Reboot
process by which a running computer system is restarted
In computing, rebooting is the process by which a running computer system is restarted, either intentionally or unintentionally. Reboots can be either a cold reboot (alternatively known as a hard reboot) in which the power to the system is physically turned off and back on again (causing an initial boot of the machine); or a warm reboot (or soft reboot) in which the system restarts while still powered up. The term restart (as a system command) is used to refer to a reboot when the operating system closes all programs and finalizes all pending input and output operations before initiating a soft reboot.
Terminology
On some systems, IBM uses the term re-IPL for reboot and the term restart has a different meaning.
Etymology
Early electronic computers (like the IBM 1401) had no operating system and little internal memory. The input was often a stack of punch cards or via a switch register. On systems with cards, the computer was initiated by pressing a start button that performed a single command –"read a card". This first card then instructed the machine to read more cards that eventually loaded a user program. This process was likened to an old saying, "picking yourself up by the bootstraps", referring to a horseman who lifts himself off the ground by pulling on the straps of his boots. This set of initiating punch cards was called "bootstrap cards".
The public source identifies “Reboot” as process by which a running computer system is restarted. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Reboot, process and running.
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Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Apr 17, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1709148. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1401.
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This entry incorporates text from “Reboot” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.