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What is Fast Startup and How to Disable It on Windows 10


If you have upgraded to or installed Windows 10 then you are already familiar with how fast Windows 10 boots to desktop. This quick boot feature is enabled by default and works similarly to the hybrid sleep mode. This quick boot feature of Windows 10 is known as 'Fast Startup'. When fast startup is enabled your Windows 10 PC boots very fast because it saved the previous operating system state and just refreshes the system on the next boot. As a result Windows only loads that saved operating system state without having to load the kernel or drivers.

If we compare fast startup with the hibernate mode then it will come out to be a different thing. In hibernate mode Windows saves the operating system state including the running programs and all the work you are doing. When you start your PC then Windows loads exactly the same state from where you left. While in fast startup mode Windows doesn't save any of your work like if you were using a browser or any other programs. These programs will not be saved and Windows will only save the current state to a hibernation file. Now Windows just have to refresh your system with hibernation file. Fast startup is much faster than hibernate mode as it doesn't include saving and reloading programs that you were using previously before shutting down the PC.

Reasons Why You Should Disable Fast Startup in Windows 10

When the Fast Startup option is enabled then you will encounter the problems stated below.
  • Your PC or laptop won't be able to apply updates. Your PC doesn't completely shutdown and applying new updates require your PC to restart. So if fast startup is enabled then no update will be installed.
  • The Windows drive gets locked if you shut down your PC when Fast Startup is enabled. The drive can't be accessed from other operating system if you are using dual boot on your computer. The locked Windows drive may get corrupted if you change anything on it from another operating system in dual boot mode.
  • The Task Manager will always show wrong Up time if Fast Startup is enabled. In Task Manager the Performance thread keeps track of the startup duration of your computer. By 'Up time' we mean for how long the computer was in a working state before shutdown. Normally this counter starts from zero but if Fast Startup is enabled then you may see the 'Up time' close to days or even months. This means that your computer hasn't performed a proper shutdown since many days or even months. During this period no updates were installed.

How to Enable or Disable Fast Startup in Windows 10

  • Go to 'Settings>System>Power & sleep'. Or simply click the battery icon in the 'System tray' and click 'Power & sleep settings'.
  • Now click 'Additional power settings' under 'Related settings'.
  • Now click 'Choose what the power buttons do'. Then click 'Change settings that are currently unavailable'.

windows 10 fast startup


  • Here uncheck 'Turn on fast startup (recommended)' to disable it and check it again to enable it. Also put a check on 'Hibernate' to show it in the power menu.
  • If you are unable to see hibernate option then open command prompt and type the following command.

powercfg /hibernate on

  • Then hit enter. Now hibernate option will be visible. You can use hibernate option to save your entire work and can resume the work from where you left it. In fast startup your running programs will not be saved.

Fast Startup affects the booting time. If it is enabled then it will boot the system in just 5 seconds if you are using an SSD. But this doesn't perform a complete shutdown. This quick boot feature is only useful if you want to start your PC quickly. This can save time but also remember that you won't be able to install any updates. So if you are using Windows 10 on an SSD then compare the boot times by first disabling then enabling the Fast Startup. In a normal boot sequence an SSD may take 10-20 seconds or more to completely start the computer.

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