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Dell Laptop Shut Down Problems

Whether you are at the end of a project or simply want to save battery life, shutting down a Dell laptop should be a simple process that should only take a few seconds. However, if you notice there are problems with your Dell laptop shutting down, what can be done?

If your Dell laptop is having problems shutting down, complete a force restart by holding down the power button, be sure the fan has proper ventilation and no viruses are present within the device, remove the coin cell battery for 10 seconds, and run the troubleshooter.

Frustrated woman looking at her laptop

When shutting down a Dell laptop, there are a few different ways to complete the process, but all should complete within a minute or less, making shutting down something that should be the least of the owner’s worries. In a perfect world, this would always be the case, but some Dell laptop owners have reported problems with their laptop shutting down properly. If this is something you are dealing with, continue reading below to find the solution to your exact issue.

Dell Laptop Shut Down Problems

There are times when shutting down your Dell laptop isn’t completely necessary, as putting the laptop in sleep mode is a way to conserve battery life without having to completely restart your device. Although this is the route that most people take when in between sessions, there are certainly times when a complete shutdown is called for. If you go to shut down your Dell laptop though and notice that the process isn’t going how it should, what are the solutions?

If your Dell laptop is having problems shutting down, complete a force restart by holding down the power button, be sure the fan has proper ventilation and no viruses are present within the device, remove the coin cell battery for 10 seconds, and run the troubleshooter.

Dell Laptop Not Shutting Down

Black laptop on the desk

Whether you don’t plan on using your laptop for an extended period of time or are having minor complications with your device that can likely be resolved by shutting down the computer, the shut down process should be something that should only take a few moments to complete and once completely shut down, will only take the pressing of the power button to get back on. Though, if your Dell laptop is not shutting down, what can you do to power it down effectively?

If your Dell laptop isn’t shutting down, try completing a forced shut down. To do this, press and hold the power button until the screen goes black. Once the screen is black, the laptop will be shut down. To turn the device back on, simply hold down the power button until power is restored.

Dell Laptop Keeps Shutting Down

Woman using laptop on her lap

Opposite of the previous issue mentioned, some users have noted that while they are actively using their Dell laptop, the device shuts down without any notice. Even worse, this unexpected shutdown happens repeatedly. Not only does this interrupt a user’s session, but it presents a worry that something more serious might be going on with your device.

If your Dell laptop keeps shutting down, the device may be triggered to protect against potential thermal damage. To confirm if this is the problem, clean the device well by checking for any viruses and be sure the fan can adequately ventilate and once completed, see if the problem persists.

Dell Laptop Not Shutting Down Completely

Black laptop on the desk

If you shut down your Dell laptop computer by selecting the option within the menu of the device, the device should shut down completely within a matter of seconds, turning all systems off, including any indicator lights on the keyboard. However, if you have shut down your laptop and notice that the power lights, or other lights, are still illuminated and the device has not completely shut down, what can be done to finish the shut down process?

If your Dell laptop isn’t shutting down completely, remove the internal coin cell battery. To do this, follow the Dell tear down guide to remove the keyboard and palm rest. You will then remove the coin cell battery for 10 seconds, reinsert it, reassemble the laptop, then restart the device.

Dell Laptop Shutting Down Randomly

Woman using her laptop

You may not be having issues with your Dell laptop shutting down over and over without any warning, but even the slightest issues with shutdown can be incredibly inconvenient, which brings us to a Dell laptop that randomly shuts down. If you are using your Dell laptop and notice that it occasionally shuts down with no prompting from you, read on to see what can be done to effectively stop this from happening.

If your Dell laptop is shutting down randomly, run the troubleshooter. From ‘Settings’ go to ‘Start’ > ‘Update & Security’ > ‘Troubleshoot’ > select ‘Power’ from ‘Fix and Find Other Problems’ and when the problem is found, follow the steps given on-screen to resolve the issue.

Dell Laptop Shutting Down When Closed

Black laptop on the desk

When you finish a session on your Dell laptop, you don’t always have to completely shut down the device, but can simply close the laptop so that it goes into sleep mode. This does not conserve energy in the same way that shutting down does, but it allows users to open their laptop and only have to log in to the device rather than completely restart it. If you have a Dell laptop that is shutting down when closed, how can this be corrected?

Copyright protected content owner: ReadyToDIY.com and was initially posted on April 9, 2022.

If your Dell laptop is shutting down when closed, toggle the hibernation setting by using the powercfg command. To do this, open the search box and type ‘CMD’ > ‘Run as Administrator’ > type ‘powercfg-h off’ > ‘Enter’ > ‘powercfg-h on’ > ‘Enter’ > then test the reconfiguration.

Dell Laptop Shut Down and Won’t Turn On

Woman using her laptop

The majority of the problems previously discussed involve a Dell laptop that is having issues shutting down properly. If you are able to shut down your Dell laptop without any problem. You may be thinking you are in the clear when it comes to problems surrounding this topic, but what do you do if your device won’t turn off after it has shut down? If your Dell laptop won’t turn on after it has shut down, read below to see what to do.

If your Dell laptop won’t turn on after shutting down, remove the battery from the back of the device and be sure the battery cavity is free of all dust and debris. Once 30 seconds have passed, reinsert the battery, connect a charger, then see if the device will turn on by pressing the power button.

Dell Laptop Won’t Stay Shut Down

Woman using her laptop

When shutting down a Dell laptop, it is different from putting the device in sleep mode, as this power down completely shuts off all systems of the device as to simply putting them into a low-power state. When the laptop is shut down, you should have to actively turn on the device to get those systems up and running again. However, if you shut down your Dell laptop and it will not stay in this state, how can it be shut down indefinitely?

If your Dell laptop won’t stay shut down, try updating the drivers. To do this, go to the Dell Drivers & Downloads website and manually search for your exact product. Once found, select the option to ‘Check for Updates.’ If an update is available, download and install the update.

Copyright article owner is ReadyToDiy.com for this article. This post was first published on April 9, 2022.

If your Dell laptop keeps shutting down, toggle the hibernation setting by using the powercfg command, remove the battery from the device for 30 seconds and clean the battery cavity, update the drivers, and try completely a force restart by holding down the power button.

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ReadyToDIY is the owner of this article. This post was published on April 9, 2022.

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