Safe Mode can be extremely helpful if you want to fix some issues with your Mac. There can be a lot of issues, like the Mac is running slowly or it loads multiple times, or maybe the app is causing issues, or you might be experiencing issues with the app crashing or freezing, or even worse, your Mac might not be able to boot at all.
This blog will provide readers with a detailed guide on how to start a Mac in Safe Mode, why most people recommend and choose to use Safe Mode, including its advantages and disadvantages, and how to know if you are in Safe Mode, and what to do. if your Mac automatically starts in safe mode.
Everything you need to know about safe mode on Mac devices is listed below:
- Steps to Start/Boot Your Mac in Safe Mode
- Steps to Enable Safe Mode on M1 Mac
- Steps to Enable Safe Mode on IntelMac
- Steps to Enable Safe Mode for macOS Catalina 10.15
- Steps to Enable Safe Mode for macOS Mojave 10.14
- What to do if Safe Mode doesn’t fix Mac problems
- Why does my Mac keep auto-booting in Safe Mode?
- How do I know if my Mac is in Safe Mode?
- How do I turn off safe mode on my Mac?
What is safe mode?
Like any other computer, Mac has a safe mode. Starting your Mac in a safe mood is very beneficial for your device as it only allows you to download the apps and files it needs to run.
This means that any unnecessary system applications or extensions that the user has installed on their own will not work. This method also saves power by allowing the computer to use enough power and processing time.
Safe Mode also performs a basic scan of the system drive, similar to the First Aid feature in Disk Utility. It also clears and removes some Mac system caches that can cause potential problems in any process.
But then again, caches can never be completely removed; they will be created by the system again when needed.
When is safe mode used?
Starting your Mac in safe mode benefits the system in many ways. Booting your Mac in safe mode solves any issues you may be facing with your Mac.
Some of the common reasons for using Safe Mode on Mac are listed below:
- Your Mac slows down, slows down, or freezes
- macOS crashes or restarts by itself
- Your system’s internet connection is not working when you start your computer normally
- Computer does not start normally
- You can delete a file or application from your Mac
If the problems listed above disappear or are resolved when booting macOS in Safe Mode, then you should know that the problem was originally caused by something that was recently added to the system. It could be a new application, a file, an external plugin, or even a piece of new hardware that you have connected to the system.
In safe mode, you can not only access various types of data, but also fix the problem.
1. Steps to Start Mac in Safe Mode / Boot Mac in Safe Mode
The process for booting your Mac into Safe Mode is the same for MacBooks and Mac computers (iMacs). It would be helpful if you consider if your device has an Intel Mac or Apple Silicon.
Do you know which Mac you have? If not, then the steps to check your Mac type are listed below.
1. Turn on your Mac
2. Click on the Apple menu in the top corner of the screen.
3. Then click About This Mac.
4. Find information in the overview panel to find out what type of Mac you have.
5. If you see anything labeled “chip”followed by the name of the chip, know that you have a Mac with Apple Silicon.
6. If you see anything marked “processor”followed by the name of an Intel processor, know that you have an Intel-based Mac.
7. The screen will display the appropriate set of instructions to start your Mac in Safe Mode. But this website also provided the following steps:
2. Steps to Enable Safe Mode on M1 Mac
If you are running macOS M1, the steps to start your Mac in Safe Mode are listed below:
- If your Mac is still running, you need to click on the Apple menu in the top left corner of the screen.
- Then turn off/turn off your Mac
- You’ll know that your Mac has successfully shut down when the screen goes completely blank and all lights (including those on the touchpad) turn off.
- Wait a few seconds or a minute until the computer shuts down properly.
- Press and hold the power button on your Mac computer until the startup options appear on the screen showing various boot drives and options.
- Select the system drive.
- Press the Shift key on your keyboard and click Continue in Safe Mode.
- Release the Shift key
- Login to your System
- When the computer restarts automatically, a login window will appear on the screen and you will be able to see “secure boot”in the menu bar.
3. Steps to Enable Safe Mode on Intel Mac
If you’re running an Intel-based macOS, the steps to start your Mac in Safe Mode are listed below:
- If your Mac is still running, click the Apple menu in the upper left corner of the screen.)
- Click Shut Down or Restart Mac.
- IN.”ait for about 10 seconds or a minute
- Once your Mac starts up, press and hold the Shift key on your keyboard.
- Release the Shift button when the login window appears on the screen.
- You will see “Safe Boot”(in red font) in the top right corner.
- Sign in to your Mac
- Your computer may ask you to enter a password in Safe Mode to boot your Mac. Do this and you’re done.
4. Steps to Enable Safe Mode for macOS Catalina 10.15
If you are using macOS Catalina 10.15, the steps to start your Mac in Safe Mode are listed below:
1. If your Mac is turned off very well! But if it’s on, you need to turn it off by clicking the Apple menu and then selecting the turn off option.
2. Wait about 20 seconds until the device turns off properly.
3. Press the power button
4. After your Mac has turned on (on some devices you even hear the startup sound), you need to immediately long press and hold the Shift key on your keyboard
5. Once you see the Apple logo on the screen along with a progress bar, you can release the Shift key.
6. Your Mac has been turned on in safe mode.
5. Steps to Enable Safe Mode for macOS Mojave 10.14
If you’re using macOS Mojave 10.14, the steps to start your Mac in Safe Mode are listed below:
1. If your computer is off very well! But if it isn’t, click the Apple menu and then choose Power Off to turn off your Mac.
2. Then you need to wait 20 seconds until the device turns off normally
3. Now press and hold the Power button to continue.
4. After your Mac has turned on (on some machines you even hear a startup sound), you need to immediately press and hold the Shift key on your keyboard
5. Once you see the gray Apple logo on the screen along with the progress bar, you can release the Shift key.
6. Now your computer has turned on in safe mode
6. What to do if Safe Mode doesn’t fix Mac issues
In most cases, after restarting your Mac in safe mode, most problems disappear. After that, you can try uninstalling or uninstalling recently installed apps and added extensions.
You can scan your Mac for malware, check for iOS updates, and more. After going through all aspects, you can try restarting your Mac again to see if the problem persists.
Despite all the possible solutions listed above, if your Mac is still experiencing the same problem in Safe Mode, it means that there is a serious and more complex problem on your Mac that needs to be fixed as soon as possible.
- In such cases, you can try to perform a factory reset on the Mac system. Before you do this, you should prepare to back up all your important files and media because a factory reset will erase all data from your device.
- By wiping/cleaning the system drive and reinstalling macOS, your device should be able to fix any issues or errors that are causing a possible issue on your Mac device.
- If a factory reset doesn’t fix the problem, there may be another possible and more complex problem. Your Mac hardware may fail. It could be your RAM, disk drive, or something else; in most cases you can’t replace any of them. In this case, you can only contact the Apple Support Center or an Authorized Service Provider.
7. Why does my Mac keep auto-booting in Safe Mode?
In this case, you might have to check if the Shift key on your keyboard is stuck. Try fixing the Shift key; if not, check your computer keyboard and disable it if necessary. Then restart your Mac to make sure everything is working fine.
8. How do I know if my Mac is in Safe Mode?
When your Mac device is in safe mode, you will see “Safe Boot”in the menu of your computer’s login screen.
Another way to check:
1. Click the Apple menu icon in the top left corner of the screen.
2. Click on the “About This Mac”section and a new window will appear.
3. Click the Overview tab and click System Report.
4. Then click “Software”in the sidebar.
5. Now in the system software overview section, look at the list of statuses next to the items marked as download mode.
6. There will be two statuses that will be-
Safe Mode: Mac Uses Safe Mode
Normal Mode: Mac Doesn’t Use Safe Mode
9. How do I turn off Safe Mode on my Mac?
Exiting Safe Mode on your Mac is a very simple process.
- While in Safe Mode, try restarting or shutting down your computer normally by clicking Shut Down from the Apple menu.
- Turn the device back on and when it turns back on it will no longer be in safe mode.
Mac won’t start in safe mode?
If your Mac won’t boot or start in Safe Mode, how do you fix it? This blog will support you and list some possible solutions to help you solve this problem.
Check startup options and security settings.
Your Mac not booting into safe mode may be caused by incorrect security settings on your Mac system. For example, FileVault and firmware passwords can prevent your Mac from booting into safe mode.
The steps to fix this problem are given below:
- Turn off your Mac
- Press the power button. Then press and hold Command + R during the startup process.
- Enter firmware password
- Choose your language
- Click Utilities and then click Run Security Utility.
- Toggle the slider “turn off firm”, “turn off word”.
- Now enter the firmware password again to disable it.
Use the select key
You can long press the select key while your system is booting up.
To make things easier for you, the steps are listed below:
- Turn off your Mac.
- After your system has been successfully shut down, hold down the selection key and then press the power button.
- A list of disks will appear on the screen of your device. You need to select your boot drive and then click on enter.
- The issue will be resolved after the steps are completed successfully.
Reset SMC
The full form of SMC is System Management Controller. Low-level settings like temperature and battery management that can affect your Mac’s performance are managed by the SMC.
If your Mac is showing an error when booting into Safe Mode, you can try resetting your device’s SMC.
The steps to reset the SMC vary for different devices:
For Mac desktop
- Turn off your Mac desktop
- Disconnect all power cables
- Wait approximately 30 seconds or 1 minute
- Reconnect the power cables
- So the SMC for your Mac desktop will be reset
For laptop with non-removable battery
- Disconnect the power cable
- Turn off your MacBook Air or MacBook Pro.
- Hold and hold the left control button ALT and right Shift together.
- Then hold and press the power button
- After about 30 seconds, you can release the keys and the power buttons.
- Connect the power cable
- Your SMC has successfully completed the reset operation
For laptop with removable battery
- Turn off your Mac laptop, whether it’s a MacBook Air or MacBook Pro
- Disconnect all power cables
- Remove and remove the battery from the case
- Hold and hold the Power button for about 10 seconds.
- Put the battery back into the case
- Connect power cables
Summarizing
If your Mac won’t turn on, runs slow, or freezes, Safe Mode can be your lifesaver and solution.
But sometimes your Mac may take longer to boot into Safe Mode or automatically restart or shut down. In this case, you do not need to worry, this is normal.
However, if your Mac keeps restarting or shutting down automatically. At the same time, in Safe Mode, you should contact Apple Support, contact an Apple Authorized Service Provider, or visit an Apple Store for assistance.
FAQ
Can I use my laptop or Mac in safe mode?
Yes! You can use your laptop or Mac in safe mode. But some features like video capture, Wi-Fi, DVD player movie playback, file sharing, other accessibility features, some audio devices, and other devices that connect using Firewire, USB, or Thunderbolt are disabled in Mac Safe Mode.
How do I turn off safe mode on my Mac?
Click Turn Off on the Apple menu. Then turn the device back on and when it turns back on it will no longer be in safe mode.
How do I know if my Mac is in Safe Mode?
Click on the menu with the Apple logo. Then click About This Mac > System Report > Software. From there, check the boot mode.
What should I do if my Mac shows startup errors?
You can try to force restart your Mac, use Mac Safe Mode, reset SMC, or follow other steps to fix the problem.