How to Use Clean Boot and Safe Mode to Fix Clipboard Issues

If copy and paste is still broken after the usual fixes, a clean boot tells you whether third-party software is to blame. Turn off every non-Microsoft service and startup app, restart, and test. If paste works, turn things back on half at a time until it breaks again, and you've found the culprit. If paste still fails, test in Safe Mode, then repair Windows with Reinstall now, which keeps your apps and files. Reset this PC comes last.

Before you start: rule out the quick causes

A clean boot takes several restarts, so first make sure the problem is real and not one of the common, quick ones:

• Win+V does nothing or asks you to turn it on. Clipboard history is off until you enable it. That isn't a fault.
• Only one app fails. If paste works in Notepad but not in Word, a browser or an admin window, the app is the problem, not Windows.
• A quick restart of Explorer or the clipboard service fixes it for a while. See restarting Explorer to unstick copy and paste and how to restart the clipboard user service.

To check the clipboard itself, copy a line of text in Notepad and paste it into a new Notepad window. You can also test from PowerShell:

Set-Clipboard -Value "clipboard test 123"
Get-Clipboard

If Get-Clipboard doesn't print clipboard test 123, or Notepad can't paste, the system clipboard is failing. Is it Windows or the app? Test the clipboard itself has more tests.

Clean boot or Safe Mode: which to use

Start with a clean boot. Microsoft describes it as giving you more control than Safe Mode for finding the software that causes a conflict.

Step 1: Start Windows with a clean boot

You need to be signed in as an administrator.

1. Search for msconfig and open System Configuration.
2. On the Services tab, select Hide all Microsoft services. Don't skip this: it keeps Windows' own services running.
3. Select Disable all, then Apply.
4. On the Startup tab, select Open Task Manager.
5. In Task Manager's Startup apps page, select each enabled item and choose Disable. Write down what you turn off; you'll need the list later.
6. Close Task Manager, select OK in System Configuration, and restart.

Some features may be missing while you're in a clean boot. That's expected. If your PC is managed by work or school, network policies might prevent these steps; ask your IT team instead.

Step 2: Test copy and paste

After the restart, repeat the tests that failed before:

1. Copy and paste text between two Notepad windows.
2. Run the PowerShell test above.
3. Press Win+Shift+S, take a snip, and paste it into Paint.
4. Try the app where paste was failing.

If everything works now, a third-party service or startup app is the cause. Go to step 3.

If it still fails, the cause is not a third-party service or startup app. Return to normal startup (step 4) and go to Safe Mode.

Step 3: Find the culprit by halving

Microsoft's method is to re-enable half of what you turned off, restart, and test, then keep halving whichever half contains the problem.

1. Open System Configuration > Services (with Hide all Microsoft services still selected).
2. Select the checkboxes for the top half of the services, select OK, and restart.
3. Test copy and paste.
4. If it breaks, the culprit is in the half you just turned on. If it still works, it's in the half that's still off.
5. Repeat with the suspect half until one service is left.
6. If no service is responsible, do the same with the startup apps in Task Manager.

Halving is much faster than testing items one by one: 16 services take about four rounds.

What usually turns up

Look first at software that watches the clipboard or registers system-wide shortcuts:

• Security software. See is your antivirus blocking the clipboard?
• A second clipboard manager. Two tools that each record every copy can conflict. See two clipboard managers installed? How to stop them fighting.
• Remote desktop, VDI and virtual machine tools that share the clipboard with another system.
• Keyboard, macro and hotkey utilities that may intercept Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V or Win+V.

Once you know which item it is, update it, change its clipboard or hotkey setting, uninstall it, or leave it disabled at startup. Microsoft's advice is to contact the software's maker if you need it running.

Step 4: Return to normal startup

1. Open System Configuration.
2. On the General tab, select Normal startup.
3. On the Services tab, clear Hide all Microsoft services, select Enable all, then Apply.
4. On the Startup tab, select Open Task Manager and enable the startup apps you turned off, except the culprit.
5. Select OK, then Restart when prompted.

Test in Safe Mode

Safe Mode starts Windows with a limited set of files and drivers. Use it when a clean boot didn't fix the problem.

1. Open Settings > System > Recovery.
2. Next to Advanced startup, select Restart now.
3. Choose Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Settings > Restart.
4. Press 4 (or F4) for Safe Mode, or 5 (or F5) for Safe Mode with Networking.

If your drive is encrypted with BitLocker, you may need your recovery key. To leave Safe Mode, restart. If the PC keeps returning to Safe Mode, open msconfig, go to the Boot tab and clear Safe boot.

In Safe Mode, test plain text in Notepad and the PowerShell commands. Don't judge Windows by Win+V or screenshot tools here: with so little loaded, those may not behave as they normally do.

• Text paste works in Safe Mode but failed in the clean boot: something a clean boot doesn't stop, such as a third-party driver, is likely involved. Check recently installed drivers and security software.
• Text paste fails even in Safe Mode: Windows itself needs repair.

Repair Windows without losing your apps

Try these in order, testing after each one.

1. Repair system files. Open Terminal or Command Prompt as administrator and run DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth, then sfc /scannow. Restart when they finish.
2. Try another user account. If paste works for a different Windows user, the problem is in your profile, not in Windows.
3. Reinstall the current version of Windows. On Windows 11, go to Settings > System > Recovery and, under Fix problems using Windows Update, select Reinstall now. Microsoft says this repairs system files and components and keeps your apps, files and settings. Keep the PC plugged in and online until it finishes. The option can be missing on older Windows 11 versions or on PCs managed by work or school.
4. Or use installation media. Run setup.exe from Windows installation media, select Change what to keep, choose Keep personal files and apps, and select Install.

Reset this PC: the last resort

If a reinstall that keeps your apps doesn't fix copy and paste, Reset this PC is next. Go to Settings > System > Recovery > Reset PC.

For a clipboard fault, choose Keep my files. Before you start, back up your files, make a list of the apps you'll need to reinstall, and have your BitLocker recovery key ready if the drive is encrypted. If the problem survives a reset, suspect hardware or firmware rather than Windows.

Problems that never need a reset

These have targeted fixes that take minutes:

• Win+V is empty or doesn't open: see Win+V not working on Windows 11: 9 fixes.
• Paste fails only in an admin window: see cannot paste into an admin window.
• Paste fails only over Remote Desktop: check the session's clipboard redirection settings, not Windows itself.
• The clipboard history toggle is greyed out: that's a policy, not damage; see clipboard history grayed out by organization.

FAQ

Will a clean boot delete my apps or files?

No. It only stops third-party services and startup apps from starting. Everything is still installed, and step 4 turns it all back on.

Is it safe to use System Configuration?

Microsoft warns that changing advanced options in System Configuration can make a PC hard to use. Stick to the steps above, and always select Hide all Microsoft services before Disable all.

Does Reinstall now remove my programs?

No. Microsoft says Reinstall now keeps your apps, files and settings. Reset this PC with Keep my files is the option that removes apps.

Related reading

• How to Test If the Windows Clipboard Is Working (5 Checks)
• Copy and Paste Not Working on Windows 11? 9 Fixes
• Win+V Not Working on Windows 11: 9 Fixes
• Clipboard Broken After a Windows Insider Build? How to Fix It

Sources

• How to perform a clean boot in Windows (Microsoft Support) — clean boot steps, halving method, returning to normal startup.
• Windows startup settings (Microsoft Support) — starting Safe Mode, options 4 and 5, leaving Safe Mode.
• Windows Recovery Environment (Microsoft Support) — Advanced startup from Settings.
• Fix issues by reinstalling the current version of Windows (Microsoft Support) — Reinstall now, what it keeps, requirements.
• Reinstall Windows with the installation media (Microsoft Support) — Keep personal files and apps.
• Reset your PC (Microsoft Support) — Reset PC options and what each removes.
• sfc (Microsoft Learn) and DISM image management options (Microsoft Learn) — repair commands.
• Set-Clipboard and Get-Clipboard (Microsoft Learn) — PowerShell clipboard test.
• Using the clipboard (Microsoft Support) — clipboard history is off until you turn it on.

Copy. Stack. Drop.

Transform your clipboard into an interactive edge shelf. Stack, pin, and drag assets into any app with zero friction.

Download for Windows Get from Microsoft Store

How to Install Guide · First 10 Minutes Guide · Drag & Drop Guide · Edge Drop vs Win+V · Support