Whether your screen’s frozen, your applications seem to be bugging out, or you simply need to perform a reset to finalise the installation of a new OS or app, just follow the below tutorials to learn the various quick and easy methods which will allow you to restart your Google Chromebook.
For any other queries or information, see the FAQs at the end of this article.
Table of Contents
How to restart a Google Chromebook the safest way (‘Soft Reset’)
- On your Google Chromebook, tap the Notifications area (where the WiFi, clock, and date are in the bottom-right of the screen)
- From the pop-up menu, select the ‘Shut down’ icon
- Your current work, status, tabs and settings will all automatically be saved, and you will be securely logged out from your Google account, before the device powers itself down.
- Once the device has fully shut down, you’re going to want to power it back up, effectively ‘restarting’ it. To do so, simply use the power switch on the Chromebook to power up as normal.
Here’s an alternate way of doing the same thing:
- To shut down as above, but using just the power switch, simply press and hold the power switch down for three seconds.
- Doing so will ensure your current status, work, tabs, and settings are all saved, and will also securely log you out from your Google account, before then shutting the device down.
- Once the device has fully shut down, you’re going to want to power it back up, effectively ‘restarting’ it. To do so, simply use the power switch on the Chromebook to power up as normal.
And now one last alternate way:
- Simply press and hold the power switch down for one second (instead of the three seconds, as discussed above).
- This will display for you a list of options: ‘Log off’, ‘Shut down’, ‘Provide Feedback’, and ‘Lock your Chromebook’. Select ‘Shut down’.
- Doing so will ensure your current status, work, tabs, and settings are all saved, and will also securely log you out from your Google account, before then shutting the device down.
- Once the device has fully shut down, you’re going to want to power it back up, effectively ‘restarting’ it. To do so, simply use the power switch on the Chromebook to power up as normal.
How to ‘Hard Reset’ your Google Chromebook
If, for whatever reason, you cannot ‘Soft Reset’ your Chromebook using one of the methods listed above, then you may need to perform a ‘Hard Reset’. Doing so will lose you any data, work, status or settings you’ve not saved, so if possible make sure you save what you can before following the steps below.
- First, you should attempt to log out of your account – the quickest means of saving your status, work, settings, tabs, etc. To do so, hold CTRL + SHIFT together, and press ‘Q’ twice. Or, you could instead tap the Notifications section in the bottom-right, and from the pop-up menu, select ‘Sign out’
- Now, there is no single reset button on most Chromebooks, so follow the steps below if you have (a) a Google Chromebook, (b) a Chrome OS tablet, or (c) a Samsung Chromebook 5 Series
- On a Google Chromebook, hold the ‘Refresh’ button, and whilst doing so, tap the ‘Power’ button at the same time. This will immediately perform a ‘Hard Reset’
- On a Chrome OS tablet, hold the Volume Up and Power buttons on the side of the tablet down for a count of 10. This will then perform a ‘Hard Reset’
- On a 5 Series Samsung Chromebook, locate the ‘Reset’ button located on the reverse of the device, and triggered by gently pushing a paperclip into the hole until the device performs a ‘Hard Reset’
And there you have it! Three alternative ways to perform a regular ‘Soft Reset’, and three ways (for different devices) to perform a ‘Hard Reset’.
For any other information or any other queries, see the FAQs below.
Frequently asked questions
What is a Google Chromebook?
A Chromebook is a laptop, PC, or tablet which runs the Linux-based Chrome Operating System (OS). Chromebooks mostly work using the Google Chrome browser to complete whichever tasks you might normally complete offline, on a regular PC/desktop or tablet. Most of the applications and data run or produced on a Chromebook are stored and backed-up in Google’s cloud, rather than on the device itself, meaning that users typically find their devices have minimal built-in storage space, and will need to have access to WiFi or some other form of internet connection in order to access and engage with the full functionality of their Chromebook.
Why would I need to restart my Google Chromebook?
Typically, you shouldn’t often need to restart your Chromebook (if indeed you do at all), however it can be useful if you think your Chromebook is underperforming, or even malfunctioning. In this scenario, resetting your Chromebook might just solve the problem, or, at the very least, inform you whether the problem is bigger than just a sticky application. It may be that your Chromebook has frozen, and resetting it is your only option in order to restore it to proper functionality. Alternatively, and most commonly, the installation of an upgraded OS or application upgrade may require a restart of the Chromebook in order to finalise installation.
Is there anything I should know or do before restarting my Google Chromebook?
You should know that restarting your Chromebook – if done via a ‘Hard Reset’ – will wipe any temporary data files and caches, and will erase anything you’ve not saved. Thus, whenever possible, it is advisable to first ensure that all work you are currently working on is saved and properly shut down, before performing a Hard Reset, or if possible, to perform a Regular Rest (explained above) rather than this more drastic of options.
What happens when I restart my Google Chromebook?
When you restart your Google Chromebook with a normal Power Down and Power Up process, your Chromebook will automatically save your work, close your tabs and applications, log you out safely and securely, and then power down the device, before you then power it back up and find all of your work and information as it was before power down. However, if you ‘Hard Reset’ your Chromebook for whatever reason, you will lose anything you’ve not saved, and may find that applications and any unsaved changes you made to them take a little longer than usual to start back up. Ultimately, it is inadvisable to Hard Reset unless you think you absolutely have to.
