How to get a Computer to Standby Automatically

Standby screen example for Windows XP

In standby mode, Windows shuts off the monitor and keeps the hard drive from spinning while the CPU is also placed on the lowest capacity. At times, you may walk away from your desktop or notebook computer and not be able to get back in a short period of time. It is helpful to set the computer to standby automatically, without user intervention, to save power when you are away from your computer.

Instructions

1. Decide how long you want a computer to sit idle before it goes into standby mode. This will vary depending on how often you use it and what times of day you work. Keep in mind weekend use when you make your decision.

2. Click on the "Start" menu in the bottom left corner of your computer screen. From there, open the Control Panel, which is in the right-hand column.

3. Click the "power options" choice in the control panel. The choices appear in alphabetically order, so this option is towards the bottom of the screen. A photo of this icon is demonstrated in this article.

4. Click the "system standby" drop down box choice towards the bottom of the screen. You will want to change that from "never". It is shown within this article.

5. Choose the amount of time you wish for the computer to wait before it goes into Standby Mode automatically. This can be one to ten minutes, and then increased by increments of five minutes. You can choose up to five hours.

6. Click the "apply" button all the way to the right inside of the Power Options dialog box. Your computer is now ready to standby automatically after the time limits you set.

7. Repeat these steps if your computer use should ever change. This can also be helpful for keeping prying eyes away from your computer screen. This can work for business use, confidential data or children. You can set it to standby after a few minutes and then require a password to login to the computer again.

Tips & Warnings

• You can also push a button on most keyboards that says "sleep" or has a moon on it. This is not automatic, it does require attention.

• To "wake" your computer up from standby, press the space key on the keyboard and wiggle the mouse. It will take a few minutes, but the screen will come back on.

• You can leave the computer in standby mode overnight, if desired.