Windows Safe Mode Fixer: Repair Safe Mode
Windows' Safe Mode is a bare-bone version of the operating system that is often used for troubleshooting PC issues. It is available under all versions of Windows and can be started by tapping on the F8 key during startup of the operating system. It is for instance handy to uninstall software in Safe Mode that you cannot uninstall under the regular OS. Another area where Safe Mode shines is the removal of viruses and malware that has infested the OS.
Malicious software sometimes disables Safe Mode among other things to prevent an easy recovery of the system. That's a problem if you do not want to reinstall or restore the operating system, or do not have the means to do that.
Windows Safe Mode Fixer is a straightforward application that can be used to repair the Safe Mode, so that it becomes accessible again.
The troubleshooting software needs to be run from within the operating system, which may be the program's biggest downside. If you still have access to Windows you can run the program to repair the Safe Mode. If you do not have access anymore, the program won't do you any good.
A short explanation and three buttons are displayed on startup. The program requires no installation and can be started directly after downloading it from the developer website.
The tool does not explain what it does to repair the Safe Mode, only that it does repair the troubleshooting mode. A click on the Fix button applies the repairs to the operating system and restarts the system automatically afterwards. It is recommended to safe all work and open windows before you click on that button.
The developer recommends to disable all antivirus and firewall solutions prior to pressing it. I personally would not recommend that, and would use it as a last resort if pressing the button without doing so did not fix the broken Safe Mode.
You should try to boot into Safe Mode during that restart to find out if the issue was fixed by the program. I recommend to press F8 repeatedly after BIOS until you see the selection menu with Safe Mode as an option.
Safe Mode Fixer can be downloaded from the official program website at Sergiwa. The program is compatible with 32-bit and 64-bit editions of the Windows operating system. (via)
Update: The program is no longer available on the author's website. You can still download the latest working version from third-party download sites such as Softpedia.
Since it has not been updated for a while, you may find these alternatives useful:
- Try to restore a previously created System Restore point to recover Safe Mode.
- If you have a backup -- you should !! -- then use this instead.
- Load msconfig with a tap on Windows-R and check the Safe boot option in the interface to start the PC in Safe Mode directly.
Wow this really works nice thanks ^^,
I found this post of interest in July and just waited for the perfect opportunity to test. My test machine was XP home with all updates installed. The PC was free of infections….scandisk, defrag completed. All maintenance performed. The only problem I couldn’t resolve was the inability to boot in Safe Mode.
This application worked for me!
Side note: I performed a full system backup with Acronis PRIOR to using the application–just in case.
Great article and mention of software Thank you again! I have yet to run in to any malware that has disabled safe mode… a scary thought. It’s certainly nice to hear about this in the event safe mode is unattainable. Thanks!