problem Control Panel's Power Options settings suddenly return to default

[apairofpcs]

[SIZE=+1][SIZE=+1]I have a desktop pc with Win 7 Ultimate 32 bit , a [SIZE=+1]To[/SIZE][/SIZE]shiba laptop with Win 7 Home Premium Edition 32 bit and a [SIZE=+1]L[/SIZE]enovo laptop with Win 7 Home Premium Edition 64 bit.[SIZE=+1] In each pc, th[SIZE=+1]e setting[SIZE=+1] [SIZE=+1]to turn off the display in the Pow[SIZE=+1]er Options applet suddenly returns [/SIZE]from my choice of "Never" to the d[SIZE=+1]efault[SIZE=+1] of "20 min." I've [SIZE=+1]changed from "Never" to the max. of "5 hr."[/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE], with the same result. I can't tell you what occurs just before the change to the 20 min.default. It follows no obvious pattern.

[SIZE=+1]You'll want to know what major programs I have in all three pcs, I'm sure. I have AVG Free 2014 which is always active. I also have Spybot Search & Destro[SIZE=+1]y which I manually run.[/SIZE][/SIZE] My settings on all three machines in the Power Settings boxes are identical, to "Never" turn off the display. I leave the [SIZE=+1]desktop always ON, since a few months ago Sleep Mode stopped working and has locked the machine requiring a restart using the case's Reset button.

I removed the battery packs from each laptops since I'm rarely mobile, and I manually place each one in Sleep Mode when I leave the room for a long time. When [SIZE=+1]any pc wakes from Sleep Mode, everything is in order. I[SIZE=+1]t's when I see the display on each pc has turned off, that I know my settings have been lost. [/SIZE][/SIZE]Each laptop is always plugged into AC.[/SIZE] I can't give any more information about what prece[SIZE=+1]des the loss of of the setting. One more thing. When the time to turn off the display returns to 20 min. my power profile setting of "do not ask for the password when returning from Sleep Mode" changes to "ask for the password." This has been going on for at least two years. I[SIZE=+1]'m first writing about it now, because it seems that these symptoms are becoming more frequent and unpredictable.

[SIZE=+1][SIZE=+1]The only other commonality between the pcs is that all of them[SIZE=+1] are[/SIZE] part of my FiOS network, the laptops wirelessly and the desktop via an ethernet cable. I'm getting the max. speeds specified in my service with Verizon. [SIZE=+1]I'm wondering if a router glitch could be causing the problem?[/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE]
[/SIZE]

 

[apairofpcs]

[SIZE=+1][SIZE=+1]I have a desktop pc with Win 7 Ultimate 32 bit , a [SIZE=+1]To[/SIZE][/SIZE]shiba laptop with Win 7 Home Premium Edition 32 bit and a [SIZE=+1]L[/SIZE]enovo laptop with Win 7 Home Premium Edition 64 bit.[SIZE=+1] In each pc, th[SIZE=+1]e setting[SIZE=+1] [SIZE=+1]to turn off the display in the Pow[SIZE=+1]er Options applet suddenly returns [/SIZE]from my choice of "Never" to the d[SIZE=+1]efault[SIZE=+1] of "20 min." I've [SIZE=+1]changed from "Never" to the max. of "5 hr."[/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE], with the same result. I can't tell you what occurs just before the change to the 20 min.default. It follows no obvious pattern.

[SIZE=+1]You'll want to know what major programs I have in all three pcs, I'm sure. I have AVG Free 2014 which is always active. I also have Spybot Search & Destro[SIZE=+1]y which I manually run.[/SIZE][/SIZE] My settings on all three machines in the Power Settings boxes are identical, to "Never" turn off the display. I leave the [SIZE=+1]desktop always ON, since a few months ago Sleep Mode stopped working and has locked the machine requiring a restart using the case's Reset button.

I removed the battery packs from each laptops since I'm rarely mobile, and I manually place each one in Sleep Mode when I leave the room for a long time. When [SIZE=+1]any pc wakes from Sleep Mode, everything is in order. I[SIZE=+1]t's when I see the display on each pc has turned off, that I know my settings have been lost. [/SIZE][/SIZE]Each laptop is always plugged into AC.[/SIZE] I can't give any more information about what prece[SIZE=+1]des the loss of of the setting. One more thing. When the time to turn off the display returns to 20 min. my power profile setting of "do not ask for the password when returning from Sleep Mode" changes to "ask for the password." This has been going on for at least two years. I[SIZE=+1]'m first writing about it now, because it seems that these symptoms are becoming more frequent and unpredictable.

[SIZE=+1][SIZE=+1]The only other commonality between the pcs is that all of them[SIZE=+1] are[/SIZE] part of my FiOS network, the laptops wirelessly and the desktop via an ethernet cable. I'm getting the max. speeds specified in my service with Verizon. [SIZE=+1]I'm wondering if a router glitch could be causing the problem?[/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE][/SIZE]
[/SIZE]

Maybe the following will jog some of your brains. I removed the Hitachi 500 GB HDD from my Toshiba laptop and replaced it with a new in box Intel 530 180 GB SSD. I installed Windows 7 Ultimate 64 bit, which was a piece of cake procedure that took 35 min. I couldn't have been happier. But late last night, about 10 hr. after I was done, the same symptoms as I've described above appeared. They're still appearing, and I have no idea why. In fact, against my better judgment I purposely didn't install AVG Free 2014 and Spybot Search & Destroy. As you can see, keeping these programs off my pc, which the forum members believe are not worth installing, didn't prevent the problems from recurring.

Now that I've dazzled you with this unusual news, does anybody have any idea what could cause the same problems to occur in an effectively NEW laptop?

 

[LunarMist]

Maybe a BIOS issue. Is it the latest version?

 

[Mercutio]

Some manufacturers replace the standard Power controls with their own software. You may find Windows behaves better if you remove their power saving utility. Of course, that could also kill your battery life while you're using a laptop.

And yes, you may need to go poking around in your firmware because some setting or other could be overriding an OS setting. This is a problem that is going to be extremely specific to the machines you have, but what I can tell you is that stock versions of Windows on vanilla hardware do what you tell them to do with regard to power saving settings.

 

[apairofpcs]

Maybe a BIOS issue. Is it the latest version?

Each pc has the latest BIOS version.

What do you think about the possibility that one or more of the following may be the cause?
1. Multiple manual deletions of the files in the C:\Temp and C:\Windows\Temp folders, done every day?
2. Use of the OS's "Disk Cleaner" utility, to delete the files I choose by checking their boxes, done every day?
3. The permanent link of all three pcs via a FiOS wireless router's network connection, wirelessly for the laptops and hard wired with an ethernet cable for the desktop?
4. Use of Disktrix's program "Ultimate Defrag.", to keep each drive tidy. done every day?

A reminder that many of you disapprove of the use of programs such as AVG and Spybot Search & Destroy, so I haven't installed these on the Toshiba laptop with the new SSD and new OS. I have all the latest Windows Update modules in each pc. I scanned the Windows 7 Ultimate DVD using AVG on the desktop, and no threats were found.

 

[ddrueding]

1-3 I'm confident aren't issues. I've never heard of Ultimate Defrag, but if it is just doing its job it shouldn't be an issue. Just a reminder to not defrag SSDs, completely unnecessary and added wear. Moving all these things to weekly (hell, quarterly) will save you time, save wear on your gear, and you will not be able to tell the difference.

 

[apairofpcs]

Some manufacturers replace the standard Power controls with their own software. You may find Windows behaves better if you remove their power saving utility. Of course, that could also kill your battery life while you're using a laptop.

And yes, you may need to go poking around in your firmware because some setting or other could be overriding an OS setting. This is a problem that is going to be extremely specific to the machines you have, but what I can tell you is that stock versions of Windows on vanilla hardware do what you tell them to do with regard to power saving settings.

In the case of the Toshiba laptop and hand built desktop I'm using the OS's Power Options applet, since neither pc has a proprietary power management program. For the Lenovo laptop I'm doing the same thing, although it comes with a proprietary power management program. The laptops are always connected to the AC supply,with their batteries removed and I let them "rest" by placing them in Sleep Mode. The desktop is always running, because Sleep Mode doesn't work and locks the pc, forcing me to to restart via the case's Reset button. Since I don't have to worry about maintaining long run times when each pc is working on AC, all of my settings are geared for "Maximum Performance."

Memtest86+ scans result in no errors. HD Tune scans show no bad blocks. CPU Burn-In completes successfully. Chkdsk /F or /R scans shows no file system errors. Real Temp 3.70 detects CPU temps for each pc, between 40 degree C and 45 degree C.

 

[apairofpcs]

1-3 I'm confident aren't issues. I've never heard of Ultimate Defrag, but if it is just doing its job it shouldn't be an issue. Just a reminder to not defrag SSDs, completely unnecessary and added wear. Moving all these things to weekly (hell, quarterly) will save you time, save wear on your gear, and you will not be able to tell the difference.

The defrag. program is fully customizable, unlike the OS's defrag. program. The laptop with the SSD drive doesn't have it installed on it. I have an inordinate amount of time on my hands, so this is not an issue for me. I'll reduce the frequency of my preventive maintenance tasks, as you suggested. In the case of the desktop, my need to do daily defrags. stems from my pattern of downloading large movie files from YouTube, watching them and deleting them. File sizes are 100MB to 2 GB each. This pattern creates a lot of fragmentation. I've seen fragment numbers as high as 104,000 on the desktop, after I miss a day or two of defragmentation. On the two laptops, daily defragmentation is unnecessary. They're leading a cushy life!

 

[ddrueding]

I'd think that deleting the file most recently saved to the disk would have no effect on fragmentation at all.

 

[Handruin]

The defrag. program is fully customizable, unlike the OS's defrag. program. The laptop with the SSD drive doesn't have it installed on it. I have an inordinate amount of time on my hands, so this is not an issue for me. I'll reduce the frequency of my preventive maintenance tasks, as you suggested. In the case of the desktop, my need to do daily defrags. stems from my pattern of downloading large movie files from YouTube, watching them and deleting them. File sizes are 100MB to 2 GB each. This pattern creates a lot of fragmentation. I've seen fragment numbers as high as 104,000 on the desktop, after I miss a day or two of defragmentation. On the two laptops, daily defragmentation is unnecessary. They're leading a cushy life!

The pattern you described might be better suited for a specific disk partition to handle the highly volatile nature of file changes. When you're done for the day, just delete and move on or quick format the partition.

 

[Howell]

I like Handy's suggestion the most. Also "Mydefrag" is free and will leave gaps for temporary files to fill in. Really though once a really good defrag has been done I see minimal benefit to further regular defrags.