How to access Advanced Startup Options (WinRE) on Windows 11

On Windows 11, there are multiple ways to access the Advanced Startup Options (technically known as Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE or Windows RE) and also referred to as “Windows Start Settings”), including through Settings, Quick Link, Command Prompt, using a USB media, or Automatic Repair. In this guide, you will learn how.

It’s only a matter of time until you have to troubleshoot a problem or configure a specific setting you won’t be able to do when Windows 11 is running, and this is when the Windows Recovery Environment settings come in handy. The WinRE is a recovery environment that allows you to troubleshoot, diagnose, and fix most problems while the operating system is not running.

The feature provides many tools to troubleshoot and fix a computer. Also, since issues can occur in many different ways, Windows 11, like in previous versions, has multiple ways to access these recovery features.

This guide will teach you several ways to access the Windows 11 Advanced Startup options. (See also the video tutorial outlining the different methods.) 

• Enter Advanced Startup (WinRE) on Windows 11 from Settings
• Enter Advanced Startup (WinRE) on Windows 11 from Quick Link
• Enter Advanced Startup (WinRE) on Windows 11 from Command Prompt
• Enter Advanced Startup (WinRE) on Windows 11 from Setup
• Enter Advanced Startup (WinRE) on Windows 11 from Automatic Repair
• Using Advanced Startup (WinRE) on Windows 11

Enter Advanced Startup (WinRE) on Windows 11 from Settings

To access the Advanced Startup (Windows Recovery Environment) with Settings on Windows 11, use these steps:

1. Open Settings on Windows 11.

2. Click on System.

3. Click the Recovery page on the right side.

4. Under the “Recovery options” section, click the Restart now button in the “Advanced Startup” setting.

   

   Quick note: The Advanced Startup option in the Settings app isn’t available through a Remote Desktop Connection.

5. Click the Restart now button again.

Once you complete the steps, you will be logged out immediately from the current session to access the startup experience.

Enter Advanced Startup (WinRE) on Windows 11 from Quick Link

You can also use the power menu in the Start menu, Task Manager, and Lock screen to access the Advanced Startup options quickly.

Start menu

To use the power menu in the Start menu to access WinRE on Windows 10, use these steps:

1. Open Start.

2. Click the Power button.

3. Press and hold the Shift key and click the Restart button.

   

After you complete the steps, the action will allow Windows 11 to access the Advanced Startup menu.

You can also use this method in the power menu available in the “Quick Link” menu (Windows key + X).

Task Manager

To use Task Manager to boot into the recovery environment, use these steps:

1. Use the “Ctrl + Alt + Delete” keyboard shortcut to open the Windows 11 menu.

2. Click the Power button in the bottom-right corner.

3. Press and hold the “Shift” key and click the Restart button.

   

Once you complete the steps, you will be logged out, and Windows 11 will open the Advanced Startup options.

Lock screen

To access the Advanced Startup Options from the Lock screen, use these steps:

1. Open Lock screen (“Windows key + L” shortcut).

2. Access the Sign-in screen.

3. Click the Power button in the bottom-right corner.

4. Press and hold the “Shift” key and click the Restart button.

   

Enter Advanced Startup (WinRE) on Windows 11 from Command Prompt

To enter Advanced Startup (Windows Recovery Environment) with Command Prompt, use these steps:

1. Open Start.

2. Search for Command Prompt, right-click the top result, and select the Run as administrator option.

3. Type the following command and press Enter:

   shutdown /r /o /f /t 00

   

After you complete the steps, Windows 11 will access the recovery environment.

Enter Advanced Startup (WinRE) on Windows 11 from Setup

If you cannot boot Windows 11, you can use a USB media to access the Windows Startup Settings. You will first need to create a bootable installation media and then use these steps:

1. Start the device with the USB media.

2. Click the Next button.

3. Click the “Repair your computer” option in the bottom-left corner.

   

Once you complete the steps, the Windows 11 Setup will open the Advanced Startup environment.

Enter Advanced Startup (WinRE) on Windows 11 from Automatic Repair

In the case that Windows 11 doesn’t start and don’t have the operating system installation files, you can still access the recovery environment from the Automatic Repair feature.

To enter Windows Recovery Environment (Advanced Startup Options) from Automatic Repair on Windows 11, use these steps:

1. Press the power button.

2. Immediately after the Power-On Self-Test (POST), and you see the blue Windows logo, press the power button again to shut down.

3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 twice. In the third restart, Windows 11 should enter into the Windows Recovery Environment (Windows RE), where many diagnostics will be performed to fix any booting issues.

   

4. Select your Windows 11 account.

5. Confirm the account password.

6. Click the Continue button.

7. Click the Advanced Startup button to continue. 

   

After you complete the steps, Windows 11 will open the Advanced Startup environment.

Using Advanced Startup (WinRE) on Windows 11

On the first “Advanced Startup” screen, select the Troubleshoot option. On the “Troubleshoot” page, you will find access to the “Reset this PC” feature to reinstall Windows 11 without losing your files, settings, and apps or a clean install of the operating system.

You can access several troubleshooting features in the Advanced options screen, including “System Restore,” to restore the computer to a previously good working condition.

You can also access the “System Image Recovery” tool to recover Windows 11 with settings and programs from a previous system backup. In addition, you can use “Startup Repair” to fix common problems like bootloader issues.

While in the Advanced Startup options, you can open Command Prompt to troubleshoot different problems. 

The “Startup Settings” option allows you to boot in “Safe Mode” to repair bad drivers or problems with specific applications.

Finally, you can uninstall quality or feature updates if you installed one of them recently and are causing problems. And the UEFI Firmware Settings option lets you access the motherboard firmware settings.

If you use BitLocker, you must disable the feature before accessing the Advanced Startup options.