How To Boot Into Safe Mode When F8 Wont Work

Sometimes F8 doesn't work. If you or someone you are helping cant get it to work, you can use the following steps to start Windows XP in Safe Mode:

Click Start , and then Run .
In the Open field, type: msconfig
Click OK .
The System Configuration Utility will open.

Click the BOOT.INI tab.

Under Boot Options, select /SAFEBOOT.

Select MINIMAL or NETWORK depending on the problem.

Click OK .

When prompted, click Restart .

The computer starts into Safe Mode. Click Administrator and enter the password if prompted. Click Yes on the message prompt that appears.

When you are done, repeat these steps and remove the checkmark from /SAFEBOOT to prevent the computer from always starting in Safe Mode.