reboot MacOS Command Guide

To reboot your MacOS using the command line, you can use the “sudo shutdown -r now” command. This will immediately restart your system. The “-r” flag specifies that the system should be rebooted, and “now” indicates that the action should be taken immediately. This command can be useful in situations where you need to quickly restart your MacOS without using the graphical interface. Additionally, using the command line for rebooting can be helpful for troubleshooting purposes or if the graphical interface is not responding. Just make sure to save any important work before running this command to avoid losing any unsaved changes.

reboot Syntax:

sudo shutdown -r now

Options:

Option	Description
-r	Reboots the system
now	Indicates the reboot should happen immediately

Parameters:

Parameter	Description
None

reboot Command Samples:

Rebooting immediately

sudo reboot

Reboots the system immediately without any delay.

Rebooting with a specified delay time

sudo reboot +5

Initiates a system reboot after a delay of 5 minutes.

Force reboot without confirmation

sudo reboot -f

Forces the system to reboot without any confirmation prompts.

Rebooting and sending a custom message

sudo reboot "System will restart now"

Reboots the system with a custom message displayed to users.

Schedule a reboot at a specific time

sudo reboot 12:00

Schedules a system reboot at 12:00 (noon).

Rebooting into a specific target

sudo reboot --target recovery

Initiates a reboot into a specific target, in this case “recovery mode”.

Displaying a help message for the reboot command

sudo reboot --help

Shows the help documentation for the reboot command with usage instructions.

reboot FAQ:

How do I use reboot in MacOS?

To use the reboot command in MacOS, execute the following command:

reboot

Can I schedule a delayed reboot in MacOS?

Yes, you can schedule a reboot after a specified delay by using the -d flag. The following command schedules a reboot 5 minutes after execution:

reboot -d 5

How can I force a reboot in MacOS without confirmation?

To force a reboot without confirmation in MacOS, use the -f flag. Here is an example command:

reboot -f

Is there a way to cancel a scheduled reboot in MacOS?

Yes, you can cancel a scheduled reboot by using the -c flag. Execute the following command to cancel the scheduled reboot:

reboot -c

Can I specify a custom message to be displayed before rebooting in MacOS?

You can add a custom message to be displayed before the reboot by using the -N flag. Here’s an example command with a custom message:

reboot -N "System will restart for maintenance"

How can I reboot to a specific startup disk in MacOS?

To reboot to a specific startup disk in MacOS, use the -q flag followed by the disk identifier. Here is an example command to reboot to a disk named “Macintosh HD”:

reboot -q Macintosh\ HD

Applications of the reboot command

Restarting the macOS operating system
Applying system updates that require a reboot
Troubleshooting software issues by performing a clean reboot
Resetting the system to resolve errors or unresponsive behavior