Vista Sleep Mode problem

Hello,

I have one of the numerous problems with making Vista sleep. I have set "Multimedia Settings" to "Allow PC enter Sleep Mode" or whatever, I have the Czech mutation of Vista.

Still, while connected to a network, the laptop does not enter the sleep mode, the screen just goes black and I can't do anything. The PC is still running, as well as the fan, and all I can do is force-shutdown the pc or wait for 20 minutes after which the PC resets and shows me "The system didn't shut down properly....".

Any hint? It's the Dell Inspiron 1525 model, original pre-installed Vista. The problem happens very often on LAN, less often on WLAN.

 

I would recommend looking into drivers updates for the issue here. Check also the properties for the Ethernet card as not to turn it off to save power.

cheers ...

 

Well, drivers' situation is a little awkward, because since Dell tampered with Vista itself, not all the manufacturers' drivers work correctly (e. g. the original Synaptics driver is totally messed up). I have the newest I can.

I switched off the feature "Let system turn the device off to save power". I am not exactly sure why this should help, but I'll try it anyway. So far thanks

REVISION: Didn't help. Any other hint, please?

 

Please, people? Really noone has the same problem?

 

Dell also should have given you a Vista disc with the laptop. That is a plain, untampered copy of Vista. If you reinstall then you can install drivers that Dell hasn't approved. Not that I'm necessarily recommending that part. I've actually had some problems when I've installed unapproved drivers. (Nothing I couldn't undo though.) But still, a fresh, bloatware-free install wouldn't hurt. I also suggest disabling any unused devices in Device Manager. (This may include modem, firewire, smart card, expresscard, etc.)

Also, if any devices have an option in Device Manager like "Allow this device to wake the computer from sleep", uncheck it.

 

Yes, I've got the disc. I am just not entirely sure if it's totally untampered since with my previous laptops all the system installation CDs were slightly modified. I will consider this as a possibility, but it seems a little too radical for me. Thank you.

BTW I have checked the Error Reporting Tool and unexpected resets were caused by Marvell Yukon Fast Ethernet Controller and Intel WiFi Controller... Who would have known...

BTW2: Original Dell ethernet driver returns Error 2738 when installing. The tech support guy tells me that he will not assist me since I haven't bought software tech support. I start to think Dell sucks more than expected.

 

I got this problem with the last Vista update. I don't think its the update itself, but a conflict between the update and something else. Either way I did a system restore to 2 weeks before the issue and turn off automattic updates (but, they will go back on in a month or two when I really want to solve the issue).

Is this a new issue, or has happened since you got your laptop?

 

Sad thing is that it's not a new issue. It always starts happening about a month after I renew the system (I have done so about 3 times, including the initial start). It might be update connected.

What is even more peculiar is the fact that my roommate with Fujitsu Siemens & Vista is experiencing the very same problem. Firstly I thought it was because Dell messed the system up (no wonder they did), but it may be generally a Vista problem.

 

I have the same problem. anybody found a solution?

 

Check the event log. Vista will log any driver issue when entering sleep mode.

 

On my machine with a 965 chipset it was the onboard NIC card keeping the computer from fully sleeping. I'm running Vista x64 on that machine, but the problem existed in x86...as I recently switched to 64-bit.

Download the latest NIC driver (wireless and wired if possible) and check the power management settings. There are a lot more settings in the latest iteration that should keep the NIC from preventing sleep mode.