PC fails to wake from sleep (S3/Modern Standby)

What is SLEEP-WAKE-FAIL?

PC fails to wake from sleep (S3/Modern Standby) ranks as a high-severity Windows operating system issue in our database. The computer appears to enter sleep/standby but cannot wake up. Requires hard reset. It sometimes comes down to BIOS setting disabling wake-on-USB. See the troubleshooting steps below for the fix.

Common Causes

• Driver not supporting S3 wake correctly (common for USB and GPU drivers)
• Modern Standby (S0ix) conflict with older hardware
• BIOS setting disabling wake-on-USB

Step-by-Step Fix Guide

• 1
  Update GPU and network/Wi-Fi drivers

  "Update GPU and network/Wi-Fi drivers" targets driver not supporting S3 wake correctly (common for USB and GPU drivers), one of the documented causes of SLEEP-WAKE-FAIL.

• 2
  Disable Modern Standby if supported: powercfg /a

  "Disable Modern Standby if supported: powercfg /a" targets modern Standby (S0ix) conflict with older hardware, one of the documented causes of SLEEP-WAKE-FAIL.

• 3
  Enable USB wake support in BIOS → USB Wake Support

  "Enable USB wake support in BIOS → USB Wake Support" targets driver not supporting S3 wake correctly (common for USB and GPU drivers), one of the documented causes of SLEEP-WAKE-FAIL.

Commands & Diagnostics

Frequently Asked Questions