I have a new computer that I want to make a backup of (prior to creating a user account or anything like that) – and keep ending up in the "Region and language" screen, that then goes to the "time zone" screen, etc. – is there any key combination to bring up something useful? something like "cancel setup" or "shutdown" – CMD would be fine.
Alt + F4 does not work, Ctrl + atl + del does not work, esc does not work, I don't know of anything else to try.
P.S. – I need the computer shut down, not hibernated. I suppose holding the power down until it does a hard shut-down is possible, but it's hard to tell if I did it right or if it hibernated instead.
Best Answer
Well, then, again. :)
When at the start of the OOBE wizard, whether after installing Windows yourself or when first booting a OEM PC (I guess), you can press CtrlShiftF3 to enter Audit mode. This mode can be used to customize a Windows installation, much like an OEM does. Although they only do it once, of course.
After getting logged in, there are options for rebooting and whatnot. Just shut down or reboot from there. Rebooting (and then turning the machine off) is probably safer with Windows 8+, considering Fast Boot and all.
There’s further information and an exhaustive guide on SysPrep available here.