Windows 10 not shutting down but showing lock screen after brief shutting down message? Here are the steps to fix the problem.
Recently, I’ve encountered a situation where even when you press the shutdown button, Windows 10 doesn’t shutdown. After pressing the shutdown button either in the start menu, power user menu, or the lock screen, Windows 10 just briefly shows the shutting down message, blacks out the screen and then shows the lock screen. No matter how many times you try, Windows just won’t shut down. However, one curious thing is that this has no effect on system restart. That is, if you press the Restart button, the system will restart normally. But, even after a clean restart, Windows 10 won’t shut down. It just behaves the same as before.
Why Doesn’t Windows 10 Shutdown When Pressed Shutdown Button?
There is no clear cut reason why Windows behaves the way it behaves. Maybe some application, service, or a buggy driver is messing with the Windows 10 shutdown process. For example, in the case I encountered, it happened right after installing software which in turn installed its own service.
Even though the issue is a bit bizarre, the fix for it is pretty simple. In fact, once you are able to shut down the system properly, the issue shouldn’t arise again.
So, without further ado, let me show you the steps to fix Windows 10 not shutting down problem.
Fix #1: Force Shutdown Windows 10 via Command Prompt
The easiest way to fix the issue is to force shut down the system. When you do that, Windows ignores everything and just shuts down the PC. Once the PC is shut down properly, the problem should not arise again. The good thing is, you can force shutdown Windows with just a single command. Just follow the steps as-is and you will be good.
Note: Before proceeding, save all your work and close any open programs.
1. To execute the command, we need to run it as an administrator. First, search for “cmd” in the start menu, right-click on the “Command Prompt” result and select the “Run as administrator” option.
2. In the Command Prompt window, execute the below command.
shutdown /s /f /t 0
As soon as you execute the command, Windows 10 should shutdown itself right away. If you are curious, /s = shutdown, /f = forcefully, /t = in 0 seconds.
After doing this and starting the system again, you should be able to shut down normally.
Fix #2: Disable Fast Startup
Sometimes, a service, program, or update might be messing with Windows 10’s Fast Startup feature. When that happens, Windows won’t shut down properly. So, if the above method did not work, do give the below one a try.
1. Press Win + R to open the Run dialog box. In the blank field, type “control” and click on the “Ok” button. This action will open the Control Panel.
2. Here, select “Large icons” in View By drop-down menu. Next, find and click on the “Power Options” link.
3. Now, click on the “Choose what the power buttons do” link appearing on the left side.
4. By default, the fast startup option requires admin privileges to changes. So, click on the “Change settings that are currently unavailable” link.
5. Next, uncheck the “Turn on fast startup (recommended)” option and click on the “Save changes” buttons.
That is it. Restart the system and you should no longer face the Windows 10 not shutting down problem.
If you are still facing the problem, uninstall the last installed application, driver, or update. If possible, do a system restore to a known good state.
That is it. I hope that helps. If you are stuck or need some help, comment below and I will try to help as much as possible. If you like this article, do check out how to schedule Windows 1o shutdown.
