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Windows won’t start: Startup Repair

Step 1 of 3

Open repair mode

Force the laptop off as the Windows logo appears, 3 times. Choose Advanced options on the Automatic Repair screen.

The simulation shows Windows in English, like most laptops.

  1. Open repair mode

    Force the laptop off as the Windows logo appears, 3 times. Choose Advanced options on the Automatic Repair screen.

  2. Troubleshoot › Advanced options › Startup Repair

    Windows checks and repairs the files it needs to start.

    TroubleshootAdvanced optionsStartup Repair

  3. Wait until it finishes, then restart

    If it fails, try System Restore or Uninstall Updates from the same menu.

From basic to technician

TechnicianWindows won’t start: Startup RepairYou are here
TechnicianStart Windows in Safe ModeTechnicianUndo a bad driver or update with System Restore
Technical details (for the curious)

What it repairs

Startup Repair checks the boot files (BCD, bootmgr), the system registry and drivers that fail to load, and tries to fix them automatically. Its log is at C:\Windows\System32\Logfiles\Srt\SrtTrail.txt.

Other options in the same menu

Uninstall Updates: remove the latest update. System Restore: go back to a restore point. Startup Settings: start Safe Mode. Command Prompt: for advanced commands.

BitLocker key

If it asks for the BitLocker recovery key, open aka.ms/myrecoverykey on a phone and sign in with your Microsoft account.

Coming soon

Still not fixed?

In the next update you can tell us what happened, and our AI helper will suggest another way. Until then, restart the device and go through the steps once more.