PSStandby

PSStandby is a small PowerShell module that puts Windows into standby.

It supports:

• S0 low-power idle (Modern Standby)
• S3 standby (classic sleep)
• S4 hibernation
• Optional delay before entering standby
• Aborting if input is detected
• Running from session 0 (for example, via Task Scheduler)

Exported command

• Enter-Standby

Requirements

• Windows PowerShell 5.1 or PowerShell 7+
• Windows system that supports S0ix or S3
• PsExec must be available in the system-wide PATH environment variable when running via Scheduled Task (session 0).

Why PsExec is required for scheduled tasks

When Enter-Standby runs in session 0, the module uses psexec to invoke standby logic in an interactive user session. If psexec is not in the machine-level PATH, scheduled tasks may fail to enter standby.

Basic usage

Import-Module PSStandby

# Enter standby immediately
Enter-Standby

# Wait 30 seconds, then enter standby
Enter-Standby -DelaySeconds 30

# Enter standby after 30 seconds if no input is detected
Enter-Standby -DelaySeconds 30 -AbortOnInput

# Hibernate immediately
Enter-Standby -Hibernate

Scheduled Task note

If your task runs as SYSTEM (or another non-interactive account), confirm psexec.exe is discoverable from that context via the system-wide PATH.