Windows 10: PC sleeps after about 1 1/2 hours but changed settings are ignored

Running Win 10 version 1909

I'm reasonably certain I have tried every resolution Google coughed up without success. While the issue is a minor one it is very annoying. I'm hoping someone here might be able to suggest a fix that works. The problem first appeared about 4 months ago and up to that point was working fine. I think it might have had something to do with a failed cumulative update but cant be sure.

My PC will sleep after about 1 1/2 hour no matter what the delay time is set to. I can set a different delay time and the new time is displayed on the screen as having been set but the new setting is ignored.

The monitor sleep settings work fine and the monitor turns off at the appropriate time.

Any help will be appreciated.

:)

 

Sleep settings are ignored, defaults to 2 minutes.

My Windows 10 laptop continues to sleep after 2 minutes regardless of the power settings. Many people have mentioned this exact same issue and are given multiple things to try. Then the issue gets marked as answered without any real solution.

My PC Setup:

• Dell Latitude E7440 (Windows 10, Upgraded from 8.1 more than 6 months ago.)
• Docked using a Dell E-Series Dock
• Dual AOC e2343FX monitors

Issue:

PC goes to sleep after 2 minutes regardless of the power settings. It is not just turning the monitors off, it's actually going to Sleep. Today I was working on a resume and cover letter. I would write the cover letter and then read it back to myself to
check the grammar and language, The PC would go into sleep mode during this process. It drives my nuts that I have to login to my PC every 2 minutes even though I'm actively using it.

Troubleshooting:

I ran the Control Panel "Troubleshoot problems" feature (Control Panel\All Control Panel Items\Troubleshooting\System and Security: Power). The troubleshooter runs and displays:





Then:





What actually happened:

• Power plan was changed from "High performance" to "Balanced (recommended)" *Troubleshooter message says the opposite.
  • On Battery:
    • Sleep after 30 minutes changed to 15 minutes.
  • Plugged in:
    • Sleep after 1 hour changed to 30 minutes.

The troubleshooter stated "Time before computer goes to sleep is too long" so why do the dropdowns allow for up to 5 hours? Why, when I make any allowable change does the sleep settings default to 2 minutes regardless of the setting? Also, why does Microsoft
offer multiple power plans and configuration options when they are just going to force you to "Use a more efficient plan"?

I have had Windows 10 for 6+ months now. This issue just started happening a couple of weeks ago. Nothing but Windows updates have been installed since before this started happening.

 

Screensaver Ignores Power and Sleep Settings

I have had two PCs that are totally ignoring the Screen settings in Power and Sleep. The Screen setting is set to Never, but the screensaver comes on after a minute or so nonetheless.

In one of those PCs, the Sleep setting is being followed. Don't know about the other.

The PCs are custom branded

• Intel DQ35JOE motherboard on the latest BIOS rev
• Intel Q8200 CPU
• 4 x 2GB DDR-800 various brands
• 1 TB HD
• WiFi card
• Windows 10 Pro

System has been tested for 24 hours with Prime95 and no errors are reported.

Ran the Power Troubleshooter and all it did was reset the Screen and Sleep settings to the defaults.

Setting are verified in the Control Panel.

Any ideas?

 

Sleep settings are ignored, defaults to 2 minutes.

So I found a possible solution:

In REGEDIT go to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Power\PowerSettings\238C9FA8-0AAD-41ED-83F4-97BE242C8F20\7bc4a2f9-d8fc-4469-b07b-33eb785aaca0

At the location there is a DWORD named "Attributes". Modify the value of "Attributes" from 1 to 2. A value of 2 will make "System unattended sleep timeout" appear in the advanced power settings under "sleep." Notice the default value is 2 minutes for both
battery and plugged in.





Change the values to whatever you want them set to. I made mine match the "Sleep after" settings. Some people have reported that the settings will return to the defaults (2 minutes) occasionally. I have not experienced that yet but I will update this post
if it does. I suspect they may have changed the power plan and forgot to change the defaults. Your changes will not carry across plans.

Basically what is happening is your PC is being woke up in an unattended state so it defaults to the "System unattended sleep timeout" settings instead of the "Sleep after" settings. An unattended state is usually when the PC wakes of to do a task like Windows
Updates or a wake on LAN (WoL) event. I'm not sure why the "System unattended sleep timeout" setting is used when I wake the PC with mouse movement, but the steps above seem to have solved my issue.