How to prevent Windows from automatically restarting in the event of a system failure

How to prevent Windows from automatically restarting in the event of a system failure

As a default, when Windows encounters a critical error, such as the infamous Blue Screen of Death (BSOD), it will restart your computer automatically, ostensibly in an effort to get you back up and running as quickly as possible.

It is a problem with this default behavior because you have less than a second to read the error message that appears on screen. When you have that amount of time, it is nearly impossible to figure out what caused the problem.

When a system fails, automatic restarts can be turned off, giving you the opportunity to read and write down the error message before proceeding with troubleshooting.

Upon disabling automatic restart in the event of a system failure, Windows will become stuck on the error screen indefinitely, necessitating the restart of your computer manually in order to exit the error message.

How to prevent Windows from restarting automatically in the event of a system failure

You can disable the option to restart the system automatically when a system failure occurs in the Startup and Recovery section of System Properties, which is accessed through the Control Panel's System Properties menu.

1. Locate and open the Control Panel: In newer versions of Windows, the quickest way to locate and open the Control Panel is to use the Start menu or the Run dialog box.

If you are using an older version of Windows, such as Windows 7 or earlier, go to Start > Control Panel to access the Control Panel.

2. In Windows 11, 10, 8, and 7, select System and Security from the Start menu.

In Windows Vista, go to System and Maintenance and click on it.

In Windows XP, go to Control Panel > Performance and Maintenance.

3. Select the System link from the navigation bar.

4. Select Advanced system settings from the panel on the left-hand side of the screen to continue (Windows 11 shows this link on the right).

Only Windows XP users will be able to access the Advanced tab of System Properties.

5. From the Startup and Recovery section near the bottom of the new window, select Settings.

6. Uncheck the box next to the option to automatically restart the computer.

7. In the System Properties window, click OK once to save the changes and then OK again to confirm the changes were saved.