Power plans: Frequently asked questions
A power plan is a collection of hardware and system settings (like display, sleep, etc.) that manages how your PC uses power. The power plans you can use depend on the kind of PC you have.
Here are answers to some common questions about power plans for PCs that support connected standby—these include all Windows RT and certain Windows 8 PCs.
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The only power plan that Windows provides for PCs with connected standby is Balanced. This plan offers full performance when you need it and saves power when you don't. You can customize this further to meet your needs or create your own plan (using Balanced as a starting point). Your PC manufacturer might also provide additional power plans.
Yes. You can create and customize your own power plans.
Open Power Options by swiping in from the right edge of the screen, tapping Search (or if you're using a mouse, pointing to the upper-right corner of the screen, moving the mouse pointer down, and then clicking Search), entering Control Panel in the search box, tapping or clicking Apps, and then tapping or clicking Control Panel. In Control Panel, enter Power in the search box, and then press Enter.
Tap or click Create a power plan and follow the instructions.
The only power plans you can delete are the ones you create and those provided by the PC manufacturer—you can't delete the Balanced plan, or the plan that you're currently using.
Also, you might not have the required permissions to delete a plan because your system admin has restricted access to it.
Your user rights, restrictions imposed by your system admin, or your PC's hardware configuration might limit which settings you can change. For example, if your PC is part of a network at an organization—such as a school or business—your system admin might have turned off or even removed certain settings. In that case, ask your administrator for help.
If you're connected to a PC using Remote Desktop Connection, you must be signed in as an administrator on the remote PC to change its power settings.
Open Power Options by swiping in from the right edge of the screen, tapping Search (or if you're using a mouse, pointing to the upper-right corner of the screen, moving the mouse pointer down, and then clicking Search), entering Control Panel in the search box, tapping or clicking Apps, and then tapping or clicking Control Panel. In Control Panel, enter Power in the search box, and then press Enter.
Tap or click Choose what the power button does and under Shutdown settings, choose the options you want to add.
You'll then see these options in the Power menu when you shut down your PC. For more info, see How do I shut down (turn off) my PC?
Fast startup is a setting that helps your PC start up faster after shutdown. Windows does this by saving system info to a file upon shutdown. When you start your PC again, Windows uses that system info to resume your PC instead of restarting it.
Here are answers to some common questions about power plans for all other PCs.
Windows provides the following plans:
Balanced. Offers full performance when you need it and saves power when you don't. This is the best power plan for most people.
Power saver. Saves power by reducing PC performance and screen brightness. If you're using a laptop, this plan can help you get the most from a single battery charge.
High performance. Maximizes screen brightness and might increase PC performance. This plan uses a lot more energy, so your laptop battery won't last as long between charges.
Note
High performance doesn't appear on the battery meter by default. To turn on High performance, open Power Options by swiping in from the right edge of the screen, tapping Search (or if you're using a mouse, pointing to the upper-right corner of the screen, moving the mouse pointer down, and then clicking Search), entering Power Options in the search box, tapping or clicking Settings, and then tapping or clicking Power Options. Tap or click Show additional plans, and then choose High performance.
If these plans don't meet your needs, you can create your own, using one of these plans as a starting point. Your PC manufacturer might also provide additional power plans.
If you're using a laptop, click the battery icon
in the notification area, at the far right of the taskbar, and then choose one of the power plans—Balanced or Power saver—that appear on the battery meter by default. Your PC manufacturer might provide additional plans and might customize the battery meter.
Battery meter showing power plansIf you aren't using a laptop, or if you want to use a power plan that isn't on the battery meter, do the following:
Open Power Options by swiping in from the right edge of the screen, tapping Search (or if you're using a mouse, pointing to the upper-right corner of the screen, moving the mouse pointer down, and then clicking Search), entering Control Panel in the search box, tapping or clicking Apps, and then tapping or clicking Control Panel. In Control Panel, enter Power in the search box, and then press Enter.
Choose the one you want to use.
If you don't see the power plan you want, tap or click Show additional plans.
Yes. You can create and customize your own power plans.
Open Power Options by swiping in from the right edge of the screen, tapping Search (or if you're using a mouse, pointing to the upper-right corner of the screen, moving the mouse pointer down, and then clicking Search), entering Control Panel in the search box, tapping or clicking Apps, and then tapping or clicking Control Panel. In Control Panel, enter Power in the search box, and then press Enter.
Tap or click Create a power plan and follow the instructions.
Windows chooses the two power plans that appear on the meter, but you can change them.
To change the power plans that appear on the battery meter
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Open Power Options by swiping in from the right edge of the screen, tapping Search (or if you're using a mouse, pointing to the upper-right corner of the screen, moving the mouse pointer down, and then clicking Search), entering Control Panel in the search box, tapping or clicking Apps, and then tapping or clicking Control Panel. In Control Panel, enter Power in the search box, and then press Enter.
Do one of the following:
On the Select a power plan page, tap or click Additional plans, and then select a plan.
Create a new power plan. For more info, see the "Can I create a power plan?" question in this topic.
By default, the power plan that you select or create becomes the active plan and it then appears on the battery meter.
The only power plans you can delete are the ones you create and those provided by the PC manufacturer. You can't delete the Balanced, Power saver, or High performance plans, or the plan that you're currently using.
Also, you might not have the required permissions to delete a plan because your system admin has restricted access to it.
Your user rights, restrictions imposed by your system admin, or your PC's hardware configuration might limit which settings you can change. For example, if your PC is part of a network at an organization—such as a school or business—your system admin might have turned off or even removed certain settings. In that case, ask your administrator for help.
If you're connected to a PC using Remote Desktop Connection, you must be signed in as an administrator on the remote PC to change its power settings.
Open Power Options by swiping in from the right edge of the screen, tapping Search (or if you're using a mouse, pointing to the upper-right corner of the screen, moving the mouse pointer down, and then clicking Search), entering Control Panel in the search box, tapping or clicking Apps, and then tapping or clicking Control Panel. In Control Panel, enter Power in the search box, and then press Enter.
Tap or click Choose what the power button does and under Shutdown settings, choose the options you want to add.
You'll then see these options in the Power menu when you shut down your PC. For more info, see How do I shut down (turn off) my PC?
Fast startup is a setting that helps your PC start up faster after shutdown. Windows does this by saving system info to a file upon shutdown. When you start your PC again, Windows uses that system info to resume your PC instead of restarting it.
