Windows XP Shutdown Problem

If you really have an ATX power supply, go to bios, power saving, and verify your settings.

During shutdown or reboot, Win XP may hang (stop responding) at the "saving your settings" screen. During such a hang, there is no response to Ctrl+Alt+Del; the mouse may or may not work. (The problem may be intermittent.)

This is a known bug in Windows XP, for which Microsoft has a supported fix. Because this patch is scheduled for further quality assurance testing in the future, Microsoft only recommends that you install it if you have a serious problem; otherwise, they recommend waiting for Service Pack 1, which will include the more permanent version of the fix. To learn how to get this patch, see Windows XP Stops Responding (Hangs) During Windows Shutdown.

As a workaround, newsgroup correspondent "lou" resolved this problem by dismantling the Windows XP logon Welcome screen. In the Control Panel, click User Accounts, then click "Change the way users log on or off." Uncheck the box that says "Use the Welcome screen." This removes the initial logon screen with individual icons for each user and, instead, pops up the classic logon prompt that requires each user to type a user name and password

Try to get an upgrade for the bios from the motherboard site. This usually happens when the older board is not fully compliant to XP in the ACPI layer. The bad news is that you may have to reinstall XP after the flash to get it to shut down properly. XP doesn't like to change the motherboard settings after it is installed. If you force the ACPI settings into the current load, it will probably unstablize it.
Good luck

Vickie

Open device manager.

(System properties, hardware, click on device manager.)

Click on view, and select view hidden devices.

Right click on APM and select enable.

Windows should now shut down properly.

There are further details and a XP shut down trouble shooting guide posted at www.aumha.org

Chas

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