Windows Vista, XP, and 2000 support two different power-saving modes, stand by (also known
as “standby” or “sleep”) and hibernate. How do these settings vary from each other, and from
normal computer operation
In standby mode, the computer stays on, but uses very little power. Most recent laptops and
portables support the S3 sleep state, which saves open programs, windows, and files to RAM (S3
is also known as “suspend to RAM”). When you press a key or move the mouse, the system wakes
up from S3 sleep and all programs, windows, and files are as they were when the system went
into sleep mode. To use S3, your system must have S3 support in the BIOS. If the system doesn’t
support S3, which can use less than five watts of power, it will use S1 or S2 modes, which save
some power, but not nearly as much as S3. As with S3 sleep, use the mouse or keyboard to wake
up a system from S1 or S2 sleep. In hibernate mode (also known as S4 sleep state), the computer
creates a file called hiberfil.sys and then shuts down. Hiberfil.sys stores the system’s current
state, so when you wake up the system, the same programs and files are open as when you shut
down the system. To wake up a system that is in hibernate mode, press the power button. By
default hibernation is disabled. To turn it on in Windows XP.
Click the Hibernate tab in Power Options and then check Enable Hibernation. To turn it on in
Windows Vista, open the Command Prompt as an administrator.
Then type powercfg.exe/hibernate on; it will then show up in the shut down area of the Start
menu. To turn it off, type powercfg.exe/hibernate off.
as “standby” or “sleep”) and hibernate. How do these settings vary from each other, and from
normal computer operation
In standby mode, the computer stays on, but uses very little power. Most recent laptops and
portables support the S3 sleep state, which saves open programs, windows, and files to RAM (S3
is also known as “suspend to RAM”). When you press a key or move the mouse, the system wakes
up from S3 sleep and all programs, windows, and files are as they were when the system went
into sleep mode. To use S3, your system must have S3 support in the BIOS. If the system doesn’t
support S3, which can use less than five watts of power, it will use S1 or S2 modes, which save
some power, but not nearly as much as S3. As with S3 sleep, use the mouse or keyboard to wake
up a system from S1 or S2 sleep. In hibernate mode (also known as S4 sleep state), the computer
creates a file called hiberfil.sys and then shuts down. Hiberfil.sys stores the system’s current
state, so when you wake up the system, the same programs and files are open as when you shut
down the system. To wake up a system that is in hibernate mode, press the power button. By
default hibernation is disabled. To turn it on in Windows XP.
Click the Hibernate tab in Power Options and then check Enable Hibernation. To turn it on in
Windows Vista, open the Command Prompt as an administrator.
Then type powercfg.exe/hibernate on; it will then show up in the shut down area of the Start
menu. To turn it off, type powercfg.exe/hibernate off.