How to Boot your SonicWALL to Safe Mode

There are a number of reasons why you would want to boot your SonicWALL into safe mode.

• If for some reason you have not registered your product, you can update the Firmware on a SonicWALL firewall simply by starting the SonicWALL into Safe mode.
• You can run SonicWALL system diagnostics troubleshooting.
• If you have lost or forgotten your password and have a backup of your settings. Booting into safe mode will allow you to restore the SonicWALL and apply the backup config as a quick way to restore operations.

Follow the below steps to restart your SonicWALL into Safe Mode

Step 1 – Assign static IP address to PC

Your first step will be to assign a static IP address to the PC connected to the SonicWALL.

1. Click “Start” on the Windows taskbar, type “network and sharing” in the Search box and press “Enter.” Select the “Change adapter settings” link in the left pane.
2. Right-click on the “Local Area Connection” icon and select “Properties.” Respond appropriately to any request for credentials. In the LAN Properties dialogue, select “Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4)” and click the “Properties” button.
3. Click the “Use the following IP address:” button and enter “192.168.168.20” for the IP address and “255.255.255.0” for the Subnet mask. Click “OK” and “Close” to close the LAN settings dialogue boxes.

Step 2 – Reset the SonicWALL

1. Power off the SonicWALL and insert your magical resetting tool (a straightened paper clip) into the small Reset hole on the back of the unit. Press and hold the reset button while you power on the unit until the Test light starts blinking.
2. Open a Web browser on your computer, type “192.168.168.168” into the URL box and press “Enter.” On the SafeMode Management display, click the boot icon on the “Current Firmware with Factory Default Settings” line. This will reboot the SonicWALL to its factory settings state and you can now reconfigure as needed.