Welcome to day 4 of our Launch Series. Today we are going to talk about the speed at which Windows boots up.
Windows 8’s fast startup mode is the default option on a Windows 8 client computer. Windows 8 systems that are built using Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) are more likely to accomplish very fast pre-boot times when compared to BIOS-based machines.
We originally discussed faster boot times (aka “Hybrid Boot”) in the following blog post:
Delivering fast boot times in Windows 8
In today’s post we will discuss how to determine if Hybrid boot is enabled and the steps administrators can take to disable this feature.
Administrators can determine if Hybrid Boot is enabled using the powercfg utility at an administrative command prompt. The command is powercfg /a .
A full system shutdown is performed by pressing the Shift key at the same time as selecting the shutdown option. Enterprises who wish to disable Hybrid Boot can use the following methods:
- Power control panel applet : In the Power control panel applet under the Power Button settings, an option is available to disable Hybrid Boot. Unchecking the "Turn on fast startup (recommended)" option will disable the ability to perform a Hybrid Boot.
Option to disable Hybrid Boot in control panel
- Group policy : In group policy, Administrative Templates\System\Shutdown, the "Require use of fast startup" policy is available. This policy controls how Hybrid Boot is used in an environment. Enabling the policy requires hibernation to be enabled in the enterprise. If hibernation is enabled, Hybrid Boot will be enforced. If this policy is set to disable, the local computer setting is used.
- Disable hibernation : Hybrid Boot cannot be used in environments where hibernation is disabled. Hibernation can be disabled using the powercfg command “ POWERCFG /HIBERNATE OFF ” or via group policy in the Power Management\Sleep Settings node. If you enable this group policy setting, a hiberfile is not generated when the system transitions to sleep (Stand By).
With that, we are at the end of this post. We are going to take a look at the new File Explorer in tomorrow’s post. Until then!
-AskPerf blog Team