Boot in Safe Mode in Windows 10

There are four different ways to boot into Safe Mode in Windows.

Press F8 or Shift + F8 to enter Safe Mode
Enter Safe Mode when normal boot does not work
Enter Safe Mode from Normal mode
Enter Safe Mode from Login screen

Why F8 option does not work?

Until Windows 10, the easiest way to boot in Safe Mode was pressing F8 on the keyboard.

But things have changed with Windows 10 and the F8 option to enter Safe Mode does not work any longer.

This is because the boot process has become faster than ever before. But that does not mean, the F8 boot option has been removed completely from the Safe Mode option.

It stills exists in the Advanced Menu and is disabled by default. You need to activate the F8 option in Advanced Boot Menu to get it back.

Here are the steps to follow.

How to Get F8 option working again to boot into Safe Mode?

To make F8 option active for booting into Safe Mode, you need to make some changes in Boot Configuration Data also known as BCD.

The Boot Configuration Data Editor is known as Bcdedit.exe command-line tool that allows you to edit, delete or add entries in BCD.

Here are the steps to activate the F8 option in boot configuration data.

Press Windows Key + R simultaneously on the keyboard to launch Run command
Type cmd and then press Ctrl + Shift + Enter buttons on the keyboard simultaneously to launch Command Prompt tool with Administrator rights. Alternatively, you can right click on cmd in search results and select Run as administrator option from the menu.
Type bcdedit /set {default} bootmenupolicy legacy command in the Command Prompt window and press Enter

Reboot your computer
Press F8 before Window logo appears and you should see a screen that offers you the option to boot into Safe Mode

How to use other Safe Mode options in Windows 10?

If you are getting a BSOD error or can’t boot normally in Windows 10, use the Method 1 to enter Safe Mode.

If you can boot normally in Windows but need to access Safe Mode to make some changes, use the Method 2.

The Method 3 can be used if you want to enter Safe Mode from the login screen.

Below you will find detailed steps to enter Safe Mode using all the methods mentioned above.

Method One – Enter Safe Mode when normal boot does not work

In Safe Mode, windows load minimum drivers and processes.

In any event when windows can’t boot normally due to some issue, you can easily enter Safe Mode using this method.

Once you have entered Safe Mode, you can find the cause that is preventing you from booting Windows in Normal mode and rectify the issue.

Here are the steps to follow.

Switch off your computer
Press the power button on your computer and keep it holding for 5 seconds until the computer shuts down again. Repeat the steps 2-3 times until you get the Preparing Automatic Repair screen

Note- When the computer is not able to start after repeated attempts, windows automatically initiates the Automatic Repair option that allows you to fix any issue that is causing booting problem.

Wait for the Windows to diagnose your computer

In the Startup Repair screen, select Advanced options

In the Choose options screen, select Troubleshoot

In the Troubleshoot screen, select Advanced options

In the Advanced Options screen, select Startup Settings

In the Startup Settings Screen, click Restart

You are presented with different options to boot in Safe Mode.

Press the 4 number key on the keyboard to enter into Safe Mode
Press the 5 number key on the keyboard to enter Safe Mode with Networking
Press the 6 number key on the keyboard to enter Safe Mode with Command Prompt

After you have completed tasks in Safe Mode, you need to disable the Safe Mode before logging out.

If you keep the Safe Mode option checked in, Windows will not boot in Normal Mode.

Method Two – Enter Safe Mode from Normal mode

If Windows has booted successfully in Normal mode, you can access the System Configuration tool to activate the Safe Boot Mode option.

The System configuration tools offer you different configuration options for Safe Mode.

However, selecting Minimal mode is enough to fix an issue which is the default option when you activate Safe Mode.

Here are the steps to follow.

Press Windows Key and R simultaneously on the keyboard to launch Run command
Type msconfig and select System Configuration option from the results

When the System Configuration window opens, click Boot tab
Under Boot Options, check the box Safe Mode. You will see the Minimal option is automatically selected, let it be.

Click Apply and then OK
Windows will prompt you to restart the computer and present you with options
Click Restart

Windows will enter into Safe Mode. After you have completed tasks in Safe Mode, you need to disable the Safe Mode before logging out. If you keep the Safe Mode option checked in, Windows will not boot in Normal Mode.

Method 3 – Enter Safe Mode from the Login screen

If the computer boots up to the login screen and you need to access Safe Mode, you can do so without loading Windows completely.

Here are the steps to follow.

Considering you are on the login screen, Press Shift key on the keyboard
While holding the Shift key, look for the Power button on the bottom-right corner of the screen and click on it.
Select Restart (you need to continue holding the Shift key while performing this step). This will bring up the Windows Recovery environment just like in Method 1).
In the Choose options screen, click Troubleshoot