WIndows Vista Shutdown Process is very slow

[Tallone]

I have problems almost every time I shut down or restart Windows Vista with a
very long delay period. The message "Windows is Shutting Down" stays on the
screen many times over 30 minutes and I finally have to shut down all power
to the computer. I don't think this is normal and I was wondering if there
is some program I have installed that could be causing this delay.

 

[Mark L. Ferguson]

There is a workaround, until you spot whatever is causing it. You create a
shortcut to use for shutdown. It should have the command:
shutdown /p

This forces all apps to close. No wait.

I think you should probably try device manager during a normal shutdown, to
see if you can catch some app hanging.

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Mark L. Ferguson

..

 

[Bill Anderson]

I have problems almost every time I shut down or restart Windows Vista with a
very long delay period. The message "Windows is Shutting Down" stays on the
screen many times over 30 minutes and I finally have to shut down all power
to the computer. I don't think this is normal and I was wondering if there
is some program I have installed that could be causing this delay.

I had a similar problem, but in my situation I'd see a message saying
Vista was installing 1 of 1 update along with a caution not to turn off
the computer. After a few hours of waiting -- once overnight -- I
concluded I should just turn off the power no matter what Vista was
telling me. Rebooting was never a problem. And I could never find in
my update history any evidence that some update had either failed to
load or was in the queue to load.

I have obtained a copy of the forthcoming SP1, and after I installed it
the shutdown problem went away. That's not the sort of solution you're
looking for I suppose, but it worked for me.

 

[Malke]

I have problems almost every time I shut down or restart Windows Vista
with a
very long delay period. The message "Windows is Shutting Down" stays on
the screen many times over 30 minutes and I finally have to shut down all
power
to the computer. I don't think this is normal and I was wondering if
there is some program I have installed that could be causing this delay.

Shutdown issues are generally caused by a program and/or process that is
refusing to exit gracefully. The program and/or process can be from malware
or can be legitimate (such as an invasive antivirus like Norton or McAfee).
If you are using a Norton or McAfee product, uninstall it and replace with
a better program such as NOD32, Kasperksy, or Avast (free). The Windows
Firewall is adequate for most people. With Vista, shutdown issues can also
be caused by old/poorly written drivers so make sure all drivers are
updated. See Step B. below for general driver directions.

A.The first step is always to make sure your computer is virus/malware free.

http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/page2.html#Removing_Malware

B. Drivers - The First Law of Driver Updates is "if it ain't broke, don't
fix it". Normally if everything is working you want to leave things as they
are. The exception is that heavy-duty gamers will usually want to update
their video and sound drivers to squeeze every last bit of performance out
of the hardware to get the fastest frame rates. If you're not one of those
people, you don't need to update your drivers if there are no problems you
are trying to solve.

Never get drivers from Windows Update. Get them from:

1. The device mftr.'s website; OR
2. The motherboard mftr.'s website if hardware is onboard; OR
3. The OEM's website for your specific machine if you have an OEM computer
(HP, Dell, Sony, etc.).

Read the installation instructions on the website where you get the drivers.

To find out what hardware is in your computer:

1. Read any documentation you got when you bought the computer.
2. If the computer is OEM, go to the OEM's website for your specific model
machine and look at the specs (you'll be there to get the drivers anyway)
3. Download, install and run a free system inventory program like Belarc
Advisor or System Information for Windows.

http://www.belarc.com/free_download.html - Belarc Advisor
http://www.gtopala.com/ - System Information for Windows

C. If the computer is virus/malware-free, drivers are current, and no Norton
or McAfee programs are installed, then do clean-boot troubleshooting to see
which program/process is the culprit:

How to perform a clean boot in Vista and XP -
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/331796

D. If you need more information, here is an excellent shutdown
troubleshooter:

http://www.aumha.org/win5/a/shtdwnxp.htm

Standard caveat: If troubleshooting the issue is too difficult - and there
is absolutely no shame in admitting this isn't your cup of tea - take the
machine to a computer repair shop. This will not be your local
BigComputerStore/GeekSquad type of place. Get recommendations from family,
friends, colleagues.


Malke

 

[mikeyhsd]

take a look in the EVENT logs specifically at the shut down section.
it should have entries that tell you what program is causing problems.




(e-mail address removed)



I have problems almost every time I shut down or restart Windows Vista with a
very long delay period. The message "Windows is Shutting Down" stays on the
screen many times over 30 minutes and I finally have to shut down all power
to the computer. I don't think this is normal and I was wondering if there
is some program I have installed that could be causing this delay.

 

[weewillie]

take a look in the EVENT logs specifically at the shut down section.
it should have entries that tell you what program is causing problems.




(e-mail address removed)

where is the shutdown section within event log, I haven't found it yet

 

[SG]

Hi, I'm new here but I was experiencing the same problem. What your comp
is doing is making a restore point, to disable this go right-click
computer>Properties then click on System Protection on the left had
colum. In there, make shure that the drive(s) are unchecked.

System restore points are only created after certain events such as new
drivers, software, etc. For more info, click start>Help and Support,
search system restore then click on the forst result.

EXTREME!

Cow_Man,

Not sure where you are getting your info from, but it's only somewhat
correct.
Also, that's bad advise to suggest someone to disable System Restore.

Restore points are created:
When software is installed using the Windows Installer, Package Installer or
other installers which are aware of System Restore.
When Windows Update installs new updates to Windows.
When the user installs a driver that is not digitally signed by Windows
Hardware Quality Labs.
Every 24 hours of computer use (10 hours in Windows Me), or every 24 hours
of calendar time, whichever happens first. This setting is configurable
through the registry or using the deployment tools. Such a restore point is
known as a system checkpoint. System Restore requires Task Scheduler to
create system checkpoints. Moreover, system checkpoints are only created if
the system is idle for a certain amount of time.
When the operating system starts after being off for more than 24 hours.
When the user requests it. On Windows Vista, shadow copies created during
File Backup and Complete PC Backup can also be used as restore points.
Older restore points are deleted as per the configured space constraint on a
First In, First Out basis also known as FIFO


--
All the best,
SG

Is your computer system ready for Vista?
https://winqual.microsoft.com/hcl/
Want to keep up with the latest news from MS?
http://news.google.com/nwshp?tab=wn&ned=us&topic=t
Just type in Microsoft

 

[PD43]

Hi, I'm new here but I was experiencing the same problem. What your comp
is doing is making a restore point, to disable this go right-click
computer>Properties then click on System Protection on the left had
colum. In there, make shure that the drive(s) are unchecked.

System restore points are only created after certain events such as new
drivers, software, etc. For more info, click start>Help and Support,
search system restore then click on the forst result.

EXTREME!

Besides replying to a post that is three months old, your solution to
the problem couldn't be more wrong. System restore is NOT a reason
for slow shutdown.

And your advice to disable system restore is bad advice anyway.

 

[PD43]

I found out that is was creating them during shutdown because at the
same time I shut down, was the same time the last backup was created. I
just left it over night (It took many hours to shut down ) then I
botted up, then shut down and only took a few seconds. There was also
alot of hard drive activity which also suggested this.

Sure would be nice if you learned how to quote what you are replying
to, Cow_Brain.

 

[PD43]

lol? I think it's obvous I'm replying to the previous post if I didn't
quote it.

Obvious to you, but not to those of us using newsreaders.

You're one of the few people using that web-interfaced vBulletin board
site. It has all the posts for viewing - which is the ONLY good thing
it has going for it.

MOST of us use a newsreader and access the group in a different manner
and don't have all the previous posts available.

FYI... the majority of the posts you see there are NOT from users of
that site. The software grabs all the posts made by folks all over
the world and puts them there - making the site look a lot busier than
it otherwise would be.

 

[Downsized]

"SG" I came across this discussion AND it might apply to my problem. I'd
like to ask your opinion.

I hate it when "patch Tuesday" comes around. The important updates are
downloaded and waiting for me to either put the machine to sleep or shutdown.
When I do, I get the "do not unplug or power down" message with the number of
updates displayed. Some months, the message is displayed and the machine
doesn't turn off for hours and hours!!!! One month, there were 13 updates
and the process took 16 + hours!!!! The machine has Ultimate SP1, 3 gig of
ram and a quad processor. Norton 360 is active. The hard drive light flashes
infrequently. I'm thinking there is a file or files not sized properly.

If I remember correctly, I don't think a swap file is established.
Any ideas?
Downsized

 

[dog.harvey219]

PD43;760278 Wrote:








It worked for me. I findverylittle use for "system restore" and
prefer to use a regular system backup program or just backing up data to
cd's or dvd's. System restore never seems to work correctly or do much
anyway.

If I were you I would try to clean my registry. I found a series of
software and they are working perfectly. They can be found here
http://charlesam8.regcure.hop.clickbank.net/ Give it a try, pretty
sure you'll want it keep it forever.

 

[kiatek106]

fix computer slow shutdown

Many computer users remain loyal to Windows XP, even though Microsoft subsequently released Vista and Windows 7. Older computers running XP will, over time, become slow in booting up, slower in running programs and even slower in shutting down. Shutdown delays can result from incompatible hardware or device drivers, problems in closing background processes, conflicting software programs or registry errors.
Try checking this guide on fix computer slow shutdown if you need more detailed steps.