Uploaded May 2015 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
Written Directions:
This requires some preparation but is often the fasted option as it will force a shutdown which means that it won't wait for programs to close gracefully.
Right click on a free location on the desktop and select New Shortcut.
In the location field, type the following command: %windir%\system32\shutdown.exe -s -t 0
Click Next to continue.
Name the shortcut or keep the name. This is the icon description that appears underneath the shortcut on the desktop.
If you are running Windows 7 or newer, you may pin the shortcut to the taskbar. This may be useful if you want a clean desktop, don't display desktop icons by default, or prefer to use the taskbar for important activities.
Tip: You can assign a keyboard shortcut to the shortcut to run the command from any location on the system. Right-click the shortcut on the desktop and select properties from the context menu. Locate the Shortcut Field, click on it and pick a shortcut for it that you want to use, for instance Ctrl F11 or any other shortcut that you are comfortable with and is not mapped by Windows or programs already.
In case you are wondering what the parameters mean:
s means shut down the computer.
t defines the timeout period before the shutdown which in this case is 0 seconds.
Since you can map a shortcut to the operation, it is definitely the fastest option available to shutdown a Windows computer.
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Written Directions:
This requires some preparation but is often the fasted option as it will force a shutdown which means that it won't wait for programs to close gracefully.
Right click on a free location on the desktop and select New Shortcut.
In the location field, type the following command: %windir%\system32\shutdown.exe -s -t 0
Click Next to continue.
Name the shortcut or keep the name. This is the icon description that appears underneath the shortcut on the desktop.
If you are running Windows 7 or newer, you may pin the shortcut to the taskbar. This may be useful if you want a clean desktop, don't display desktop icons by default, or prefer to use the taskbar for important activities.
Tip: You can assign a keyboard shortcut to the shortcut to run the command from any location on the system. Right-click the shortcut on the desktop and select properties from the context menu. Locate the Shortcut Field, click on it and pick a shortcut for it that you want to use, for instance Ctrl F11 or any other shortcut that you are comfortable with and is not mapped by Windows or programs already.
In case you are wondering what the parameters mean:
s means shut down the computer.
t defines the timeout period before the shutdown which in this case is 0 seconds.
Since you can map a shortcut to the operation, it is definitely the fastest option available to shutdown a Windows computer.
Take a Second to Subscribe and Thumbs up if you're continuing to enjoy my videos.
Google+: plus.google.com/i/-j22pyjMW9Q:qwccVJEUTxM
Facebook: facebook.com/Joshua.Flippinwindows
Twitter: twitter.com/#!/Flippinwindows
Battlefield 3: battlelog.battlefield.com/bf3/user/flippinwindows
Steam: steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561198016937870
