HP PCs - Managing power options (Windows 10)

Working with Windows power plans

A power plan is a collection of hardware and system settings that manage how your computer uses power. You can use power plans to reduce the amount of power your computer uses, maximize performance, or balance the two. The power management options available on your computer might be slightly different than those shown in this document.

Windows provides the following default plans to help you manage your power usage:

Power plans
Power Plan	Description
Balanced (recommended)	Automatically balances performance with energy consumption.
Power saver	Saves power by reducing system performance.
High performance	Maximizes system performance and responsiveness.

Selecting a Windows power plan

You can select a power plan using this procedure.

To select a power plan, complete the following steps:

In Windows, search for and open Power Options.
In the Choose or customize a power plan window, select the power plan you want to use.

Note:
Some computers might have custom plans that also display in this window.
Close the Choose or customize a power plan window.

Changing a Windows power plan

You can change specific settings in any of the power plans using the following procedure.

To change power plan settings, complete the following steps:

In Windows, search for and open Power Options.
In the Choose or customize a power plan window, click Change plan settings next to the plan you want to change.
On the Change settings for the plan window, choose the display and sleep settings you want to use.
To change more power settings, click Change advanced power settings.
On the Advanced settings tab, expand the category you want to customize, expand each setting you want to change, then choose the values you want to use.
When done, click OK > Save changes.

Creating your own Windows power plan

Learn how to customize your own power plan according to the performance you need from your computer.

For example, to use your computer for watching movies, you might create a High Performance power plan named Movies, and then switch to that plan when desired. Follow the steps below to create your own power plan.

In Windows, search for and open Power Options.
In the left pane, click Create a power plan.
On the Create a power plan window, select a plan that has features you want to use in the power plan you are creating, enter a name for the new plan in the Plan name box, and then click Next.
Select the sleep and display settings you want to apply, and then click Create. The new plan is displayed in the Choose or customize a power plan window.
Close the Choose or customize a power plan window.

Shut down or restart options for your computer

You can shut down or restart your computer.

Shutting down Windows

Learn how to shut down your computer under normal operating conditions.

A normal shutdown closes any open programs, signs you out of the computer, and then turns the computer off. This shutdown method allows your computer to be quickly started the next time you sign in.

To perform a normal shutdown, do the following:

Right-click the Windows icon in the bottom-left corner.
Select Shut down or sign out, and then click Shut down.

Performing a full shutdown in Windows 10

Learn how to fully shut down your computer for long term storage or shipping, when performing hardware upgrades, when opening the BIOS Setup Utility, or to change UEFI settings and run tests.

To perform a full shutdown, do the following:

Click the Windows icon in the bottom-left corner.
Click Power, press and hold the Shift key, and then click Shut down.

Restarting Windows

Learn how to shut down your computer and automatically restart into a new sign-in session. Use this option after installing software that requires a system restart (for example, some types of drivers, Windows updates, and virus scanning software).

Right-click the Windows icon in the bottom-left corner.
Select Shut down or sign out, and then click Restart.

Restarting Windows for troubleshooting options

Learn how to restart your computer to the Choose an option screen to access Troubleshooting options.

A normal restart of the computer takes you to the Windows sign-in screen.

If you want to get to Troubleshooting options, including restore, recovery, and reset options, do the following:

Note:

The Choose an option screen also has options to go back to Windows 10 or shut down the computer.

Right-click the Windows icon in the bottom-left corner.
Select Shut down or sign out, then hold the Shift key and click Restart. Continue holding Shift until the Choose an option screen is displayed.

Using Windows Sleep mode

By default, when you select the Sleep option, Windows enters sleep mode, which saves the current work session in memory and puts the computer in a low-power state.

Any opened programs or documents stay open allowing you to quickly resume your work when you return to the computer.

Selecting Sleep from the Windows shutdown options

Learn how to put the computer into Sleep mode.

Right-click the Windows icon in the bottom-left corner.
Select Shut down or sign out, and then click Sleep.

Adjusting the Sleep time setting

Learn how to adjust the sleep time setting to change when the computer automatically enters sleep mode.

To change sleep mode settings, complete the following steps:

In Windows, search for and open Power Options.
In the Choose or customize a power plan window, click Change plan settings next to the plan you want to change.
To change the sleep settings, click the drop-down arrow or arrows next to Put the computer to sleep, and select the new time.
Click Save changes.

Managing Sleep or Hibernate shutdown options

Different shutdown options are available by default. You might decide you want to add or remove certain shutdown options based on your needs. You can then configure those options.

Adding or removing Sleep or Hibernate shutdown options

Learn how to add or remove Sleep or Hibernate from the shutdown menu in Windows.

To add or remove shutdown options, do the following:

In Windows, search for and open Power Options.
Click Choose what the power buttons do.
Click Change settings that are currently unavailable.
In the Shutdown settings section, make sure the check boxes next to the shutdown options you want to see in the shutdown options are checked.
Click Save changes. The options you chose are now displayed in the shutdown options.

Adjusting the amount of time before the computer enters Hibernate mode

Learn how to adjust the amount of time before your computer enters Hibernate mode. Hibernate mode saves more power than Sleep mode, but starts less quickly. Your opened files and documents remain open when you restart.

In Windows, search for and open Power Options.
In the Choose or customize a power plan window, click Change plan settings next to the plan you want to change.
In the Change settings for the plan window, click Change advanced power settings.
Click the plus sign (+) next to Sleep to expand the list, and then click the plus sign (+) next to Hibernate after.
Open the menu to change the time for the computer to be idle, in minutes, before the computer goes into Hibernate mode.
Click OK > Save Changes. The computer hibernates after it has been idle for the specified amount of time.
Repeat these steps for other power plans you commonly use.

Enabling Away Mode when sharing media files

Away Mode enables your computer to continue performing tasks, such as recording television programs or sharing video and music, even if you walk away from the computer.

When the computer is in Away Mode, the following occurs:

The computer can still perform tasks such as recording scheduled TV programs or stream video and music files to a remote location.
The display is turned off.
The audio is muted.
The computer is operational but in a reduced-power setting.
The computer fan runs.
The desktop displays almost instantly when you press the Sleep button on the remote control.

To enable Away Mode, complete the following steps:

In Windows, search for and open Power Options.
In the Choose or customize a power plan window, click Change plan settings next to the plan you want to change.
In the Change settings for the plan window, click Change the advanced power settings.
In the Advanced settings tab, click the plus sign (+) next to Multimedia settings to expand the list, and then click the plus sign (+) next to When starting media.
In the Setting drop-down box, select Allow the computer to enter Away Mode.
Click Apply > OK > Save changes. Windows automatically goes into Away Mode when sharing media files.
Repeat these steps for other power plans you commonly use.

Changing the power and sleep button settings

Learn how to change the power and sleep button settings. You can save power by specifying what the computer does when you press the Power and Sleep buttons.

You can assign the Power button to do one of the following: Do Nothing, Sleep, Hibernate, Shut down, or Turn off the display.

You can assign the Sleep button to do one of the following: Do nothing, Sleep, Hibernate, or Turn off the display.

To change what the computer does when you press the power and sleep buttons, do the following:

In Windows, search for and open Power Options.
In the left pane, click Choose what the power buttons do.
To change settings for the power button, click the drop-down arrow next to When I press the power button, select the setting you want to use, then click Save changes.
To change the sleep settings, click the drop-down arrow next to When I press the sleep button, select the setting you want to use, then click Save changes.

Changing what happens when you close the notebook lid

Choose from sleep, hibernate, shut down, and do nothing options when you close the notebook lid.

In Windows, search for and open Power Options.
Click Choose what closing the lid does from the list on the left side of the window.
Click the When I close the lid menus to select a setting when using the battery and when plugged in, and then click Save changes.

Using the Windows Power troubleshooter to fix problems

The Windows Power troubleshooter can be used to find and fix problems with computer power settings.

To run the Power troubleshooter, complete these steps:

In Windows, search for and open Troubleshooting.
In the Troubleshoot computer problems window, under System and Security, select Improve power usage.
In the Power window, click Next. The Power troubleshooter starts detecting issues.
When the detection process is complete, recommended actions are displayed. Follow the on-screen instructions to fix any detected problems.