2020 Intel MacBook Pro cannot boot to safe mode

jemarshal wrote:

Cannot boot to safe mode. 2020 Intel Macbook pro, Tahoe 26.3, 16 GB 3733 MHz. I've done a reinstall of the OS and also formatted the disk and reinstalled. Recovery mode comes up fine.

Verify you are using the Shift key for the Intel T2-chip Mac that you say you have:

SafeBoot—  see "If you can’t start up in safe mode"

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201262

How to turn off a firmware password- https://support.apple.com/en-us/102384

Easiest from The Terminal.app copy and paste

check for Firmware password set..(?)

sudo firmwarepasswd -check

sudo firmwarepasswd -verify

allows you to verify you have the correct password (without rebooting).

sudo firmwarepasswd -delete

deletes the firmware password. You'll need the current one to delete it, of course.

Note: your psswd will not show on the screen

When prompted, type your administrator password and press Return. Terminal doesn't show any characters as you type.

type it in anyway use the enter\return key to proceed

Not sure why you're having trouble booting into safe mode. 🤔

This is Apple's guidance for an Intel Mac running Tahoe:

Start up your Mac in safe mode - Apple Support

❝Start up your Intel-based Mac in safe mode

1. Turn on or restart your Mac, then immediately press and hold the Shift key until you see the login window.
2. Log in to your Mac.
3. You might be asked to log in again.
4. On either the first or second login window, you should see “Safe Boot” in the menu bar.❞

What happens when you try?

Do you get any error message at all or does the Mac simply boot normally?