Command or setting to force monitor on?

[Harko]

Hi all,

I have two scheduled tasks: One to have wizmo force the computer to standby
at 10 pm, the other to start Internet Explorer at 6:15 am to wake the
computer from standby.

Both tasks work fine, but upon wakeup, the monitor doesn't turn on. I have
to move the mouse to wake up the monitor.

This isn't really a problem at all obviously as I have to move the mouse
anyway; more of a discussion point/loose end to tie up:

Is there something to run at the command line to force the monitor to turn
on? That way I could put the IE startup and the monitor wakeup command in a
batch file and run that instead at 6:15. If not, is there some setting
somewhere that will ensure the monitor wakes up when the computer does?

Thanks!

 

[Pegasus \(MVP\)]

Hi all,

I have two scheduled tasks: One to have wizmo force the computer to
standby
at 10 pm, the other to start Internet Explorer at 6:15 am to wake the
computer from standby.

Both tasks work fine, but upon wakeup, the monitor doesn't turn on. I have
to move the mouse to wake up the monitor.

This isn't really a problem at all obviously as I have to move the mouse
anyway; more of a discussion point/loose end to tie up:

Is there something to run at the command line to force the monitor to turn
on? That way I could put the IE startup and the monitor wakeup command in
a
batch file and run that instead at 6:15. If not, is there some setting
somewhere that will ensure the monitor wakes up when the computer does?

Thanks!

I would try launching an application after the wakeup, e.g. this command.
It will run for some 30 seconds.
ping.exe localhost -n 30

 

[Harko]

Thanks Pegasus.

I set up a .cmd file to run the ping command you suggested and then tested
it by setting it to run a minute after the IE start task.

But the monitor still stayed off past the time I set the ping cmd file to
run until I jiggled the mouse; I just caught sight of the the command line
window as it finished the ping sequence and closed.

Any other ideas?

Cheers,
Harko

 

[Pegasus \(MVP\)]

You could issue some keystrokes with a .vbs program. The
code below, when invoked, will do this:
- Pause for 20 seconds
- Invoke the Task Scheduler
- Pause for 10 seconds
- Send the keystrokes Alt+F4 to close the Task Manager

You should copy the lines below into c:\Windows\Keystrokes.vbs,
then insert this command into your wakeup script:
cscript c:\Windows\Keystrokes.vbs

Set WsShell=CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
WScript.Sleep(20000)
WsShell.Run("TaskMgr.exe")
WScript.Sleep(10000)
WsShell.sendkeys("%{F4}")

 

[Harko]

Feels like we're on the right track but not quite there. I created the script
file and tested it okay, Task Manager opened and then closed ten seconds
later.

I set up a batch file containing the commands to first start IE, then run
the keystrokes script. That didn't work because IE wanted my input (no
internet connection due to just coming out of standby) before the batch file
could move to the keystrokes command.

So I changed the batch file to just this:

c:\Windows\Keystrokes.vbs
cmd

so that the command window wouldn't close right away and I could see how far
the batch file got.

Still no luck; the script runs, but the keystrokes issued in the script
weren't enough to send output to the monitor and the screen stayed dark even
though the batch file showed complete when I jiggled the mouse to turn on the
screen.

This is kinda fun, trying to track down a solution that doesn't really have
a problem. )

 

[CurtB]

Harko, have you thought about hibernating your machine overnight instead of
using standby? I don't know if it would make a differece for you, but it
works for me. I have a scheduled task that opens an Internet radio site to
wake my machine from hibernation in the morning. When I get up in the
morning, the PC and monitor are on and the Internet radio station is playing.
Curt

 

[Harko]

Thanks Curt.

I've tried Hibernation vs. Standby in the past, but for some reason, my
wireless connection cannot automatically reconnect after waking from
Hibernation, and I have to repair the connection. It has no trouble
reconnecting after waking from Standby. Seems like there's always a tradeoff.
I might try it though just to see if it turns on the monitor for me like it
does for you. If it does so, I might go that route and see if there's a
script or command I can run to have the connection repair automatically.

Thanks for the suggestion!

 

[CurtB]

Harko, I just set that same scheduled task to start in a couple of minutes
and then put the machine in standby to see if there was any difference
between standby and hibernation. When the task ran, it woke the machine and
the monitor display came on, same as when waking from hibernation. Curt

 

[Harko]

Hmmm, I wonder now whether it's a hardware/driver issue? Maybe your computer
and monitor support waking the monitor whereas mine do not? The MVP at the
bleeping computer forum I've been working with on this thought it might be a
monitor driver functionality item.

I'll try waking from Hibernate in a bit. Is your Internet radio station
scheduled task through a browser or a media player or...?

 

[CurtB]

It's through the browser.

Hmmm, I wonder now whether it's a hardware/driver issue? Maybe your computer
and monitor support waking the monitor whereas mine do not? The MVP at the
bleeping computer forum I've been working with on this thought it might be a
monitor driver functionality item.

I'll try waking from Hibernate in a bit. Is your Internet radio station
scheduled task through a browser or a media player or...?