I find that when I leave something running it is often interrupted by the system going into sleep mode and only restarts when I awaken the system.
One example is Microsoft Security Essentials scan, and it also sometimes affects downloads.
Any ideas anyone??
It is how Windows 7 is made IMO. I also sometimes have the system going on standby mode while Microsoft Security Essentials or downloads are running. I advice you to create a separate power plan for yourself in the power management settings and make the system never go in standby mode if you are worried about it.
I have the same problem with Win XP Professional. It seems that disk activity is not enough to keep the system from going into sleep/hybernation. You might consider creating a timed shutdown in addition to changing your power profile. That way the program has a chance to run for x amount of time, and then the task manager executes a shutdown once you think it should be idle. This way the computer is not in the full power mode all night long.
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