You will need a USB bootable media to perform a clean installation of Windows 10. You can easily create one using many tools, including the Microsoft Media Creation Tool and Rufus. The computer restarts in a clean boot environment. Follow troubleshooting steps to install, uninstall, or run your application. Your computer might temporarily lose some functionality while in a clean boot environment, however that functionality will return. Finish troubleshooting and reset the computer to start normally. Install, uninstall, or run an application Once you complete the steps, the device will start from a USB flash drive to proceed with the installation. To create an installation media using the Media Creation Tool, connect a USB flash drive of at least 8GB of space, and use these steps:

You know that there are different device drivers, settings, and programs on your Windows 10 computer. At times, the software may run into conflicts. But, you don’t know which programs are conflicting. You just note that your Windows can’t boot normally or you can’t install updates normally. If the problem does not occur, repeat step 8, but Disable everything you Enabled in your last test and Enable the other half of the items you Disabled.

Medium ~ Sizes 7-9

On Windows 11, you will need a USB bootable media to perform a clean installation, which you can easily create using many tools, including the Microsoft Media Creation Tool and Rufus. Sign in to the computer by using an account that has administrator rights. If you don't have an administrator account, you can create one. Once you complete the steps, the computer should be able to boot from the Windows 11 USB flash drive. Yes, it is absolutely safe to use the Clean Boot state on your Windows PC. If your PC has encountered an issue and you are unable to find the cause of it, you can use the Clean Boot mode and find the root cause of the issue by identifying the program that is causing it. Can I update Windows in the Clean Boot state? For instance, you can re-enable the top half of all the non-Microsoft related services (the ones that are important to Windows should be hidden in the fourth step). After restarting your computer, you can go to see if the issue happens again. If not, you need to re-enable the rest half non-Microsoft services to have a try again. If the issue appears, you can know that the conflicting service is in the lower half ones.

If you couldn’t update the operating system, or install or uninstall a software, you can try now again. In this environment, you can also try to start a program that wasn’t working before. How to undo clean boot on Windows 10 Once you stumble upon the conflict, you will know where the problem lies, and you can research online to find a solution. How to stop clean boot on Windows 11 As soon as the computer starts booting up, press one of the function keys (F1, F2, F3, F10, or F12), Esc, or Delete key. Windows is activated with a digital license: The installation has been activated, but it isn't linked to your Microsoft account.

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If you still experience the problem after only one Startup item is Enabled, then the Enabled item is the one causing the problem, and you should go to step 9. If no Startup item causes the problem, there might be a problem with a Microsoft service. See Recovery options in Windows. Select Startup, then select Open Task Manager. On the Startup tab on Task Manager, one at a time, select the upper half of the items you Disabled earlier, then select Enable.

If you still experience the problem after only one Startup item is Enabled, then the Enabled item is the one causing the problem, and you should go to step 10. If no Startup item causes the problem, there might be a problem with a Microsoft service. See How to refresh, reset, or restore your PC​​​​​​​. Troubleshooting Windows10 and Windows11 can be a complex process due to the many different drivers, settings, and programs interacting simultaneously. This varied environment may lead to software conflicts that manifest in a number of ways, often times as Windows struggling to start up properly or updates failing to install. Performing a clean boot can assist in locating the conflict by booting only Windows applications and drivers. Important: If the computer is connected to a network, network policy settings might prevent you from following these steps. Only use the System Configuration utility to change the advanced boot options on the computer with guidance from a Microsoft support engineer. Using the System Configuration utility might make the computer unusable. After the preparation instructions, you will be ready to proceed with the clean installation of Windows 11. On the other hand, if the problem no longer occurs, you will know that it's a conflict with another application or service. In this case, enable one process or app at a time (refer to the instructions below), restart the computer, and test until the conflict appears again.Sign in to the computer as an administrator. If you are unsure if your account has administrator rights, see Create a local user or administrator account in Windows to find out how to see if your account has administrator rights, and grant them to your account, if necessary.

Windows 11 is based on Windows 10, which means that virtually any driver designed for the latest version of Windows 10 should be theoretically compatible with Windows 11. You also have to make sure the computer can start from a USB flash drive. If this is not the case, you will need to change the Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) on the motherboard. Also, if necessary, you can use these steps to enable TPM and Secure Boot. In this guide, you’ll learn the steps to do a clean boot on Windows 10 to help you troubleshoot and determine which software is causing conflicts on your machine. Optional) Under the "Volume label" field, enter a descriptive name for the drive — for example, "win10_usb."

How to run Windows Update in Clean Boot State

Programs like an antivirus, system utility, and other software installed on your PC may contain processes that can cause conflicts, such as sudden freezes, blue screen of death (BSOD), performance issues, and other problems. A clean boot (by process of elimination) can help you figure out if Windows 10 is having drivers or apps problems. Tip: If you are pretty sure about some app which runs on startup that's safe to run or is essential for your PC, then instead of using Selective startup, you can disable or enable apps individually via the Task Manager in Windows 10. See how to add or remove startup apps in Windows 10. If the problem does not occur, repeat step 7, but Disable everything you Enabled in your last test and Enable the other half of the items you Disabled. Once your PC has restarted in the Clean Boot State, only the essential system drivers and Microsoft programs and processes load. A clean boot is meant to troubleshoot software conflicts by disabling certain third-party software, services, and drivers during startup.