20 Best Ways to Fix a Computer That Won’t Wake from Sleep

It’s not always best to shut down your Windows PC, especially if you want to boost your productivity by keeping documents and files running in the background so you can pick up right where you left off.

Sleep mode is an efficient power option for your device because it allows you to pick up where you left off if you don’t leave your computer for an extended period of time.

Any open windows and their original state are stored in your PC’s RAM, and if your battery runs out while in sleep mode, your computer will immediately save your memory state to your hard drive and restart when you reconnect.

To instantly return the computer to a working state, it is usually enough to press a key on the keyboard or move the mouse. However, there are times when your computer freezes and cannot resume sleep despite constantly pressing keyboard or mouse buttons.

If you do not use your device for an extended period of time, your computer will not wake up from sleep until you hold down the power button and restart it.

If you are facing similar issues on your system, read on to find out the possible causes and top 20 ways to fix the “Computer won’t wake up” error.

The problem may occur if one or more of the following criteria is true:

1. The device drivers and chipset are either not up to date or are corrupted.
2. Your computer is running an old, outdated version of Windows.
3. BIOS needs updating. The Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) system of your computer may be powering off the port to which an input device is connected.
4. Your power settings are incorrect.
5. You are using a system that does not support Bluetooth restore.
6. The hiberfil.sys file is outdated and corrupted
7. Corrupted system files and/or applications.
8. Keyboard keys are not configured to wake up the computer when pressed.

While these are the most common causes that can lead to the problem, there are a few other factors that you may need to pay attention to. Let’s now proceed to all the possible solutions to the problem:

20 Best Ways to Fix a Computer That Won’t Wake from Sleep or Hibernation in Windows

1. Restart your computer
2. Using keyboard settings
3. Using mouse settings
4. Adjust registry settings
5. Create or change a meal plan
6. Use command line
7. Remove or change display drivers
8. Check for Windows Update
9. Check your USB port settings
10. Disable quick launch feature
11. Using the power troubleshooting app
12. Check advanced power options
13. Change hibernation setting
14. Update BIOS
15. Change USB Wake Support Settings
16. Run a System File Checker
17. Perform a System Restore
18. Perform a clean boot
19. Create a new user profile
20. Reinstall operating system

Fix Computer Won’t Wake From Sleep or Hibernate in Windows

Restart your computer

First, your computer needs to restart so that you can review possible issues. If your PC is stuck on a blank screen or frozen, you will need to force restart to turn it back on.

Option 1: To force restart your computer, hold down the power button for a few seconds, wait at least 30 seconds in between, and then turn the power back on normally.

Option 2: If your computer screen is on but it is frozen or frozen, press Ctrl+Alt+Delete → select the Restart option from the drop-down menu after clicking on the power icon in the bottom right corner.

Remap sleep key

If your USB keyboard doesn’t wake your computer from sleep and you don’t have a dedicated sleep keyboard button, follow these steps to assign a key:

1. If your computer is running Windows 7 or Windows Vista operating system, go to Start → type “keyboard” in the search area → select Keyboard or Microsoft Keyboard from the search results.

(For Windows XP, select Run → type “control keyboard”→ click OK.)

1. To use the Key Remapping Wizard, double-click on the key you want to change in the Key Options tab.
2. Click “Next”after selecting the “Run a program”, “Web page”, or “File”option.
3. To get the key to start hibernation, run the following command:

rundll32.exe powrprof.dll
SetSuspendState

(Be sure to leave a space before and after powrprof.dll)

For Windows 10 and later, there is no direct way in Settings to remap the keys, so you will have to download third party or additional software like Microsoft PowerToys or SharpKeys to map the key.

In PowerToys, you can assign the key you want to change in the “Key:”section of the “Remap Keys”tab, and then select the desired key in the “Mapped To:”section (you can also select multiple key combinations), then click OK “.

Keyboard won’t wake up your Windows PC?

1. Type “keyboard”into the search field, then select the “Keyboard”option under Settings.
2. On the Keyboard Properties tab, go to the Hardware section and click on Properties in the lower right corner.
3. On the General tab, click Change Settings.
4. Now go to the Power Management tab and make sure that the box next to “Allow this device to wake the computer”is checked.

1. Click OK.
2. Using mouse settings

What to do if the mouse won’t wake up your Windows PC?

To check if your mouse is allowed to wake your computer from sleep, follow these steps:

1. Type “Device Manager”in the search bar, click “Device Manager”.
2. In Device Manager, select Mice and other pointing devices.
3. Right-click your pointing device and select Properties.
4. On the mouse properties tab, go to “Power Management”→ check “Allow this device to wake the computer”. Click OK.

Adjust registry settings

The CsEnabled or Connected Standby registry key setting monitors and effectively manages your computer’s overall power consumption and maximizes system performance.

To change the registry settings and enable this setting, follow these steps:

Note. Be sure to back up the registry before making any changes to it.

1. Use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+R to open the Run command window.

2. Type “regedit”in the “Open:”tab and click “OK”.

3. On the Registry Editor tab, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Power on the left navigation bar.

4. Double-click CsEnabled in the right pane to open the DWORD dialog box.

1. In the Data Value section, enter a value of 0 and click OK.
2. Restart to save changes.

Create or change a meal plan

Often, errors in your computer’s power plan settings can also potentially create problems when starting Windows, such as the system not waking up from sleep and the screen going black. To resolve the issue, it is highly recommended that you either create a new plan or restore the power plan to its default settings.

Follow these steps to change your power plan settings:

1. Open control panel from settings or search bar. Select “Power Options”in the “Control Panel”window.
2. Under Power Options, select “Change when the computer goes to sleep”in the left pane.
3. In the lower left corner, select “Restore default settings for this plan”and then click “Yes”to save the changes.

Alternatively, you can select “Create a power plan”in the power options and then follow the same steps as above.

Use command line

You can use the command line to find out all the different possible causes that might have led to the issue.

1. Type “cmd”in the search bar and right click “Run as administrator”.
2. In the command dialog box, type “powercfg -lastwake”and press Enter. This will show all the apps that last woke up your computer. Type powercfg -devicequery wake_armedto find all connected devices that may have waked up your computer.

1. You can change the settings of the respective apps and devices that you want or don’t want to affect your computer.
2. You can also monitor and adjust your computer’s wake time with “powercfg -waketimers”.

Remove or change display drivers

There is also a possibility that the display driver you have installed is incompatible with the current version of Windows on your system, causing Windows 10 to not wake up from sleep.

Follow these steps to update display drivers or adapters:

1. Use the keyboard shortcut Windows + R to open the Run dialog box.
2. Type devmgmt.msc to open Device Manager. Or you can type “device manager”in the search box for the same.
3. In Device Manager, expand the Display Adapters option and right-click on the installed display drivers.
4. Select Update Driver from the pop-up menu. Here you can manually download and load the drivers or let Windows do it for you.

Check Windows Update

Another reason why your computer might experience sleep problems is due to an error caused by the latest Windows update or an outdated version of Windows. You can change your device’s update schedule or try stopping them temporarily to see if that fixes the problem. Follow these steps to continue:

1. Go to the search bar and type “services.msc”.
2. The Services window will open, scroll down to Windows Update under Name.
3. Right-click and select Stop. Now right-click again and select Start, then Restart.

1. Now go to Windows Update, check for new updates and install them.
2. Restart your computer to see if this fixes the issue.
3. To uninstall the update, go to Settings → Update & Security → Windows Update →

Advanced options. In the update history, uninstall the specific update and you’re done.

Change USB port settings

When your hp or dell computer goes to sleep and doesn’t wake up, it might temporarily disable the USB Root Hub connection to save power. When you click your mouse or press a button on your keyboard in these situations, it’s unlikely to matter because the connection is down.

Option 1

To prevent your computer from disabling USB ports, follow these steps:

1. Hold Windows icon + R → type “devmgmt.msc”→ Open Device Manager.
2. Expand “Universal Serial Bus Controllers”and right-click on any device under it. Now go to “Power Management”under the “General”tab → uncheck “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power”. Then click OK.
3. Repeat this step for each of the devices listed in the USB controllers section. Reboot and check if the problem is fixed.

Option: 2

You can also check your computer’s power plan to fix your USB port settings by doing the following:

1. Go to “Settings”→ “System”→ “Power and sleep”→ select “Advanced power options”.
2. Now in the Control Panel → Power Options window, navigate to “Change advanced power settings”at the bottom.
3. Now in the Power Options dialog, expand USB Settings, then disable USB Selective Suspend Setting. Change this setting to Disabled and click OK.

Change Quick Launch Feature

Fast startup is a configuration setting that allows the computer to restart faster after it has been turned off.

However, it prevents the computer from shutting down normally and can cause compatibility issues with systems that don’t have a sleep option. If fast startup is enabled, restarting after a complete shutdown can result in false sleep errors.

To disable the fast launch feature, follow these steps:

1. Go to Control Panel → Power Options → System Preferences.
2. Scroll down to “Shutdown Settings”and uncheck “Enable Fast Startup (Recommended)”and then click “Save Changes”.

Using the power troubleshooting option

Windows has a built-in troubleshooting feature to automatically detect and fix any issues related to power management and settings on your computer, so it’s a good idea to use it from time to time.

To start the troubleshooting process, follow these steps:

1. Open the Settings app by pressing the Windows icon + I keyboard shortcut.
2. Go to Update & Security → Troubleshoot. Scroll down and click Power → Run the troubleshooter.
3. Alternatively, you can go to “Control Panel”→ “Power”→ click “Next”to start troubleshooting.

Check advanced power options

You can manually change your sleep settings to fix possible issues by doing the following:

1. Go to “Control Panel”→ “Power Options”→ select “Choose when to turn off the display”.
2. Now click “Change advanced power settings”. Scroll down to “Sleep”and expand the selection.

1. You can change these settings according to your requirements so that you don’t have to face any issues when you leave your PC in sleep mode for long hours.
2. Click Apply and then OK to save your selection.

Change hibernation setting

Sometimes hibernation can also cause certain issues such as BSOD (blue screen of death) that occurs after your computer wakes up from standby or hibernation due to certain failures in your computer system’s power management. It can also affect your sleep settings.

To disable hibernation on your computer, follow these steps:

1. Go to search, type “cmd”→ right click command prompt and select “Run as administrator”.
2. In the command prompt window, type “powercfg.exe /hibernate off”→ press Enter.

Update BIOS

The BIOS plays an important role in keeping your system running smoothly. It can fix several random system issues and hardware failures, including your RAM or CPU.

It is important to keep your BIOS up to date in order to be able to detect new hardware and improve the stability and performance of your system.

To check your BIOS version, follow these steps:

1. Go to Control Panel → Administrative Tools → System Information. Here you can see all the information about your computer, including operating system, RAM, BIOS version/last updated date, etc.
2. To update the BIOS, you need to go to your system manufacturer’s website or contact support. For example, on HP systems, you need to find the software and drivers download page on their website → select the BIOS and look for updates if available.

Then click “Download”→ “Next”→ “Save”to finish saving the update file. You can then view the file and install the BIOS. Alternatively, you can use the BIOS update utility for your manufacturer.

Change USB Wake Support Settings

If you choose to disable the USB Wake Support option, your computer will receive a notification to help save power by disabling connections to any USB Root Hubs while hibernating or hibernating.

To enable the USB Wake Support option, follow these steps:

1. Turn off your computer system.
2. Press the power button and hold F2 for a few seconds. This will open the BIOS settings.
3. Go to Power Management → Wake Up Support.
4. Using your keyboard, scroll down to USB Wake Support and press Enter to change it to Enabled.
5. Now click Save and Exit or press F10 to save your changes and start your computer.

Run a System File Checker

The System File Checker (SFC) utility included with Windows can be useful for scanning your computer’s files for tampering, tampering, or corruption. If the file is modified, it will automatically replace it with the updated version.

Follow these steps to perform a System File Checker scan:

1. Type “cmd”in the search bar and right click command prompt, then select “Run as administrator”to get started.
2. In the command prompt window, type “sfc /scannow”and press Enter. This will trigger a full system scan for possible changes to the system, and this may take some time. When it’s done, check if the issue is resolved.

Perform a System Restore

System Restore can come in handy when you decide to make new changes to your system, including downloading new software/applications, drivers, etc., but want to make sure they don’t cause any issues with your system’s default settings. System Restore will keep your regular files and documents, but will remove any new software or drivers downloaded since the last restore point.

To start, system restore, follow these steps:

1. Click the start button, then type control panel in the search bar next to the start button on the taskbar, now select the Control Panel app from the results.
2. Now go to Recovery → Open System Restore. Select your preferred restore point corresponding to the software or app downloads you think may be causing the problem, then click Next and then Finish.

Perform a clean boot

MSConfig is a Windows utility for monitoring and managing software, services, or drivers that are configured to run during the startup process. It can also help resolve some app conflict issues to prevent them from interacting with each other and some download related issues.

To start a clean boot using the MSConfig utility, follow these steps:

1. In the search field, type “msconfig”and press Enter.
2. The System Configuration dialog box opens. Go to the Services tab.
3. Now, under the Services tab, check the box next to Hide all Microsoft services. Then click Disable All.
4. Now go to the Startup tab and check the boxes next to Startup items and then click on Disable All. Then click OK to save the changes.

Create a new user profile

To create a new user profile to start over, follow these steps:

1. Go to the Settings app → tap on Accounts → select Family & other users on the left. Now select “Add someone else to this PC”under “Other users”. Enter your email address and click OK → Done to set up your account.
2. Restart your computer and see if you see two separate accounts on the lock screen during startup, tap on the new account icon and start the system. Check if the problem persists.

Reinstall operating system

If you have come this far, it only means that none of the above troubleshooting steps worked for you and you are looking for a definitive solution that will solve the problem once and for all. You need to create media to restore backed up settings, files, and folders.

To perform a system reset, follow these steps:

1. Go to Start → Reset this PC → select Keep my files if you want Windows to keep your files, or select Remove everything.

1. After creating the recovery media, insert it into the USB port or DVD slot on your system.
2. Turn off your computer.
3. Now press the power button and press F12 several times at startup to open the boot menu. Under Choose an option, select Troubleshoot.
4. Now under Troubleshooting, click on Recover from Disk. or “Use device”according to your preferred method.
5. It will show two options: whether you want to keep your files or completely clean up the drive on your system.

After choosing the methods, select the Repair option to start reinstalling the operating system.

This concludes our troubleshooting guide that should solve your Windows hibernation issue. If the problem persists, contact Windows Support or a computer technician.

FAQ

Why put your computer into sleep mode?

It can instantly restore your work and save a lot on your energy bills to put your computer to sleep instead of leaving it on all day.

Why won’t my laptop wake up from sleep?

This can happen due to a number of issues including outdated device drivers and display adapters, incorrect power settings, conflicting applications and software, BIOS settings, etc.

How to wake up laptop from sleep mode?

It depends on the underlying system issues that are causing the issue, follow the above step by step guide to resolve the error.