1 of 3 This document is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS DOCUMENT. © 2007 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft Windows XP has built-in power management capabilities that allow you to customize the power usage of your computer. By adjusting these settings, you can reduce your computer’s power consumption and save money for your company. You can also extend the life of your battery when on battery power. In this guide you will learn how to: Open the Power Control Panel Program Any computer running Windows XP can have certain basic aspects of its power usage adjusted via Power Options in the Control Panel. Open the Power Control Program Adjust the Power Options Properties Set the Low and Critical Battery Alarms Set Advanced Properties Use a Monitor Screen Saver Travel with a Laptop Computer 1 2 Select Start>Control Panel. If in Category View, select Performance and Maintenance. Click the Power Options program. -OR- If in Classic View, double-click the Power Options program. Adjust the Power Options Properties The Power Options program allows you to control power usage aspects of your computer based on the passage of a pre-defined time limit. You can turn off your monitor and hard disks, as well as put the system into standby or hibernation mode. Windows XP offers multiple Power schemes to allow you to tailor your settings. For example, when in the Presentation scheme, you might not want the system to turn off the monitor or go into standby. When on a cross-country flight, you might want to use the Maximum Battery Life scheme to stretch your batteries. You can adjust each scheme to best meet your needs. 1 2 On the Power Schemes tab under Power schemes, select the scheme you want to modify. For example, when working at home or the office, select Home/Office Desk. The available schemes will depend on whether you are using a laptop or a desktop. Adjust the timers for the monitor, hard disks, System standby and System hibernates. Recommendations 3 When done, click Apply and then OK to close the window. are 10 minutes each for the monitor and hard disk and 20 minutes for standby. System hibernates should be set to Never. Note Some computer manufacturers, such as Toshiba, have created their own Power Management utilities. If your computer has such a utility, you should use it instead of the built-in Windows utility.

2 of 3 This document is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS DOCUMENT. © 2007 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Set the Low and Critical Battery Alarms You can set an alarm for when your laptop reaches a low battery and critical (extremely low) battery state. Though the screenshots are for the Low Battery alarm, the instructions below apply to setting either alarm. 1 2 Click the Alarms tab. Check the Activate low battery alarm when power level reaches: box or the Activate critical battery alarm when power level reaches: box. Adjust the slider to the desired percentage of battery life remaining (10% is recommended for a low battery and 5% for a critical battery). Click the Alarm Action button for either the Low or Critical battery. The Alarm Actions window will open. Check the desired Notification boxes. Check the Alarm action box, if desired, and select the appropriate action. For the Critical battery alarm, it is recommended it be set to put the computer into standby Set Advanced Properties You can control what your computer does when you close the lid or press the power button. 1 2 Click the Advanced tab. Under Options, select whether to always show the Power icon on the taskbar and always check the Prompt for a password when computer resumes from standby box. Under Power Buttons, select the appropriate action that takes place When I close the lid of my portable computer and When I press the power button on my computer. When done, press OK 3 Note Standby is putting the computer into a low-power state where most of the components (processor, disk drives, screen) are either turned off or use very little power. Hibernation copies the contents of the memory to the hard disk and then turns off the computer. When you turn the computer back on, the contents are written back and you are returned to where you were working. For security reasons, it is recommended you do not use hibernation. If you wish to Run a program, check the box and click Configure Program to specify the program to run. When done, press OK.

3 of 3 This document is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS DOCUMENT. © 2007 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Travel with a Laptop Computer When traveling, it is best to turn off your laptop computer. If you leave it in Standby mode, a jolt might return the computer to normal operation in your bag, draining the battery and potentially damaging it due to overheating. Use a Monitor Screen Saver You can set a blank screen saver for your monitor. Under Screen saver select Blank. Set a value of 10 under Wait. Check the On resume, password protect box. Click OK