Schedule A Windows Reboot

on this page

Prerequisites 1. Add A Daily Reboot Task 2. Set The Reboot Time 3. Combine With Power Settings (Optional)Remove The Reboot Task Troubleshooting Related Docs

Use this guide when a managed Windows target should reboot on a regular schedule — a common baseline for kiosks and exhibit PCs that run continuously. Scheduled reboots are regular Windows scheduled tasks, so define them with the scheduled_task module.

Prerequisites

A working playbook and target connection (see Run a playbook)
A transport account allowed to create scheduled tasks that run as SYSTEM

1. Add A Daily Reboot Task

Create a playbook task that runs shutdown.exe from C:\Windows\System32:

yaml

name: schedule-reboot

tasks:
  - name: Schedule daily reboot
    scheduled_task:
      path: Preflight
      name: Daily Reboot
      execute: C:\Windows\System32\shutdown.exe
      arguments: /r /f /t 30
      working_dir: C:\Windows\System32
      trigger: daily
      start_at: "03:00"
      run_as: SYSTEM
      run_level: highest
      enabled: true
      ensure: present

/r reboots, /f closes running applications, and /t 30 gives Windows a 30-second delay before restarting.

2. Set The Reboot Time

Set start_at to the local target time when the reboot should run:

yaml

      trigger: daily
      start_at: "04:30"

3. Combine With Power Settings (Optional)

Reboot scheduling usually travels with a power baseline. Keep power management and reboot scheduling as separate tasks:

yaml

tasks:
  - name: Configure power baseline
    uses: preflight/windows-power
    with:
      plan_name: Exhibit Plan
      display_timeout_ac: 0
      sleep_timeout_ac: 0
      disable_screensaver: true

  - name: Schedule daily reboot
    scheduled_task:
      path: Preflight
      name: Daily Reboot
      execute: C:\Windows\System32\shutdown.exe
      arguments: /r /f /t 30
      working_dir: C:\Windows\System32
      trigger: daily
      start_at: "03:00"
      run_as: SYSTEM
      run_level: highest
      enabled: true
      ensure: present

Remove The Reboot Task

Use the same task identity (path and name) with ensure: absent:

yaml

tasks:
  - name: Remove daily reboot
    scheduled_task:
      path: Preflight
      name: Daily Reboot
      ensure: absent

Troubleshooting

Symptom	Likely cause
The task exists but the machine never reboots	The task is disabled, or `start_at` is a time when the machine is powered off — check Task Scheduler under the `Preflight` folder on the target
Re-applying creates a second task instead of updating the first	The task identity changed — `path` and `name` together identify the task, so keep both stable across runs

Built-in module reference — scheduled_task fields
Embedded stdlib action reference — preflight/windows-power
Run a playbook