booting the system, including safe mode.

Enabling Safe Mode from Control Panel

Now let's see how to enable Safe Mode on Windows 10 using the Control Panel.

Here you should go to the settings section and then go to the update and security menu. Here we use the advanced launch options and press the restart button. Further actions are completely similar to the previous option.

Managing Safe Mode from the Command Line

Another great way to solve the problem of how to enable Safe Mode (on Windows 10) is to use the command line, called through the Run menu by entering the cmd combination. In the window that appears, enter the following combination:

After successful completion of the operation, you need to reboot the system (preferably from here):

Again, it will be installed on a permanent basis. You can return the bootloader to its original state in the same way as in version 8:

By the way, if the user has problems loading the system as such, you can use this combination:

It is also relevant for starting safe mode during system recovery.

Starting from recovery mode

In this mode, you will need a boot disk or flash drive. We boot from removable media, go through the stage of selecting language and regional standards, and in the window with the installation offer at the bottom in the left corner, select recovery.

Now go to the diagnostics section, select additional parameters, and then the command line, in which we enter the command indicated above, the very last one. After reporting the successful completion of the process, we return to the original menu and use the continuation line. After this, the computer or laptop will reboot automatically, and the familiar window with nine boot options will appear on the screen.

How to return to normal startup

But that's not all. When considering how to enable Safe Mode (on Windows 10), you cannot ignore returning to the normal boot mode using the F8 key. This is done simply. In a regular command line you need to write:

A painfully familiar classic window will be displayed on the screen with a corresponding menu of boot options. But this solution is mainly intended exclusively for those users who, due to some circumstances or habits, cannot switch to innovations, although, as practice shows, in general, this is not so difficult to do (if there was a desire).

Bottom line

As you can see, although the “ten” has a large number of innovations, there are many more options for enabling safe mode. Well, which one to choose depends on each specific case when you need to perform a certain action.

If we approach these issues, so to speak, from a practical point of view, the most likely solution is a one-time launch of such a mode, for example, when restoring with booting from removable media. And it’s true, well, you won’t use it all the time, because it takes more time when the system starts. In general, the use of safe start is recommended only in cases where problems or failures are observed.

Please note that when choosing the option to boot from a recovery disk or flash drive, re-installation of Windows is not required (you can simply skip it). As for the other methods, you can use them or leave them. However, information about the available methods will not be superfluous. However, as they say, you can get used to everything.