How to Restart Windows 11 if It's Stuck on the Restarting Screen

Is your Windows 11 computer stuck on the startup screen? While the reliability of Windows 11 has improved significantly, concerns such as slower boot times and occasional shutdowns continue to be a source of frustration for consumers.

This tutorial contains workable methods to assist repair the issue, whether it's faulty system files or a recent Windows update that has left Windows stuck on the restarting screen.

1. BOOT WINDOWS IN SAFE MODE

You'll have to aggressively shut down your PC and boot into Safe Mode to address the underlying issue because you're trapped on the restarting screen and can't access Windows in normal mode.

Step 1: Press and hold the physical power button until your PC shuts down. Wait for a minute or two before turning it back on.

Step 2: As soon as your computer starts up, press and hold the power button for a few seconds until your computer starts up again. Repeat this step three times to stop the boot process. If this is the fourth time that Windows comes up with the Automatic Repair screen, click on the Advanced button.

Step 3: Next, click on Troubleshoot.

Step 4: Then go to Advanced Options.

Step 5: On the Advanced Options screen, click on Startup Settings.

Step 6: Hit the Restart button to access the Startup Settings menu.

Step 7: Finally, press 4 or F4 on your keyboard to restart your PC in Safe Mode.

After booting your PC in Safe Mode, you can use the methods below to prevent Windows from getting stuck on restarting screen.

2. UNINSTALL RECENT WINDOWS UPDATES

Uninstalling a recent Windows 11 update might help. This is because the problem usually starts after the update has been installed. Here's how to.

Step 1: Right-click on the Start menu and select Settings from the list.

Step 2: Navigate to the Windows Update tab and select Update history.

Step 3: Scroll down to Related settings and click on Uninstall updates.

Step 4: Select the recently installed update from the list and click on the Uninstall button at the top.

3. ENABLE SECURE BOOT

Secure Boot is an important security feature that only lets your computer start up with software from the manufacturer (OEM). If your computer doesn't have Secure Boot turned on, Windows might not be able to start up or get stuck on the restart screen.

Following these steps will show you how to check the Secure Boot state on Windows 11.

Step 1: Right-click on the Start menu and select Run from the resulting menu.

Step 2: Type in msinfo32 in the box and press Enter.

Step 3: In the System Information window that opens, under System Summary, check the Secure Boot State from the right pane.

In this case, you can move on to the next step. If not, follow the steps below to make sure that Windows 11 can be used safely.

Step 1: Open the Start menu and click on the gear icon to launch the Settings app.

Step 2: In the System tab, select Recovery.

Step 3: Click on the Restart now button next to Advanced startup.

Step 4: Click on Troubleshoot.

Step 5: Next, go to Advanced Options.

Step 6: On the Advanced Options, select the UEFI Firmware Settings option.

Step 7: Click on Restart.

Your PC will then boot into BIOS. Note that the UEFI settings screen will differ based on the manufacturer and the computer model.

Step 8: Navigate to the Secure Boot option under the Boot menu and press Enter to enable it.

Step 9: Finally, press F10 to save changes and exit BIOS.

Try restarting your PC to see if it can boot normally.

4. RUN SFC SCAN

Another thing that can slow down the Windows boot process and keep it from shutting down is if some of the system files aren't there. SFC (System File Checker) scan is a useful tool that can scan and fix some of the system files on its own. How can you use it?

Step 1: Right-click on the Start menu icon and select the Windows Terminal (Admin) option from the resulting menu.

Step 2: Type the command mentioned below and press Enter.

"SFC /scannow"

If there are any files worth recovering, follow the instructions to recover them and restart your PC.

5. DELETE FILES FROM THE SOFTWARE DISTRIBUTION FOLDER

Before installing an update, Windows stores the downloaded files in the SoftwareDistrubution folder, where they can be found. If you can't get to those files for some reason, you can delete them and start over with the Windows Update again. Here's how to.

Step 1: Right-click on the Start menu and select Run from the resulting menu.

Step 2: Type C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution in the text field and press Enter.

Step 3: Select all files in the Software Distribution folder and click on the trash icon to delete them.

Now open the Settings app and check for any new Windows Updates.

6. UPDATE WINDOWS 11

Finally, you can download any Windows updates that haven't been done yet. If everything goes well, Windows will be able to update and your computer will be able to start up.

To get all of the Windows updates that haven't been installed yet, follow the steps below.

Step 1: Right-click on the Start menu and select Settings from the menu that appears.

Step 2: Navigate to the Windows Update section and click on Check for updates to download and install any pending updates.

Avoid becoming stuck.

If you have problems getting your computer to start up on Windows, it can be very annoying and keep you from using your computer for hours. Working your way through the solutions above should solve the problem for you.