Automated Power Management

University Operations is taking steps to save money, energy and the environment by installing energy-saving software on your computer. You may notice changes in your PCs behavior. This software monitors your computer for inactivity and put your system to sleep in the evening if you forget to shut it off at the end of your work day.

What you can expect:

• These changes do not impact your PCs performance while it is in use - the software activates when your computer is inactive.
• The changes do not keep you from using your PC before or after normal work hours.
• You can power your PC on whenever you need to use it whether nights, early mornings or weekends.
• Your PC will not be shutting down during the day.

Known concerns:

The power management software has:

• In less than 1% of the cases, the computer clock time changes due to a bug in the operating system, Microsoft Windows. Please contact TRECS to resolve – we have a hotfix from Microsoft to address this issue.
• Microsoft Outlook experiences delays after “waking up from a sleep mode.” This can be corrected by putting Outlook into “Cached Mode.” Based on our power management schedule, this should not happen during normal business hours. If you experience this problem, please contact TRECS.
• VPN disconnects after system is put to sleep when working from home.

What you can expect if you are using a desktop computer:

The computer screen goes blank and the computer is still turned on.

• Reason: You have not used the computer for a while and the computer has put the monitor into an energy saving sleep mode.
• How to ‘wake up’ the monitor? Wiggle the mouse.
• How long will it take? The computer screen should come back within 1-5 seconds.
• When will this happen? Whenever the computer has not been used for a long period of time.

What you can expect if you are using a laptop:

The computer screen goes blank and the computer is still turned on, but wiggling the mouse doesn’t have any effect.

• Reason: You have not used the computer for a longer period of time and the computer has gone into an energy saving sleep mode.
• How to ‘wake up’ the computer? Hit any key on the keyboard (once). If this doesn’t work, you may have to push in the power button (once only). The power button light on the laptop or docking station will oscillate from “on to off” when it should be pushed.
  Note: This is normal behavior for laptop models in order to avoid accidental wake via keyboard/mouse while in transit.
• How long will it take? The computer screen should come back within 5-15 seconds.
• When will this happen? Whenever the computer has not been used for an extended period of time.

What you can expect when leaving work for the day:

Log off your computer; it is not necessary to shut your computer down.

• Reason: In a few months, TRECS will begin updating computers at night. It will facilitate systems administration if you log off your computer when you leave.
• What to do? Log off when you leave for the day.

What you can expect in the morning when you arrive to work:

Your computer is turned on.

• Reason: Your computer is turned on.
• What to do? On a desktop, wiggle the mouse or press the keyboard to wake your system up. On a laptop, you may need to press the Power button.

Power Management Schedule:

 

More Info