Document the reason for unexpected restarts or shutdowns of remote computers

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

To document the reason for unexpected restarts or shutdowns of remote computers

  • Using the Windows interface

  • Using a command line

Using the Windows interface

  1. Open Command Prompt.

  2. Type:

    shutdown /i to display the Remote Shutdown dialog box (Shutdown.exe).

  3. Under Computers, click Add to enter computer names, or click Browse to open the Find Computers dialog box.

  4. Under What do you want these computers to do, click Annotate Unexpected Shutdown.

  5. Select the appropriate reason for the unexpected shutdown from the list.

  6. If a comment is required, the OK button will not function until you type at least one character one in the text box.

Notes

  • To perform this procedure, you must be a member of the Administrators group on the local computer, or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. If the computer is joined to a domain, members of the Domain Admins group might be able to perform this procedure. As a security best practice, consider using Run as to perform this procedure.

  • To open a command prompt, click Start, point to All programs, point to Accessories, and then click Command prompt.

  • The Remote Shutdown dialog box (Shutdown.exe) can only be displayed by typing shutdown /i at the command prompt.

  • For information on defining custom reasons, see "Best practices" in Related Topics.

Using a command line

  1. Open Command Prompt.

  2. Type: shutdown/e/m\\ComputerName/c "Comment" /d xx**:**yy

Value Description

/e

Enables you to document the reason for the unexpected shutdown on the remote computer.

/m\\ComputerName

Specifies the target computer.

/c

Enables you to comment in detail about the reason for the shutdown. You can use a maximum of 511 characters. Comments must be enclosed in quotation marks.

/d xx:yy

Lists the reason for the system restart or shutdown, where xx specifies a major reason number from 0 through 255 and yy specifies a minor reason number from 0 through 65,535.

Notes

  • To perform this procedure, you must be a member of the Administrators group on the local computer, or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. If the computer is joined to a domain, members of the Domain Admins group might be able to perform this procedure. As a security best practice, consider using Run as to perform this procedure.

  • To open a command prompt, click Start, point to All programs, point to Accessories, and then click Command prompt.

  • For the complete command line syntax, see "Shutdown" under Related Topics, below.

  • For information on defining custom reasons, see "Best practices" under Related Topics.

Information about functional differences

  • Your server might function differently based on the version and edition of the operating system that is installed, your account permissions, and your menu settings. For more information, see Viewing Help on the Web.

See Also

Concepts

Shutdown Event Tracker Best practices
Document the reason for an unexpected restart or shutdown of your local computer
Shutdown Event Tracker overview
Shutdown Event Tracker Resources
Shutdown