To turn on Safe Boot on a Mac, you can follow these steps:
1. Start by powering on your Mac and immediately press and hold the power button until you see the “Loading startup options” screen. This screen typically displays a gray background with a list of available startup volumes.
2. Using the arrow keys on your keyboard, navigate to the volume you want to start up in Safe Mode. This could be your default startup disk or an external disk connected to your Mac.
3. Once you’ve selected the desired volume, press and hold the Shift key on your keyboard. Keep holding it until you see the Apple logo or a spinning progress indicator on the screen. This indicates that your Mac is booting up in Safe Mode.
4. After a while, your Mac will restart automatically and load into Safe Mode. You’ll notice that the login screen or desktop may appear slightly different, as some system features and third-party extensions are disabled in Safe Mode.
Now you’re in Safe Mode, which helps troubleshoot issues by preventing certain software and startup items from loading. It can be particularly useful if you’re experiencing problems such as frequent crashes, unresponsive applications, or other issues related to software conflicts.
While in Safe Mode, you can perform various tasks to diagnose and resolve problems. Here are a few things you can try:
– Run disk utility: Use Disk Utility to repair any disk errors or permissions issues. You can find Disk Utility in the Utilities folder within the Applications folder. Open it, select your startup disk, and click on the “First Aid” tab to run the repair process.
– Remove problematic login items: In Safe Mode, some login items and extensions are disabled by default. You can review your login items and remove any that may be causing conflicts or slowdowns. Go to System Preferences > Users & Groups, select your user account, and click on the “Login Items” tab to manage your startup items.
– Troubleshoot third-party software: If you suspect a particular application or utility is causing issues, try uninstalling or updating it while in Safe Mode. This can help identify and resolve software conflicts.
– Test system performance: While in Safe Mode, observe if your Mac’s performance improves. If it does, it may indicate that a third-party extension or software is the root cause of the problem. You can gradually add back startup items or extensions to identify the problematic one.
Remember that Safe Mode should be used as a diagnostic tool, and it’s not intended for regular use. Once you’ve resolved the issue or completed your troubleshooting, you can restart your Mac normally to exit Safe Mode.
I hope these instructions help you turn on Safe Boot and troubleshoot any issues you may be facing on your Mac.