For beginners: How to put your Windows 11 PC to sleep

What is Windows Sleep mode?

Hibernate is a power-saving mode for your Windows laptop or desktop that suspends all activity. Any open applications or documents are moved to RAM, or the system's memory. While your computer still requires power in this state, it uses much less. Think of it like pausing a DVD movie – the action stops temporarily but can quickly resume.

This mode allows restricted power to be supplied to unnecessary systems, while providing ample power to the RAM to retain data. Additionally, you can switch from this sleep mode to an awake state by pressing the power button, tapping any key on the keyboard, or simply moving the mouse.

Now that you're well-acquainted with the Hibernate mode, you're probably wondering how to hibernate your Windows 11 PC. Let's not keep you waiting and dive right in.

How to Put Windows 11 into Hibernate Mode

There are several ways to put your computer to sleep. You can do this by:

Method 1: Using the Start Menu

This is one of the most convenient and straightforward ways to put Windows 11 to sleep. First, you need to click on the Start menu. Once it's open, you must click on the power icon located in the bottom right corner. You'll see a small menu where you can choose the "Sleep" option, which will automatically put your computer to sleep.

Method 2: Using the Power User Menu

Using this method, you'll need to use the Power User Menu. To do this, right-click the “Start” button and select “Shut down or sign out,” then click “Sleep.” This will put your computer to sleep immediately.

Alternatively, you can press Windows+X to open this menu, which is the same as right-clicking the Start button.

Method 3: Set the sleep mode time in Settings

If you'd like your computer to automatically go to sleep after a certain period of inactivity, press Windows + I. This will open the Settings app, where you should select "System," then navigate to "Power & Battery."

Next, in the “Display and Sleep” section, click the dropdown menu next to “Put the display to sleep when battery is low.” Or, if your device is plugged in, click “Put the display to sleep when plugged in.”

Then you can set an appropriate length of time, say 15 or 20 minutes, after which the computer will go to sleep if no one is using it.

Method 4: Use the keyboard shortcut (Ctrl+Alt+Delete)

The Login screen options allow you to put Windows 11 to sleep. Alternatively, you can access this feature by pressing the Ctrl + Alt + Delete keys on your Windows 11 screen. From there, you need to navigate to the bottom-right corner, click on the Power icon, and then select "Sleep" from the menu. This will immediately put your PC into sleep mode.

Method 5: Create a Shortcut and Hotkey for Sleep Mode

Step 1: Create a New Shortcut to Put the Desktop to Sleep

Click on an empty space on the Windows 11 desktop, then select New shortcut. A wizard will appear, asking you, “What location do you want to create a shortcut for?”

Then, it will prompt you to enter the location of the item for which you want to create the shortcut. Type: C:\Windows\System32\rundll32.exe powrprof.dll,SetSuspendState

Click “Next.” It will prompt you to enter a name for the shortcut. Name it something appropriate, then click “Finish.” This will create an icon on your desktop that will initiate sleep mode when you double-click it.

Step 2: Choose an appropriate icon for the Sleep Mode shortcut.

To do this, right-click the shortcut and click on "Properties." Here, you'll find the "Change Icon" option.

You may get a warning that the icon does not contain any icons, but click “OK” to proceed anyway.

It will lead you to a list of many different icons from which you can choose your favorite or one that is appropriate.

When you find the perfect icon, click “OK” to confirm your choice, and proceed to the next step.

Step 3: Pin the new "Windows 11 Deep Sleep" shortcut to the taskbar

To pin the Sleep shortcut to the taskbar, you need to right-click its icon and select “Show more options” > “Pin to taskbar.”

Step 4: Check if the new shortcut to Sleep mode is working correctly

In some cases, clicking on a shortcut might cause your PC to hibernate, which is different from Sleep (we'll explain the difference later).

How to Manage Sleep Mode in Windows 11

After a period of inactivity or running your PC in low-power mode, Windows 11 turns off certain hardware to conserve battery life. However, if you're not satisfied with the default settings for sleep, you can adjust them to your liking.

But if you want to wake the computer from sleep, you can:

Here are the translations of the actions in English: 1. You can press any standard key on your keyboard. 2. You can press the sleep shortcut key on your keyboard. 3. You can move the mouse. 4. You can quickly press the power button on your computer.

Note: If you're using a Bluetooth device, it might not wake your system.

In addition, it's recommended to use specified data backup software and follow the steps below to back up data stored on your PC in case sleep mode results in data loss. Todo Backup, apart from being great at system and data backup, also performs well in backing up hard drive or partition.

Step 1. To start the backup, tap Choose what to back up.

Step 2: There are four backup categories, Files, Disks, OS, and Emails. Please click on “Files”.

**Step 3.** On the left, you'll see Local and Network files. Expand the folders to locate your backup file.

Step 4: Follow the on-screen instructions to choose the location where you want to save your backup.

Click the "Options" button, then navigate to "Backup Options" to set a password for your backup. Next, click "Backup Schedule" to specify when the backup should occur and under what specific events it should initiate. You can also choose from various other options to customize the settings according to your preferences.

Step 5: Backups can be stored on a local disk, on an EDS server, or on a network-attached storage (NAS) device.

Step 6: Todo Backup lets you back up your data to third-party cloud storage or to your own cloud storage.

To back up your data to a cloud storage service provided by a third party, choose Local Disk, scroll down, and add a Cloud Device, then sign in to your account.

You can also use Yandex.Disk. Sign up for a Yandex account, then click “Yandex.Cloud” and log in.

< strong > Step 7. Click “Back Up Now” to start the backup. When it's done, you'll see a task card on the left panel. Right-click on it for more options.

PC won't sleep in Windows 11

Sometimes, your PC might not go to sleep in Windows 11. But don't worry, as we have some solutions for you.

Solution 1: Check your sleep settings

Step 1: Press the Win+R keys to open the Run dialog box.

Step 2: Type powercfg.cpl, and then click OK.

Step 3: From the left menu, choose "Turn off the display after."

Step 4: Here you can view and change your power settings. Tweak them as you see fit.

Solution 2: Disable the screen saver

Step 1: In the Windows 11 search bar, type "Screen Saver."

Step 2: From the drop-down menu, select None.

Solution 3: Use the Windows troubleshooter

Step 1: First, you need to open Settings by pressing Win + I.

Step 2: Click on “Update & security.”

Step 3: You need to click on "Troubleshooting" from the left-hand menu.

Step 4: Scroll down and tap "Power."

Step 5: Click on “Run Troubleshooter” from the menu that appears.

6. Step 6: Once the Repair Tool has done its job, check if the sleep options are now working.

Solution 4: Try starting in safe mode.

If Windows 12 isn't able to enter sleep mode due to a third-party app, you may need to enable a Clean Boot on your computer. This will allow you to see which essential Windows services and programs are running, without any third-party software starting up when you boot your computer.

Solution 5: Scan your PC for any malware or virus

If you suspect that your computer has been infected by any virus, it may be interfering with the system and preventing it from working properly. In this case, you will need to install (or, if you already have one, run) a good antivirus program to scan for malware. See if the problem still occurs after doing so.

Sleep, Hibernate, and Standby in Windows 11

To find the best power-saving mode for your device, it helps to understand the difference between hibernation and sleep (beyond just turning off your screen). Here's a quick primer.

Hibernate is similar to sleep, but instead of loading your applications and open documents into memory, it saves them to your hard drive. It turns off your computer completely, and then reloads everything when you turn it back on.

When the computer is idle, sleep mode helps to save power; an amber LED on the case glows; it turns green when the computer is in use.

Sleep Mode vs. Continuous Sleep Mode vs. Standby

Conclusions

We hope we've addressed your concern on how to put a Windows 11 computer to sleep. We've provided several methods as solutions, and you can choose the one that suits you best. Additionally, we discussed issues related to sleep mode and explained some fundamental differences among sleep, hibernate, and standby modes. This introductory guide should equip you to effectively employ these solutions.