Some Samsung Galaxy S8 and Note 8 users have found that when they enable Safe Mode on the phone, they cannot figure out how to get it back to start up normally. Here’s a tutorial on how to turn Safe Mode on or off.
Get Out of Safe Mode
- Power off the phone as you normally would by pressing and holding the “Power” button.
- Choose “Power off“.
When you’re ready, power the S8 or Note 8 back on. The device should now start normally and no longer be in Safe Mode.
Start in Safe Mode
- Power the phone off.
- Turn the phone back on while pressing and holding the “Volume Down” button.
- Keep holding the “Volume Down” button until the Home screen loads. The lower-left corner should say “Safe Mode“.
FAQ
My device still starts in Safe Mode and I don’t want it to. Why is this happening?
It is possible that your “Volume Down” button is stuck. Ensure your screen and buttons are properly cleaned. Sometimes gunk can get stuck in the buttons and cause them to be detected as “pushed”. Also be sure that your phone case is not coming in contact with any of the buttons.
If you recently installed apps onto your phone, try uninstalling them while in Safe Mode as some apps can cause the phone to get stuck in this state.
AH says
Yes, it did. My case was the culprit. As soon as I took it off and powered it up, it was out of safe mode.
Thank you so much.
Kim says
Tried this method safe mode stays on
Bruno Redahoni says
Thank you for this good advice. You have just saved me a whole lot of trouble.
B
lola says
My samsung s8 is in safe mode for 3 days now. Usually once the battery dies I’m able to get back into the phone. Unfortunately the phone was fully charged. The power key is stuck, I’m not able to move the cursor to tell the phone to restart. Is there another way to get out of safe mode.
Steve says
My touch screen is broken & can’t see or use any icons on the screen. to turn off aero plan mode or turn off .
Unable to transfer from phone to computer to save pics & other files. can it be done
lizelle de Beer says
yes, I did not think my volume button was stuck, did not seem like it but when removing the casing, I finally got out of safe mode when restarting.
Sonia says
Yes, thank you so much! I just bought a new case and this was apparently the problem! I took the case off and restarted the phone and it is finally out of safe mode!
Chris says
Changed my mind after commanding it to enter safe mode. Safe mode only got as far as loading before it was restarted. However, settings/configurations have been changed in “normal’ mode as if it is still in safe mode???? (No, the words “SAFE MODE” isn’t shown). Both restarting and boot-menu forced “normal mode’ were attempted to correct this and resume configurations to no avail. Advice, tips?
changed features: wallpaper, AOD, keyboard, navigation bar, phone
interesting thing: AOD settings still shows my choice as current, but is not displayed as such (as in, somehow it actually IS still in safe mode, maybe?)
Binh Thanh Nguyen says
Thanks, you saved my days.
Sarah Puma Honorio says
Great model! But a a little overpriced this days ; even for a rugged! I have seen some AGM models around with a better PPR: now the x1 18k gold edition have been released! … i have such fond memories of this phone, tho … it started my passion for rugged phones :)
Quisha says
How/why did my phone go into safe mode and how do I make sure that never happens again?
Areeb Ahsan says
Hi,
same random gesture feature has been activated by clicking lock button and a Blue Block roaming around on the screen, even I am not able to unlock the screen, Please Suggest what to do because I am new to Samsung s8 Handset.
Thanks in advance
Kate Mathieu says
Thank you for a good solution. This worked great and saved my friend a trip to the cell phone store.