How to Specify Default Power Plan for All Users in Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8
Information
This will show you how to specify a
custom or
default (Balanced, Power Saver, High Performance)
power plan for all users in
Vista,
Windows 7, and
Windows 8 so that the
power plan and
settings cannot be changed.
You must be logged in as an
administrator to be able to do the steps in this tutorial.
Note
Making a change in either option below will override any setting made previously in any other option below.
EXAMPLE: When a "Custom" or "Default" Power Plan is Specied for All Users
OPTION ONE
To Specify a "Default" Power Plan Using a REG File Download
NOTE: If you wanted to specify a custom power plan, then you would need to use either OPTION THREE or OPTION FOUR below instead. 1. To Allow Users to be able to Specify Their Own Power Plan
NOTE: This is the default setting.
A) Click/tap on the Download button below to download the file below.
Allow_Users_to_Specify_their_own_Power_Plan.reg
Download
B) Go to step 5.
2. To Specify All Users to have the Balanced Power Plan A) Click/tap on the Download button below to download the file below.
Set_Balanced_Power_Plan_for_All_Users.reg
B) Go to step 5.
3. To Specify All Users to have the Power saver Power Plan A) Click/tap on the Download button below to download the file below.
Set_Power-Saver_Power_Plan_for_All_Users.reg
B) Go to step 5.
4. To Specify All Users to have the High performance Power Plan A) Click/tap on the Download button below to download the file below.
Set_High-Performance_Power_Plan_for_All_Users.reg
B) Go to step 5.
5. Save the .reg file to your desktop.
6. Double click/tap on the downloaded the .reg file to merge it.
7. Click/tap on Run, Yes (UAC-Windows 7/8) or
Continue (UAC-Vista),
Yes, and OK when prompted.
8. When done, you can delete the downloaded .reg file if you like.
OPTION TWO
To Specify a "Default" Power Plan in Group Policy
NOTE: If you wanted to specify a custom power plan, then you would need to use either OPTION THREE or OPTION FOUR below instead. 1. Open the
Local Group Policy Editor.
2. In the left pane, double click/tap on the arrow to expand
Computer Configuration,
Administrative Templates,
System, then click/tap on
Power Management. (see screenshot below)
3. In the right pane, double click/tap on
Select an Active Power Plan. (see screenshot above)
4. To Allow Users to be able to Specify Their Own Power Plan A) Select (dot) Not Configured or Disabled. (see screenshot below step 8)
NOTE: Not Configured is the default setting.
B) Go to step 8.
5. To Specify All Users to have the Balanced Power Plan A) Select (dot) Enabled, and select Automatic under the Active Power Plan options section. (see screenshot below step 8)
B) Go to step 8.
6. To Specify All Users to have the Power saver Power Plan A) Select (dot) Enabled, and select Power Saver under the Active Power Plan options section. (see screenshot below step 8)
B) Go to step 8.
7. To Specify All Users to have the High performance Power Plan A) Select (dot) Enabled, and select High Performance under the Active Power Plan options section. (see screenshot below step 8)
B) Go to step 8.
8. Click/tap on
OK. (see screenshot below)
9. Close the Local Group Policy Editor.
OPTION THREE
To Specify a "Custom" Power Plan in Group Policy
NOTE: If you wanted to specify a default power plan, then using either OPTION ONE or OPTION TWO above instead would be an easier way to do so. 1. Open a
command prompt, type
powercfg -list, press Enter, and make note of the long
GUID number of the
custom power plan that you previously created. (see screenshot below)
2. Open the
Local Group Policy Editor.
3. In the left pane, double click/tap on the arrow to expand
Computer Configuration,
Administrative Templates,
System, then click/tap on
Power Management. (see screenshot below)
4. In the right pane, double click/tap on
Specify a Custom Active Power Plan. (see screenshot above)
5. To Allow Users to be able to Specify Their Own Power Plan A) Select (dot) Not Configured or Disabled. (see screenshot below step 7)
NOTE: Not Configured is the default setting. You could also use the REG file in step 1 of OPTION ONE above to do this as well.
B) Go to step 7.
6. To Specify All Users to have a Custom Power Plan A) Select (dot) Enabled, and type in the long GUID number (step 1) for the name of the custom power plan that you wanted to specify under the Custom Active Power Plan (GUID) options section. (see screenshot below step 8)
B) Go to step 7.
7. Click/tap on
OK. (see screenshot below)
8. Close the command prompt and Local Group Policy Editor.
OPTION FOUR
To Specify a "Custom" Power Plan Manually in Registry Editor
NOTE: If you wanted to specify a default power plan, then using either OPTION ONE or OPTION TWO above instead would be an easier way to do so. 1. Open a
command prompt, type
powercfg -list, press Enter, and make note of the long
GUID number of the
custom power plan that you previously created. (see screenshot below)
2. In the Start Menu, type
regedit in the search box and press Enter.
3. If prompted by UAC, then click/tap on
Yes (Windows 7/8) or
Continue (Vista).
4. To Specify All Users to have a Custom Power Plan A) In regedit, navigate to the location below. (see screenshot below)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft
B) In the left pane of regedit, right click on the
Microsoft key, click/tap on
New and
Key, type in
Power, and press Enter. (see screenshot below step 4A)
NOTE: If you already have the Power key in the left pane, then skip this step and continue to step 4C instead.
C) In the left pane of regedit, right click on the
Power key, click/tap on
New and
Key, type in
PowerSettings, and press Enter. (see screenshot below step 4A)
NOTE: If you already have the PowerSettings key in the left pane, then skip this step and continue to step 4D instead.
D) In the right pane of
PowerSettings, right click on a empty space, click/tap on
New and
String Value, type in
ActivePowerScheme, and press Enter. (see screenshot below step 4A)
NOTE: If you already have the ActivePowerScheme string value in the right pane, then skip this step and continue to step 4E instead.
E) In the right pane of
PowerSettings, double click/tap on
ActivePowerScheme to modify it. (see screenshot below step 4A)
F) Type in the long GUID number (step 1) for the name of the custom power plan that you wanted to specify, and click/tap on
OK. (see screenshot below)
G) Go to step 6.
5. To Allow Users to be able to Specify Their Own Power Plan
NOTE: This is the default setting. You could also use the REG file in step 1 of OPTION ONE above to do this as well.
A) In regedit, navigate to the location below. (see screenshot below)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Power\PowerSettings
B) In the right pane of
PowerSettings, right click on
ActivePowerScheme, and click/tap on
Delete. (see screenshot below step 5A)
C) Click/tap on
Yes to confirm deletion. (see screenshot below)
D) Go to step 6.
6. Close the command prompt and regedit.
That's it,
Shawn