Sleep mode activated when PC not idle - why?

cytherian said:

I'll bet you that the paid version of Macrium Reflect has this sleep control in it.

Yes, you are absolutely correct - the Professional Edition has that feature.

Only problem is that when the backup image process completes, sleep/standby remains suspended until I close the program (I'm using the GUI). However, I'm pretty sure that using VBScript or DOS Batch can avoid this problem. I'll be researching further.

Layback Bear said:

1. I have no way of knowing what you are running.
2. I have no way of knowing you are using a cloud.
3. Robocopy was just a suggestion.
4. Have a nice day.

Yes, thank you again for that suggestion. All comments are welcome!

unBob, I think you do touch on an important consideration. Sleep is meant for the general user who walks away from their computer and forgets to turn it off. If Sleep were sensitive to the processes running on the computer, it would never sleep. Something is always running.

What Microsoft should do is enhance the sleep function, whereby you can register either installed applications or select processes with it. If sleep first detects the requirement for lack of user input, it would then check the registered process list to see if any of those processes are actively doing anything. If not, then go to sleep.

What I generally do to get around this is have a quick link to the Power control interface. If I'm downloading some large files and want to be sure they'll complete (computer won't sleep prematurely), I'll change the sleep time. I know, if they complete earlier then the computer will still be running.... but because I'm "on the grid" I'm not overly concerned about it.

Incidentally, glad to hear you've found NirCmd useful. :) One use I make of it is a shortcut that turns off the screen on my command. This helps save energy. "nircmd.exe cmdwait 100 monitor off". The delay requirement will vary depending upon your setup. Also, for fun I have nircmd play a sound file just before it, so that I've got an audible acknowledgement of the command.

cytherian said:

What Microsoft should do is enhance the sleep function, whereby you can register either installed applications or select processes with it. If sleep first detects the requirement for lack of user input, it would then check the registered process list to see if any of those processes are actively doing anything. If not, then go to sleep.

Bingo! You nailed it exactly! That is exactly what I'd like Mr.Softy to do.

Thank you for that excellent post.

^ You're welcome. Alas, Microsoft has a touch of the "big company" arrogance (it's what got them into all those driver problems in the early days of Windows Vista), so they don't really care about things that don't affect their bottom line much. They forget about the value of building brand confidence and loyalty, because they think they've got it all under control.

Anyway, that's what enterprising 3rd party development is all about. Bright ambitious folks provide workarounds for the shortcomings delivered by big companies, and if they do it well enough they get bought out.