Ever since the release of Windows 8 in 2012, users get the option to enable the “Fast Startup” feature. It allows your PC to initiate the boot process quicker than usual. It’s also available in the latest builds of Windows 10.
The feature combines the shutdown and hibernation process to make up for faster boot times. Most Windows 10 PCs come with Fast Startup enabled, but you may need to turn it on manually if your device takes over a minute to boot into Windows.
This guide will show you how to enable fast startup in Windows 10. In case the feature is missing from your computer, the additional instructions should help you access it in the power options.

What does Fast Startup do on Windows 10?

Fast Startup works in a similar fashion to hibernation. With hibernation enabled, Windows 10 stores important data in memory to the “hiberfil.sys” file onto the connected storage drive. It allows users to resume where they previously left before, even after a power cut.
Fast Startup has mostly the same concept behind it, but with a small difference. Rather than saving the entire boot state onto the storage drive, it only stores the necessary Windows files after the user logoff. Hence, it works without occupying too much storage space and allows quick resume. If you use a fast SSD (Solid State Drive) as your Windows boot drive, consider enabling the feature to improve startup times.

Steps to enable Fast Startup on Windows 10

Enabling Fast Startup on Windows 10 is straightforward. All you need to do is perform the steps below.

1. First, go to Settings from your Windows 10 Start menu.
2. Next, open the System settings menu, then select Power & Sleep in the sidebar.
3. On the following screen, click Additional power settings under the “Related settings” section.
   

   

4. After that, click the “Choose what the power button does” option in the left settings pane of the Control Panel window.
   

   

5. Click “Change settings that are currently unavailable” to get access to the greyed-out options.
   

   

6. Check the box next to the “Turn on fast startup” option right below the “Shutdown settings” section.
   

   

7. At last, click Save changes to confirm enabling Fast Startup on Windows 10.

Once you go through the following steps, the boot times should improve the next time you power on your computer.

Fix Fast Startup missing on Windows 10

On some desktops and laptops, the Fast Startup feature doesn’t appear in the power options menu for some reason. You can follow the below instructions to make it available.

1. Open the Start menu and start typing “cmd” in the search bar.
2. Right-click the Command Prompt app, then select Run as administrator in the drop-down menu.
3. Now paste the given command in the CMD window and hit the Enter key on your keyboard:

   • powercfg /hibernate on

     

4. Once you do it, perform the steps in the above section to enable the Fast Startup feature.

In case the option still doesn’t appear in the Control Panel settings, chances are your PC doesn’t have ACPI (Advanced Configuration and Power Interface) “S4 State” support.
You can run the following command in a CMD window (run as an admin) to determine which sleep states your PC supports:

• powercfg /availablesleepstates

Guide to disable Fast Startup on Windows 10

While Fast Startup is useful for those who want their PCs to boot faster than usual, it’s worth mentioning that the feature might cause problems depending on how your system is configured to handle the boot states.
For instance, Fast Startup introduces boot errors on PCs with limited storage space. Furthermore, it provides no benefits in a dual-boot setup running a different version of Windows or Linux. Many users also reportedly had their Windows 10 installation corrupted after enabling the feature. In many other cases, Fast Startup causes more harm than improving the startup times.
If you don’t find Fast Startup benefitting to your current setup, we recommend you disable it from the Power Options menu in Control Panel. All you have to do is uncheck the box next to the “Turn on fast startup” option under the “Shutdown settings” row, and then click the Save changes button below the window.
Once done, your PC won’t save the current boot state the next time you shut it down. It can result in longer boot times on hard disk drives, but it has a negligible effect when booting from high-speed, solid-state storage.

FOLLOW us ON GOOGLE NEWS

Denial of responsibility! TechCodex is an automatic aggregator of Global media. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, and all materials to their authors. For any complaint, please reach us at – [email protected]. We will take necessary action within 24 hours.