Prevent OS restart in XP?

[gf4200isdabest]

Most installs ask "would you like to restart your computer?" and the answer is, invariably, no. However, sometimes I'm clicking too fast and i click yes by mistake. Is there any way to disable software dialog boxes from being able to restart winxp pro? That is, I want the only way to restart my computer to be passing the restart line comand or going to restart in the shut down menu/task manager.

 

[n0cmonkey]

Solution: SLOW DOWN.

 

[Panther505]

Uh no, not unless you set up a limited user, which will not be able to install SW anyway.

 

[gf4200isdabest]

Originally posted by: n0cmonkey
Solution: SLOW DOWN.

While I see what you're saying, that's not really a solution. I save more time than I lose, I'd just like to lose even less time. Dialog boxes I always click the right thing on. It's the "The installation is complete" that I instinctively click finish on sometimes before noticing that the default answer is "yes, restart." 90% of the time I manage to not let go of the mouse button and then uncheck it but sometimes i let go of the button too quickly and it restarts. It's a pain.

Originally posted by: Panther505
Uh no, not unless you set up a limited user, which will not be able to install SW anyway.

If a limited user can not restart the computer, that sounds promising. Would there be any way to modify XP to duplicate that part of the code and then provide a manual workaround to restart when I actually want it to?

 

[pcgeek11]

Originally posted by: gf4200isdabest
Most installs ask "would you like to restart your computer?" and the answer is, invariably, no. However, sometimes I'm clicking too fast and i click yes by mistake. Is there any way to disable software dialog boxes from being able to restart winxp pro? That is, I want the only way to restart my computer to be passing the restart line comand or going to restart in the shut down menu/task manager.

So you need Windows to be able to protect you from... you, right? Slow down and read the boxes.

pcgeek11

 

[fr]

Yeah, you need to learn how to control it.

 

[gf4200isdabest]

Well, really the issue is differences in the location of the checkboxes. My brain is trained to check the bottom box of an installation because Yes is usually on top. If the bottom box is checked by default, the inclination is to just click Finish. However, when that bottom box is "Yes" then sometimes I don't unclick it in time especially if it's late at night and I'm groggy.

To those who say "slow down," I don't really think you understand the extent of the problem. It's not like I constantly end up restarting my computer when I don't want to. Given that it takes 15 seconds to restart the computer and this usually only happens once every month or two, I still save quite a bit of time by not reading the generic messages that I've seen half a million times over the past 10 years. However, when it does happen it's a nuisance if I have a program running that doesn't auto save progress.

So what i need windows to protect me from isn't so much "me" as "programmers who thought they should get creative and put the checkboxes in the wrong order." If the answer is "windows just has no way to do that," so be it. However, the solution really isn't to "slow down."

 

[n0cmonkey]

Originally posted by: gf4200isdabest

To those who say "slow down," I don't really think you understand the extent of the problem. It's not like I constantly end up restarting my computer when I don't want to. Given that it takes 15 seconds to restart the computer and this usually only happens once every month or two, I still save quite a bit of time by not reading the generic messages that I've seen half a million times over the past 10 years. However, when it does happen it's a nuisance if I have a program running that doesn't auto save progress.

That's the dumbest thing I've read today.

 

[gf4200isdabest]

Ok, we get it; you don't know how to do this and would rather lecture people on how they should run their life. Go troll elsewhere.

 

[CrackaLackaZe]

ok I'm curious, just what do you do that's so important that you can't be bothered with spending 5 extra seconds reading the last dialogue box of an installation?

 

[timswim78]

If a program is so important, you should disable it before running updates. most updates and installations tell you to close other programs before running them anyway.

 

[gf4200isdabest]

CrackaLackaZe, the thing is that the software I'm installing is generally so *un* important that just about anything that I'm multitasking with is more important - for example, what prompted me to start this thread was that I was that I wanted to download a cpu temp reader without restarting and checking the BIOS; all I need is to read the temp and then uninstall it 2 seconds later. I can't honestly think of any good reason to read what the installation is saying, it's all so generic "click next, choose location, uncheck bundled software, click next, click finish." I go through that like a thousand times a month and 99% of it is generic. However, preventing programs from being able to pass a restart command to my system doesn't seem like an unreasonable modification to make to an operating system.

 

[P0ldy]

Originally posted by: gf4200isdabest
However, when it does happen it's a nuisance if I have a program running that doesn't auto save progress.

What "multitasking" programs are you running that don't PROMPT you when being closed to save? That normally interrupt the restart process, XP brings up the End Task function which you can cancel and stop the restart.

Save beforehand. I can't believe there's a thread about this...

 

[sparkyclarky]

There is a command to prevent an accidental shutdown/restart, but I forget it at the moment. However, you had better have the command prompt up in order to make any use of it in the little time you have.

 

[gf4200isdabest]

I think you're talking about 'shutdown -a' which is in theory what I need. I tried to use this via a shortcut on the desktop but it didn't end up actually stopping the shutdown. Does it work for you?

 

[ZippyDan]

ive accidentally initiated restart on my computer many times before and ive always wished thre was a way to abort a shutdown/restart