How Can I Fix Windows 10 PC Auto Restart When Watching Videos

Windows 10 was unveiled to the general public in 2014 as the successor to Windows 9. One of the perks of this new operating system was the fact that Microsoft rolled updates into it. As such, it was difficult to disable the update function. While this is great, it meant that your Windows 10 auto restarts after each update by default.

When this happens, it can be quite frustrating, especially if you are working on something very important. Asides from the update issue, there are several other reasons why your Windows PC automatically restarts. Many times, Windows restarts without warning and can cause you to lose files that you have been working on.

A few questions come to mind when this happens. Some of them include, why does Windows 10 randomly restart? How do you solve the Windows 10 auto restart problem? Is this problem a minor issue or can it result in major damage to my PC? We will answer these questions and more in this post.

11 Fixes for Windows 10 PC Auto Restart When Watching Videos

Before we get to discuss how to stop Windows 10 restart automatically, we need to share an important piece of information. You must learn to back up your files frequently if you don’t already do so. The reason for this is that you will lose unsaved files once Windows 10 restarts. Even if the files were previously saved, you may still experience data loss if you don’t back up your files manually.

With this out of the way, let’s show you ten ways of Windows 10 disable automatic restart.

Note: Microsoft doesn’t support disabling the automatic restart of Windows 10. As such, you are learning these measures at your risk. If you experience any issues, you can always restore the “restart option” at any time.

Fix 1: Disable Windows Reboot Task

As we mentioned above, Windows 10 is configured to restart automatically when it downloads and installs new updates. You can disable this Windows Reboot task to prevent this from happening. The challenge with this is that your new updates and any other future updates won’t be applied by default. You will need to restart your PC manually before they can. Here’s how to disable Windows Reboot Task:

Step 1: Click on the “Search” button and search for the “Task Scheduler.”

Step 2: In the Task Scheduler, click on Library > Microsoft > Windows > Update Orchestrator.

Step 3: Go to the pane on the right and right-click on “Reboot” then select “Disable.”

Once you do this, you have disabled the Windows Reboot Task. Your new updates will now apply when you restart your PC manually.

Fix 2: Rename the Reboot File

What if your PC automatically restarts after applying the method above? You can fix the problem by renaming the reboot file. Check the steps below to find out how:

Step 1: Press “Windows key + R” on your keyboard simultaneously to launch the “Run” command.

Step 2: Type or copy and paste this path into the box in the “Run” window:

%windir%\System32\Tasks\Microsoft\Windows\UpdateOrchestrator

Step 3: Click on “OK” or press the “Enter” key on your keyboard.

Step 4: Right-click on the “Reboot” file that doesn’t have an extension and click on “Rename” from the list of options.

Step 5: Rename this reboot file using the name “Reboot.old.”

Step 6: Right-click the folder then select “New” from the list of options and click on “Folder.” Rename this folder.

You can always revert to the changes by going back to “UpdateOrchestrator” and deleting the reboot folder. After doing this, rename “Reboot.old” with the name “Reboot.”

Fix 3: Disable Automatic Restart

Another way to solve the Windows 10 auto restart problem is to disable automatic restart. The challenge with using this method is that makes your PC display error messages frequently.

If you are fine with this issue, then here’s how to disable automatic restart on your Windows 10 PC:

Step 1: Click on the “Search” button and search for “View advanced system settings” then open it.

Step 2: Go to the “Startup and Recovery” section and click on “Settings.”

Step 3: Check the “System failure” section and uncheck the box beside “Automatically restart.” Click “OK” once you are done.

Step 4: Restart your computer to apply your changes.

Fix 4: Switch Off Auto-Restart For PC Updates During Active Hours

Windows 10 is an intelligent system that knows your active hours and the hours your computer is dormant. As such, you can program your PC to stop automatic restarts after updates during active hours. You can also decide on your active hours by entering your times manually. The steps below will guide you:

Step 1: Click on “Search” and type “gpedit.msc” into the search box then press “Enter.”

Step 2: Go to the “Local Group Policy Editor” and click on “Computer Configuration” then “Administrative Templates.” After doing this, click on “Windows Components” and then “Windows Update.”

Step 3: Double-click “Turn off auto-restart for updates during active hours.”

Step 4: Click on “Enabled” and choose the whole day as your “Active Hours.”

Step 5: Click “OK.”

Fix 5: Uninstall Windows Update

If you just had a Windows update and you begin to experience “Windows 10 auto restart,” then the problem is likely the update. In this case, what you need to do is uninstall the latest update. Once you do, the problem should stop.

Step 1: Press “Win + I” simultaneously on your keyboard to launch “Settings” then click on “Update and Security.”

Step 2: Click on “Update History” and “Uninstall Updates.”

Step 3: Select the update that you need to uninstall by clicking on it.

Step 4: Right-click on the update then click on “Uninstall” and follow the commands on the screen to complete the process.

Fix 6: Run a Disk Scan

As we mentioned earlier, it is not just when Windows updates that your PC automatically restarts. Sometimes, you may experience Windows 10 random restart if the hard disk has some issues. One way to know if this is the problem is if you run a disk scan. Here’s what you should do to carry out a disk scan:

Step 1: Right-click on your hard drive (ensure that it is the one with Windows) then choose “Properties” from the list of options.

Step 2: Go to “Tools” then visit “Error Checking” and click on “Check.”

Step 3: Click on “Scan Drive” once you receive a prompt.

Step 4: Wait a few minutes to allow the process to complete.

Taking this step usually fixes errors with your hard drive or reveals problems that you need to fix. In the case of the second, ensure that you take the appropriate steps to fix the problem.

Fix 7: Uninstall Recently Installed Programs or System Changes

If you have just installed new software or updated any of your drivers and this issue occurs, you should uninstall them immediately. It is possible that the program or update is corrupt, infected, or damaged. An easy way to do this is to use “System Restore” which restores your system to the date before the installation. To avoid having issues with your program and driver updates and installations, ensure that you use trusted sources.

Fix 8: Run a Malware Scan

You may be experiencing automatic restart of Windows 10 because of a malware issue. Once you have tried the options above to no avail, you should check your computer for malware.

There are so many anti-malware scanners out there that you can use. You can also make use of the Windows Defender that comes with every Windows computer. If you don’t find any malware, go on to the other fixes that we will suggest.

Fix 9: Repair System File

Damaged system files can affect your computer adversely and result in several issues including “Windows 10 auto reboot.” How do you check the integrity of your system files? An easy way to do this is to run an “SFC scan.”

This scan checks the system files on your PC for damage or corruption and replaces the bad ones. Here’s how to conduct an SFC scan:

Step 1: Press “Windows key + S” simultaneously on your keyboard.

Step 2: Type “CMD” then right-click on “Command Prompt.” Select “Run as Administrator.”

Step 3: Type “sfc/scannow” then press “Enter” on your keyboard. Once you do, the scan begins and you can restart your computer once it is done.

Note: Ensure that your Windows Repair Disc or the Installation Disc is close during the scan. This way, you can replace any damaged or corrupt system file that is not available in the cache.

Fix 10: Enable “Configure Automatic Updates” Policy

This is the final fix that we will discuss in this post. It has to do with configuring automatic updates on your computer. Check the steps below to find out what to do:

Step 1: Launch the “Run” command by pressing “Windows key + R” on your keyboard then type “gpedit.msc” and press “Enter.”

Step 2: Your action above launches the “Local Group Policy Editor.” Go to the pane on the left and click on “Computer Configuration.” From here click Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Update.

Step 3: Select “Configure Automatic Updates.”

Step 4: Click on “Enabled” and click on “Apply” then “OK.”

Step 5: Go to “Windows Updates” by launching the “Start Menu” and going to “Settings.” Click on “Update & Security” then “Windows Update.” Check for updates here and your system will search for and install new updates. However, the updates will only apply after you click on “Install Now.”

Step 6: Click “Install Now” and your computer will reboot to apply the updates.

Fix 11. The Ultimate Solution to Fix Windows 10 Auto Restart When Playing Videos

It can be a draining experience to counter video crashes while watching videos. Simultaneously, the reasons could range from a corrupted windows system file, a despoiled user profile, and software conflicts.

Wondershare Repairit - Video Repair can help you repair corrupted videos on your Windows and Mac. One of the many benefits you get is you can repair corrupt video files while also repairing videos with different formats simultaneously. There are no limitations in the video files to be repaired, user-friendly interface, and such.

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• Repairit has a quick and advanced scanning mode. You can use either depending upon the level of corruption the video file has undergone.

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Note: For corrupted phone videos, users should export phone videos to a computer.

Here are the steps to fix corrupted videos caused by auto-restart problems with Wondershare Video Repair.

Step-01: Add corrupted video

Let’s start by adding the corrupted video on the software surface. You can add the corrupted video in two ways. Click the middle area of the interface "Add video and start repairing," or click the "Add" button.

Video Repair supports video format: MOV, MP4, M4V, M2TS, MKV, MTS, 3GP, AVI, FLV. It can repair the multi-formats of videos at the same time.

After adding the corrupted video file, the Wondershare Repairit interface displays the corrupted video's information as File Name, File Path, File Size, Date Created, and Operation.

Step-02: Repair video

Click the "Repair" button. Once the repair action is completed, a window tells you to save and preview the repaired video. Click OK to save the repaired video.

After your video has been repaired, Wondershare Repairit will notify you of the repair success message.

Conclusion

There you have it for how to fix “Windows 10 auto restart”. We have shown you ten ways to fix this issue by yourself. Also, we have provided answers to some common questions that relate to the Windows 10 auto restart problem. If you have any questions, you can drop them in the comments section below.