Windows 8.1 causes external hard drives to auto-sleep?

Anonymous
2013-10-27T07:38:58+00:00

My 2 external hard drives are always active as I have disabled auto sleep. I didn't have this problem way since Windows 7, but after upgrading to Windows 8.1 from Windows 8, my 2 external hard drives will automatically went to sleep around 10 minutes of inactivity. I have tried the power options, device manager options, but to no avail. Any help? Thanks. 

I'm using NoSleepHD as a temporary fix but I hope there's a permanent fix for this.

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Devices and drivers

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

0 comments
Answer accepted by question author
Anonymous
2013-11-01T15:32:42+00:00

Thanks for the trace. We will analyze and get back to you. We published a blog on this yesterday to bring awareness and get help from the community to root-cause the issue. We think this is all due to suspending the device when idle which we never used to do in previous OSes. We will find out if this turns out to be something else.

http://blogs.msdn.com/b/usbcoreblog/archive/2013/11/01/help-after-installing-windows-8-1-my-usb-drive-disappears-or-file-transfers-stop-unexpectedly-r-a-post-title.aspx

Was this answer helpful?

1 person found this answer helpful.
0 comments

164 additional answers

Sort by: Newest
Most helpful Newest Oldest
  1. Anonymous
    2014-10-15T22:06:07+00:00

    I have the same problem with an Aegis Padlock Pro using the Surface Pro 3 - no power options for USB available.  The drive sleeps in 1 -2 minutes and I have to re-enter the code on the drive to reconnect to the system.

    Update

    This solution using the referenced Powershell script solved my issue with the drive sleeping:

    http://blogs.msdn.com/b/usbcoreblog/archive/2013/11/01/help-after-installing-windows-8-1-my-usb-drive-disappears-or-file-transfers-stop-unexpectedly-r-a-post-title.aspx

    The update to windows referenced at the beginning was installed but the drive was still sleeping before I ran the Powershell script.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  2. Anonymous
    2014-10-14T21:52:51+00:00

    I have the same problem with an Aegis Padlock Pro using the Surface Pro 3 - no power options for USB available.  The drive sleeps in 1 -2 minutes and I have to re-enter the code on the drive to reconnect to the system.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  3. Anonymous
    2014-10-09T17:36:11+00:00

    Any update on this? My SimpleTech external USB drive literally powers off and on every few seconds.  It is attached to my Surface Pro 3, which does NOT have power options available for drives.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  4. Anonymous
    2014-08-18T22:47:03+00:00

    I think you don't have the usb settings etc. because you are using surface pro.On laptops it look likes this :)

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments