Windows XP appears to be stuck in Selective Startup mode and will no longer boot into Normal mode. When going into the System Configuration Utility (msconfig) to configure the computer to boot back into Normal mode the setting is accepted but the next boot will still start in Selective Startup mode. This problem has come about as the computer was refusing to shutdown properly. I thought that this may be due to some process running in the background which is interrupting the shutdown process, so I used the System Configuration Utility to disable some processes from loading on startup. Disabling certain programs and processes from loading on startup placed the computer into Selective Startup mode, and I can now not get the computer to exit from this mode. There are no System Restore points available so I am unable to restore the computer to a previous state. Can you assist in getting the computer to properly boot?

The inability to disable Selective Startup mode in Windows XP is a strange problem, as you should not be prevented from re-enabling Normal mode. Previous versions of Windows (such as Windows Me) were known to encounter problems when attempting to disable Selective Startup mode, but the workarounds and solutions for these platforms are not applicable to Windows XP. Before going any further with the resolution it would be worthwhile to gain a better understanding of the purpose and effect of enabling Selective Startup mode. When you go into the System Configuration Utility (“Start” menu > “Run” and type “msconfig”, without the quotes, and click OK) there are several tabs available. On the “General” tab you are presented with various options pertaining to how the computer should boot. Normal Startup mode will load all drivers, processes and programs configured to load on Windows startup. Diagnostic Startup mode will only load basic drivers and processes, in case there is a problem preventing Windows from booting normally. Finally, Selective Startup mode will load a subset of all drivers, processes and programs configured to load on startup. This is the mode which is currently enabled on your computer. You will notice that when activating other tabs in the System Configuration Utility, such as the “Startup” tab, you can tick and untick various items. Whenever you untick an item the computer is placed into Selective Startup mode, since you are now selectively starting the computer (as some services, programs or processes which normally start have been disabled).

Returning the computer to Normal Startup mode will enable all of the items which should normally load on startup. The symptoms which you describe, pertaining to the computer not booting into Normal Startup mode indicates that one of the disabled items will not re-enable, thus preventing the computer from completing a Normal startup. Since you disabled certain processes it is likely that one of these processes refuses to re-enable therefore preventing the computer from returning to Normal Startup mode. To check which process is causing the problem we will manually re-enable the startup processes. In the System Configuration Utility, go to the “Startup” tab and then enable (tick) all of the items which are disabled. Click OK and restart the computer. Once the computer has restarted, go back into the System Configuration Utility and the “Startup” tab. The processes which were unable to load should still disabled (unticked). At this point you will need to undertake further investigations to determine why that process or processes, are not loading. The most likely situation is that the process is no longer installed or present on the computer in the location referred to by the System Configuration Utility. Thus, Windows is trying to load a non-existent process and is unable to do so. To test this theory, note down the value in the “Command” column for the items which will no longer enable (you may need to expand out the “Command” column so that you can view the entire command). This should point to the executable file which needs to be loaded for that process. Check whether that path and file are valid and present on your computer. If not, then it seems they are missing and can be removed from the System Configuration Utility so that they do not prevent the computer from returning to Normal Startup mode. However, before removing the entry for that item it would be worthwhile writing down the name of the startup item and doing a quick search on the internet to determine the purpose of the process. If you find that it is an important process which you require then it may be prudent to undertake further action after the removal of the phantom process, such as reinstalling the program associated with the process, so that you can regain the functionality which the process requires. Of course, if you find that the process is non-essential and pertains to a function which you do not require, then you should be able to remove it from the listing without any further action.

In either case, removing an item from the listing of startup items cannot be done through the System Configuration Utility interface, but instead needs to be completed through the Windows registry. You will notice in the “Location” column within the table on the Startup tab this shows the registry location from where the startup item is called, so using the Windows Registry Editor we will visit the location for the particular startup item and remove it from the registry, which will then remove the item from the System Configuration Utility. Before proceeding any further, be aware that the registry is a very sensitive area of the Windows system. Any incorrect modifications made in the registry could make your system unusable, so only proceed if you are confident with making such changes. Assuming that you would like to proceed, leave the System Configuration Utility open for the moment, so that we can refer to the location for the startup item to remove, and go to the “Start” menu > “Run” and type “regedit” (without the quotes) and click OK. In the Registry Editor window that appears, navigate to the location for the startup item. Be aware, the abbreviations HKLM and HKCU in the System Configuration Utility refer to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE and HKEY_CURRENT_USER (respectively) in the Windows registry. Once you arrive at the location for the startup item in the registry, which will most likely be under a “Run” key (folder) in the Registry Editor, you should see the startup item in the right-hand pane of the Registry Editor window. You will be able to identify the items by “Name” and “Data” which should match the “Startup Item” and “Command” fields in the System Configuration Utility. Once you have found the process that needs to be removed, select that item and right-click then select “Delete”. Before deleting the item make double-certain that you are deleting the correct item, as the Registry Editor is unforgiving and has no undo functionality or way to recover deleted items. After you have deleted the item, close the Registry Editor and click “Cancel” to close the System Configuration Utility without saving. Reopen the System Configuration Utility (the close and reopen was necessary to refresh the contents of the Startup tab) and click the “Startup” tab. The listing of processes should now no longer include the item which you just deleted through the Windows Registry. Now, as the problematic processes have been removed, you should be able to go back onto the “General” tab and enable “Normal Startup” then click OK to restart the computer into normal mode.