Hmm many ways to do this, most can use built in PC (BIOS) and Windows Scheduling without having to write a macro. Really depends on what you want to trigger the start up/shutdown.
If it's time based. example Startup at 07:00 everyday 7days, and shutdown at 18:00 everyday, you could do following:
Startup:
When you switch PC on, tap the DEL and/or F1 keys to get into BIOS. Depending on the BIOS/Mother board type, you should find an option in the "Power" or "Power Management" menu to set the "System wake on alarm event" to Enable. The Date can be toggled through 1-31 and usualy 0 or Everyday for recuring. Set time as well, and hit F10 to Save & Exit.
Shutdown:
In windows (XP?) open Notepad and copy following:
Code: Select all
%windir%\system32\shutdown.exe -s -f -c "Shutdown triggered from Scheduled Task in Control Panel"
HINT1: f = forced shutdown, will kill any running apps without prompt for saving
HINT2: you can abort the shutdown by quickly running "shutdown -a"
Save as
Save as type = All Files
c:\ShutdownPC.cmd
Open Control Panel and go to Scheduled Task
Add New Task, and Browse to c:\ShutdownPC.cmd
stepping through the wizard, set it to date/time and recurrence as necessary.
Hope this works for you