Windows 11/10, an improved version of a series of operating systems by Microsoft, has a huge fan following. It is easy to use, provides better security, is compatible with most software programs, and most importantly, keeps a track of every activity of the system. Many users have reported a problem with the automatic shutdown of their PC without any warning or reason. Using the system tracking feature of Windows, we can find out why your PC shut down for no reason.
Find out why computer shut down
The unexpected shutdown may occur in many ways; sometimes, putting your PC to sleep for a longer period may lead to a random shutdown. The system may or may not notify you about the shutdown. In some cases, users have received a message regarding the sudden requirement to shut down in 10 minutes or 30 minutes, even if all the drivers are updated. Let us find out the root of this unexpected behavior of Windows 10. In this article, you will learn three methods by which you can find the cause of unexpected shutdowns on Windows 11/10.
- Through Event Viewer
- By using PowerShell
- Using Command Prompt
Let’s now see them in detail:
1] Through Event Viewer
To find the cause of the unexpected shutdown using Event Viewer, use the following suggestions:
Click on Start, type Event Viewer, and then select the result from the top of the list.
After heading into Event Viewer, expand Windows Logs from the left and then select System.
Now do right-click on System and select the Filter Current Log option.
Inside the Filter Current Log window, select the Filter tab. Then go to the All Event ID textbox and enter the following ID number separated by a comma as shown in the below snapshot.
- 41: It indicates that your system has crashed, power is lost, or is not responding, which in turn leads to an incorrect shutdown using the clean shutdown option.
- 1074: This event is logged for manual shutdown or restart. It is also applied for the event when the system automatically restarts to install new updates to your computer.
- 6006: It is triggered after the new update installation, especially when the system is lost during shutdown.
- 6005: This is an error that occurs when the system goes for a reboot.
- 6008: This event is a clear indicator of random automatic shutdown, which may be caused due to error 41.
Now click the OK button and then double-click a log to verify the information.
As soon as you complete the above steps, you will see the real causes of your device shut down unexpectedly.
Read: How to check the Shutdown and Startup Logs.
2] By using PowerShell
Another method to find the cause of the unexpected shutdown on Windows 10 is using Windows PowerShell. So, if you prefer a command-line interface over GUI, you can use the following instructions to do so:
Open an elevated PowerShell prompt
Once it opens, type the following command and press
Enter:
Get-WinEvent -FilterHashtable @{ LogName = 'System'; Id = 41, 1074, 6006, 6605, 6008; } | Format-List Id, LevelDisplayName, TimeCreated, Message
Go to the log description section and know the possible causes and time for the shutdown.
Let us talk about them in detail.
First of all, open an elevated PowerShell prompt. To do so, right-click on Start and select Windows PowerShell (Admin) option from the menu list.
If a UAC prompt is triggered and asks for your permission, click on the Yes button.
Inside the elevated PowerShell app area, copy and paste the following command and hit Enter:
Get-WinEvent -FilterHashtable @{ LogName = 'System'; Id = 41, 1074, 6006, 6605, 6008; } | Format-List Id, LevelDisplayName, TimeCreated, Message
After running the above command, the possible causes and times for the shutdown will be listed. To do this, you can go to the log description section and check them.
Related: Computer shuts down unexpectedly and restarts automatically.
3] Use Command Prompt
To find the real cause and time of the unexpected shut down of your computer, follow the below suggestions:
Run Command Prompt as administrator on your computer.
Type the following command and hit Enter:
wevtutil qe System /q:"*[System[(EventID=41) or (EventID=1074) or (EventID=6006) or (EventID=6005) or (EventID=6008)]]" /c:100 /f:text /rd:true
Now press the Enter key and you’re done. You will see all the possible causes that had led your computer to shut down unexpectedly.
If you need, you can read the above steps in detail form.
So, to find the cause of the unexpected shutdown of your computer, you first need to open an elevated command prompt.
To do so, right-click on the Start menu and open the Run dialog.
In the text field, type cmd to search for Command Prompt. Then press Ctrl+Shift+Enter to open Command Prompt with admin privileges. Also, click the Yes button if a UAC prompts on the screen.
Now copy and paste the following command-line and press Enter:
wevtutil qe System /q:"*[System[(EventID=41) or (EventID=1074) or (EventID=6006) or (EventID=6005) or (EventID=6008)]]" /c:100 /f:text /rd:true
If you want to view more or fewer event logs, you can do it by doing some minor changes in the above command line. To do that, set /c:100 with your preferred number and run the command again.
You will see the possible causes and times for the shutdown that occurred on your computer. You can go to the log description section and check them.
Hope it helps.
Related: Schedule Shutdown or Restarts using the Task Scheduler.
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