Windows 10: Windows 11 external hard drives via usb wake up when the computer sleeps

I'm just another user who is faced with the external disk wake every minute. This is not a critical vulnerability and this issue is related to standby sleep. Yes, the disk gives an error when trying to go to sleep, yes the device is from an unreliable brand.I'm not interested in answers like reboot your computer or buy a new one. Does anyone know what long and incomprehensible 16-bit key in the regedit windows needs to be corrected so that there is a limit on these spontaneous wakening of this external drive on usb hdd?

:)

 

External hard drive not recognised

Thanks for this. I've done what you suggested and been through all the steps mentioned in the article. The hard drive works fine on a Mac computer, and I've managed to copy the information on it. It must be a Surface issue so I'll try to get a chat line tomorrow.

 

how to put my external hard disk to sleep manually windows 11

Thank you very much for reaching out! As an Independent Advisor and fellow Microsoft user, I'm more than happy to assist you.

To manually put your external hard disk to sleep on Windows 11, you can use a combination of built-in Windows settings and third-party tools. Here are some methods you can try:

Using Power Options

1. Open Power Options:
   
   • Go to Control Panel > All Control Panel Items > Power Options.
     
2. Change Plan Settings:
   
   • Click on Change plan settings next to your current power plan.
     
3. Advanced Power Settings:
   
   • Click on Change advanced power settings.
     
   • Expand the Hard Disk section and set Turn off hard disk after to a desired value (e.g., 1 minute) or Never if you want to prevent it from sleeping.
     

Using Third-Party Tools

1. revoSleep:
   
   • This tool can manually put your hard drive to sleep. However, Windows processes might wake the drive up randomly.
     

Using Command Line Tools

1. hdparm:
   
   • This tool can send ATA commands to put the drive to sleep. However, it might not work reliably with USB drives due to the USB to ATA bridge limitations.
     
   • Command:
     
     hdparm -Y /dev/sdX
     
     (replace /dev/sdX with your drive's identifier).
     

Additional Tips

• Disable Indexing:
  
  • Sometimes, Windows indexing can wake up the drive. You can disable indexing for your external drive to prevent this.
    
• Use a Physical Switch:
  
  • If you have a spare 5.25" bay or a PCIe slot, you can use a physical switch to power off the drive completely.
    

Please feel free to reach out if you require any additional assistance. I'm here to help!

 

External hard drive goes to sleep on Windows 11

I have a 5 GB Lacie External Hard Drive from Seagate, connected via a USB cable. The issue is that when I am browsing folders or playing music from the hard drive, it takes about 20-30 seconds for the light on the drive to start flashing and for the files to open or appear. Sometimes when I listen to music it stops and I have to wait until the drive "wakes up". The drive never disconnects but it seems it "goes to sleep" or becomes inactive. It's really frustrating and I did not have this problem on my old laptop with Windows 10.

Any ideas?