When My Laptop Goes To Sleep It Won’t Wake Up – Fixes? | Easy Wake Guide

Guide / By

When a laptop won’t wake from sleep, check power settings, device wake permissions, and update drivers or firmware to restore normal wake behavior.

Sleep saves time and battery, until it doesn’t. If your screen stays black, the keyboard and trackpad feel dead, or the fans surge and nothing shows, this guide walks you through fixes that work on Windows and macOS. Start with quick checks, then move to targeted steps. You’ll see copy-and-paste commands where they help, and plain settings when that’s faster.

Laptop Won’t Wake From Sleep: Quick Checks

Before changing deeper settings, run through a fast triage. These take a minute and often clear the snag.

  • Power button press: Tap once and wait 10–15 seconds. Avoid long-pressing unless the system is stuck.
  • External monitors: Unplug the display cable, then plug it back in. Try a different port (HDMI/DisplayPort/USB-C).
  • Lid and ports: Close the lid for 15 seconds, open it, and try again. Reseat the charger and any USB hubs or docks.
  • Wireless peripherals: Switch off/on the mouse or keyboard. If they’re Bluetooth, try a wired keyboard for wake.
  • Hard reset (only if frozen): Hold the power button for ~10 seconds to force shutdown, then boot. Unsaved work is lost, so treat this as a last resort.

Fixes For Windows Laptops

The steps below target the common culprits on Windows 10/11: device wake permissions, USB power, graphics drivers, Fast Startup, and firmware. Work top to bottom.

1) Confirm Supported Sleep States

Some devices use Modern Standby (S0 Low Power Idle). Others use the classic S3 sleep. Knowing which model you have shapes the fix path.

powercfg /a

This shows what your system supports. If only S0 appears, wake behavior is tied to Modern Standby and driver support. See Microsoft’s powercfg reference for details.

2) Check What Woke (Or Tried To Wake) The PC

After a successful or failed attempt, these commands reveal clues about wake sources and blockers:

powercfg -lastwake
powercfg -waketimers
powercfg -devicequery wake_armed

-lastwake shows the last wake source. -waketimers lists tasks allowed to wake the system. -devicequery wake_armed shows devices permitted to wake the PC.

3) Enable Keyboard/Mouse Wake In Device Manager

  1. Press Win+X → Device Manager.
  2. Open Keyboards and Mice and other pointing devices.
  3. Right-click your device → Properties → Power Management.
  4. Tick Allow this device to wake the computer. Do this for both keyboard and mouse. Reboot and test.

If the checkbox is missing, install the vendor driver (not just the generic HID driver) or update the Bluetooth/USB controller driver via Windows Update or the maker’s site.

4) Tame USB Power Saving

  1. Open Control Panel → Power Options → Change plan settings → Change advanced power settings.
  2. Under USB settings, set USB selective suspend to Disabled (test both On battery and Plugged in). Reboot.

This prevents the system from parking the USB controller in a way that blocks wake.

5) Update Graphics, Chipset, And BIOS/UEFI

Sleep and wake rely on the GPU driver, chipset, and firmware. Install current packages from your laptop brand (Dell/HP/Lenovo/ASUS/Acer/MSI) or the GPU vendor (Intel/AMD/NVIDIA). Then check your BIOS/UEFI page and apply a stable release. Driver updates are also available through Windows Update; see Microsoft’s guide on updating drivers.

6) Turn Off Fast Startup For Testing

Fast Startup blends shutdown with hibernation and can confuse device initialization after sleep/hibernation cycles. Switch it off to test stability:

  1. Control Panel → Power Options → Choose what the power buttons do.
  2. Click Change settings that are currently unavailable.
  3. Untick Turn on fast startup. Save, reboot, test sleep/wake.

If wake improves, keep Fast Startup off. If not, you can turn it back on later.

7) Refresh Hibernate File And Power Plan

Corrupt hibernation data can block wake. Rebuild it:

powercfg /h off
shutdown /s /t 0

Power on, then re-enable:

powercfg /h on

You can also reset plan settings:

powercfg -restoredefaultschemes

8) Clear Wake Timers And Scheduled Tasks

Some tasks set timers that clash with sleep. To see them:

powercfg -waketimers

Open Task Scheduler and edit or disable tasks that wake the PC at odd hours (Windows Update, OEM updaters, media indexes).

9) Docking Stations And External GPUs

If you use a dock or eGPU, test without it. Update dock firmware and the USB-C/Thunderbolt controller driver. Some docks handle wake poorly until flashed to the latest firmware.

10) When The System Is Truly Stuck

  • Try a different sleep path: Set the lid action to hibernate; test wake from hibernation instead of S3/S0. If that works, the issue points to the sleep state driver stack.
  • BIOS/UEFI settings: Look for wake on USB/Thunderbolt, Modern Standby toggles, and PCIe power options. Reset to defaults if settings drifted.

Useful Windows Commands (Copy & Paste)

:: Show supported power states
powercfg /a

:: Show last device or event that woke the PC
powercfg -lastwake

:: List devices allowed to wake the PC
powercfg -devicequery wake_armed

:: Disable USB selective suspend for current plan
powercfg -setacvalueindex scheme_current sub_usb 29f6c1db-86da-48c5-9fdb-f2b67b1f44da 0
powercfg -setdcvalueindex scheme_current sub_usb 29f6c1db-86da-48c5-9fdb-f2b67b1f44da 0
powercfg -SetActive scheme_current

Microsoft documents all powercfg switches here: powercfg command-line options.

Fixes For macOS Laptops

On a MacBook, wake issues usually trace back to display handoff, peripherals, power settings, login items, or residue from a kernel extension. The steps below work on Intel and Apple silicon; where they differ, both paths are listed.

1) Power And Display Checks

  • Disconnect all accessories, then try waking with only power attached.
  • If using clamshell mode, open the lid and test without the external display.
  • Use the built-in keyboard/trackpad to wake. Bluetooth may lag after sleep.

2) Adjust Sleep, Wake For Network Access, And Schedule

  1. System Settings → Battery → Options (or Energy Saver on older macOS).
  2. Tune Turn display off after, and toggle Wake for network access. Test both ways if wake is unreliable.

Apple’s guide covers these settings in detail: set sleep and wake settings.

3) Safe Mode Test

Safe Mode loads minimal drivers and rebuilds caches. If wake works here, a login item or extension is the likely culprit.

  • Apple silicon: Shut down → press and hold the power button until startup options appear → pick your disk → hold Shift → Continue in Safe Mode.
  • Intel: Press the power button, then hold Shift immediately after the chime until you see the login screen.

Apple’s steps: start up in Safe Mode.

4) Reset NVRAM/PRAM (Intel Only)

Shut down. Power on and immediately hold Option+Command+P+R for ~20 seconds. This resets display, volume, and boot disk parameters that can affect wake. Apple silicon does not use this reset; a full shutdown clears power states.

5) SMC/Power Reset

  • Apple silicon: Shut down, wait 30 seconds, then power on. The platform resets power controllers during a cold start.
  • Intel T2 models (non-removable battery): Shut down → hold Right Shift + Left Option + Left Control for 7 seconds → keep holding and press the power button for another 7 seconds → release, wait, then power on.

6) Trim Login Items And Extensions

Open System Settings → General → Login Items. Turn off items you don’t need and test. Remove old kernel extensions from third-party drivers that no longer match your macOS version.

7) Update macOS, GPU, And Dock Firmware

Install the latest macOS point release. Update any display link drivers, hub/dock firmware, and monitor firmware if available. If wake improves with the dock unplugged, keep it off until the update lands.

8) Battery Health And Lid Switch

Open System Settings → Battery → Battery Health. A worn battery can trigger aggressive sleep states. Test wake on power. If the lid sensor is flaky, wake may require the power button; seek hardware service.

Prevent Repeat Sleep/Wake Problems

Once you’ve restored wake, lock in a stable setup:

  • Keep graphics and chipset drivers fresh (Windows) and install macOS point releases.
  • Limit background tasks that set wake timers or keep the system in a semi-active state.
  • Use quality cables and certified hubs/docks. Marginal USB-C/Thunderbolt cables cause odd wake behavior.
  • Test after each major change (new monitor, dock, or OS update) so you can spot which item introduced the issue.

Symptom-Based Fix Map

Use this at-a-glance table to jump to the right step. It compresses the guidance above into quick actions.

Symptom Likely Cause Fast Fix
Keyboard/mouse won’t wake Wake permission off; USB selective suspend Enable wake in Device Manager; disable USB selective suspend
Fans ramp, screen stays black GPU/firmware mismatch; Fast Startup conflict Update GPU/BIOS; test with Fast Startup off
Wakes randomly at night Wake timers or scheduled tasks Check powercfg -waketimers; edit Task Scheduler entries
Docked setup never wakes Dock firmware or cable Update dock; try direct cable; replace cable
Mac wakes only with power button Bluetooth lag; clamshell quirks Use built-in keyboard/trackpad; test without external display
Works in Safe Mode Login item or extension Remove conflicting item; rebuild caches

Deeper Windows Fixes If Problems Persist

Reset USB Controllers

  1. Device Manager → Universal Serial Bus controllers.
  2. Right-click each USB Root Hub → Properties → Power Management → untick Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power. Reboot and test.

Rebuild The Power Policy

Create a fresh power plan and tweak from there:

powercfg -duplicatescheme 381b4222-f694-41f0-9685-ff5bb260df2e

The GUID above clones the Balanced plan. Make it active in Power Options and re-test sleep/wake.

Graphics Clean Install

For repeated black-screen wake, use the GPU vendor’s clean installer (Intel/AMD/NVIDIA), then reboot. Avoid mixing OEM and vendor packages on the same device within one session; finish one path, reboot, then test.

Firmware Knobs Worth Trying

  • Wake on USB: Set to Enabled.
  • Modern Standby: If a toggle exists, test both settings.
  • PCIe ASPM: Set from Auto to Off for a test run if wake is unreliable with certain NVMe drives.

Deeper Mac Fixes If Problems Persist

Reset Power And Display Pipelines

  • Reset NVRAM/PRAM (Intel) and perform a cold shutdown on Apple silicon as noted above.
  • Delete and re-add external displays in System Settings → Displays. Try a different cable.

Clear Login Items And Safe Boot Again

If wake is clean in Safe Mode yet fails in a normal boot, remove all third-party login items, reboot, and re-add them one by one. Many wake faults trace to old display link drivers or helper apps.

Check For Known Issues After macOS Updates

After a major release, some accessories lag on driver updates. If wake works with only power attached, keep accessories off until their updates arrive.

When To Seek Hardware Service

If none of the software paths fix wake and the issue happens on a clean boot with no accessories, you may have failing RAM, storage, lid sensor, keyboard matrix, or a logic board power rail that trips under sleep. Run the maker’s hardware diagnostics and collect logs from Windows Event Viewer (System and Power-Troubleshooter) or macOS Console around the wake attempt. Share those with support.

Reference Notes

Windows power tooling and terminology come from Microsoft’s own docs on powercfg. Apple’s settings and safe boot steps are based on Apple Support pages for sleep and wake settings and Safe Mode. These are the most reliable references to keep handy.