How to set a shutdown timer on your computer. Create a computer shutdown timer

During the global technical revolution, human needs are increasing, so another need has appeared - to turn off the computer at a certain time or after a certain time. A common reason is watching a movie at night, when many people turn on a movie before going to bed and fall asleep listening to it. Of course, this does not have a beneficial effect on a person’s sleep, but that’s another topic.

Now let's figure out how to set our computer or laptop on a timer. There are a large number of programs that are created specifically for this purpose; you can also set your computer on a timer through the Windows command line.

Computer shutdown timer programs.

Timer programs are not particularly different in functionality; they basically set the computer to turn off, reboot, or go into sleep mode at a certain period of time. Below I will give a list of the most popular timer programs that antivirus and users do not complain about.

Airytec Switch Off.

The program that I use myself, because it has earned the trust of users and it is the only one with an official website. In addition, none of the antiviruses suspected anything dangerous in Airytec Switch OFF. This timer is also compatible with Windows 8 and 10.

After launch, an icon appears in the Windows notification area.

By clicking the Job button, you can set the following functions:

Lost network connections.

You can also add various notifications that the computer will turn off soon.

In the settings you can change the following parameters:

Another distinctive feature of Switch OFF from other timers is the remote shutdown of the computer.

Wise Auto Shutdown.

Another good free timer, and in Russian, is Wise Auto Shutdown ().

As you can see from the screenshot, the interface is extremely clear and intuitive. In addition, there is a function to turn off the computer after a certain period of inactivity. Wise Auto Shutdown provides notifications that your computer is about to shut down, which can sometimes help you extend the timer in time.

A very decent timer that does not overload the system and has a clear interface.

Sleep timer.

a program with the original name Shutdown Timer. Programs with a simple interface and, according to some sources, may contain malware, but I did not find anything. The main thing during installation is not to install additional components.

In this program, you can schedule computer shutdowns many days in advance, and also set a scheduled reboot of your computer or laptop. The only disadvantage of the program is that it is difficult to close the program; a notification constantly pops up that there is no need to close the program, so it is better to just minimize it.

How to set a computer shutdown timer, without programs.

For those who do not want to risk cluttering up the free space of their computer, there are several ways to set a computer or laptop on a timer using the built-in Windows functions. For this:

If your plans change and you suddenly want to cancel the timer, then:

1. Press the key combination Win+R.
2. In the dialog box enter: shutdown -a.
3. Click OK.
4. The timer has been cancelled.

If you don’t like this method because you have to remember the key combination and command, then I suggest you familiarize yourself with another way to set a timer.

There is another way to turn off a computer or laptop after a certain time.

Video on how to set a timer to turn off your computer.

Detailed video instructions on how to set a timer on a computer or laptop.

The Windows 10 computer shutdown timer is a convenient option for users who often leave working or downloading processes while they are away or asleep. It allows you to set the moment when the equipment will automatically turn off. This is necessary when you download programs at night, limit the time your child plays on the PC while you are away, or simply to save energy.

There are three ways to determine the duration of the shutdown.

Command execution window

You can set shutdown using the shutdown command, which sets this “alarm clock”.

1. Press +[R] at the same time.
2. Enter the line shutdown -s –t and specify the time in seconds. For example, an hour is 3600, 2 is 7200, etc.

1. Click “Ok” to confirm.

In our example, the PC will turn off after two hours.

This is not final, since you can disable the Windows 10 computer shutdown timer at any time using the shutdown – a command.

The same actions can be done via the command line.

In the top ten, command options are written using “/”, although the old syntax is also supported.

A warning will appear shortly before shutdown.

You cannot set the Windows 10 computer shutdown timer twice in a row - an error will appear.

Task Scheduler

This convenient service can be used to automate any actions on a PC: you can enter commands in it, specify programs to be launched on time, etc. You can set a timer to shut down your computer on Windows 10 in the scheduler using the same shutdown directive.

1. Open the action window and enter taskschd.msc.

1. In the window, click on the “Action” menu and select create a simple task.

1. Then enter a name for it and click Next.

1. Select the execution frequency. You can run it every day or on certain days, or just once.

1. Specify the time when you want to turn off your computer using the Windows 10 timer.

1. Leave program launch selected.

1. In line "Script/program" enter the shutdown command itself, and specify –s as an argument in the field below.

1. To confirm, click “Done”.

1. Click F 5 to update the data in the window. Yours will also appear among the system tasks.

We see how easy it is to set a shutdown timer for a Windows 10 computer - you only need to know one directive. If you want to know what it is needed for, follow the link and read the article on this topic.

Using this tool, you can write your own bat file, which you specify instead of a directive in the “Script” field. You can specify a set of commands in it, for example, taskkill /f /im<ИМЯ ФАЙЛА ПРОГРАММЫ> will close the specified process, and the familiar one shutdown /s/ organizes computer shutdown using a Windows 10 timer.

Removing a previously created option is even easier:

1. Select a line with one click.

1. Tap the right key on the manipulator.

1. A context menu will appear.

1. Point to "Delete" and click.

You will find out what to do if the SuperFetch service in Windows 10 loads the disk

Such a timer can be set using standard tools in Windows 7, 8.1 and Windows 10 and, in my opinion, this option is suitable for most users. However, if you wish, you can use special programs to turn off your computer, some free options of which I will also demonstrate. There is also a video below on how to set a Windows shutdown timer. Additional Information: .

There are a great many different free programs for Windows that implement computer shutdown timer functions. Many of these programs do not have an official website. And even where it exists, antivirus programs issue warnings for some timer programs. I tried to list only verified and harmless programs (and give appropriate explanations for each), but I recommend that you also check your downloaded programs on VirusTotal.com.

Wise Auto Shutdown Timer

After one of the updates to the current review, the comments drew my attention to the free computer shutdown timer Wise Auto Shutdown. I looked at it and must agree that the program is really good, and in Russian and at the time of testing it was completely free of offers to install any additional software.

Turning on the timer in the program is simple:

In my opinion, this is a very convenient and simple version of the shutdown timer, one of the main advantages of which is the absence of anything malicious in the opinion of VirusTotal (and this is rare for this kind of program) and a developer with a generally normal reputation.

You can download the Wise Auto Shutdown program for free from the official website http://www.wisecleaner.com/wise-auto-shutdown.html

Airytec Switch Off

I would probably put the Airytec Switch Off computer automatic shutdown timer program in first place: this is the only one of the listed timer programs for which a working official website is clearly known, and VirusTotal and SmartScreen recognize the website and the program file itself as clean. Plus, this Windows shutdown timer is in Russian and is available for download as a portable application, which means it definitely won’t install anything additional on your computer.

After launch, Switch Off adds its icon to the Windows notification area (text notifications of the program are supported for Windows 10 and 8).

By simply clicking on this icon you can configure the “Task”, i.e. set a timer with the following parameters for automatically turning off the computer:

• Countdown to shutdown, shutdown “once” at a certain time, when the user is inactive.
• In addition to shutdown, you can set other actions - reboot, log out, disconnect all network connections.
• You can add a warning that your computer will shut down soon (so you can save your data or cancel the task).

By right-clicking the program icon, you can manually launch any of the actions or go to its settings (Options or Properties). This may be useful if the Switch Off interface is in English when you first launch it.

Additionally, the program supports remote shutdown of the computer, but I have not tested this function (installation is required, and I used the portable version of Switch Off).

You can download the switch off timer Switch Off in Russian for free from the official page http://www.airytec.com/ru/switch-off/ (at the time of writing, everything is clean there, but just in case, still check the program before installation).

sleep timer

The program with the simple name “Shutdown Timer” has a laconic design, settings for automatic startup with Windows (as well as activation of the timer at startup), naturally, in Russian and, in general, is not bad. Among the shortcomings - in the sources I found, the program tries to install additional software (which you can refuse) and uses forced closing of all programs (which it honestly warns you about) - this means that if you are working on something at the time of shutdown, you will not have time to save it. The official website of the program was also found, but it itself and the downloadable timer file are mercilessly blocked by Windows SmartScreen filters and Windows Defender. At the same time, if you check the program in VirusTotal, everything is clean. So at your own peril and risk. You can download the Shutdown Timer program from the official page http://maxlim.org/files_s109.html

PowerOff

The PowerOff program is a kind of “harvester” that has functions not only as a timer. I don't know if you'll use any of its other features, but turning off your computer works fine. The program does not require installation, but is an archive with an executable program file.

After launch, in the main window in the “Standard timer” section, you can configure the shutdown time:

• Trigger at a specified time on the system clock
• Countdown
• Shutdown after a certain period of system inactivity

In addition to shutting down, you can set another action: for example, starting a program, going into sleep mode, or locking the computer.

And everything would be fine in this program, but when closing it does not notify you in any way that you should not close it, and the timer stops working (that is, it needs to be minimized). Update: I was told that there is no problem - just check the box in the program settings Minimize the program to the system tray when closing. The official website of the program could not be found, only on sites - collections of various software. Apparently, a blank copy is here www.softportal.com/get-1036-poweroff.html(but check anyway).

Auto Power OFF

The Auto PowerOFF timer program from Alexey Erofeev is also an excellent option for turning off a laptop or computer with Windows. I couldn’t find the official website of the program, but all popular torrent trackers have the author’s distribution of this program, and the downloaded file is clean when checked (but still be careful).

After starting the program, all you need to do is set the timer by time and date (you can also make the shutdown weekly) or at any time interval, set the system action (to turn off the computer it is “Shut down”) and press the “Shutdown” button Start".

SM Timer

SM Timer is another simple free program that allows you to shut down your computer (or log out) either at a specified time or after a certain period of time.

The program even has an official website http://ru.smartturnoff.com/download.html, but still be careful when downloading on it: some of the download options appear to be loaded with Adware (download the SM Timer installer, not Smart TurnOff). The program's website is blocked by Dr. antivirus. Web, judging by the information of other antiviruses, everything is clean.

Additional Information

In my opinion, using the free programs described in the previous section is not particularly useful: if you just need to turn off the computer at a certain time, the shutdown command in Windows will do, and if you want to limit the time someone can use the computer, these programs are not the best solution (since they stop working after simply closing them) and you should use more serious products.

And lastly: many programs that require a long period of operations (converters, archivers, and others) have the ability to configure the computer to automatically turn off after the procedure is completed. So, if the shutdown timer interests you in this context, look into the program settings: perhaps there is what you need there.

It may seem strange why you need to turn off your laptop/computer on a schedule if you can do it yourself, but there are actually many reasons. Why and how to enable the shutdown timer on Windows 7? For example, some task is being performed on the device, and you urgently need to leave, or other users are working on your PC via a remote connection, and they will complete it closer to the night or in the morning, and there is no need for your presence. Everyone will find a situation in which they need to enable the Windows 7 shutdown timer. So, there are several ways to enable the Windows 7 shutdown timer, we will describe each below with detailed instructions.

Enable shutdown timer using CMD

From the articles on our portal, you are well familiar with CMD - a command line that allows you to manage services and software components from DOS mode with elevated privileges. There is no point in talking about the advantages, since everyone has at least once encountered working in cmd. So let's get started.

There are several ways to launch cmd:

Start panel → Run.

Or
Using hotkeys + [R].


The next step is to move directly to how to enable and configure the timer:

Enter without quotes and maintaining the syntax “shutdown –s –t 300” → “OK”.

Where “–s” means to save all applications with the correct shutdown of the machine, “-t 300” indicates the amount of time in seconds before the OS turns on the shutdown timer - it turns off after 5 minutes. You can specify absolutely any period, but in seconds. In addition, you can specify the option to force shutdown without saving and dialogs from the system “-f”.

As a result, the system will start the timer and return the message “Windows will shut down in 5 minutes.” - this is an example based on the entered command; moreover, the date and exact time of shutdown will be indicated.

It is not difficult to enable the timer using the described means, but if there is no longer a need, the following parameter will help you disable it:

Enter the following into cmd without quotes and maintaining the syntax: “shutdown -a” → “OK” /, where the parameter “-a” turns off the timer.

A message appears in the system tray indicating that logging out is disabled.

Enable OS shutdown timer: quick way

You can enable the timer in Windows 7 without constantly using cmd; you can use access to commands from the system’s graphical shell, for this:

The image at the top of the properties window should change → “Apply” → “OK”.

Time management assistant

There is another way to enable scheduled shutdown of the OS using the built-in tools of Windows 7, which is more suitable for less experienced users. Below are detailed instructions on how to enable the Windows 7 computer shutdown timer using the task scheduler.

• In the list we find “Task Scheduler”.

But all my articles are related to the use of programs, and this time I will tell you how to set a sleep timer without using programs.

How to set a sleep timer in Windows without programs

1 . Right-click on the desktop and select “New”, and then “Shortcut”:

2 . In the “Specify the location of the object” field, enter C:\Windows\System32\shutdown.exe -s -t 3600 and click “Next”, where 3600 is the number of seconds before shutdown, which you can change to whatever is convenient for you ; For example, I constantly set the timer for 1 hour, and this exactly corresponds to 3600 seconds:

3 . Enter a name for the shortcut.
To easily distinguish the timer shortcut from other shortcuts on the Windows desktop, name it, for example, “1 Hour Timer” and click “Done”:

4 . The sleep timer is ready. Launch the shortcut and you will see a notification that your computer will shut down in 1 hour:

5 . To disable the sleep timer started in the described way, create another shortcut called “Disable Timer”, and in the “Specify the location of the object” field, enter C:\Windows\System32\shutdown.exe -a:

6. Optional timer settings! There's just a little bit left to do, all that remains is to refine the two shortcuts that were created: the first to enable the timer, the second to disable the timer. So far they look like this:

Right-click on the “1 Hour Timer” shortcut (you created it on the desktop), select “Properties”, then “Change Icon” and click “OK” in the warning window:


7. Select the icon you like, click "OK" and click "OK" in the main properties window that you opened earlier:

Do the same for the “Disable Timer” shortcut.
8. As a result, you will have these beautiful shortcuts for turning the sleep timer on and off: