how to get my surface open without the update screen where it gets stuck.

Hi Charlotte Moore,

I understand how frustrating it is to get stuck on an update screen and not be able to get into your Surface. Besides some suggestions from the Q&A Assist, here’s something else you can try:

1 - Hard shutdown your Surface

• Hold the Power button down for 30 seconds
• Ignore the logo, keep holding the Power button
• It should turn on > off (repeat) > you can release it
• Wait 10 more seconds > Turn the Surface on and check.

2 - If it immediately goes back, get into Safe Mode:

• Power on the Surface and force shutting down 3 times > WinRE
• Go to Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Settings
• Select Restart > press 4 or F4 to enter Safe Mode
• If you can sign in > open Settings > Windows Update
• Pause updates for the maximum time > Restart normally.

If you want, let me know which Surface model this is (Surface Pro, Laptop, Go, etc.), and whether you see “Preparing Automatic Repair” after forced restarts.

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Follow these steps in order to get past the stuck update screen and open the Surface:

1. Force a shut down and restart
   • Press and hold the power button for about 20 seconds, until the Surface turns off and restarts.
   • Release the power button when the Windows or Surface logo appears.
   • If Windows starts normally, sign in and then install all available Surface and Windows updates to reduce future issues.
2. If it still gets stuck: enter Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE)
   • Turn the device off.
   • Turn it on and let it try to boot.
   • As soon as it hangs again, press and hold the power button to force it off.
   • Turn it on again and repeat the forced shutdown during boot.
   • After two failed boot attempts, it should automatically enter WinRE.
3. Use recovery options in WinRE
   • On the “Choose an option” screen, select Troubleshoot.
   • Then try, in this order:
     • Advanced options > Startup Repair (if available).
     • If that does not work, Advanced options > System Restore (if a restore point exists).
     • If still stuck, use Reset this PC (under Troubleshoot) and choose Keep my files if available. This will reinstall Windows while trying to keep personal files, but apps will need to be reinstalled.
4. If Windows will not start at all: use a USB recovery drive
   • On another PC, create a Surface USB recovery drive following the instructions in Creating and using a USB recovery drive for Surface.
   • On the Surface:
     1. Shut it down.
     2. Insert the USB recovery drive.
     3. Press and hold the volume-down button, then press and release the power button.
     4. When the Surface logo appears, release volume-down.
   • Use the on-screen options to repair or reset the device.

If none of these steps allow Windows to start, service or repair may be required. In that case, use the service options described in the references below.

References:

• Surface turns on but is stuck on a logo screen
• Surface turns on but is stuck on the Recovery screen
• Surface turns on but is stuck on a drive icon