How to Add a Shutdown,Reboot Buttons to Windows 8 Start Screen

Windows 8, the latest operating stem from Microsoft has tried to unify the experience from Tablets to laptops and to desktops. This Operating system is way more touch friendly than its predecessors and has with its sleek approach to simplify all the day to day tasks.

However, there is one point where this Operating System didn't performed as per the expectations of the users. And that point is the ease with which one can Shutdown or restart the system. In earlier versions of Windows, user just need to click on the Start button and select the Shutdown option to shutdown the system. However that is not the case with Windows 8 as Windows 8 does not feature any Start button. In fact the Start button has been replaced by the Start screen. So, to Shutdown the system, one has to Go to the Power option under the Settings charm and then select the Shutdown option. Lengthy, isn't it?

So, today we are here with a tutorial following which you can add a Shutdown and Reboot tile to your Windows 8 Start Screen so that the whole process becomes simple and you get to shutdown or restart your system just with one click. So lets get started.

Check out the video tutorial on adding Shutdown and Reboot buttons to Windows 8 Start Screen:

Follow the steps to Add Shutdown and Restart Buttons:

(1) First of all launch Notepad. This can be done by pressing Win Key+R which will call up the run dialogue box and then type notepad and hit enter. Or you can even search for notepad from the start screen and then launch it.

(2) Then copy and paste the below given text to notepad.

set WshShell = WScript.CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
strStartMenu = WshShell.SpecialFolders("StartMenu")
set oShellLink = WshShell.CreateShortcut(strStartMenu & "\Shutdown.lnk")
oShellLink.TargetPath = "%systemroot%\System32\shutdown.exe"
oShellLink.Arguments = "-s -t 0"
oShellLink.WindowStyle = 1
oShellLink.IconLocation = "%systemroot%\System32\shell32.dll,27"
oShellLink.Description = "Shutdown Computer (Power Off)"
oShellLink.WorkingDirectory = "%systemroot%\System32\"
oShellLink.Save
Set oShellLink = Nothing
set oShellLink = WshShell.CreateShortcut(strStartMenu & "\Log Off.lnk")
oShellLink.TargetPath = "%systemroot%\System32\shutdown.exe"
oShellLink.Arguments = "-l"
oShellLink.WindowStyle = 1
oShellLink.IconLocation = "%systemroot%\System32\shell32.dll,44"
oShellLink.Description = "Log Off (Switch User)"
oShellLink.WorkingDirectory = "%systemroot%\System32\"
oShellLink.Save
Set oShellLink = Nothing
set oShellLink = WshShell.CreateShortcut(strStartMenu & "\Restart.lnk")
oShellLink.TargetPath = "%systemroot%\System32\shutdown.exe"
oShellLink.Arguments = "-r -t 0"
oShellLink.WindowStyle = 1
oShellLink.IconLocation = "%systemroot%\System32\shell32.dll,176"
oShellLink.Description = "Restart Computer (Reboot)"
oShellLink.WorkingDirectory = "%systemroot%\System32\"
oShellLink.Save
Set oShellLink = Nothing
Wscript.Echo "Created Shutdown, Restart and Log Off buttons"

(3) Now click on the Save As option in the File menu and in the File name enter Shutdown.vbs Don't forget to enter .vbs

(4) Next in the file type, select All files and click on the Save option.

(5) Then switch to the location where you saved the file and run the file once. The file will open for a second and then will automatically disappear.

(6) Now switch to the Start Screen and Voilla. You will see that the Tiles of Shutdown, Restart and Log Off have been automatically pinned there and now with one click you can Shutdown or restart your system.

• Also Check:Customize The Number of Rows of Tiles on Windows 8 Start Screen