How to solve "Windows Takinig too much time to shut down" issue

Is Windows Taking Forever To Shut Down? Try This!

Shutting down Windows seems like it should be a simple process. You’re just turning your PC off; how hard can it be? Yet there’s more to shutting down then just cutting the power. System processes must end, data must be saved, and unneeded information must be removed from memory.
Usually, this process takes just a few seconds, but the complex series of steps that take place behind the scenes can sometimes trip over itself. The result is a system that never actually shuts down, or takes an extremely long time to do so. Here are the reasons why your Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1 PC might not shut down, and how to fix it.

Software Problems

Programs are a common cause of shutdown issues. If shutting down your system does not even bring up the “Shutting down…” screen and you instead get stuck at the “programs need to close” prompt, you likely have a software problem.
Ideally, Windows will show you a list of programs that need to shut down. Often, they’ll be closed automatically, but sometimes the system will not proceed further. This is usually because you have an open program that needs to save data. Halt the shutdown process by clicking Cancel and then make sure you’ve saved your data in all programs open. Remember to save before shutdown in the future, and presto! Problem solved.



This doesn’t always work, however. Sometimes a list of programs that need to shut down will appear, but it will be empty, or it will appear only briefly but your PC doesn’t move to the shutdown screen. This is a sign that a program is causing your woes. After attempting to shut down, open Task Manager and take a look at the programs still running, by looking at their memory usage and their description.
Fixing a program once you’ve identified as likely culprit may not be easy. The software may need to be patched, or may need re-installation. You can also try manually terminating the program with Task Manager before shutting down your system. Some trial-and-error may be required to confirm which program is causing shutdown to hang.

Process Problems

Windows closes a number of system processes when it shuts down, packing up data as needed to make sure the system boots cleanly the next time it’s needed. If a process hangs while shutting down, however, you won’t know which; the default “Shutting down…” screen gives no details.
You can change this by opening the Registry Editor (do a Windows search for “regedit”), then navigate to the following directory:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System

Now, in the right-side pane of the window, you may see an entry called VerboseStatus. If you see it, right-click it and then click Modify, and change its value to “1.” If you do not see it, right-click an empty portion of the pane, go to New, and then DWORD (32-bit) Value. Create an entry called VerboseStatus and then set its status to “1.”



You will now see a list of processes that are shutting down on the “Shutting down…” screen, which will help you determine what is causing your problem. You may find there’s some kind of Windows Update issue, for example, in which case you might need to re-download a pending update, or install it manually. Other common problems include corrupted hardware drivers and network processes that do not shut down.

Driver Or Operating System Problems

Having completed the registry editing step, you may find that your shutdown screen hangs due to a driver or a process bug you don’t understand or don’t know how to fix. In these situations it’s a good idea to look into updating both Windows and your drivers.
Updating Windows is simple. You should be doing this already, but some individuals turn off Windows Update for various reasons. Do a Windows search for Windows Update. The menu that opens should show you if any updates need to be installed, and if they do, clicking “Install updates” will get the process moving. You may need to restart to install the updates.



Solving a driver problem can be more difficult because most companies do not have an auto-update tool available. Fortunately, IObit offers a tool called Driver Booster that can scan your PC for outdated drivers and update them for you.
Hopefully this step will solve your issue, if another did not already. But if you’re still plagued with a slow or frozen “Shutting down…” screen, read on.

Page File Problems

Windows has a feature called a Page File which essentially works like an extension for your RAM. If your system needs more memory than it has available, the least-used portions of data stored in RAM are moved over to a page file on your hard drive, so more important data can be kept in memory.
Sometimes, clearing the Page File at shutdown is enabled for security reasons. This is because the page file can be a security hole, as the data in it can be retrieved. Clearing the file at shutdown can take some time, however, so it may be the source of your problem.



Open regedit.exe and go to the following directory:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management

Now, have a look at the pane to the right. Find the registry entry named ClearPageFileAtShutdown. If it is set to 1 it is enabled, and may delay the shutdown process. Right-click it, select Modify, and change the value to 0.
Please note that, if you’re using a PC from your place of employment, the page file may be cleared for a reason. You might want to talk with your IT department before changing the setting, lest you end up earning the wrath of your company’s geeks.

Hard Drive Problems

If you’re still having issues, it’s possible that a hard drive problem is the root of the issue. A corrupted or failing hard drive may hang while data is being stored, or may try to save data to corrupted areas, causing shutdown to fail.
You can check the health of your hard drives by opening My Computer, right-clicking your Windows install drive, opening Properties, and then using the Error-checking function under the Tools tab. You can also try using a more robust error-checking and drive monitoring suite like Hard Disk Sentinel.



If your drive is corrupted, you can try to repair it either with Window’s Error-Checking tool or the third-party utility of your choice. This does not guarantee the drive will be fixed, though, as corruption due to internal hardware failure does occur. If that’s the situation you face, you’ll have to replace the offending drive.

Conclusion

A computer that hangs when you shut it down can be a real frustration, but hopefully these tips can resolve the issue for you. Remember, while it may be tempting to just hit the power button, doing so might cause unsaved files to be lost. Don’t ignore the issue; get your computer to shut down properly.

Check out post about Windows Vista, 7, 8 and 8.1 Optimization Guide