Windows Boot Camp MacBook has only OS X stuck in boot loop

Due to a Wi-Fi issue I attempted to restart my 2020 MacBook Pro that has Windows installed via Boot Camp, but upon holding Option and selecting my OS X drive, the laptop begins continually restarting and showing the white loading wheel. At any point during this loop I can press and hold Option and again select either the OS X drive or the Windows drive, but if I select either, it returns to this restarting / black screen / white loading wheel loop. At no point during this loop does holding Cmd-R for Recovery Mode or Shift for Safe Mode have any effect. If I restart using the power button without holding Option, I boot in Windows normally. (My MacBook boots in Windows by default, which I never changed because it wasn't ever a problem for me to just press Option.)


Here's where it gets difficult. My Boot Camp installation was interrupted due to an error. This was a long time ago, I don't remember specifically what the problem was. Whatever the error was, after a restart it didn't stop me from being able to run and use Windows for the rare occasions I needed it. However, there is no Boot Camp Manager on the Windows side. It's not in the Taskbar nor does it have an entry in Control Panel. So I can't configure my MacBook to instead boot up in OS X by default, at least not from the Windows side. And because of the boot loop I can't return to OS X to properly install Windows Support Software to fix the missing Boot Camp on the Windows side.


How do I either 1. Stop the boot loop and boot up OS X or 2. Get the missing Boot Camp software without returning to OS X Boot Camp Assistant to install it?

MacBook Pro 13″, macOS 13.1

Posted on May 28, 2023 11:23 PM

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7 replies

May 29, 2023 06:48 PM in response to kybcr

If your WiFi Network connection is unable to connect to the Apple Recovery server(s), the Internet Recovery process will finish very quickly.


If you have a USBc-to-Ethernet Adapter (or another method) of connecting via a Wired connection, it may be a bit more reliable. Try Internet Recovery using a Wired connection, if possible.

May 29, 2023 02:47 PM in response to Loner T

Thank you for bringing the tool Brigadier to my attention, I was able to use it to install and access the Boot Camp Control Panel. So I was able to boot in macOS but the boot loop problem persists, now with the white Apple logo and startup chime instead of the white loading wheel. Again, pressing and holding Cmd-R for Recovery Mode or Shift for Safe Mode do nothing. I've also tried Cmd-Option-P-R and Shift-Option-Ctrl to reset NVRAM and SMC, respectively, both of which simply make the lit up black screen hang a bit longer until eventually turning off and restarting into another white Apple logo. I am still able to hold Option and boot into Windows, which is what I am using right now to write this. Is this issue necessarily related to Boot Camp at all? In any case, how can I fix it?

May 30, 2023 11:10 PM in response to Loner T

I went to the Apple Store and they attempted to do Internet Recovery with a wired connection, to no avail. Like I described, the process finishes, then the screen goes black, powering off, then restarts and prompts an Internet Connection again. The boot loop continues. They also attempted to do a 'revive' and basically everything else possible, with no results. They said the only remaining option is to erase the drive and reinstall, which I would rather not do, since I have not backed up my files. Thanks for the help so far, at least I was able to get Windows and Boot Camp correctly functioning. For now, I will keep using my Windows MacBook and look into ways to recover my Mac OS data.

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Windows Boot Camp MacBook has only OS X stuck in boot loop

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