Whenever I have a problem with a computer system I am working on I boot into Windows Safe Mode to see if the problem exists there. Many people use Safe Mode to troubleshoot PC’s, but it Windows 8 Microsoft made it a little bit harder to boot into Safe Mode. With previous versions of Windows we would just hit F8 and be able to go right into Safe Mode. In this guide we will show you two different methods for booting into Safe Mode on Windows 8.
How To Boot Into Safe Mode On Windows 8
For those who like video we have made a step by step video of how to Boot Into Safe Mode On Windows 8, check it out below.
There are two ways to start this method. When you turn on your PC hold down the shift key on your keyboard and keep on pressing the F8 key. This will bring up the new Recovery Mode in Windows 8. Alternatively if you are already inside of Windows 8 you can go into PC Settings -> General and go down to “Advanced Startup” and hit Restart Now.
When you restart you will be give a few options. Click on “Troubleshoot”.
At the next prompt, click “Advanced options”.
Once in Advanced options, click on “Windows Startup Settings”.
You will be given a final prompt to restart, go ahead and hit restart.
Once your computer restarts you will be able to boot into safe mode by selecting which option you like.
Booting into Windows 8 Safe Mode From Within Windows 8
This second option may be easier, but if you are having issues within Windows 8 you may want to try the first option. Within windows go ahead and press with Windows Key + R to bring up the run prompt. Now type in “msconfig” and hit enter.
This will bring up the system configuration options. Click on the Boot tab and check the box next to Safe boot.
There are few options here, we have explained them below.
Minimal – normal safe mode.
Alternate Shell – safe mode with command prompt
Network – safe mode with networking.
Now just hit OK to confirm your settings and you will be prompted to restart.
With this setting each time you restart your system you will be booted into safe mode. To stop this simply go back into the same system configuration settings and deselect the box.
Now you know how to boot into Safe Mode on Windows 8! If you have any questions or need help getting into Safe Mode leave them in the comments below.
