How To Keep a Mac From Sleeping

You walk away from your Mac for a brief moment, and within a blink of an eye, it’s sleeping. Your feelings about this can range from mildly annoyed to completely frustrated. Sleep mode is used to save power, but it can sometimes just get in the way.

This article will discuss how to keep your Mac from going into sleep mode under several scenarios. Thankfully, there’s an easy fix to this irritating feature.

Keeping Your Mac From Sleeping

There’s a simple method to change how and when your Mac decides it’s time to go into sleep mode. You can set this by checking its setting in your Mac’s system preferences. To learn how to do this, follow the steps outlined below.

1. Tap on the Apple icon in the upper-left corner.
   
2. From the dropdown menu, select “System Preferences.”
   
3. Locate and depending on your iOS, select “Energy Saver” or “Battery.”
   
4. In the pop-up window, drag the slider all the way to the right towards where it says “Never.”
   
5. Tap the box next to “Prevent computer from sleeping automatically when the display is off.”
   
6. Ensure that “Put hard disks to sleep when possible” is unchecked.

Please note that your Mac will now use more energy than if you allow it to sleep after a specified amount of time.

Keeping Your Mac From Sleeping When the Lid is Closed

You may want to keep your MacBook from sleeping when the lid is closed. Doing so is necessary when you have your MacBook connected to an external monitor. Accomplishing this only takes a few straightforward steps and is similar to doing it on a Mac desktop. To do so, follow these instructions.

1. Click on the Apple icon located in the left-hand corner of the screen.
   
2. Choose “System Preferences” from the dropdown menu.
   
3. Depending on which iOS you have, choose either “Battery” or “Energy Saver.”
   
4. In the pop-up window, click the box next to “Prevent your Mac from automatically sleeping when the display is off.”
   
5. Using the slider at the top of the window, click and drag it to the far right by the word “Never.”
   

Apps to Keep Your Mac from Sleeping

There are several apps you can download that monitor your Mac’s sleep mode. Some also have additional features, such as determining if other apps are interfering with how a Mac sleeps. Listed below are a few of the most popular ones.

Owly

Owly is a menu bar utility that will prevent your Mac from going into sleep mode. Its simple and easy-to-use interface operates with a simple on/off toggle switch.

Lungo

Lungo will prevent your Mac’s screen from dimming or going to sleep. Once installed, just right-click the Lungo icon in the taskbar and turn it on.

Wimoweh

Wimoweh is another popular menu bar app that helps stop your Mac from sleeping. It’ll also aid you in your search to see if other apps you have are allowing your Mac to go into sleep mode. A nice feature is that you can set it to only stay awake when certain apps are running and allow your Mac to go to sleep once they’ve finished.

Sleep Control Centre

Sleep Control Centre will stop your Mac from going to sleep and is another choice when it comes to app-based control of your Mac’s sleeping habits.

Amphetamine

The Amphetamine app will stop your Mac from going into sleep mode and features a straightforward on/off toggle switch. It will allow your Mac to stay active during downloads and will then slip into sleep mode once it’s complete.

Keeping Your Mac From Sleeping While Downloading

Downloading will stop when your Mac goes into sleep mode. If you have a particularly long download, it’s inconvenient to have to sit there and move your mouse or tap your touchscreen to keep your Mac awake. A much better option is to change your sleep settings in your Mac’s system preferences. To learn how, follow these steps.

1. Click on the Apple icon in the upper-left corner.
   
2. Tap “System Preferences” from the dropdown menu.
   
3. Depending on your iOS, select “Energy Saver” or “Battery.”
   
4. In the pop-up window, drag the slider to the far right where it says “Never.”
   
5.  Place a checkmark in the box next to “Prevent computer from sleeping automatically when the display is off.”
   
6. Make sure “Put hard disks to sleep when possible” is unchecked.

FAQ

What is a Power Nap on a Mac?

Power Nap is available on Mac’s flash memory. This feature allows certain functions to continue even after your Mac goes to sleep. Which functions will continue depends on whether you are using battery power or if you’re plugged into a power adapter.

While running on battery power and your Mac is asleep, Power Nap will continue to check for new mail messages, update your events in your calendar, and some do iCloud functions.

When your Mac is asleep and plugged into a power adapter, Power Nap will continue downloading software updates.

What is the purpose of a Mac going to sleep?

Sleep mode’s main purpose is to save energy during idle times. It’s easier to keep your Mac on while it’s in low energy mode (sleeping) than it is to shut it down. Turning your Mac on takes much more time than it does to wiggle its mouse or tap the touchscreen. With models that have the Power Nap feature, you can save energy and still allow software updates to occur.

Keep Your Mac Awake All Day and All Night

No longer will you be forced to move your mouse or tap your touchscreen to stop your Mac from sleeping. Either with the use of apps or a few simple changes to your system settings, you can keep your Mac awake. This is especially useful when you have a long download or system update.

Have you needed to keep your Mac from sleeping? Did you follow the steps discussed in this article? Let us know in the comments section below.