Force Windows to Restart in Safe Mode

 

How Do You Access Safe Mode?

In Windows 10 and Windows 8, Safe Mode is accessed from Startup Settings, which itself is accessed from the Advanced Startup Options menu. Unfortunately, Startup Settings only appears as an option in Advanced Startup Options if you access it from within Windows. In other words, Windows 10/8 needs to be working properly before you can boot into Safe Mode, which you only really need to use if Windows isn't working properly.

True, Advanced Startup Options (and thus Startup Settings and Safe Mode) do automatically appear during Windows startup problems, but the lack of easy from-outside-of-Windows access is a little troubling.

Windows 7 and Windows Vista have some less commonly occurring situations that make getting to Safe Mode nearly impossible, but they do happen.

Fortunately, there is a way to force Windows to start in Safe Mode if you can't get to Startup Settings in Windows 10 and 8, or the F8 menu (Advanced Boot Options) in Windows 7 and Vista, or even if you can't access Windows at all.

Note: A kind of "reverse" of this trick also works to stop Windows from starting in Safe Mode. If Windows continually boots directly to Safe Mode and you can't make it stop, take a look at the tutorial below and then follow the advice in How to Stop a Safe Mode Loop at the bottom of the page.

Time Required: Forcing Windows to restart in Safe Mode (or making it stop starting in Safe Mode) is moderately difficult and will probably take several minutes, at most.

How to Force Windows to Restart in Safe Mode

1. Open Advanced Startup Options in Windows 10 or Windows 8, assuming you're using one of those operating systems. Since you can't start Windows properly, use method 4, 5, or 6 outlined in that tutorial.

   

   With Windows 7 or Windows Vista, start System Recovery Options using your installation media or a system repair disc. Unfortunately, this process doesn't work with Windows XP.

   Note: If you want to force or stop Safe Mode from starting, and you actually can access Windows properly, you don't need to follow the procedure below. See the much easier How to Start Windows in Safe Mode Using System Configuration process.

2. Open Command Prompt.

   

   Advanced Startup Options (Windows 10/8): Tap or click Troubleshoot, then Advanced options, and finally Command Prompt.

   System Recovery Options (Windows 7/Vista): Click the Command Prompt shortcut.

3. With Command Prompt open, execute the correct bcdedit command as shown below based on which Safe Mode option you'd like to start:

   

   Safe Mode:

   bcdedit /set {default} safeboot minimal
   

   Safe Mode with Networking:

   bcdedit /set {default} safeboot network
   

   Safe Mode with Command Prompt:

   bcdedit /set {default} safeboot minimal bcdedit /set {default} safebootalternateshell yes
   

   Tip: Be sure to type whatever command you choose exactly as shown and then execute it using the Enter key. Spaces are very important! The { and } brackets are the ones above the [ and ] keys on your keyboard. Two separate commands are required to start Safe Mode with Command Prompt, so be sure to execute them both.

4. A properly executed bcdedit command should return this message:

   The operation completed successfully
   

   If you see one of these messages or something similar, check Step 3 again and make sure you executed the Safe Mode command properly:

   • The parameter is incorrect
   • The set command specified is not valid
   • ...is not recognized as an internal or external command...

5. Close the Command Prompt window.

6. In Windows 10 and 8, tap or click Continue.

   In Windows 7 and Vista, click Restart.

   

7. Wait while your computer or device restarts.

8. Once Windows starts, log in as you normally do and use Safe Mode however you were planning.

Important: Windows will continue to start in Safe Mode every time you reboot unless you undo what you did in Step 3. The easiest way to do that is not by executing more commands, but via system configuration and following steps 11-14 in the tutorial.

How to Stop a Safe Mode Loop

If Windows is stuck in a sort of "Safe Mode Loop," preventing you from starting in normal mode again, and you've tried the instructions we gave in the Important call-out from Step 8 above but haven't been successful, try this:

1. Start Command Prompt from outside of Windows, the process outlined in Steps 1 and 2 above.

2. Execute this command once Command Prompt is open:

   bcdedit /deletevalue {default} safeboot
   

   

3. Assuming it was successfully executed (see Step 4 above), restart your computer and Windows should then start normally.