Majority of Windows 8 users who’re running Windows 8 on a desktop or a laptop aren’t exactly happy with the default location of shut down, restart, sleep, and hibernate options. To help users quickly access those power options, in Windows 8.1, Microsoft has added shut down, restart, and sleep options to the Power User Menu as well (popularly known as Win + X menu) which can be accessed by right-clicking on the Start button or by simultaneously pressing Windows logo and X keys.
Other than the above mentioned power user menu (Win + X menu) and Settings charm, there is a new way to shut down your PC or tablet in Windows 8.1! It seems that a large number of Windows 8.1 users aren’t aware of this hidden feature present in Windows 8.1, as the feature is deep buried under system folders.
The hidden feature we are talking about here is Slide To Shutdown. As the name suggests, Slide To Shutdown lets you shut down Windows 8.1 with a simple touch gesture or a drag.
How to use Slide To Shut down feature in Windows 8.1:
First of all, navigate to your Windows drive, open up Windows folder, open System32 folder, and then search for a executable named SlideToShutdown. Double-click on SlideToShutdown.exe file to see the Slide To Shutdown screen.
Slide down the picture to the bottom of the screen or press Enter key to start shutting down your Windows 8.1 PC. And if you don’t want to shut down your PC, simply slide up the picture to the top edge of the screen.
If you like the idea of shutting down your PC by sliding a screen to the bottom edge of the screen, we suggest you create a shortcut to SlideToShutdown.exe file right on your desktop so that you can quickly access it. To create the shortcut of SlideToShutdown file on desktop, follow the given below instructions:
Step 1: Open your Windows 8.1 installation drive, double-click on Windows folder to open it and then double-click on System32 folder to open up the same.
Step 2: Here, look for SlideToShutdown.exe, right-click on it, click Send to option and then select Desktop to create a shortcut of SlideToShutdown on desktop.
And if you would like to launch SlideToShutdown with a hotkey, you can do so as well by assigning a keyboard shortcut to SlideToShutdown shortcut file you just have created on your desktop:
Step 1: Right-click on Slidetoshutdown shortcut file on the desktop, and click Properties.
Step 2: Under Shortcut tab, select the Shortcut key box, and then press a letter on your keyboard to create a shortcut key prefixed with Ctrl + Alt. That is, for instance, if you press “B” key after selecting the Shortcut key box, your keyboard shortcut to launch Slide To Shutdown feature would be Ctrl + Alt + B.
Once done, click Apply button. That’s it! You can now launch Slide To Shutdown feature with a hotkey as well.
