Give your computer insomnia [Free tool and source code to temporarily prevent a machine from going to sleep!]
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Comments
Anonymous
October 01, 2009
Nice tool. I do have to say that Windows 7 does a much better job on putting a computer to sleep only when possible. If I for example have my p2p client active it will not go to sleep, but as soon as I shut it down, it does. Also when I use mediacenter and schedule a recording it will go to sleep but will wake up in time to start recording. Really cool stuff. I'm not sure if they changed stuff in the API though.Anonymous
October 03, 2009
Now all you need to do is:
- Add an option to start it only in the tray.
- Hide the tray icon by default when run once as an option and make it appear if run the second time.
- Add a minimize button.
- Pretty it up a little bit.
Anonymous
October 03, 2009
anonymuos, I touch on this in the post a bit, but I had a specific goal with Insomnia that it should NOT be possible/easy for the user to forget that the program was running and suppressing the default sleep action (and also that the application should be super-easy to use). This goal seems to be in fairly direct opposition to your suggestions 1, 2, and 3, and that's part of the reason I didn't take that approach already. Regarding your suggestion 4, I have no defense, save to admit that I have no measurable design skills whatsoever and beg your forgiveness for the ugly UIs I tend to come up with. :)Anonymous
December 11, 2009
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December 11, 2009
Alex_, I'm a big fan of the Visual Studio Express Editions for stuff like this. They're free, relatively small, and they do a really great job supporting common coding scenarios. If you give Visual C# Express a try, not only will you be able to make this tweak, but you'll be able to play around with other changes as well! Here's a link with more information: http://www.microsoft.com/express/vcsharp/ PS - To prove I'm serious, let me say that I do all my development at home using the Express editions!Anonymous
December 31, 2009
I just came across a couple of external references to Insomnia: http://www.technibble.com/insomnia-repair-tool-of-the-week/ http://www.thewindowsclub.com/give-your-windows-pc-insomnia Neat! :)Anonymous
January 18, 2010
I love this little program, could you put it in the tray? Thanks MarkAnonymous
January 18, 2010
Thanks for the kind words, marktherob2010! When I wrote Insomnia, I was worried about someone forgetting they had it running and accidentally leaving their computer on all the time. So the first version of Insomnia is Topmost and can't be minimized. However, you're not the first to make this request, so I'll be adding support for "minimize to tray" soon. Thanks for your patience! :)Anonymous
February 26, 2010
This was a much needed app. Thanks! I wonder if it would be straightforward to add a right click context menu while in the tray or pinned for Pause and Resume?Anonymous
February 26, 2010
obvious, Thanks for the feedback! Regarding pause/resume, wouldn't it be almost as easy to close the app and restart it? Otherwise I worry about people seeing the "I" icon in the tray and getting confused - unless I change the icon graphic, too. But then all of a sudden the simple app is starting to get more and more complicated... :)Anonymous
June 05, 2010
Just tried the tool on WinXP SP3 and had no effect. Windows is going to sleep mode and hibernation without problems, while the window is openAnonymous
June 06, 2010
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July 10, 2010
I set it up as a scheduled task so when my weekly auto-backup runs, the computer stays awake for a few hours to give "Carbonite Backup" time to upload the backup file to their servers. THANK YOU!! jim@lagunajim.comAnonymous
July 10, 2010
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July 11, 2010
Jad, Cool scenario, thanks a bunch for sharing!Anonymous
October 08, 2010
yea it doesn't work for me either on WIN XP SP3 :-( ... Would the fact that it is a work machine and has a group policy assigned to it make a difference? It maybe that the registry cannot be changed?? CheersAnonymous
October 08, 2010
I tell a lie..... it is working :) the screen saver was just starting up but it didn't lock out. excellent!! thanks a mill..... i can take a snooze at work now :PAnonymous
October 09, 2010
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October 28, 2010
the downloading link seems to be dead :(Anonymous
October 28, 2010
max, It worked for me just now. Could you please try again now or in a couple of hours, maybe?Anonymous
November 14, 2010
Great! Now I can reset power options back to default sleep and remove the Power Options shortcut from my Desktop. Have only had this Win7 machine since September and already the sleep mode (changing it) was a pain whenever I performed large backups. THANK YOU! FYI I found out about your utility through "Free Download A Day.com".Anonymous
November 19, 2010
A hidden folder called "insomnia" has appeared unbidden on my computer, and copies itself to any USB device I use. It contains a file called jkdrolja.exe. Is this the program you are talking about? I can't delete it or uninstall it. How can I get rid of it?Anonymous
November 19, 2010
Paul, I'm sorry to hear that - it sounds like you may have some malware on your hands. The Insomnia program I discuss in this blog post does none of the things you mention. You might want to consult the Microsoft Malware Protection Center for help diagnosing your machine: www.microsoft.com/.../portalAnonymous
December 15, 2010
Steps to change your computer's "sleep settings" manually. Start Menu Click on Hardware and Sound Under Power Options click the tab that says Change when computer sleeps Then just scroll down to select your desired settings. My computer would sleep when I would be uploading with FTP to my website or running system scans. So glad I found this post, even though I didn't use the tool. I used the comment submittted by Neil & just figured out how to do this on my own since he didn't elaborate...Anonymous
December 28, 2010
when i try and like close my laptop, get the screen to go down and make it flat, the computer sleeps when insomnia is open. tell me if you don't get it. is there anything i can do?Anonymous
December 28, 2010
lol, Insomnia doesn't prevent the computer from going to sleep when something explicitly tells it to. If you wanted, you could also put an Insomnia-running computer to sleep by selecting "Sleep" from the Start Menu. To solve your problem, I think you want to go into the "Power Options" control panel and find the option for "Choose what closing the laptop lid does" - it's probably set to "Sleep" now and you want to change it to "Do nothing". Hope this helps!Anonymous
December 30, 2010
Hi, Downloaded the Insomnia files (four folders) on the basis of Kim Komando's recommendation. But I'm lost without an install wizard. Where should I save the files, and how do I run the program? Thanks.Anonymous
December 30, 2010
Arnold i just downloaded this and it is an executable file, it doesn't need installing. all you need to do is unzip the download, choose 32 or 64 bit depending on your computer, and double click "Insomnia.exe". that's it.Anonymous
December 31, 2010
After installing I do not, or can not , find anything on my desktop to activate the thing.Anonymous
December 31, 2010
So...Pleeaazzzeeee...tell me your not Tom DeLay...that Texas Idiot...?Anonymous
December 31, 2010
I've tried running this on two machines, both Win XP SP3. Extracted 32-bit .exe file. When I try to run it, it reports "The ordinal 380 could not be located in the dynamic link library COMCTL32.dll" What to do????Anonymous
December 31, 2010
Arnold, As "torque armada" says, you can put the Insomnia.exe file anywhere you want and run it from there. There are three versions in the ZIP - when in doubt about which to pick, the 32-bit version is a good choice as it should run nearly everywhere.Anonymous
December 31, 2010
donby, Please see my comment above - you'll want to run one of the three versions of Insomia.exe from the ZIP file you downloaded.Anonymous
December 31, 2010
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December 31, 2010
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January 01, 2011
I downloaded this off KimKomando as well. I'm running WXPpro SP3 and after unzipping I put a shortcut on my desktop to the app inside the NET folder. Doubleclick the shortcut then click RUN and badabing! Clicking the other folders resulted in probs but the 'net' runs fine for me! Unfortunately I am totally clueless how this app works, but the source code is there to tempt me to perhaps learn something besides clicking. thanksAnonymous
January 01, 2011
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January 01, 2011
Since I have WIN XP SP3, I will just use the .NET version, as recommended. But does it need to be installed in a particular folder, or is my own "Utility" folder a valid location?Anonymous
January 01, 2011
MikeyD, Each version of Insomnia.exe is completely stand-alone and can be copied to and run from any folder/location you choose. :)Anonymous
January 01, 2011
Delay, Thanks for investigating. I tried both the 32-bit version and the .net version on one computer, and neither works. So, on the other computer I only tried the 32-bit version, which didn't work there either. But, this morning I tried the .net version on the 2nd computer, and found that it works. That machine has .net Framework 1.1, 2.0 SP2, 3.0 SP2, and 3.5 SP1 installed. On the first machine, only .net Framework 1.1, and 2.0 are installed. When I try to run Insomnia .net there, I get the dreaded "Insomnia has encountered a problem and needs to close. We are sorry for the inconvenience" message.Anonymous
January 02, 2011
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January 03, 2011
Insomnia works great to keep my Windows 7 awake. I love it. However, my monitor still goes to sleep. Do you have something to keep it awake too? Thanks!Anonymous
January 03, 2011
rambo, Thanks - that's great to hear! :) At present, Insomnia deliberately does NOT prevent the monitor from entering its power-saving mode because saving energy seems desirable in pretty much all the scenarios I originally had in mind. But you're not the first to ask about an option to keep the monitor on - would you mind sharing more about what your scenario is and why you want to keep the monitor on? Thank you!Anonymous
January 03, 2011
This is for home use so I like to keep my PC awake for the few hours I get to use it in the evening. For that couple hours, I'd like to be able to walk away for 15-30 minutes and come back to an awake PC and monitor. No biggie, but since now I can keep the PC awake with Insomnia, I'd like to keep the monitor awake also. At the end of the night, I close Insomnia and we all go to sleep. :-) I would love to see either another bit of software to keep the monitor awake or add it as an option in Insomnia. Whatever is simpler. Thanks!Anonymous
January 04, 2011
rambo, Actually, the simplest solution for your scenario may not involve Insomnia at all. :) The Power Options Control Panel has a page that lets you choose when the computer goes to sleep and when the monitor powers off - it sounds like you want to set both of these to "Never" and then just pick Sleep from the Start Menu before going to bed at night. As long as you're not subject to Group Policy settings that block these settings, this should do exactly what you want. Hope it helps!Anonymous
January 04, 2011
Nice program. Unfortunately the 32bit exe doesn't work on WinXP and I don't have .NET installed on WinXP either. Are you going to be working on a native version for WinXP? If so, I will wait for it. If not, I may try again with .NET installed. Which version will I need? .NET 2.0?Anonymous
January 04, 2011
Oh but if this is true... "Insomnia doesn't prevent the computer from going to sleep when something explicitly tells it to." Then I think this program is not what I am looking for because it will be another app that tells the computer to sleep that I am trying to stop. So never mind.Anonymous
January 04, 2011
Duck, This comment above discusses the Windows XP problem (missing APIs): blogs.msdn.com/.../give-your-computer-insomnia-free-tool-and-source-code-to-temporarily-prevent-a-machine-from-going-to-sleep.aspx And this one discusses the .NET requirement (3.5): blogs.msdn.com/.../give-your-computer-insomnia-free-tool-and-source-code-to-temporarily-prevent-a-machine-from-going-to-sleep.aspx I'll count your feedback as a vote for Windows XP support. FYI to you and others that XP support is now officially on my TODO list. :) Thanks!Anonymous
January 04, 2011
Sleep in the Start Menu? I don't see it anywhere in my Start Menu. Can I add it? How? Thanks!Anonymous
January 04, 2011
rambo, Click the Start Menu orb, look to the bottom-right of the Start Menu where the "Shut down" button is, click the ">" arrow that appears at the right edge of that button, then choose "Sleep" from the bottom of the resulting popup menu. :)Anonymous
January 04, 2011
Never noticed that. I like it! Thanks!Anonymous
January 12, 2011
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January 12, 2011
I just put this on my laptop so when i watch a Netflix movie it would stay on but after about 10-15 min my screen stills goes to black with the XP logo floating around. The sound stays on I can hear the voices just no picture. Am I confusing Sleep with something else? I even had the setting set to Never and still the screen goes to xp logo after 15 min.Anonymous
January 13, 2011
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January 13, 2011
Well that was my problem. I didn't realize the screen saver was set to come on at 10 min. I turned it off and now my troubles are over. Thanks. skulldrinker from chicago.Anonymous
January 21, 2011
can i ask something? does this program work with guest account?Anonymous
January 21, 2011
curious, If you can run it, it should work. :)Anonymous
February 08, 2011
Thanks for this. The big MMO download kept being interrupted by the PC sleeping. Perfect tool.Anonymous
March 01, 2011
it doesn't work for Installation!Anonymous
March 01, 2011
ben, I'm not sure I understand your comment - there is no installer. :) Each version of Insomnia is a completely self-contained executable (EXE) that can be run from any location. Hope this helps!Anonymous
March 04, 2011
Feature request: It would be nice if windows had options for not sleeping if any hdd or network was in use. Is there any way you can add this to insomnia when above a certain threshold and then go back to normal sleep mode?Anonymous
March 06, 2011
252, I think that's one of those things that sounds easy, but ends up being quite tricky in practice. Although a specific application can know that it is doing something important enough to block sleep (ex: DVD burning, movie playing), I think it would be quite difficult for Insomnia to make that determination about a different application it has no visibility/insight into. Even when present, network and disk activity could be occuring for a wide variety of reasons and sorting out which of those were important and which were not seems like it would be beyond the scope of a simple tool like Insomnia. :) If I have any good ideas here, I'll definitely follow up on them. But for the time being, please don't hold your breath waiting for this. :)Anonymous
March 21, 2011
I just downloaded this and I am having trouble it just opens a blank camera and scanner wizard and nothing else how do i get it to work.Anonymous
March 21, 2011
help, The download is a ZIP file which contains three EXEs (.NET, 32-bit, and 64-bit) and some source code. The EXEs should be copied to your disk before being run. Nothing here should open the camera and scanner wizard, so I'm thinking maybe something is hooked up strangely on your machine. You don't say exactly what steps you're following, but if using Windows Explorer to open the ZIP isn't working well, maybe you could try something else like WinZip, etc.? Also, please try both the .NET and 32-bit versions just to be thorough.Anonymous
March 22, 2011
Nice tool, thanks very much for sharing it! If you're still in the mode of suggestions for new features, how about a "time to live" - the amount of time after which the window will close. I like to start a malware scan manually at times, and would like the computer to stay awake for say, an hour.Anonymous
March 22, 2011
Dale, Glad you like it! :) Also, I've added your suggestion to my TODO list.Anonymous
March 23, 2011
FYI that I've just updated the Insomnia download ZIP with 32-bit and 64-bit versions that should work on Windows XP: blogs.msdn.com/.../what-next-a-dos-version-free-tool-and-source-code-to-temporarily-prevent-a-computer-from-entering-sleep-mode-32-bit-and-64-bit-versions-now-support-windows-xp.aspx Enjoy! :)Anonymous
May 01, 2011
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May 01, 2011
Birk Binnard, What your custom command is doing probably maps to the following Win32 API: msdn.microsoft.com/.../aa373201(VS.85).aspx My guess is that when it's run when Insomnia has already suspended sleep mode, the sleep attempt turns into a hibernate. Hibernate typically writes memory to disk, powers off more completely, and reads the memory back after wake-up. It's usually much slower than sleep mode because of the disk access, but your SSD is probably minimizing the impact of that so it's not as obvious. As far as I can tell, all the symptoms here point to hibernate vs. sleep - you could maybe even verify this by checking the Event Log or using powercfg.exe to identify what kind of suspend/resume has just been performed after resuming from one of these "slow wake-ups". I hope this helps to explain the situation - please let me know if you investigate and confirm or deny any of this! :)Anonymous
May 10, 2011
I tried to post a response here (twice!) but neither one ever showed up. If this one dies I will try again.Anonymous
May 10, 2011
Birk Binnard, FYI that the blog software can take a little while to show new comments. However, it looks like it this one got through okay. :) What's up?Anonymous
May 10, 2011
There must be some bug in this forum software....3rd attempt to post reply never made itAnonymous
May 10, 2011
I used powercfg to turn off HIbernation. Now everything works ok - my keyboard command puts the system into "fast wakeup" sleep mode which I guess is the real Win7 Sleep mode, as opposed to the Hibernate mode. I also got back all the space (4.4 GB) used by the hiberfil.sys file. So I guess I'm happy now - although I'm not sure how hibernation got turned on. I know I disabled it when I installed my SSD.Anonymous
May 10, 2011
Birk Binnard, I'm not sure what could have enabled hibernation, either. At any rate, I'm glad to hear you sorted things out! :)Anonymous
July 23, 2011
Hi! I've tried your program and its not working. I have a Lenovo ideacentre all in one running 64bit Windows 7. I think my issue is that when the display turns off, the speakers (integrated) turn off. So it does keep my computer from sleeping, but doesn't do what I want. Any help? I'd love to get this to work!Anonymous
July 23, 2011
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August 01, 2011
I have a couple of ideas: 1. For a tray version, you could have a tool tip pop up every 5 min. or so 1.1 The time could also be configurable. Otherwise, nice app! I will use it to keep my Dell awake while Dragon Naturally Speaking downloads and installs a 1.2 GB Service Pack. It kept failing because my computer would go to sleep during the download.Anonymous
August 01, 2011
Ztgreve, Interesting idea, thank you for sharing! I haven't had nearly the issues I worried about since allowing Insomnia to be minimized (blogs.msdn.com/.../the-customer-is-always-right-updated-free-tool-and-source-code-to-prevent-a-machine-from-going-to-sleep.aspx), so I'm not nearly as worried about this as I once was. :)Anonymous
September 19, 2011
I wrote an alternative to Insomnia called Caffeinated. It's very similar, except in my opinion Caffeinated has a better user interface. Try it here: desmondbrand.com/caffeinatedAnonymous
January 02, 2012
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April 16, 2012
Hello. Does "insomnia" work if it is minimized to the tray or does it have to be open on the desktop? Thank You.Anonymous
April 16, 2012
Dancingpotato, Once running, Insomnia will work whether it's minimized or not. :)Anonymous
April 25, 2012
Hi David, I've created a MATLAB implementation of insomnia! I find it very useful when doing long simulations on home/office workstations! It's available at: www.mathworks.com/.../36194-insomnia-prevent-computer-sleep-mode Thanks!Anonymous
April 25, 2012
Francesco Montorsi, Cool idea! I still have fond memories of using MATLAB to animate the path of an airplane for a CGI course in college... :)Anonymous
May 30, 2012
Work like a charm on XP SP3 ! Good response and tweak to this (stupid) Microsoft behavour : support.microsoft.com/.../318355 Thanks, LucAnonymous
October 06, 2012
Cool program. Now I can download large files unattended without having network connection interrupted when PC goes to sleep. Display power off when mouse/keyboard inactive also saves power for my laptop. Thanks.Anonymous
October 20, 2012
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October 20, 2012
morofo, If you're comfortable building the source code I include, it's easy to change the strings and recompile. If it's for the native version (32- or 64-bit), you can use a resource editor like Visual Studio to edit the strings directly in the EXE you have. Alternatively, the strings could be localized via standard means (satellite assembly, MUI, etc.), but I haven't done the work to support that. Hope this helps!Anonymous
October 20, 2012
Thanks for the answer. I'm not a programmer/coder, just an IT tech. Anyway, I've found a way to do it while searching for something else. It's Resource Hacker www.angusj.com/resourcehacker ti seams to be ok for just changing the message. thanks again for both insomnia and the answer.Anonymous
October 28, 2012
I completely support keeping insomnia in your face so that you don't forget it is on. There is an app on the Mac called Caffeine that also prevents sleep but is a rather unobtrusive small icon in the upper panel and is all too easy to forget. It is true that Caffeine gives you choices for how long you want it to stay on, but I still prefer the Insomnia approach and hope you don't change it.Anonymous
October 28, 2012
fcol, Thanks for your support! :)Anonymous
November 14, 2012
Top work David. Works great on Win 7 Home 64-bit. Cheers Matt PS. It might be worth adding some SEO terms to this page. I Googled 'Stop windows from sleeping' and took a while to come across this perfectly suitable too :)Anonymous
November 26, 2012
would this work on Windows 8?Anonymous
November 26, 2012
Danny, Yes, it should.Anonymous
February 02, 2013
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February 24, 2013
In reply to: David Anson 28 Dec 2010 3:20 PM # lol, Insomnia doesn't prevent the computer from going to sleep when something explicitly tells it to. If you wanted, you could also put an Insomnia-running computer to sleep by selecting "Sleep" from the Start Menu. To solve your problem, I think you want to go into the "Power Options" control panel and find the option for "Choose what closing the laptop lid does" - it's probably set to "Sleep" now and you want to change it to "Do nothing". Hope this helps!
Dan, there are also options under "Power Options" to disable sleep after a certain amount of time passes. Isn't the point of this program is that it temporarily disables the computer from going to sleep? I think it would make sense that it also temporarily disables lid closure from putting the laptop to sleep. Thx.
Anonymous
February 24, 2013
WormyWyrm, There are two ways a computer can go to sleep: because it was idle for too long or because it was asked to. Insomnia prevents the idle time-out which makes it suitable for keeping the computer awake every now and then to complete some task or other without going to sleep. Actions like closing the lid can be configured to put the computer to sleep and Insomnia doesn't get in the way of that because it's a specific request that was user-initiated. The way Insomnia behaves happens to match the behavior of the underlying Windows API it calls - this is not entirely coincidental. :) It could be changed to work the way you suggest, but I find the way it works today to be consistent with how most people expect and want.Anonymous
May 25, 2013
One feature that might be nice is to have it respond to WOL packets to the discard port to remain insomniac for another 20 minutes, otherwise restore normal system behavior. This would involve finding the MACs of the interfaces, or just responding to 48 ones as an interim measure. Does this compile with MiniGW?Anonymous
May 27, 2013
Robin, That's a really neat idea! It's also a lot more involved than the single API call wrapper that Insomnia currently is. :) If you experiment with this, please let me know how it turns out. Regarding compiling under MiniGW, I haven't tried myself, but Insomnia is one of the simplest Win32 apps you can imagine, so I'd expect it to work without too much hassle.Anonymous
October 23, 2013
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October 23, 2013
Tom Hock44, Is there a chance you have some third-party power management program running? Many manufacturers include stuff like this in the tray and maybe you have one that's forcing the machine to sleep?Anonymous
October 24, 2013
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November 14, 2013
I just left my windows 8 machine running a long job with insomnia on the screen so I could monitor progress. Imagine my surprise when I looked over to find a screen full of screen saved bubbles! Please debug on windows 8 and 8.1 ThanksAnonymous
November 14, 2013
ps I am running 64 bit Windows 8 enterprise client and the 64 but exe of insomnia downloaded here.Anonymous
November 14, 2013
Tim, I use Insomnia on Windows 8 and 8.1 regularly and can confirm it works in general. :) Please keep in mind that it does NOT prevent the screen saver from kicking in, it only prevents the machine from going to sleep. Based on your description above, it sounds like Insomnia is working as intended!Anonymous
December 16, 2013
sir can you tell me,,, what is the logic behind ,,""if my pc is being shutdown,,and i am try to start from my program..in any kind of language 'if u are satisfied of that language' please tell me sir.."" or email me..-- lpu.gautam@gmail.com --..Anonymous
December 18, 2013
Thank you David, after all these years I still use your little program almost everyday, really useful. Thank youAnonymous
December 23, 2013
OMG! Thank you very much for this tool David. Switching power schemes was definitely getting old. This script earns a place in my Archive.Anonymous
January 05, 2014
Is there an alternative way to do this in Windows 8.1, without installing a program? Thanks, DavidAnonymous
January 06, 2014
David, I'm not aware of anything new in Windows 8/8.1 for temporarily suspending sleep mode.Anonymous
January 10, 2014
thanks, saved the day.