Force Windows to Boot Into Safe Mode Without Using the F8 Key
So you are reading instructions on some article that tells you to reboot into Safe mode. You ask how you do that, and are told to use the F8 key when the computer boots up. But you just can't seem to get the F8 key to work… so how do you boot into Safe mode?
There's an option in the well-known System Configuration utility that will let you force Windows to always boot into Safe mode… until you turn the option off.
Note: While this method is nothing new, I have to give credit to reader Larry for mentioning it in a comment and prompting this article. Thanks, Larry!
Force Windows to Boot into Safe Mode
Open up the start menu search or run box, and type in msconfig and hit the enter key.
Select the Boot tab, and then check the box for "Safe boot" and make sure the radio button below is set to "Minimal".
Once you hit the OK button you'll be asked if you want to Restart now or wait until later. Either way, the next boot will take you into safe mode.
Once you restart, you'll realize that you are in Safe Mode because it not only places that text in the four corners of the screen, but it even opens up the safe mode page from the help file in Vista.
Now you can work on getting rid of that spyware…
Turn Safe Mode Back Off
Once you are done fixing whatever you were working on, you'll probably want to turn safe mode off and go back to normal mode. Just open up msconfig the same way as above, and then on the Boot tab you'll uncheck the "Safe boot" checkbox.
This method especially helps if you need to repeatedly boot into Safe mode.
Note: Check the comments below for instructions that work on XP. Thanks PeopleGeek!
amazing site!! great tips!
Is this work with WinXP? (Looks like screenshots was made in vista)
In Windows XP Click on "Start"
Click "Run"
Type in "msonfig"
Select tab "boot.ini"
Select bootoption "/safeboot"
Thats it!!
@PeopleGeek
Thanks for the followup!
Being picky I know, but just in case anyone cuts and pastes from PeopleGeek note the typo in msconfig:
In Windows XP Click on "Start"
Click "Run"
Type in "msconfig"
Select tab "boot.ini"
Select bootoption "/safeboot"
Thanks - this is really useful as F8 does not work for me either
Hi,
The F8 key should work for everyone , for those it dont work for its just a matter of how you tap F8 while system boots, just slowly repeatdly tap and once you get it right you will know how next time, if you dont get it right the first time just perservere, it'll work,
Bruce
great artical…easy to understand…thanks
Some of the newer BIOS versions use the F8 key as a means to select "Boot Devices", not Safe Mode or other "Boot Options".
@John
You are absolutely right… makes it much more confusing for people, which is why I wrote this article =)
Another more desperate way to get Windows XP into "Safe Mode".
When XP is beginning to load, hold the computers "power" button in until the computer shuts down.
When you power on the computer again it should start up with an option screen asking if you would like to start windows normally or in safe mode.
Use the up and down arrows to select what mode you would like and then hit the "Enter" key.
-This should only be done as a last resort. This method of shutting off a computer leaves behind temp files and various log files-
thanks, this has helped a lot
now my machine can be used by my friends with very little fear
especially if they don't know how to turn it off
but i think its best to explain why it is so don't you think?
alright. all of those instruction seems to work fine. but how can you be able to return it into normal mode if the computer does not boot in safe mode? can anyone help me? thanks in advance
After it attempts to start in safe mode it comes to a po & says "windows cannot start (or run) in safe mode; press Ctrl-Alt-Del to restart.
This is the second VISTA system I've built but the install of VISTA has not yet gone right. There must be a trick to it. I think it needs a startup disk. But, VISTA doesnt seem to help create one. Maybe a backup from a working VISTA machine?????????
hi, thanks for this f8 thing! i have a problem….dont we all! my daugter has forgotten her password for admin. i have tried the F8 thing before on another computer, and it worked well, however, on pressing F8 on daughters xp2 machine, i get to administrator and daughters account, i click on admin, and it starts to go into safe mode, it then shuts down within 20 secs, even i boot up in safe mode with cmd prompt, cmd opens up, then shuts down! any ideas, help??
kind regards
HI
The F8 key does not work for me and also cannot access the Start Menu.
My windows vista crashed as i was downloading windows update and now after turning on the notebook I get the following screen
Press tab to switch to post or delete to run bios.
followed by a blank screen. '
Is there any other way of getting into safe mode?
Would appreciate any one's help
Hi,
I tried on a WinXP, selcted /SAFEBOOT, checked MINIMUM. Now my computer doesn't bootup anymore. How can I boot normally into windows again to uncheck the option?
I even tried to press F8 and try to boot "Windows normally", but the system screen is blank. Please help.
I needed to get Vista to start in safe mode and couldn't use the F8 key so followed the instructions above. But now my pc won't boot at all! I get no screens. The PC whirrs, meaning it is doing something but it isn't starting up. I have tried reebooting with the VISTA installation disk but nothing. I am completely stuck.
Can somebody help, please?
Lee i have the same issue right now……i can select safe mode or safe mode with command prompt…ect. But when it goes to load i have a feeling its locking up…so i never actually see anything. Anyone with any suggestions…let me know.
Woops! Now that I have checked the safe boot box - thanks but that didn't help access safe mode - I can't open again in anything ,safe mode, normal mode, -'system restore' was not reponding anyway - to uncheck it, It only opens in that F8 screen. Can anyone kindly tell me how I get back into devices with keystokes somehow to uncheck the safe mode?
hand ringing and needy…
Never mind, F11 got me back to a system restore format that worked. The other system restores - through the windows help etc. said it couldn't restore, or something to that affect. anyway, No more Wringing of hands
P.S.
I did post something about this cycling F8 page, off on - off on, that didn't get posted, prior to the one I see posted here, hence the whoops
F8 doesn't work for me (as I have dual boot XP/Ubuntu, which is apparently run by a different "loader") and, unfortunately, neither do the instructions above using cmd/msconfig: the configuration menu pops up but there is no "boot.ini" tab or anything like it at all. Any other suggestions?