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A Fresh Start

 


Did you know that there is a difference between shutting down and restarting your Windows 10 computer? In older versions of Windows, they did the same thing, shutting down programs and powering off your machine, but this changed in 2012 with the introduction of Windows 8 and a new feature called Fast Startup. This feature carried over to Windows 10 and is enabled by default when a user decides to use Shut Down.

Fast Startup was designed to shorten the time it takes to get your computer up and running. It does this by not shutting the Windows kernel. The kernel is the core of the operating system, it’s what allows the software and hardware to work together. When Shut Down is used all your programs are closed but the kernel is saved, ready to go for the next time you power up your computer. While this does provide for faster start times, it won’t clear out any errors or issues that you may be experiencing. 

Restart does shut down all the computer’s processes, including the kernel, allowing you for a fresh start when your computer boots up.  It’s smart to restart your computer when installing updates and applications, or if you’re getting errors. IT experts recommended that you restart your PC once every two to three days, this let’s Windows do a little house cleaning by removing deleted files and other assets that are in your PC’s cache which could potentially cause security and privacy issues.

As always if you need help with anything streaming or smart home related you can contact us at 309-778-8611 or by emailing us at OneSource@midcentury.com

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