If you’re a Windows or Mac user you probably know that restarting your computer in Safe Mode is a great way to troubleshoot software problems that are difficult to track down when everything but the kitchen sink is running on the machine.

In a nutshell, booting a device into Safe Mode ensures that only the most essential parts of the operating system and the most basic hardware drivers are loaded into memory to make it easier to track down those most stubborn issues.

Luckily, Android devices can be booted into Safe Mode as well. And like its Windows and OSX counterparts, Android’s Safe Mode only loads the bare essentials while totally ignoring all apps that didn’t come pre-installed from the factory.

If your Android tablet or phone is “acting up” as my grandmother used to say, try restarting it in Safe Mode and then launching your third-party apps one at a time until you find the app(s) that’s causing the problem. Here’s how: 

1 – Press and hold your device’s Power button until the “Phone Options” menu pops up on the screen.

2 – Tap and hold the Power off option until the “Restart in Safe Mode” dialog box appears.

3 – Tap OK. Your device should now restart and boot into Safe Mode.

That’s all there is to it. Once your device has rebooted into Safe Mode you’ll be able to do your troubleshooting and attempt to resolve the issue at hand.

Once you’re finished simply press and hold the Power button until the “Power Off” menu appears again, then tap and release the Power off option as you normally do. Your device will now restart into normal mode with all of your regular apps loaded as usual.

Bonus tip #1: Click here to read my post about AVG for Android, an outstanding free app for keeping your phone or tablet free of malware.

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