Windows 7 : Customizing Startups with the Advanced Options Menu

11/20/2010 11:28:40 AM

When the Windows Boot Manager menu appears at startup, you see the following message when you highlight a Windows 7 install:

To specify an advanced option for this choice, press F8.

If you press F8, you get to the Advanced Boot Options menu, which looks like this:

          Advanced Boot Options

Choose Advanced Options for: Microsoft Windows 7
(use the arrow keys to highlight your choice.)

    Repair Your Computer

    Safe Mode
    Safe Mode with Networking
    Safe Mode with Command Prompt

    Enable Boot Logging
    Enable low-resolution video (640×480)
    Last Known Good Configuration (advanced)
    Directory Services Restore Mode
    Debugging Mode
    Disable automatic restart on system failure
    Disable Driver Signature Enforcement

    Start Windows Normally

Tip

If your system doesn’t automatically display the Windows Boot Manager menu at startup, you can display it manually. After you start your computer, wait until the POST is complete, and then press F8 to display the Windows Boot Manager menu. If your computer is set up to “fast boot,” it might not be obvious when the POST ends. In that case, just turn on your computer and press F8 repeatedly until you see the Windows Boot Manager menu. Note, however, that if your system picks up two separate F8 presses, you might end up directly in the Advanced Boot Options menu.

The Start Windows Normally option loads Windows 7 in the usual fashion. You can use the other options to control the rest of the startup procedure:

Repair Your Computer— This option (it’s new with Windows 7) opens the System Recovery Options, which enable you to perform a startup repair or system restore, recover your PC from a system image, and more
Safe Mode— If you’re having trouble with Windows 7—for example, if a corrupt or incorrect video driver is mangling your display, or if Windows 7 won’t start—you can use the Safe Mode option to run a stripped-down version of Windows 7 that includes only the minimal set of device drivers that Windows 7 requires to load. You could reinstall or roll back the offending device driver and then load Windows 7 normally. Starting in Safe mode displays the Administrator account in the Welcome screen, which is the account to use when troubleshooting problems. When Windows 7 finally loads, the desktop reminds you that you’re in Safe mode by displaying Safe Mode in each corner. (Also, Windows Help and Support appears with Safe mode–related information and links.)
Note

If you’re curious to know which drivers are loaded during a Safe mode boot, see the subkeys in the following Registry key:
```
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\SafeBoot\Minimal\
```
Safe Mode with Networking— This option is identical to plain Safe mode, except that Windows 7’s networking drivers are also loaded at startup. This enables you to log on to your network, which is handy if you need to access the network to load a device driver, run a troubleshooting utility, or send a tech support request. This option also gives you Internet access if you connect via a gateway on your network. This is useful if you need to download drivers or contact online tech support.
Safe Mode with Command Prompt— This option is the same as plain Safe mode, except that it doesn’t load the Windows 7 GUI. Instead, it runs cmd.exe to load a Command Prompt session.
Enable Boot Logging— This option is the same as the Boot Normally option, except that Windows 7 logs the boot process in a text file named ntbtlog.txt that resides in the system root.
Enable Low-Resolution Video (640×480)— This option loads Windows 7 with the video display set to 640×480 and 256 colors. This is useful if your video output is garbled when you start Windows 7. For example, if your display settings are configured at a resolution that your video card can’t handle, boot in the low-resolution mode and then switch to a setting supported by your video card.
Last Known Good Configuration— This option boots Windows 7 using the last hardware configuration that produced a successful boot.
Directory Services Restore Mode— Boots Windows 7 in Safe mode and restores a backup of the Active Directory service. (This option applies only to domain controllers.)
Debugging Mode— Enables remote debugging of the Windows 7 kernel.
Disable Automatic Restart on System Failure— Prevents Windows 7 from restarting automatically when the system crashes. Choose this option if you want to prevent your system from restarting so that you can read an error message or deduce other information that can help you troubleshoot the problem.
Disable Driver Signature Enforcement— Prevents Windows 7 from checking whether devices drivers have digital signatures. Choose this option to ensure that Windows 7 loads an unsigned driver, if failing to load that driver is causing system problems.