Member Avatar for Robynmaree

Help! I've recently had to re-install XP due to Trojan Generic Viruses (6 strands) and now when I try to shutdown nothing happens, it appears to consider the request but then nothing. I have installed XP SP2. It has me stumped. ANy clues?:S

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A few focused checks will usually find why a shutdown request is ignored: a driver or service never stops and blocks ACPI power-off, Explorer or a user process hangs, a wrong HAL (non‑ACPI) was installed, or leftovers from previous software/drivers are interfering. The fastest way to narrow it down is to test from outside the normal desktop, then turn on targeted diagnostics.

Try these quick, reversible tests first:

  • Boot into Safe Mode and attempt a shutdown. If Safe Mode shuts down cleanly, the problem is a driver/service/startup program.
  • From an elevated command prompt run this to force a shutdown test:
    shutdown -s -t 0
  • Do a clean boot (msconfig) disabling non-Microsoft services and startup items to see if a third-party component blocks shutdown.
  • Run sfc /scannow and schedule chkdsk /f to rule out corrupted system files or disk problems.
  • Open the Event Viewer (eventvwr.msc) and inspect System log entries at the shutdown time for Event IDs such as 1074, 6006 or 6008 and for services/app errors that line up with the attempted shutdown.

If the quick tests point to drivers/services: disconnect external USB devices and network shares, update or roll back device drivers, and check Device Manager -> Computer to confirm the HAL shows an ACPI PC when the hardware supports ACPI (changing HAL can be risky; back up first). Use Autoruns/Process Explorer to find services or drivers that remain loaded when shutdown is started.

Since raised the format question, if there is any doubt about residual files or drivers on the disk, an offline scan from a rescue CD/USB or a clean full partition wipe and reinstall is a reliable last resort. If problems persist after these steps, back up data and consider a full reimage or moving off an unsupported OS—XP is no longer receiving security updates and will be increasingly risky to run.

Member Avatar for Johnathan

Did you reformat your drive or just reinstall over the old instillation if you did reformat what kind did you use quick or not. If you used quick sometimes this will leave behind data that can corrupt a new instilation.

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