When it comes to using your computer, most of the time things run smoothly and you can get your work done without any major issues. But when the time comes when our computers decide to misbehave and not function properly, it can be difficult to figure out what the problem could be.
Watch Video: Configure Your Computer to Boot into Various Safe Mode Configurations & Enable the F8 Key
One common troubleshooting method that people use to try and diagnose problems with Windows PCs is to boot into Safe Mode. Safe Mode is a diagnostic startup mode that loads only essential system files and drivers, allowing users to troubleshoot and resolve issues that may be preventing the operating system from functioning normally.
To start your computer in Safe Mode, we used to be able to tap the F8 key on the keyboard while Windows was loading to get to the Safe Mode menu but now we have to use other methods to do so that require more steps and knowledge of the more advanced Windows system tools.
Fortunately, there is a free tool you can use to boot into the various Safe Mode configurations and also enable the F8 key feature that was used in the past.
The tool we will be using to accomplish this is called BootSafe. It’s a free app that you can run on your computer that gives you an easy way to have your computer automatically start in the Safe Mode configuration of your choosing.
Once you download the BootSafe software, you can simply extract the zip file and double click the BootSafe.exe file to run the app. This is a standalone tool so there is nothing to install.
One you run the app, you will have four options to choose from for starting your computer. BootSafe has the following options for booting your computer:
Normal mode
Safe Mode (Loads basic drivers and services only)
Safe Mode with Networking (Adds networking support and internet capabilities)
Safe Mode Command Prompt Only (Does not load the graphical user interface)
There is also an option to enable the F8 key so you can press it at startup to go into Safe Mode like you could in older versions of Windows. There are also command line parameters for scripting if you want to get super technical.
You can also schedule or configure Windows to go into Safe Mode on the next reboot by clicking on the Configure Only button after making your selection. This way you do not need to restart your computer right away. But if you do, you can click on the Restart Windows button to immediately have your computer reboot and go into the Safe Mode option that you selected.
When you reboot, you will see a message asking if you want to create a temporary administrator account in case the password for your Microsoft account does not work. I would say no to this because it should work without creating the new temporary account, especially if you use a PIN to login or choose the Safe Mode with Networking option.
If you can’t get into your account, you can boot back into normal mode and try this method. The only downside to using this temp account is that it will leave leftover files in the Users folder for the account. You can watch the video at the top of the page for a demonstration of how this method works.
Once you log into your computer in Safe Mode, you will see a message asking if you want to configure your computer to start in normal mode when you reboot. You will most likely want to say yes to this so you can load Windows normally after you hopefully figured out what the issue with your computer was.
There is another app you can use to get into Safe Mode called Safe Mode Launcher which you can check out here.
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