How to fix Error 6007 on Windows Server 2025 / Windows 11

Why This Error Happens

SQL Server 2025 blocks the SHUTDOWN statement whenever it detects that the statement is being executed inside an open transaction (i.e., after a BEGIN TRANSACTION that has not yet been committed or rolled back) or from within the body of a stored procedure, trigger, or function. The SHUTDOWN command is designed to run only as a standalone, top-level batch statement because it terminates the Database Engine process itself — SQL Server cannot guarantee transactional consistency if the engine is halted mid-transaction. When this rule is violated, the engine raises Error 6007 and aborts the shutdown request. A secondary but related cause is the calling login lacking the server-level role membership required to issue the command.

Step-by-Step Resolution Guide

Step 1: Locate the Calling Code

• Search stored procedures, functions, and triggers for any embedded SHUTDOWN call by running:

  SELECT OBJECT_SCHEMA_NAME(object_id) AS SchemaName,
         OBJECT_NAME(object_id)        AS ObjectName,
         definition
  FROM sys.sql_modules
  WHERE definition LIKE '%SHUTDOWN%';

• Also check SQL Server Agent job steps, since scheduled jobs commonly wrap SHUTDOWN inside a T-SQL step:

  SELECT j.name AS JobName, s.step_name, s.command
  FROM msdb.dbo.sysjobsteps s
  JOIN msdb.dbo.sysjobs j ON s.job_id = j.job_id
  WHERE s.command LIKE '%SHUTDOWN%';

• Inspect any .sql deployment or maintenance scripts stored on disk (typically under C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL17.MSSQLSERVER\MSSQL\Jobs\ or your organization’s custom scripts directory) for BEGIN TRAN ... SHUTDOWN ... COMMIT patterns.

Step 2: Remove the Transaction or Procedure Wrapper

• Extract the SHUTDOWN statement so it is the only statement in its batch, with no enclosing BEGIN TRANSACTION, stored procedure body, or trigger body.
• Run it as a standalone batch in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS):

  USE master;
  GO
  SHUTDOWN WITH NOWAIT;
  GO

• If the procedure was built to allow administrators to restart the service remotely, redesign it so the procedure only returns a status flag, and have the calling application (or an Agent job step set to run a standalone T-SQL command) issue SHUTDOWN directly instead of embedding it.

Step 3: Verify the Login’s Server-Level Permissions

• SHUTDOWN requires the executing login to be a member of the sysadmin fixed server role (or hold the SHUTDOWN permission granted explicitly in newer builds). Confirm membership with:

  SELECT IS_SRVROLEMEMBER('sysadmin') AS IsSysAdmin;

• To see all server role memberships for the current login:

  SELECT sp.name AS LoginName, r.name AS ServerRole
  FROM sys.server_role_members srm
  JOIN sys.server_principals sp ON srm.member_principal_id = sp.principal_id
  JOIN sys.server_principals r  ON srm.role_principal_id   = r.principal_id;

• If the login is missing the role, add it from an existing sysadmin session:

  ALTER SERVER ROLE sysadmin ADD MEMBER [DOMAIN\ServiceAccount];

Step 4: Review the SQL Server Error Log

• Rather than assuming a hardcoded path, retrieve the exact active log location directly from the instance:

  SELECT SERVERPROPERTY('ErrorLogFileName') AS ErrorLogPath;

• On a default SQL Server 2025 installation on Windows Server 2025 / Windows 11, this typically resolves to:

  C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL17.MSSQLSERVER\MSSQL\Log\ERRORLOG

• Open the file in Notepad, or view recent entries through SSMS under Management > SQL Server Logs > Current, and locate the timestamp matching the Error 6007 event to confirm the offending batch and login.

Step 5: Re-run the Corrected Script

• Execute the corrected, standalone script from SSMS, or from a command prompt using sqlcmd against the target host:

  sqlcmd -S YourServerName -E -Q "SHUTDOWN WITH NOWAIT"

• If using SQL Authentication instead of Windows Authentication:

  sqlcmd -S YourServerName -U sa -P YourPassword -Q "SHUTDOWN WITH NOWAIT"

Alternative or Verification Steps

• Verify the fix: Re-run the original workflow and confirm Error 6007 no longer appears by checking the error log again:

  EXEC sp_readerrorlog 0, 1, 'Error: 6007';

No matching rows should be returned if the issue is resolved.

• Alternative if the primary steps fail: Open a brand-new query window in SSMS (guaranteeing no open transaction state), confirm @@TRANCOUNT is 0:

  SELECT @@TRANCOUNT;

Then issue the shutdown manually:

  SHUTDOWN WITH NOWAIT;

Afterward, review the Windows Event Viewer under Windows Logs > Application, filtering on Source MSSQLSERVER, to confirm the clean shutdown and service stop were logged without further errors.