How to Shutdown Windows Server 2012? Easy to Follow Guide

Do you know how to shutdown Windows Server 2012? This is one of the most commonly faced issues by the users of the Windows Server 2012 since the release of this server operating system. It should have been the easiest thing to perform. But, Microsoft made no efforts to include any straightforward method of shutting down the server.

But don’t worry about that as we have compiled a list of various ways you can shut down the Windows Server 2012. And, we will share all of these, one by one in this very post. On top of this, the tutorials will be described in step by step and with screenshots. So, you can follow along with ease.

Let’s begin then, shall we?…

Tutorials on How to Shutdown Windows Server 2012

There are several methods to shutdown Windows Server 2012. In this section, we will be explaining one at a time. So, let’s go…

Method #1 Shutdown Windows Server 2012 Using the ‘WINDOWS+I’ Shortcut

Press the ‘Windows Key’ and the ‘I’ key on your keyboard at the same time
Now, you will see a new settings menu has appeared on the right side of the window
There will be a ‘Power’ button on the bottom of all the settings, click on that ‘Power’ button

It will bring out 2 options that are ‘Shut down’ and ‘Restart’. As we will turn off the system, click on the ‘Shut down’ option from there

In doing so, a new dropdown menu will appear. Here, you will be asked to choose the reason for shutting down the system

Now, click on the dropdown menu and select the reason you prefer from the long lists

After that, click on the ‘Continue’ button and it will shut down the system shortly

Method #2 Shutdown Windows Server 2012 Using the CTRL+ALT+DELETE Shortcut

First, press the ‘CTRL+ALT+DELETE’ keys on the keyboard at once
It will bring out several options like ‘Lock, Switch user, Sign out, Task Manager, etc.’ on the screen
Now, look at the bottom right corner of the screen where you will find a ‘Power’ button/icon. You have to click on that ‘Power’ icon

In doing so, 2 new options will appear named ‘Shut down’ and ‘Restart’. Next, click on the ‘Shut down’ option from there

As usual, you will be asked about the reason for shutting down the system. Just select the appropriate reason from the dropdown menu and click on the ‘Continue’ button

In a moment, your Windows Server 2012 will shut down

Method #3 Shutdown Windows Server 2012 Using the ALT+F4 Shortcut

At first, press the ‘ALT+F4’ keys simultaneously from your keyboard. But remember to close all the other apps or files before doing that. Or else, at least click on the ‘Desktop’ window so the focus is on the desktop
It will bring out the shutdown dropdown menu on any Windows operating system
Typically, there will be a dropdown menu where you will find 4 options like ‘Disconnect, Shut down, Sign out, and Restart, etc.’

So, click on the dropdown menu and select the ‘Shut down’ option from there. And click on the ‘OK’ button to shut down your system properly

Method #4 Shutdown Windows Server 2012 Using Command Prompt

In this particular method, you will have to use the ‘Command Prompt’ or ‘CMD’ to shut down your Windows Server 2012. Here’s how to perform this method…

At first, press the ‘Windows Key’ and the ‘R’ key at the same time on your keyboard
It will bring out the ‘Run’ So, type in ‘cmd’ on the Run box next to the word ‘Open’ and hit the ‘OK’ option

It will bring out the CMD window on the screen
Now, type in ‘shutdown -s’ (without the ‘’ marks) on the command prompt window and hit the ‘Enter’ key on the keyboard
And, your Windows Server 2012 will shut down in a bit

There are a few other commands related to the shutdown and power option of Windows. You can get the full list by following these steps down below…

Once you have opened the ‘CMD’ window, type in ‘shutdown /?’ on the CMD window and press the ‘Enter’ button on your keyboard

In doing so, you will find all the list of the shutdown commands in the CMD window

Here are some of the main commands for your convenience…

To reboot or restart, you have to type: ‘shutdown –r’
To initialize force reboot or restart, you have to type: ‘shutdown -f -r’
To initialize immediate force reboot or restart, you have to type: ‘shutdown -f -r -t 00’

After typing every command you have to press the ‘Enter’ key on your keyboard. Also, try to type these commands manually, as directly copying and pasting from the web can lead to some formatting issues.

Method #5 Shutdown Windows Server 2012 Using the ‘Windows+C’ Shortcut

This is a Windows build specific method. So, depending on your version of Windows Server OS’s build number, it might not work. Still, you can give it a try…

First of all, press the ‘Windows Key’ and the ‘C’ key on your keyboard at the same time
Now, it will bring out the ‘Charms’ menu on the left or right side of the screen
From the ‘Charms’ menu, click on the ‘Settings’ option which will look like a ‘Gear’ icon
Next, click on the ‘Power’ option from the settings list

It will bring out a few options like ‘Shut down, Restart, and Sleep, etc.’
You have to click on the ‘Shut down’ button from there and your system will shut down in a moment

Method #6 Shutdown Windows Server 2012 Using the Run Utility

First off, press the ‘Windows Key’ and ‘R’ keys on the keyboard at the same time
Next, the Run box will appear. Now, type in ‘shutdown -s -f -t 00’ (without the quotes) command on the run box and click on the ‘OK’ button

It will shut down the Windows Server 2012 shortly

Now, if you are not into typing the command every time you need to shut down your server, there is an easier way out for you. Here it is…

Launch the ‘Notepad’ or a new ‘Text Document’ program on your Windows Server 2012
Now, type in this ‘c:\windows\system32\shutdown -s -f -t 00’ (without the ‘’ marks) on the notepad

Next, click on the ‘File’ option from the top menu bar and click on the ‘Save as’ option

Now, you have to save the file as a ‘.bat’ To do that, you have to type in ‘.bat’ as the file extension instead of ‘txt’

Lastly, click on the ‘Save’ button from the bottom to save the file as a ‘.bat’ You can also rename the file to something like ‘shutdown.bat’ to recognize it later easily

Now, every time you need to shut down your server, you need to just double click on the new ‘.bat’ file you have just created. For instance, in our case, we will be able to shut down the Windows Server 2012 by double-clicking on the ‘Shut Down.bat’ file from our desktop

Method #7 For the Windows Server 2012 Beta Users:

If you are using the Demo version of the Windows Server 2012, then you can follow this next method. As the demo version of the Windows Server 2012 came with a Windows button, we will take advantage of that

First, click on the ‘Windows’/’Start’ button from the bottom left corner of the screen
It will bring out the ‘Start’ menu options. However, there will be no ‘Power’ options there
So, take the mouse cursor all the way to the upper right corner of the screen. In doing so, you will see a new sidebar is showing up
On that sidebar, click on the ‘Settings’/‘Gear’ icon from there
Next, click on the ‘Power’ icon from the settings list
It will show the ‘Shut down’ and ‘Restart’ Just click on the ‘Shut down’ option from there

Next, it will ask you about the reasons for the shutdown. So, choose the one that best describes the situation
And, finally, click on the ‘Continue’ button to finalize the process

Method #8 For Windows Server 2012 R2 Users:

If you are using the Windows Server 2012 R2, you might have access to the ‘Windows’ or ‘Start’ button. If that is the case for you, you can try this method. Let’s see how to do that…

First off, take your mouse cursor to the upper right corner (all the way to the corner) of the desktop window. You will find an icon like ‘…’/‘3 dots’ Now, you have to click on that icon
You can also click on the ‘Start’ icon from the bottom left corner of the screen to bring out the ‘Metro’ interface and then take your mouse to the topmost upper right corner of the screen. And then click on the ‘3 dots’ icon
It will bring out the settings menu. Now, click on the ‘Settings’/‘Gear’ icon from that menu
From the settings menu, click on the ‘Power’ icon

Next, click on the ‘Shut down’ menu from the power options

And, select the reason for the shutdown and click on ‘Continue’ to shut down your server properly

Sum Up – How to Shutdown Windows Server 2012:

So, we have shared 8 different methods of shutting down Windows Server 2012. All of these methods are explained in a step by step manner. So, you can try them out without facing any difficulties. Microsoft could make the process easier by including the standard ‘Start’ button, ‘Power’ options, or the ‘Shut down’ button in the Windows Server 2012.

But unfortunately, they did not and now we the users have to go through a lot of hassles to do one of the most common tasks of shutting down a system. We hope this post has helped you to learn how to shutdown Windows Server 2012 properly.

So, what is your experience using the Windows Server 2012? You can share your opinions in the comments section down below!