safe-mode interview questions
Top safe-mode frequently asked interview questions
PROBLEM
Cannot run Windows 8.1 due to black screen. No mouse pointer. Sometimes white cursor in top left. Cannot enter safe mode: get black screen but with a row of blue pixels at the bottom or a row of red pixels at the top. Can enter repair environment when booting from DVD or USB. Can enter UEFI.
This ‘feature’ of Windows 8.1 is well documented on forums and is principally connected with updates. The threads that most closely match my experience are as follows:
Windows 8.1 Black Screen
(identifies issue as to do with mixed video drivers and suggests replacing Windows.UI.Immersive.dll)
Black screen after boot
(problem fixed itself after leaving computer for 45 mins)
HOW PROBLEM CAME ABOUT
The last steps I took in Windows 8.1 were as follows:
1) Have had problem installing 2 updates. One update was large (~800MB). Followed advice to delete update history on Windows server by deleting SoftwareDistribution folder. I renamed it instead and tried reinstalling the updates but still no success. So I deleted the new SoftwareDistribution folder and replaced it with the old one. Two new updates were installed in this troubleshooting process. I am afraid I do not have a record of the names of the updates because I cannot enter Windows 8.1 to see the history.
2) Given that the update installation did not work I scheduled a restart in safe mode with network so I could try installing the updates in safe mode.
3) On restarting the computer I got the black screen after the UEFI boot screen!!
SYSTEM
AMD A10-6800K APU with Radeon HD Graphics
4.10 GHz CPU
MSI motherboard with E7721AMS V11.2 BIOS
Corsair Force LS SSD 60GB (has Windows 8.1 64 bit installed)
WDC 1TB Harddrive (contains Windows user files through a system link which I made)
1 widescreen monitor
ACTION TAKEN TO TRY TO FIX PROBLEM
1) Replaced monitor (not wide screen) -- the first thing I did.
2) Left computer for a few hours to see if problem would go away but it didn’t. My guess is this may have worked the first time the problem occurred but it took me so many attempts to try to boot from the Windows DVD, and then the USB, and to try to get to safe mode that I would have pressed a lot of keys before trying just to leave the computer to see if it would fix itself.
Following tried from Windows repair environment after booting from DVD or USB
3) Searched for Windows.UI.immersive.dll on entire Windows harddrive but was not found with the dir [filename] /s command at the command prompt.
4) Automatic repair was unsuccessful.
5) Refresh PC gave error “The drive where Windows is installed is locked. Unlock the drive and try again.” One webpage said that Windows could have forgotten the proper drive/partition order and that unplugging the non-Windows harddrive might help, but I got the same error on re-running the Refresh option.
6) Tried forcing Windows to give boot options so I could select safe mode. Neither F8 nor Shift+F8 started safe mode. Tried the following line in command prompt: bdcedit /set {default} bootmenupolicy legacy. Error given: “The boot configuration data source could not be opened. The requested system device cannot be found.” One thread said that this could be due to running Windows recovery from a USB drive so I tried running it from different USB ports as well as from the DVD but it made no difference to the error.
7) Ran chkdsk d: /f /x from command prompt. First run: the only error found was that some free space was marked allocated. Second run: all clear. This did not fix the problem and I was still getting the black screen when at the end of the boot sequence.
8) Tried to run command sfc /scannow (recommended here) but got following error: “Windows Resource Protection could not start the repair service”
QUESTION
In order to fix the problem it seems like I have to get Windows to boot using low resolution VGA and then enter windows to either roll-back some updates or make sure all updates are installed properly.This strategy is corroborated by this webpage: http://www.itpro.co.uk/desktop-software/22313/windows-81-problems-how-to-fix-them
Any ideas about how I can do this?
All help greatly appreciated.
I can enter the recovery/repair environment but cannot enter safe mode. This environment has a tile for UEFI settings but does not have a tile for Startup settings.
Source: (StackOverflow)
I would like to listen to music while in safe mode. I have tried to start the audio service manually, but it returns error code 1068.
I would also accept a solution in C or C++ if programming is necessary to do this.
(The easiest way would be to start Windows in normal mode, but I like challenges)
Source: (StackOverflow)
I have Windows 8 Enterprise x64. It's installed a virtual machine. After trying to update VMWare's guest extension it black screened. After resetting it, now the virtual machine won't boot. It just says "automatic repair couldn't repair your PC"
Everything I do ends with an error or it coming back to this screen. If I go to Troubleshoot > Advanced Options > Start up settings and then go to Safe Mode, all it will do is say "preparing automatic repair" and then "diagnosing your PC" and then will come straight back to the "automatic repair couldn't repair your PC" screen. It's as if it doesn't even attempt to go into safe made.
Is there anything else I can do before I reformat?
Source: (StackOverflow)
When I start my laptop in safe mode, I have 2 accounts displayed, i.e. Administrator and one as R122, but when I start it in normal mode, only the R122 account is being displayed and not the Administrator one.
My R122 account is password protected, so once I had a problem in installation and had to go to safe mode for some reason, I was shocked to see 2 accounts.
I had once formatted my laptop with a friend of mine.
Why are there 2 accounts in safe mode and only 1 in normal mode ?
Source: (StackOverflow)
Mac boots fine normally, except when in safe mode.
Holding down shift when booting gets me to the progress bar on the grey screen. Progress bar gets about half way before mac reboots.
I modified nvram boot-args to get a better look:
sudo nvram boot-args="-x -v"
It definitely gets through fsck, skips loading kernel extensions (since it's in safe mode), does something with the network interfaces, then this is the last thing it wips through...
Aug 22 11:56:21 Crockpot com.apple.SecurityServer[15]: Succeeded authorizing right 'com.apple.ServiceManagement.daemons.modify' by client '/usr/libexec/UserEventAgent' [10] for authorization created by '/usr/libexec/UserEventAgent' [10] (100012,0)
Aug 22 11:56:22 Crockpot fseventsd[37]: event logs in /.fseventsd out of sync with volume. destroying old logs. (1 174 330)
Aug 22 11:56:22 Crockpot fseventsd[37]: log dir: /.fseventsd getting new uuid: 5C379650-26FA-428F-B81F-4FE4349D50B3
Aug 22 11:56:23 Crockpot mDNSResponder[39]: mDNSResponder mDNSResponder-379.27 (Jun 20 2012 15:40:55) starting OSXVers 12
Aug 22 11:56:23 Crockpot systemkeychain[35]: done file: /var/run/systemkeychaincheck.done
Aug 22 11:56:23 Crockpot configd[17]: network changed: DNS*
Aug 22 11:56:24 --- last message repeated 1 time ---
Aug 22 11:56:24 Crockpot mDNSResponder[39]: D2D_IPC: Loaded
Aug 22 11:56:24 Crockpot mDNSResponder[39]: D2DInitialize succeeded
Aug 22 11:56:24 Crockpot mDNSResponder[39]: Adding registration domain 273025955.members.btmm.icloud.com.
Aug 22 11:56:24 Crockpot kernel[0]: MacAuthEvent en1 Auth result for: 00:23:69:35:dc:fe MAC AUTH succeeded
Aug 22 11:56:24 Crockpot kernel[0]: MacAuthEvent en1 Auth result for: 00:23:69:35:dc:fe Unsolicited Auth
Aug 22 11:56:24 Crockpot kernel[0]: wlEvent: en1 en1 Link UP virtIf = 0
Aug 22 11:56:24 Crockpot kernel[0]: AirPort: Link Up on en1
Aug 22 11:56:24 Crockpot kernel[0]: en1: BSSID changed to 00:23:69:35:dc:fe
Aug 22 11:56:24 Crockpot kernel[0]: en1::IO80211Interface::postMessage bssid changed
Aug 22 11:56:24 Crockpot kernel[0]: AirPort: RSN handshake complete on en1
Aug 22 11:56:25 Crockpot cfprefsd[19]: CFPreferences failed to read preferences data. Errno was 21
Aug 22 11:56:25 --- last message repeated 1 time ---
Aug 22 11:56:25 Crockpot airportd[30]: _doAutoJoin: Already associated to “burnum”. Bailing on auto-join.
Aug 22 11:56:25 Crockpot com.apple.kextd[11]: Can't load IOBluetoothSerialManager.kext - ineligible during safe boot.
Aug 22 11:56:25 Crockpot com.apple.kextd[11]: Load com.apple.iokit.IOBluetoothSerialManager failed; removing personalities from kernel.
Aug 22 11:56:25 Crockpot cfprefsd[19]: CFPreferences: error renaming file blued.plist.HXuEmQn to blued.plist.
Aug 22 11:56:27 Crockpot awacsd[52]: Starting awacsd connectivity-77 (Jun 20 2012 15:40:49)
Aug 22 11:56:27 Crockpot com.apple.SecurityServer[15]: Succeeded authorizing right 'system.services.systemconfiguration.network' by client '/System/Library/Frameworks/SystemConfiguration.framework/Versions/A/Resources/SCHelper' [54] for authorization created by '/usr/sbin/awacsd' [52] (100003,0)
Aug 22 11:56:27 --- last message repeated 1 time ---
Aug 22 11:56:27 Crockpot awacsd[52]: Configuring lazy AWACS client: 273025955.p04.members.btmm.icloud.com.
Aug 22 11:56:28 Crockpot apsd[55]: CGSLookupServerRootPort: Failed to look up the port for "com.apple.windowserver.active" (1102)
Aug 22 11:56:32 --- last message repeated 1 time ---
Aug 22 11:56:32 Crockpot awacsd[52]: KV HTTP 0
Aug 22 11:56:38 --- last message repeated 1 time ---
Aug 22 11:56:38 Crockpot apsd[55]: CGSLookupServerRootPort: Failed to look up the port for "com.apple.windowserver.active" (1102)
Aug 22 11:56:47 Crockpot awacsd[52]: KV HTTP 0
Aug 22 11:56:49 Crockpot configd[17]: subnet_route: write routing socket failed, Network is unreachable
Aug 22 11:56:51 Crockpot configd[17]: network changed: v4(en1+:169.254.80.161) DNS* Proxy+ SMB
Aug 22 11:56:51 Crockpot UserEventAgent[10]: Captive: en1: Not probing 'burnum' (protected network)
Aug 22 11:56:51 Crockpot configd[17]: network changed: v4(en1:169.254.80.161) DNS Proxy SMB
Aug 22 11:57:07 Crockpot awacsd[52]: KV HTTP 0
Aug 22 11:57:23 Crockpot fseventsd[37]: Logging disabled completely for device:1: /Volumes/Recovery HD
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot kernel[0]: Kext loading now disabled.
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot kernel[0]: Kext unloading now disabled.
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot mDNSResponder[39]: mDNSResponder mDNSResponder-379.27 (Jun 20 2012 15:40:55) stopping
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot com.apple.SecurityServer[15]: Killing auth hosts
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot UserEventAgent[10]: dnssd_clientstub DNSServiceProcessResult called with DNSServiceRef with no ProcessReply function
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot configd[17]: dnssd_clientstub read_all(26) failed 0/28 0
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot configd[17]: [0x7fb025119ff0] SCNetworkReachability _llq_callback w/error=-65563
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot UserEventAgent[10]: dnssd_clientstub DNSServiceProcessResult called with DNSServiceRef with no ProcessReply function
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot mDNSResponder[39]: D2D_IPC: Terminated
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot mDNSResponder[39]: D2DTerminate succeeded
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot awacsd[52]: dnssd_clientstub read_all(4) failed 0/28 0
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot UserEventAgent[10]: dnssd_clientstub DNSServiceProcessResult called with DNSServiceRef with no ProcessReply function
Aug 22 11:57:25 --- last message repeated 2 times ---
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot apsd[55]: dnssd_clientstub read_all(4) failed 0/28 0
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot configd[17]: SCNC: stop, triggered by configd, type PPPSerial, reason Terminated All
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot configd[17]: _d2dCallback: D2D connection to mDNSResponder lost
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot UserEventAgent[10]: dnssd_clientstub DNSServiceProcessResult called with DNSServiceRef with no ProcessReply function
Aug 22 11:57:25 --- last message repeated 4 times ---
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot kernel[0]: Kext autounloading now disabled.
Aug 22 11:57:25 Crockpot kernel[0]: Kernel requests now disabled.
... before rebooting in the middle of the safe mode startup sequence.
Aug 22 12:01:10 localhost bootlog[0]: BOOT_TIME 1345662070 0
Aug 22 12:01:32 localhost kernel[0]: PMAP: PCID enabled
Aug 22 12:01:32 localhost kernel[0]: Darwin Kernel Version 12.0.0: Sun Jun 24 23:00:16 PDT 2012; root:xnu-2050.7.9~1/RELEASE_X86_64
Any ideas what's causing the safe mode boot to fail?
System Info
- MacBook Pro 8,2
- 2.2 Ghz Core i7
- 4 GM Ram
- Mountain Lion 10.8
- 500GB TOSHIBA MK5065GSXF Serial-ATA rotational disk
Source: (StackOverflow)
As the title says I would like a script that tells Windows that the next boot should be into Safe Mode or at least that the F8 menu should be presented on next boot.
Booting into WinRE (Launch startup repair...) is probably even more un-doable.
I looked over bcdedit options but didn't see anything like this. I know msconfig has an option for Safe Boot but it's GUI only.
Currently if I want to boot into Safe Mode or launch WinRE then I have to forcefully restart my PC first for those options to be presented during boot (F8 does not bring up the Safe Mode option under normal conditions).
I'm using Windows 7 x64.
Source: (StackOverflow)
I am running Windows XP SP3 and Firefox v3.6.2 and Internet Explorer and have an issue with Firefox and IE causing the Blue Screen of Death. If I run in Windows safe mode, it does not occur, but running normally, it seems my firefox profile is going bad and results in certain web pages causing the BSOD. IE is also getting BSOD on some pages. For example, presently, if I visit ebay.com in Firefox, it gets BSOD. It also fails when visiting http://www.google.com/ig?hl=en&source=iglk. IT removed my Firefox profile and that seemed to fix the issue for a while. However, now it has started occurring again. I turned off all firefox extensions and it still occurs. I'd like to fix my system so this does not occur. The IT folks don't seem to be able to solve this, so I am trying to fix it on my own. The BSOD is about something like (from memory) DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL.
Why would safe mode avoid the issue and what does that tell us about the probable cause?
I don't want to have to keep deleting my profile, so I'd like to find out the cause of the corruption.
Source: (StackOverflow)
I am trying to fix a laptop, which is running Windows 8 64-bit , keeps restarting at random intervals, some less than 5 minutes, some longer than 30 minutes unless in Safe mode. My first though was since it runs perfectly in Safe mode logic says that probably there is no hardware issue. But to confirm that I tried running a Live CD of Ubuntu. The pc restarted. How will I find the true error and what suggestions do you have about what that error might be?
Things I have tried so far
- I used a poly-meter (hope I am saying it correctly) and counted the voltage output of my power supply and it 19V. (my laptop says on the back that it requires 19V to work so I guess that's ok).
- Reset Bios to defaults. Nothing Changed.
- I tried plugging in a power supply of a friend and still it kept restarting.
- I have 4GBs of RAM. I let Memtest86+ run for a few hours. It performed 5 passes and found no errors
- I let Prime95 run for a few hours. It run in Safe Mode where no restarts occur. It found no errors
- I tried running furmark (for GPU Testing). It run perfectly but cannot run it in Safe Mode. So basically when a restart occurs don't know if it's GPU's fault (furmarks fault) or just because my laptop restarts at random intervals
- I tried unplugging one of my two RAM modules and tried running with only one. I put each RAM on both slots and let it run alone with only 2 GBs of RAM. Still got a restart. So Either both slots are faulty, or both modules are faulty, or all four......
- I tried performing a format Since I kind of eliminated all hardware issues that I can think of. Still rebooted during the format.
- I checked the temperature with two apps (each running on it's own so no conflicts might occur) HWMonitor and coretemp. Temp does not go over 60 degrees Celsius
- Took out the HDD, put it in an enclosure and tested it on other laptops. Even sat down and saw a movie from it. I guess that's OK. But just to be sure. I ran HD Tune to find any errors on the HDD. It found nothing
Is there anyone out there that knows what the issue might be?
Source: (StackOverflow)
A screen of mine burnt out, and was replaced with a screen of lower resolution. It works in safe mode as that is in 800x600 resolution, but when I try to boot to normal mode, it fails. Is there a way to change the resolution for normal mode in safe mode?
Source: (StackOverflow)
I have an old IDE drive that is getting corruption errors and will not boot in its own box. I can boot safely in safe mode with command prompt. I decided to move the drive out into my own box. I cannot get a boot option for it and it does not show up in my computer. Any ideas how to get get it to work on my own box.
My idea is to run command prompt and copy the files over to my own drives. Its not that much information.
Source: (StackOverflow)
I have the following setup:
- Windows 7 Ultimate
- Deep Freeze
I "thawed" my machine last night and performed a Windows Update. The update is having issues (it gets stuck at 32%, fails, and restarts my machine). When it reboots it attempts it again, and again, and again, etc. (Endless loop).
I looked online and found some solutions, but none of them seem to be working:
When I run Safe Mode, Safe Mode w/ Network, or Safe Mode w/ Command Prompt it attempts to revert the Windows Update changes. However, the problem is with Deep Freeze on (and now in "Frozen" mode) the reverted changes don't stay, and I'm back into the loop of death. Oh, and side note: "Safe Mode w/ Command Prompt" does not actually take me to a command prompt window? Perhaps because it is attempting to complete the Windows Update changes first?
I have tried to select the option to NOT restart when an windows error occurs, but it still does.
I tried the remainder of all the other options in the F8 screen.
The only other option left is to find my Windows 7 Media Disc (I can't find it right now) and use it to repair windows (because for some reason the repair option does not show up in the F8 screen).
Is there a way to disable Deep Freeze from loading? When I selected "Safe Mode w/ Command Prompt" I noticed that it loads the DpFrz.sys file. I know that when I'm in the Windows Boot Manager if I press F10 instead of F8 (while highlighting Windows 7) it takes me to an "Edit Boot Options" screen:
Edit Windows boot options for: Windows 7
Path: \Windows\system32\winload.exe
Partition: 2 Hard Disk: 8e90e329
[ /NOEXECUTE=OPTIN (I CAN EDIT THIS LINE)
]
Update: I found my Windows 7 Media Disk and it did not help out. The laptop had the "System Restore" as a partition on the HDD. I later received (in the mail) a Windows 7 Upgrade Disc from Sony to upgrade my system from Windows Vista to Windows 7 Ultimate. I placed the disc into the DVD drive and it does not come up as a "bootable" disc. I'm going to try to find an alternative disc to see if I can get into Command Prompt.
Update 2: I got a Windows Repair disc and got into a command prompt window. I got into the registry and disabled Deep Freeze. Also:
- I renamed the Pending.xml file to Pending.old
- I cleared out the Windows Temp directory
I still am stuck in the loop (though, it isn't an issue with DeepFreeze anymore because I can make changes to the hard drive and they persist). Not sure what to do at this point?
Update 3: I ran the repair option and it couldn't repair, but it did point me to something. It says the error was due to a driver that was failing. I have a feeling it is my UPEK Fingerprint scanner.
Source: (StackOverflow)
Background
I'm working on dis-infecting a Windows 7 PC where the user opened a ZIP email attachment.
All the symptoms exactly match this description of the "Data Recovery" scareware, including these messages:
- Windows detected a hard disk problem A potential disk failure may coss loss of files, applications and documents stored on the hard disk. Please try not to use this computer until the hard disk is fixed or replaced.
- Critical Error RAM memory reliability is extremely low. This problem may cause system failure
See the end of this post for details of the machine spec.
Initial Goal
I first want to boot the computer in Safe Mode, so that I can run various tools such as TDSSKiller.
Trying to boot in Safe Mode
As the computer starts up, it offers the following options:
- Del BIOS Setup
- Tab Display BIOS POST Message
- F8 Boot Menu
- Alt+F2 Ez Flash 2
I hoped/expected that pressing F8 would get me into the Advanced Boot Options screen, as for to choose Safe Mode.
However, hitting F8 during start-up only shows the following:
Please select boot device:
My question: Is there something about my machine configuration (see below) that is preventing the Advanced Boot Options menu from showing?
Machine configuration
- C: drive is SSD - Intel SSDSA2M160G2GC
- Other partitions are of a RAID 1 pair
- Motherboard: ASUS P6X58D-E
- OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit
Source: (StackOverflow)
I accidentally changed one parameter in Windows and it was crashed and restarted everytime I logon. I can't go with safe mode. Restoring to Known Good Configurations doesn't work too.
Unfortunately I don't have system backup. Are there any ways to recover or edit the registry file from another OS or bootable Windows PE? Which tools can I use to edit?
Many thanks!
Source: (StackOverflow)
How do I boot my Windows 7 partition to safe mode if it is installed into BOOTCAMP? On normal PC computers, you normally see the BIOS getting started and prompting you to press something (normally F8) to enter different boot up methods. However, on the Mac's Bootcamp, there's no text that says any info about such. It directly goes to the Windows 7 loading screen.
Source: (StackOverflow)