How to Keep Your Laptop Awake

Your laptop is probably set to automatically sleep after a certian period of time.

A distinct difference between laptop and desktop computers is that laptops can be used solely on battery power. In order to save your laptop's battery, the energy saver program on your operating system automatically puts your laptop to sleep after a certain amount of time. However, if you want your laptop to act more like a desktop computer that remains awake all of the time, you'll need to change some settings in the operating system.

Instructions

Windows

1. Open the "Control Panel" on your computer. Click "Start" and then "Control Panel."

2. Click "System and Security" and then "Power Options."

3. Click "Change plan settings" on the first page of "Power Options." This page is labeled "Select a power plan."

4. Click "Change advanced power settings" and then double-click "Sleep."

5. Double-click "Sleep after" and then click "On Battery" and "Plugged in" to keep your laptop awake both when the laptop relies on the battery and when it's plugged in.

6. Click the arrow next to the drop-down menu and select "Never." Your laptop will now remain awake.

Mac OS X

1. Open "System Preferences." Click the "Apple" icon and then select "System Preferences."

2. Click the "Energy Saver" icon in the second row of options.

3. Drag the "Computer Sleep" and "Display Sleep" sliders all the way to the right until you reach "Never." Click "OK" when a pop-up box appears indicating that you're making changes to your settings.

4. Click the "Power Adapter" tab at the top of the dialog box and repeat Step 3. Your Mac laptop now will remain awake.

Tips & Warnings

• Keeping your laptop awake can drain your battery faster and cause data loss.

References

• Microsoft Windows: Sleep and Hibernation: Frequently Asked Quesitons
• Utah University: Screen Saver- Power Management