problem with sleep mode

There is a problem with the sleep mode. This problem occurs a couple of times a week. When i try to get the computer out of sleep mode, it looks like the computer gets out, but the monitor does not. Instead there is a message on the screen going up and down which is the same message as when you turn on the monitor to go on the computer. I keep turning the computer on and off but that made no difference. I had to unplug the power cord to the computer and plug it back in to make it work. What is the problem and how can i fix it?

 

Hi merlinone. Sorry I can't give you an exact cause for this but I will offer some suggestions.

First off, the problem almost certainly is not with your monitor. It would be interesting (but no good way to tell that I know of) to know if the mouse and keyboard stayed in sleep mode as well.

However, it could be any of (or a combination)
- BIOS needs an update
- Video drivers need an update
- Video card isn't fully XP compatible
- ACPI (Advanced Configuration and Power Interface) and CPU firmware may not match up properly (which hopefully a BIOS update would fix)

I think the first thing I'd try since it's simple and harmless would be to set either the network card to Wake on LAN or the modem card to Wake on Ring. These are similar and for your purposes will serve to put the system into a lighter sleep state than it uses now. If that doesn't help, you can always turn the feature off.

Next would be to get and install the latest video drivers. If you have the latest, I'd replace them anyway in case one is bad and then remove the video card from device manager and reboot to let the PC re-detect the video card and force it to use your new drivers.

Next (if neither of those helps) would be to get the latest BIOS version and update your system.

If none of that works, you are pretty much down to either trying a different video card or using Hibernate rather than Sleep.