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Not too long ago I bought a new desktop PC. Whenever I put it to sleep, in no time flat it was awake again. A little research revealed that this is not an uncommon problem and can have several possible sources. Malware infections are sometimes the cause but more often it is some device that is waking the machine up and that was the case for me.
Jun 2, 2014 - Here's where to view that history and search it. Pretty handy, since it shows more than just the sites you've visited (as in Chrome's history).
In this tip, I will describe several settings in your system that may keep waking up your PC. The discussion is for Windows Vista/7. You will generally need administrator privileges to make system changes.Update 08/07/15: Instructions for Windows 8.1/10 are quite similar and have been added.Stop the mouse from waking up the PCMice, especially, wireless mice, can sometimes wake the PC up.
In fact, there is a specific setting to allow this. If the mouse turns out to be a problem, you can change the setting with this procedure:.Open the Start menu and type “mouse” (without quotes) in the Search bar.Under the Control Panel list, click “Mouse” (or just press Enter in Vista).In the dialog box that opens, select the tab “Hardware”.Highlight the entry for your mouse and click the button “Properties”.A new dialog will open. Click the button “Change settings”.In the new dialog that opens, click the tab “Power Management”.Remove the check by “Allow this device to wake the computer”.Click “OK” and close the dialogs.Added: The mouse properties dialog is the same in Windows 8.1/10. Here is one way to access the mouse settings:.Right-click the Start button.Select 'Control Panel' from the context menu.Enter 'mouse' in the Control Panel search box.Click 'Mouse' in the list that opens.The mouse dialog box will open.Proceed the same as indicated above from step 3 onStop a network card from waking up the PCFrom what I read, a network card is the most common source of wake-up problems and that was the cause of my own computer never staying asleep. Here is how to configure a network card:.Open Device Manager. There are many ways to do this but a quick way is to enter “dev” (without quotes) in the Start search bar and click “Device Manager”.Expand the list for “Network adapters”.Right-click the adapter to be configured and choose “Properties”. There may be several adapters, one for Ethernet, one for wireless, and others like Bluetooth.In the dialog that opens, click the tab “Power Management”.Remove the check by “Allow this device to wake the computer”.Click “OK” and close up Device ManagerAdded: Device Manager remains the same in Windows 8.1/10.
To access it:.Right-click the Start button.In the context menu, select 'Device Manager'.Proceed as given above from step 2 onScheduled tasks, updates, and other causesSometimes a task or Windows Update is scheduled for a specific time and will wake up the computer. Dealing with these and other possibilities are discussed.Use the command line to find what causes the PC to wake upOne way to find out what is causing a wake-up problem is provided by the command line. Open a command prompt and enter this command:powercfg –lastwakeThe last device that woke up the system will be shown.To find out which devices are enabled to wake up the PC, enter this commandpowercfg -devicequery wakearmedThese commands are the same in Windows 7 on up through Windows 10.Get your own favorite tip published! Know a neat tech tip or trick? Then why not have it published here and receive full credit?This tips section is maintained.
Vic runs several websites with Windows how-to's and tutorials, including a and a site for learning about.for more items like this. Better still, get Tech Tips delivered or alternatively, have the direct to your in-box. Please rate this article. New HP Computer was driving me nutty with continuous wake ups. HP Customer support remotely disabled startup services, etc. Told me it was most likely an app. It still kept happening.
I restored all setting changes, performed an internet search and found your article.I never knew about the powercfg -lastwake elevated command (which, btw, works fine with Win 10 Command Prompt). Lastwake told me that it was, indeed, my network adapter. Went to Properties Power Management and unchecked the box 'Allow this Device to wake the computer' and my problem was solved with one click!Thanks so much for this very useful information!
You've saved more trial-and-error steps and I really appreciate it!:). or to post comments. I've had this happen too, and only with a wireless mouse. I think this is because the receiver for a wireless mouse draws much less power than the laser/LED and image sensor on a wired mouse. So when the computer is in sleep mode, there is just enough power for the receiver to stay active and continue receiving input from the mouse. Clicking OR nudging the wireless mouse causes the receiver to wake up the computer, while only clicking a wired mouse will do so.Does your mouse have an on/off switch? If so, turning it off may be the key.
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