Hi Everyone,

A short time ago I did a fresh install of Win 7 Home Premium. After initial problems getting the Sleep /Hibernate option to work, I have been going along nicely, electing Sleep mode manually when I leave the computer for any length of time.

Since deciding this was silly, why not just set the PC to go to sleep after a predetermined time, I have had endless problms getting it to work. I must have tried all the Win7 Forums out there for help on this issue without success. I should have asked here right from the start!

I have tried so many 'solutions' without success, but can someone here give me the real answer? Whatever I do, I cannot get the monitor to go to sleep, and the hard disk to go into sleep mode a few minutes later.

Hoping someone can offer a suggestion,

Thanks,

Roger

Melbourne, Australia

We do not stop playing because we grow old;
We grow old because we stop playing.

Can you give us a description of your system, particularly the MB model? ( Some older models don't handle Sleep or suspend mode all that well).

I suspect that the Power Management options in the Bios are not set up properly . ACPI has to be enabled and "S3" suspend mode must be enabled. APM may need to be set to enabled or disabled....depending on Bios manufacturer ( That's why we need MB model )

Monitor "video off" method should be set to DPMS. ( If you have that option ).

Then set your "Sleepy Bye" time in Win7 Power Management.

NOTE: I see you did a fresh install of Win7. Win7 has a lot of generic drivers for MB chipsets included, and your system will probably run fine on these. However, to enable some of the advanced ACPI features, you may have to install the proper chipset drivers from your MB manufactures website, or from the chipset mfg's website.

You can put the hard disk to sleep by clicking on the " Change Advanced Power Settings" link under each Power Management scheme.

However, I would not bother doing this. Simply set the monitor to turn off after 10 - 15 minutes and set the whole system to sleep after 20 - 30 minutes.

Note: "Suspend" or "Sleep" mode is not the same as "Hibernate" mode.

Hibernate mode saves session and data to hard drive then shuts the computer down. Sleep/Suspend mode saves to RAM, and then shuts the computer down. STR mode allows faster restoration of session than Hibernation mode.

Normally you would not use "Hibernate Mode" on a Desktop. That is only used on Laptops, as STR requires a constant minute voltage to maintain the Ram Memory State...which can be lost on a Laptop if Battery discharges.

One more point. Screen-savers. Use only the basic screen-savers listed in screen-saver options. IE: Ribbons or Mystify are good.

Do not use slide shows as a screen-saver. These can sometimes interfere with the shut down modes of the monitor and computer. Slide shows ( depending on number of photos ) can take a fair bit of resources, and as a result the computer is never idle. Therefore the monitor won't go to sleep, nor will the computer.

Win7 "may" manage this better than XP. But I just had this issue on XP with a client who had slide show of photo vacations and kids. Must have been at least 200 photos in rotation. System would never go to sleep. Changed screen saver to "Beziers" and all was solved.

Yeah...I know. It's nice to have a slide show of your kids and pets ( I prefer Maxim models myself ).....but how often do you actually sit in front of your monitor, waiting, for the screen saver to kick in so you can watch Fluffy and Puddles cavorting on the lawn? Kinda silly when you think about it.... Now explain it to wifey. Good Luck with that....

Hi Chickenman

Thanks so much for your replies.

My motherboard is an ASUS "P5Q SE2" and I am attaching a doc showing the specs as listed on the ASUS website.

I have checked the Win 7 Downloads page http://www.asus.com/product.aspx?P_ID=URA00A6u0GrUqHiH&content=specifications) and there are a number of updates available.

However, I have never upgraded a motherboard or chipset. Is it simply a matter of downloading and running an .exe file, like you would a downloaded software program, or is there more to it than that? I am a little reluctant to mess things up through ignorance! Please can you advise what I do to apply the updates? Thanks. (BTW - does System Restore reverse these changes or are the permanent?)

The methods I have already tried have all been connected to the Power Options settings in Control Panel. You say "However I would not bother doing this" - where else can you do it?

If you have a moment to respond again I will be most grateful, and with some encouragement I will install the updates and then see what I can find in the BIOS about Power Management options if necessary!

Thanks again,

Best regards,

Roger

Melbourne, Australia

We do not stop playing because we grow old;
We grow old because we stop playing.

Attachment #1, (txt file)

Attachment #1, (jpg file)

HI Again,

Thanks for the email - I do appreciate your continued interest in my problem.

Sorry about the hyperlink - I realise now it is a link to the 'Specifications' page where there is a tab for Downloads. However, as you are planning to check the link for me, I will wait till I hear from you once more, rather than blunder ahead and create more problems for myself. So, once I create a Restore Point, I just 'Download and Run' as I would a software program, yes?

I now understand what you mean about just setting to Sleep in one go.

Thanks again, & best wishes,

Roger

Melbourne, Australia

We do not stop playing because we grow old;
We grow old because we stop playing.

Actually the link wasn't working at all last night. Now it does.

Just go to the download page and choose your your version of Win 7... 32 bit or 64 bit. Then download and save the Chipset driver ( Version 9.1.1.1014 ) to a temporary folder and run from there.

Actually it looks like Asus provide both 32 bit and 34 bit chipset drivers in one package.

Follow the instructions. reboot and you should now see a " Sleep " or " Suspend" mode added to the Power Options.

Attachment #1, (jpg file)

Note. Also check your MB's User Manual. When using S3 sleep state, there is usually a jumper setting on the Mb that has to be changed, to allow USB/PS2 Mouse and Keyboard to resume after stand-bye.

Edit: It's on page #18. Jumper PS2_USBPW56.

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Hi Guys, thanks for the additional input, I really appreciate the help.

I have finally had the time to pull the computer from its niche in the desk and after installing the Chipset update I checked the jumper on the motherboard. It was already set to pins 2-3.

I now have the computer switching off the monitor after the interval I select but still nothing I do will make the HDD switch off.

I am keen to get the HDD to switch off if there is anyway I can achieve this, so that I can leave the computer running and, if I get distracted, know that after a set interval it will shut down. I would be happier if any data in open programs is fully saved when this happens.

I have now got so confused that I dont know what to try next. It seems that no matter which Power Plan I try, nothing will make the HDD shut down.

I can manually select Hibernate from the Start button and it wakes on demand as expected with a keyboard action, not a mouse click, which is fine with me.

I have looked at the BIOS Set Up and though it means next to nothing to me, here are some settings which may or may not be relevant:

SUSPEND MODE...........AUTO
ACPI 2.0 SUPPORT.......DISABLED
ACPI APIC SUPPORT......DISABLED

APM Configuration:

Restore on AC Power Loss....Power Off
Power on by RTC Alarm.......Disabled
External modems.Disabled
PCI Devices.....Disabled
PCIE Devices....Disabled
PS/2 Keyboard...Disabled
PS/2 Mouse......Disabled

Hardware Monitor
....These settings do not appear to be relevant.

I have made no changes to the BIOS settings.

If anyone can suggest where I go from here, I will be very grateful,

Thanks everyone for looking at this post, and for your help,

Best wishes,

Roger

Melbourne, Australia

We do not stop playing because we grow old;
We grow old because we stop playing.