Stopping Windows From Going to Sleep When Closing a Laptop

Quick answer: Right-Click the battery meter icon in the system tray (bottom right corner of the screen, next to the system clock). Look for "energy options" and adjust "What closing the lid does".

When people close their laptop, it usually means they're done working. At least, that's what modern operating systems assume by default, since they will usually make your laptop hibernate whenever you close the lid. This happens even if you just close if for a few brief seconds. In practical terms though, this feature may not turn out to be as efficient as it may sound. There are a number of situations where you may want to keep your windows laptop from going to sleep when closing the laptop. A few examples could be when you are changing to another table at the library or going upstairs to sit at your desk.

In such occasions, having the computer go to sleep because you close the lid can be a nuisance, and moving a laptop without closing the lid is also impractical. However, this is by no means a problem, since changing the way your laptop responds when you close the lid is actually quite simple and fast. You can even set up different energy profiles, and choose between them with no more than two clicks of the mouse. This article will help you stop windows from going to sleep when closing the laptop and it will show you how to customize your energy settings and create different energy profiles on Windows operating systems (including XP, Vista and 7).

Changing Windows power settings

There are two main ways that you can adjust power settings on a Windows laptop. These methods differ only in how to reach the "Power Options" menu, so you can just choose the one you like best. The first method involves clicking "Start" and opening the control panel and then looking for "Power Options" usually in the "Hardware and Sound". You can also reach the "Power Options" menu directly by right-clicking on the battery meter icon in the system tray, which you can find next to the system clock on the right end of the taskbar.

Both methods work for Windows XP, Vista and 7, and once you reach the actual Power Options menu you'll see roughly the same options, regardless of the version of Windows you're using. The main difference is only how these options are presented. Once you get used to the Power Options in a version of Windows, you'll have no problem adjusting these options in other versions.

In the Power Options menu, you can just "Choose what closing the lid does" (look for the "advanced" tab if you're using Windows XP; in recent versions of Windows, you'll find a shortcut in the left section of the menu). Available options you can assign to the action of closing the lid include "Do nothing", "Sleep", "Hibernate", or "Shut Down".

The selected option will activate as soon as you hit OK, your laptop will then decide "What closing the lid does" based on what you chose in this menu. What's more interesting (and practical), is that you can set up different user profiles and choose them on the fly, simply by left-clicking the energy power meter.

Managing user energy profiles

Setting up different energy profiles from the "Power Options" menu is also extremely simple. In fact, it's as simple as naming different sets of power options, according to your convenience. Think of the assigned name as a shortcut that will allow you to choose between different power saving profiles on the fly.

For instance, you can have a set of options called "energy saving" in which the laptop does go to sleep whenever you close the lid, and another set of options called "no sleep" in which the laptop does nothing when the lid is closed. When you've set up both options, you can choose the desired profile rather quickly. You just need to left-click the energy power meter on the Taskbar, and choose the option you find most convenient in any given moment.

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-By Dominic
TAGS: Windows 7 Tips Windows Vista Tips Windows XP Tips

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