Monitor not turning off after inactivity

davolente · Joined: Oct 04, 2003 Posts: 304 Location: Kent, UK

Two XP PC's connected by an ethernet cross-over cable. Try as I might, I cannot get the "secondary" older machine's monitor to shut down after a period of inactivity, despite setting it so in the power settings in control panel. It never has, so it's not a new problem. Everything is set for a very basic appearance ("best performance" in the properties) with no screen-saver either. The main machine, with two monitors does as it's told!
If I shut down the "main" PC, the "inactivity" setting on the secondary quite often works and the monitor turns off, so what's the connection? Something to so with the "network" connection perchance?
I have noticed that when I shut down the newer machine, the screens just go blank after the usual shut-down performance but the older machine shows a "It is now safe to turn your computer off" screen and the power switch has to turned off manually. Is there some compatibility problem with the power arrangements, possibly, as the older machine used to run Win 98?

drwho07 · Joined: Nov 29, 2007 Posts: 1546 Location: Central FL, USA

Many if not most Windows 98 machines DID NOT have the ability to do a total shutdown of the computer from Windows. Those old PC's did not have an ATX power supply and actually had an ON-OFF switch on the front of the PC and not just a START pushbutton.

Therefore, when windows had done all it could to close files, etc., it would tell you that it was "Now safe to turn off your computer".

Personally I'm glad that all the new computers can turn themselves OFF.

Well, almost,,,,, Rolling Eyes

in reality it's not really OFF till you remove the power from the PC, like with the switch on a power strip.
(the PSU remains in a low-power mode)
After letting my PC power itself down, I remove all power to it by shutting off the power strip that it's plugged into.

Gads! I hope that was helpful Confused

So how's things in the UK?

Doc

davolente · Joined: Oct 04, 2003 Posts: 304 Location: Kent, UK

Thanks, doc. Things in the UK are just as dire as the rest of the world, I reckon - desperate times!
Thanks for comment. I just mentioned the differences in the shut-down in case it had any bearing on trying to get the monitor to go off after 10 minutes, which is what I`ve set it to in the power settings. The PC does, incidentally have a "push-to-start" - type button AND a full-blown isolating main switch on the rear, which I always use when it's done its stuff for shut-down. However.......this hasn't really got me any closer to geting the monitor to turn off. I`m fairly convinced it's something to do with the fact that it's connected to the other PC, but beggared if I know what the reason is.

drwho07 · Joined: Nov 29, 2007 Posts: 1546 Location: Central FL, USA

Proove it by disconnecting the inter-PC cable.

Monitors never really shut OFF from the PC, they just go into sleep mode.

Cheers!

Doc Cool

goretsky · Posted: Thu Apr 16, 2009 3:43 am Post subject:

Hello,

If you view the properties panel for the network adapter on the second computer via the Device Manager (filename: DEVMGMT.MSC) what are power settings set to for the device? They will be located on either on the Advanced or, if present, the Power Management tab.

Regards,

Aryeh Goretsky

davolente · Joined: Oct 04, 2003 Posts: 304 Location: Kent, UK

The adaptor under the "power management" tab has a checked box "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power" and a another greyed-out box with greyed-out text as well "Allow this device to bring the computer out of standby"
Is this relevant, at all?

goretsky · Posted: Fri Apr 17, 2009 12:03 am Post subject:

Hello,

I was thinking that the computer might not be able to power down the network interface, which meant it would be receiving enough network traffic from the first computer system to prevent it from determining the system wasn't being used and putting the monitor into power save mode.

As DrWho07 asked earlier, does the behavior change if you disconnect the crossover Ethernet cable?

Regards,

Aryeh Goretsky