This guide provides solutions for issues where Windows computers may not shut down properly or may turn back on unexpectedly. Dell computers appear to be the most impacted[^1].
The issue appears to be resolved by disabling the Fast Startup feature, and therefore can impact systems running Windows 8, Windows 10 and Windows 11.
- This feature also causes issues with Windows Update[^2].
- Drivers that do not recognise states correctly might not be able to recover from crashes unless the computer is completely restarted[^3].
- Dell computers may power on either directly after attempting to shut down, or at a random point in the future, especially if they have external peripherals attached. Boot via peripheral input can be disabled separately from Fast Startup, and at a per device level[^1].