How to Boot Into Windows Safe Mode — and Why You Might Need to

If you’re having problems with your computer and you suspect you’re infected with malware (a virus, Trojan, rogue, spyware, etc.) booting into Safe Mode is a good first step. Safe Mode is available in all versions of Windows and is a special mode of Windows were only the bare minimum of services load and minimal processes run. Most of the time (but not always) malware will load on Windows boot but only in normal Windows — most won’t load in Safe Mode. If you boot into Safe Mode and then scan your computer for malware, you’ll stand a better chance of removing it because it won’t be running in the background.

There are also other reasons to use Windows Safe mode such as diagnosing error messages or pinpointing a process, program or service that may be loading when you boot into normal Windows.  Safe Mode is a great way to find computer problems and fix them — but it does require a little Windows knowledge to dig deep and root out the malware or manually adjust startups and/or remove a troublesome program that resists removal in normal mode.  But even if you’re a Windows novice, knowing how to boot into Safe Mode is something you should know.

he surest way to boot into Safe Mode is by tapping the F8 key as soon as you turn on your computer – and keep tapping it until you see you’re booting into Safe Mode. This works on all versions of Windows except Windows 8 where it’s a little more tricky. So read on…

There’s another way to get to Safe Mode and it works every time. You have to be careful when you this method, though – there are several other boot options that you should not use unless you’re sure of what you’re doing.

Here’s the other way to boot into Safe Mode. This works on Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7 although they all have slightly different options.

On Windows XP, press the Windows Key + R and type MSCONFIG into the run dialog. When the Windows Configuration Utility opens click on the Boot tab and choose any of the items in the boot configuration section.

The following screen shot is from Windows 7 (it looks somewhat different in Windows XP but virtually the same in Windows 8):

For those of you using Vista, Windows 7 and/or Windows 8 – you’ll need to run MSCONFIG.  To do this press the Windows Key while pressing down the R key and type MSCONFIG in the Run dialog.

In Windows XP the only option you should check is “SAFEBOOT”. In Windows Vista, Windows 7 and/or Windows 8x, the only two options you should need to check are “Safe boot” and “Network” (only if you need Internet access). You should never check “Make all boot settings permanent”. Use the other boot options only if you’re sure of what you’re doing. You can cause serious problems if you select any other options and you don’t understand their function.

After you run the Windows Configuration Utility (MSCONFIG) to boot into safe mode, you’ll see MSCONFIG opens on boot. This is so you can then remove the check marks from the items you checked to boot into safe mode, and return to a normal boot sequence.