How To Stop Your Mouse From Waking Up Windows

If you’re like most people, you probably have your computer set to go to sleep after a period of inactivity. However, sometimes the mouse or keyboard can accidentally wake up the computer, causing it to use unnecessary power and potentially disrupting your work.

Luckily, there’s an easy way to prevent this from happening.

This article will show you how to stop the mouse from waking up your Windows PC using several methods.

Stop a Mouse Waking Up Windows

Your computer’s ability to wake up from sleep mode can be useful or irritating, depending on the situation.

When it’s useful, it’s because you can get access to something you need right away without having to wait for your computer to start up. For example, if you receive an email or message while your computer is asleep, you can simply touch your mouse or press a key on the keyboard. Your computer will turn on so you can read it without delay.

However, this behavior can also be irritating, for instance, when trying to keep your monitor turned off. Even if you brush the mouse accidentally, the computer will wake up as the monitor lights up.

Fortunately, Windows provides you with ways to disable the mouse from waking up your computer.

Let’s see how each works depending on the version of Windows installed on your machine.

Disable Mouse Wake Up Windows 10

If you’re running Windows 10, there are two different ways to stop the mouse from waking up your computer.

Disabling Mouse Wake Up via Mouse Properties Windows 10

The Mouse Properties window is a control panel that allows you to change how your mouse works.

To stop your mouse from waking up your computer while on sleep mode:

1. Click on the Windows logo in the bottom left corner and type “Mouse” into the search bar.
   
2. Select the “Open” button to open mouse settings.
   
3. Go to “Additional mouse options” under “Related Settings.” This should open the mouse properties window.
   
4. Switch to the “Hardware” tab located in the top right corner of the mouse properties window.
   
5. Select the mouse you wish to control from the list and then click on “Properties.”
   
6. Click on “Change Settings” and open the “Power Management” tab.
   
7. Unmark the box next to “allow this device to wake the computer.”
   

And that’s it! Your mouse will now be insensitive to touch when your computer is in sleep mode. However, this won’t affect its other properties, including wheel speed, pointer speed, precision, and button configuration.

Disabling Mouse Wake Up via the Device Manager Windows 10

If you have a Windows computer, you may have noticed that the mouse wakes up the screen (and your machine by extension) even when it’s bumped accidentally. This can be annoying, especially if you’re in the middle of working on something away from your machine and don’t want to be interrupted. Thankfully, there’s a way to stop the mouse from doing this via the Device Manager. Here’s how:

1. Open the Device Manager via the Start menu or by pressing “Windows + R” and then typing “devmgmt.msc.”
   
2. Double-click on “Mice and other pointing devices.”
   
3. Right-click on your mouse and select “Properties.”
   
4. Go to the “Power Management” tab and uncheck the box next to “Allow this device to wake up the computer.”
   
5. Click “OK” to save your changes.
   

Now, your mouse should no longer wake up your Windows computer. If you ever need to reverse these changes, follow the steps above and check the box next to “Allow this device to wake up the computer.”

Disable Mouse Wake Up Windows 11

Some computer users find disabling the mouse wake-up feature on their Windows 11 machines helpful. This can be done via the Device Manager or the Mouse Properties window. However, it doesn’t always solve the problem. This is because the touchpad/mouse can often emulate the keyboard as well. Therefore, you need to disable wake on both.

Also, the manufacturer may have custom software/firmware that alters the typical sleep setup, such as on many laptops. There may be no way to prevent the mousepad (instead of a mouse) from waking your PC unless you disable it.

With the factors above, here’s one possible solution for Windows PCs that may or may not work on a laptop.

Disabling Mouse Wake Up via the Device Manager Windows 11

If you use a Windows 11 computer, you may want to disable the “mouse wake up” feature to avoid exiting sleep mode early. You can disable it via the Device Manager, but you may need to disable wake on the keyboard settings too.

The steps are as follows:

1. Open “Device Manager” by right-clicking the Windows icon at the bottom or type “devmgmt.msc” in the Run dialogue box and press “Enter.”
   
2. Click on “Mice and other pointing devices” in “Device Manager.”
   
3. Right-click on your mouse, usually “HID-compliant mouse,” in the list of devices.
   
4. Select “Properties” from the menu that appears.
   
5. Click the “Power Management” tab.
   
6. Uncheck the box next to “Allow this device to wake the computer.”
   
7. Click “OK” to save the changes.
   
8. Return to the “Device Manager” and click on “Keyboards.”
9. Right-click on your keyboard, usually “HID keyboard device.”
10. Choose “Properties.”
11. Click the “Power Management” tab.
12. Uncheck the box next to “Allow this device to wake the computer.”
13. Click “OK” to save the changes.

You should now find that your mouse will no longer wake your computer when you move it around. If the above steps don’t solve your mouse waking PC issue, try the next one.

Disabling Mouse Wake Up via Mouse Properties Windows 11

On a Windows 11 PC, you can disable the mouse wake-up feature via the Mouse Properties window. Here’s how:

1. Open the Start menu and type “mouse” into the search box.
   
2. Click on the “Mouse settings” link that appears in the search results.
   
3. Go to the “Hardware” tab.
   
4. Select your mouse from the list of devices and click the “Properties” button.
   
5. Click on “Power Management.”
   
6. Uncheck the box next to “Allow this device to wake up the computer.”
   
7. Click on the “OK” button.
   

You should now find that your mouse can no longer wake your computer from sleep mode. If it does wake the PC, repeat the steps for the keyboard device and see if that helps.

How to Stop the Touchpad From Waking Up Windows via the Device Manager

When it comes to pointing devices, there are two main camps: mouse users and touchpad users.

Mouse users appreciate a mouse’s precision, especially when it comes to tasks like graphic design or gaming. They also find it more comfortable to use for extended periods. Touchpad users, on the other hand, appreciate its compactness and portability. They also find it easier to use with laptops, as they don’t require an additional surface.

But the bottom line is that both devices work the same and, by default, are designed to help you disable sleep mode and resume your work quickly instead of restarting your computer from a shutdown.

If you don’t want your touchpad to wake up Windows when you accidentally brush it with your palm, you can fix this problem by changing its settings in the Device Manager. Once again, you may also need to adjust the wake option for the keyboard.

To do this:

1. Open “Device Manager” by pressing “Windows + X” and clicking on “Device Manager.”
   
2. Find the touchpad in the list of devices and double-click on it to open its “Properties” window.
   
3. Go to the “Power Management” tab and uncheck the box next to “Allow this device to wake up the computer.”
   

Preventing Accidental Wake Ups on Your Windows PC

If you’re tired of your computer waking up from sleep mode every time you accidentally brush the mouse, use the tricks above to disable that specific function without changing its other properties.

However, remember that the keyboard, touchpad, and power button can also interrupt sleep mode, so you should probably disable wake on them too.