The power light illuminates and blinks
or remains solid to indicate
different states:
No light — The computer is turned off (S4, S5, or mechanical OFF)
Steady green — The computer is in a normal operating state
Blinking green — The computer is in a power-saving state (S1 or S3)
Blinking or solid amber — See "Power Problems"
If the power light is steady amber — The computer is receiving
electrical power, but an internal power problem might exist.
Ensure that the microprocessor power cable is securely connected to the
system board.
Power state | ACPI state | Description |
---|---|---|
Working | S0 | The system is fully usable. Hardware components that are not in use can save power by entering a lower power state. |
Sleep
(Modern Standby) |
S0 low-power idle | Some SoC systems support a low-power idle state known as Modern Standby. In this state, the system can very quickly switch from a low-power state to high-power state, so that it can respond quickly to hardware and network events. Systems that support Modern Standby do not use S1-S3. |
Sleep |
S1
S2
S3 |
The system appears to be off.
Power consumed in these states (S1-S3) is less than S0 and more
than S4; S3 consumes less power than S2, and S2 consumes less
power than S1. Systems typically support one of these three
states, not all three.
In these states (S1-S3), volatile
memory is kept refreshed to maintain the system state. Some
components remain powered so the computer can wake from input from
the keyboard, LAN, or a USB device.
Hybrid sleep, used on
desktops, is where a system uses a hibernation file with S1-S3.
The hibernation file saves the system state in case the system
loses power while in sleep.
Note SoC systems that support
modern standby (the low-power idle state) do not use S1-S3. |
Hibernate | S4 |
The system appears to be off.
Power consumption is reduced to the lowest level. The system saves
the contents of volatile memory to a hibernation file to preserve
system state. Some components remain powered so the computer can
wake from input from the keyboard, LAN, or a USB device. The
working context can be restored if it is stored on nonvolatile
media.
Fast startup is where the user is logged off before
the hibernation file is created. This allows for a smaller
hibernation file, more appropriate for systems with less storage
capabilities. |
Soft Off | S5 | The system appears to be off. This state is comprised of a full shutdown and boot cycle. |
Mechanical Off | G3 | The system is completely off and consumes no power. The system returns to the working state only after a full reboot. |