Windows 10 is a lot more secure and less trouble-prone compared to its predecessors. It offers a robust and relatively bug-free system that helps you work on your laptop with ease. But sometimes, things just go wrong, and your laptop becomes a total mess. It might happen because of a program you have recently installed, a virus, malware, or a faulty system update. In these cases, you need to perform a system reset to restore your laptop to its factory settings and eliminate the problem. After backing up your important data, of course!
Before continuing, if you just forgot your laptop password, you do not have to restore it. Restoring your laptop will result in data loss. Instead, you can simply recover the laptop password.
In this article, we will show you how to restore your Windows 10 laptop with ease. We will also show you how to use safe mode to ensure a swift reset. So, without further ado, let’s dig in.
Way 1. Restore Windows 10 laptop to Factory Settings, the standard way
If your Windows 10 laptop retains most of its functionality, you can use this simple method to restore your laptop to factory settings. Follows these steps to restore your laptop to its factory settings –
- Click on the “Search Bar” of your laptop and type “Reset.”
- Once you see the “Reset this PC” option, click on it. This will take you to the “Recovery Settings” of your PC.
Tip. You can also press “Windows + I” to open the “Settings” app and navigate to Update & Security > Recovery to enter the “Recovery Settings.” - Next, on the right panel, click on the “Get started” button under the “Reset this PC” option.
- Next, in a new prompt window, you will be presented with two options, which are “Keep my files” and “Remove everything.”
- Here, click on the “Remove everything” option. We want to revert our laptop back to factory settings, after all.
- After that, click on the “Change settings” option.
- Next, toggle on the “Data erasure” button and click on the “Confirm” button.
- Now, click on the “Next” button again in the new window.
- In the next step, Windows 10 might ask for a recovery key before it continues the reset process.
- You can easily acquire your recovery key by entering “aka.ms/myrecoverykey” in your browser and pressing “Enter”.
- Sign in to your Microsoft account. If that fails, proceed with Microsoft account recovery.
Once you enter your recovery key, Windows 10 will start the reset process automatically. After it finishes, your laptop will be back to its original settings.
Way 2. Reset your laptop using Safe Mode
Sometimes, your laptop is just in such as mess that you can’t even get to the reset feature and perform a system reset. In these cases, you have to try resetting your computer after you enter the Safe mode. In Windows 10, the Safe mode is a great way to reboot your laptop without loading the programs and applications that are giving your device a hard time.
Or in simple words, if you’re facing trouble because of one or multiple system complications, the Safe mode will allow you to get inside your PC without loading the source of those complications. This way, you can reboot your computer using the Safe mode to start the reset process of your laptop, avoiding the troublesome programs.
How to enter Safe Mode to restore your Laptop
There are multiple ways to enter the Safe mode if you’re facing trouble resetting your laptop using the conventional way. In this section, we will show you two methods to enter the Safe mode.
Method 1. Steps to enter Safe Mode using settings
Follow the steps below to enter the Safe mode using the Settings app:
- Press the “Windows + I” keys on your keyboard to open the “Settings” app and click on the “Updates & Security” option.
- Next, click on the “Recovery” option on the left panel.
- Now, in the right panel, click on the “Restart now” button underneath the “Advanced settings.”
- Once your laptop reboots, you will see a prompt with multiple options. Click on the “Troubleshoot” option from it.
And that’s it. You have successfully entered the Safe mode, and you will be able to start resetting your laptop in the next options.
Method 2. Access Safe Mode from your Sign-in screen
Sometimes, the system problems start acting up right after you type your password on the sign-in screen and access your laptop. Follow these two simple steps to enter the Safe mode:
- In your laptop’s sign-in screen, press and hold the “Shift” key on your keyboard and click the “Power” symbol on your laptop screen at the same time.
- Next, click on the “Restart” option while holding your “Shift” key.
After your PC reboots, it will automatically enter the Safe mode. Once you enter the Safe mode, you can continue to reset and restore your laptop to factory settings.
