You may already be familiar with Sleep mode, when selected when shutdown, your computer’s current state (including all running applications, open windows, and temporary settings) is saved to RAM and your computer enters Low Power Mode.
If you’re using a laptop, there’s still a small battery drain to conserve RAM, but your entire desktop is restored almost instantly when you wake it up again.
The hibernate mode is similar, all the same system settings are saved to a file on your computer’s hard drive or SSD, which requires no power to maintain, then the computer shuts down completely, and when you restart the computer, all applications are restored and your windows completely, but without the constant battery drain imposed by “Sleep” mode.
The ‘hibernate’ mode is also somewhat safer, as no power outage or completely running out of the battery will cause you to lose any work.
How to enable ‘hibernate’ mode in Windows 11
Microsoft removed the mode from the normal shutdown menu, so you’ll need to enable it for use.
1. Click the “Start” button, then type “Control Panel”, then click Control Panel when you see it appear in the search results.
2. Click on System and Security.
3. In the Power Options section, tap Change what the power buttons do.
4. In the Define power buttons and turn on password protection section, click Change settings that are currently unavailable.
5. In the Shutdown Settings section, tap the check box for Hibernate.
6. Click Save Changes.
How to set a time to start ‘hibernate’ mode in Windows 11
You can set your computer to ‘hibernate’ automatically after a certain period of inactivity in the same way you can set your computer to sleep automatically.
1. Click on the “Start” button, type “control panel”, and click on “Control Panel” when you see it appear in the search results.
2. Click on System and Security.
3. Click on Power Options.
4. To the right of the currently selected power plan, tap Change plan settings.
5. On the Edit plan settings page, click on Change advanced power settings.
6. In the Power Options dialog, click the plus sign to the left of Sleep to expand these options.
7. Expand Hibernate after.
8. You can now choose the timing settings you prefer when the computer sleeps, and you can set different times when the computer is running on battery and when it is plugged in.