“Turn on fast startup” is missing from your Power Options in Windows 10 or 11, and the fix isn’t inside Power Options at all. Fast Startup depends on Hibernate being enabled; when hibernation is off on your system, the checkbox vanishes entirely.
What Is Fast Startup?
Fast Startup (also called Hybrid Shutdown or Hybrid Boot) is one of those Windows features that’s easy to overlook but worth a look when you want quicker cold boot times. When you shut down, Windows saves part of the kernel and driver state to a file called hiberfil.sys. On the next power-on, it loads from that snapshot instead of starting completely fresh, shaving several seconds off boot time, especially on older spinning-disk drives.
Important distinction: With Fast Startup enabled, clicking Shut down is a partial hibernate, not a true power-off. Some hardware won’t fully reset between sessions, and certain updates won’t fully apply until you use Restart instead of Shut Down. When Windows prompts you to restart after installing updates, always choose Restart, not Shut Down followed by powering back on.
Fix #1: Enable Fast Startup in Windows 10 or 11
If the Turn on fast startup checkbox is visible but unchecked, or you just want to confirm it’s already on, follow these steps.
- Press
Win + R, typecontrol, and press Enter to open Control Panel. - Click Hardware and Sound, then click Power Options.
- In the left pane, click Choose what the power buttons do.
- At the top of the page, click Change settings that are currently unavailable, which unlocks the checkboxes below it.
- Under Shutdown settings, check the box next to Turn on fast startup (recommended).
- Click Save changes.
Your next shutdown will save kernel state to hiberfil.sys, and the following boot should feel noticeably snappier. It actually works well even on systems that already feel reasonably fast.
Fix #2: Restore the Missing “Turn on Fast Startup” Option
If the checkbox isn’t visible at all, hibernation is disabled on your system. One command brings it back.
- Click Start, search for Windows Terminal (or PowerShell), right-click the result, and select Run as administrator.
- Type the following and press Enter:
powercfg /hibernate on
- Close the terminal.
- Reopen Control Panel > Hardware and Sound > Power Options > Choose what the power buttons do.
- Click Change settings that are currently unavailable.
- Check Turn on fast startup (recommended) under Shutdown settings.
- Click Save changes.
Smooth. The option reappears as soon as hibernate is re-enabled. It’s a nicely simple fix once you know the dependency. For more information on troubleshooting Windows issues, you can visit our website.
Tip: Tight on SSD space? Enabling hibernation creates a hiberfil.sys file that can claim several gigabytes. You can shrink it while keeping Fast Startup fully functional by running this command immediately after Fix #2’s step 2:
powercfg /h /type reducedThis sets a smaller hibernation file, just enough for Fast Startup, without storing a full hibernation image. You can also learn more about customizing your Windows startup on our website.
Fix #3: Check Fast Startup State via PowerShell
If you prefer the command line or need to verify Fast Startup status without navigating Control Panel, you can query the registry directly. It’s a clever one-liner that works the same on both Windows 10 and 11.
- Open Windows Terminal or PowerShell as administrator.
- Run the following command:
(Get-ItemProperty "HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Power").HiberbootEnabled- Read the output:
1: Fast Startup is enabled0: Fast Startup is disabled
This is especially useful if you’re checking a few machines or want to script a Fast Startup audit. It actually works without touching any GUI at all. You can find more information on managing your Windows startup folder on our website.
Should You Keep Fast Startup Enabled?
For most everyday users on a single-boot Windows setup, yes, leave it on. There are a handful of situations, though, where it causes more trouble than it saves:
| Situation | What to do |
|---|---|
| Normal everyday use (single Windows install) | Leave Fast Startup on |
| Dual-boot Windows + Linux | Turn Fast Startup off; Linux cannot safely access a hibernated Windows partition |
| Installing Windows updates or new hardware | Use Restart (not Shut Down) to force a full reboot so changes apply cleanly |
| USB devices, audio interfaces, or peripherals not resetting between sessions | Disable Fast Startup temporarily and test, as partial hibernation can hold hardware state across shutdowns |
| Limited SSD space | Run powercfg /h /type reduced to shrink hiberfil.sys |
If you ever encounter odd shutdown behavior or updates that seem not to apply, do a Restart first rather than disabling Fast Startup entirely; Restart always forces a full reboot regardless of whether Fast Startup is on. You can learn more about Windows 10 and its features on the official Microsoft website.
Conclusion
Fix #2, running powercfg /hibernate on, resolves the missing option for the vast majority of people who hit this. Once hibernate is back on and Fast Startup is enabled, you’ll feel the difference on the next boot, more so on HDDs than on NVMe SSDs, but it’s a smooth, free improvement with no real downside for most setups. Honestly a gem of a Windows feature that flies under the radar, worth bookmarking and spreading the word the next time someone complains their Windows 10 or 11 PC is slow to start. For more information on improving your Windows boot times, you can visit our website. Additionally, you can check out this external guide on disabling Fast Startup in Windows 10.
