How to disable the power saving of the USB ports on my PC?

Owned by Yan Mu
Last updated: Apr 20, 2023 by Hamdy Atakora (Unlicensed)Version comment
2 min read

Problem:

When I swipe a card through my USB card reader, I hear it beep, but I don't get data into my app or Notepad. This happens after the system sits idle for a while. I can unplug and re-plugin the reader to get it working again.


Solution:

A. This may be due to the USB ports power saving is triggered.  If so, you can follow the steps below to disable the USB Selective Suspend on your PC. 

 

 

  1. Got to Control Panel>System & Security (if Windows 10)>Power Options>Change Plan Settings for the currently selected power plan (see below for Vista screen shots), for Win 7 and 10, the link is on the far right side of each plan option
  2. Click the Change advanced power setting link:

  3. For Vista, select the Disabled option under USB Settings>USB Selective suspend setting 
    For Win 7 PC and Win 10, select the "Disabled" under USB Settings>USB Selective suspend setting>Plugged In