What is Modern Standby and how does it differ from S3 Standby

Affected Operating Systems:

• Windows

Microsoft introduced Modern Standby in 2012 to improve battery life and the transition between power states, allowing Windows computers to transition between on or off states faster, like your smartphone does.

When you wake up your phone, it is instantly ready to go. Your email, messages, and notifications are up to date because, even with your phone asleep, it is still connected and updating itself, all without a big hit to the battery life. Modern Standby is Microsoft's effort to bring similar instant-on readiness to Windows.

Technical differences:

S3, the traditional standby model triggers the computer to power down the CPU along with all power-consuming components and devices while data are retained in the system memory (RAM). The computer only knows two states: On and off, the path to sleep takes longer with the computer waiting until all components are powered off.

Modern Standby in comparison uses a gradual process to increase battery life. Components are powered off when they are not used, allowing a quicker transition between sleep and resume.

User Experience:

Modern Standby computers show some distinct behaviors compared to S3 when operating on battery.

Hibernation: The computer hibernates automatically based on battery drainage by monitoring the Battery Tipping Point (BTP). Users can change the hibernation time out manually in Windows Advanced Power Options.

Display brightness: Display brightness adjusts automatically, based on battery level.

Resume: The computer resumes from Modern Standby by.

• Pressing the power button briefly or opening the lid
• Wake words for a personal assistant (for example Cortana or Alexa for PC)
• Connecting and removing devices
• Network signals from Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and Ethernet
• System approach (walk up) if the computer is equipped with a Near Field Proximity (NFP) sensor

Screen Flicker: Some users describe screen flickering when the computer resumes from stand by. This can occur when the device is equipped with an HDR capable screen. Once the computer reaches the desktop, the computer should be back to full screen resolution, and any "flickering" should cease.

How can I mitigate issues with Modern Standby behavior?

• Depending on the computer model, you can disable C-State Transitions or C-State in the BIOS.
• Alternatively, the device behavior can be altered by modifying the PlatformAoAcOverride setting in Windows Wake on Touch - Windows IoT | Microsoft Docs

How can I validate that my computer is configured as Modern Standby?

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/design/device-experiences/overview-of-modern-standby-validation

Related Articles:

• Modern Standby vs S3 - (Microsoft) https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/design/device-experiences/modern-standby-vs-s3
• Wake Source - User Experience (Microsoft) - https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/design/device-experiences/modern-standby-wake-sources
• Shut down, Sleep, Hibernate, or Change the Power Plan in Windows 11 and Windows 10