Unlike the earlier version of Windows(7,XP), Windows 10 does not allow you to enter into safe mode by pressing the F8 key. There are other different ways to access the safe mode and other startup options in Windows 10.
Method 1: From recovery menu
- Click Start button and choose Settings.
- Select Update & security → Recovery.
- Under Advanced startup click Restart now.
- Then select Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup Settings → Restart.
- Your PC will now restart and brings up the Startup Settings menu.
Method 2: Using Shift + Restart
- Click Start button → Power.
- Press and hold the Shift Key and click on Restart.
- Then select Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup Settings → Restart.
Method 3: Enabling F8 key to access Safe boot
The methods 1 and 2 explained above will bring the Startup settings for just once when the system restarts. If you want have the choice to go to Safe Mode everytime your system restarts then you can enable the boot menu with the following steps.
- From the Windows 10 desktop press Win + X ( Windows Key and X together) and choose Command Prompt (Admin)
- Run the bcdedit command line utility to enable boot menu.
C:\WINDOWS\system32> bcdedit /set {bootmgr} displaybootmenu yes The operation completed successfully. - From now on every time you restart your PC, you will see the boot menu which lists the installed operating systems. To access the Advanced Boot options screen press the F8 Key. The Windows 10 Startup Settings scree appears with the following options:
1) Enable debugging 2) Enable boot logging 3) Enable low-resolution video 4) Enable Safe Mode 5) Enable Safe Mode with Networking 6) Enable Safe Mode With Command Prompt 7) Disable driver signature enforcement 8) Disable early launch anti-malware protection 9) Disable automatic restart after failure Press F10 for more options Press Enter to return to your operating system
You could select any of these options using function keys F1 to F9 or by pressing the corresponding number. For example to Enable Safe mode option you can press either F4 function key or perss 4.
Changing boot menu timeout
By default the boot menu (boot manager) screen is displayed for 30 seconds before continuing with the normal boot. You can change this timeout period with the following command.
C:\WINDOWS\system32> bcdedit /set {bootmgr} timeout 5
The operation completed successfully.
The above command sets the timeout period to 5 seconds
Disabling F8
To disable F8 access, run the following command on a command prompt
C:\WINDOWS\system32> bcdedit /set {bootmgr} displaybootmenu no
The operation completed successfully.
