Contents
- 1 How to Restart Your Computer from the Start Menu
- 2 How to Reboot and Computer with the Power User Menu
- 3 How to Restart Your Computer with the Ctrl+Alt+Del Menu
- 4 How to Use a Command to Restart a Computer
- 5 How to Reboot a Computer from the Run Dialog
- 6 Extra: How to Create a Windows 11 Restart Shortcut
- 7 Extra: How to Auto Shutdown/Restart Windows
The sleep function of modern computers is great. It barely consumes any battery and allows you get back into the action faster. However, it’s often necessary to restart your computer to apply updates and maintain its health. Today we’re going to show you how to safely restart your computer using several different methods.
We say “safely” because, believe it or not, there are wrong ways to restart your PC. If you’ve been holding down the power button to turn off your PC, for example, you risk data loss. Naturally, it’s an even worse idea to plug and unplug it at the wall or flick the switch on your power supply.
If you’ve been doing any of these, make sure you follow the guide below for some better options. If you haven’t you may still find this tutorial useful, as it will teach you to restart Windows from CMD and more. It goes without saying, but make sure you have saved everything you need before you continue.
How to Restart Your Computer from the Start Menu
The most popular way to restart a Windows computer is from the power button on the Start menu. This is quick, easy, and safe:
- Press Start, then the power button, followed by “Restart”
After a second or two, your PC will reboot.
How to Reboot and Computer with the Power User Menu
Alternatively, you can access the power menu with a quick right-click on the Start icon:
- Right-click the Start icon and select “Shut down or sign out > Restart”
How to Restart Your Computer with the Ctrl+Alt+Del Menu
If you can’t easily access the Start menu because it has crashed or you’re in a fullscreen application, you can use the Ctrl + Alt + Del menu instead:
- Press Ctrl + Alt + Del on your keyboard
- Click the power button in the bottom right and click “Restart”
How to Use a Command to Restart a Computer
If none of the above options are working or you’re using a server install without a GUI, you can restart Windows with CMD (Command Prompt). In Windows 11, we’ll be accessing CMD through the Windows Terminal.
- Right-click your Start menu and press “Windows Terminal”
On Windows 10, you can just open CMD directly instead.
- Press the dropdown next to the new tab button and choose “Command Prompt”
- Type “shutdown /r” and press Enter
Your PC will immediately restart.
How to Reboot a Computer from the Run Dialog
Interestingly, you don’t have to open Command Prompt to run a restart command on Windows. You can instead type the command to restart your computer directly in the Run dialog, like so:
- Press “Windows + R”, type “shutdown /r” in the box, and press “OK”
Extra: How to Create a Windows 11 Restart Shortcut
One final way to restart your PC is through a Windows 11 shutdown shortcut. You can then single-click an icon on your taskbar or double-click a desktop shortcut to restart your PC. For that, though, you’ll have to follow our dedicated Windows 11 shutdown shortcut tutorial.
Extra: How to Auto Shutdown/Restart Windows
Finally, if manually restarting your PC is still too much for you, you can set your PC to restart automatically at a certain time. Just follow our Windows 10 shutdown tutorial and add /r in the arguments box instead of /s.
