Miya Pearson
If you want to keep your MacBook awake while it's connected to an external monitor, there are several methods you can try. One way is to use a third-party app such as Amphetamine or InsomniaX to prevent your MacBook from sleeping without an external monitor. Alternatively, you can adjust your system settings: go to 'System Settings' or 'System Preferences', click 'Lock Screen', then select 'Never' for 'Turn display off on power adapter when inactive'. If you don't see that option, go to 'Battery' or 'Energy Saver' and select 'Never' under 'Turn display off on battery when inactive'. You can also enable ''Prevent automatic sleeping on power adapter when the display is off' and 'Wake for network access' in your settings. Another option is to set up hot corners and screensavers to trigger when you're away from your MacBook.
How to set a MacBook with a monitor without sleep
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Stop MacBook from sleeping when the lid is closed | Go to System Settings or System Preferences > Lock Screen > Turn display off on power adapter when inactive > Never. Then, go to Battery > Options. Turn on Prevent automatic sleeping on power adapter when the display is off |
| Wake MacBook from sleep without opening the lid | Click or move the mouse or tap on the keyboard |
| Schedule MacBook to turn on or off | Open Terminal and enter one of the following pmset commands: pmset -g sched (See the current schedule). sudo pmset repeat wake M 8:00:00 (Schedule your Mac to wake at 8:00 a.m. every Monday). sudo pmset repeat cancel (Cancel the current schedule) |
| Prevent MacBook from sleeping without plugging in an external monitor | Install a third-party app, like Amphetamine |
| Keyboard shortcut to turn off the MacBook screen without sleeping | Control + Shift + Fn + Power |
| Keyboard shortcut to put MacBook to sleep | Cmd + Option + Eject |
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What You'll Learn
Using an external monitor with a MacBook
You can use an external display with your MacBook Pro, such as the Apple Studio Display, a projector, or a high-resolution TV. The number of external displays you can connect depends on your MacBook model. For instance, with the MacBook Pro with M4 Max, you can connect up to four external displays.
To connect an external monitor to your MacBook, first, connect the display to a power source. Next, use a video cable to connect the display to your MacBook. You can use a Thunderbolt or HDMI port for this. If your display's video cable requires a port that your MacBook doesn't have, try using an adapter with the video cable. Alternatively, replace the video cable with one that doesn't require an adapter.
Once your display is connected to a power source and your MacBook, you should see your Mac desktop on the display. You can then configure your display settings. If your display isn't detected or can't use its highest resolutions or refresh rates, you can refer to Apple's troubleshooting steps.
If you want to use your MacBook in closed-display mode (also known as "clamshell mode"), you can do so by attaching an external display. This mode disables the laptop's built-in screen to optimize graphics performance for driving multiple full-sized and high-resolution external displays.
To prevent your MacBook from sleeping when connected to an external monitor, you can adjust your sleep and wake settings. For example, you can set your MacBook to go to sleep after a specified duration of inactivity or set it to wake for network access. You can also prevent automatic sleeping by turning on "Prevent automatic sleeping on power adapter when the display is off."
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Preventing automatic sleeping on power adapter
To prevent your MacBook from automatically sleeping when plugged into a power adapter, you can adjust your sleep and wake settings.
Firstly, open your System Preferences. You can do this by clicking on the Apple logo in the top-left corner of your screen and selecting System Preferences from the drop-down menu. Once System Preferences is open, click on "Battery" or "Energy Saver".
Here, you will find various settings related to your MacBook's sleep and energy-saving behaviour. To prevent automatic sleeping when your MacBook is inactive but plugged in, look for the “Turn display off on power adapter when inactive" setting. Click on the pop-up menu next to it and choose an option that suits your needs, such as "After 15 minutes" or "Never".
Additionally, you can enable the “Prevent automatic sleeping on power adapter when the display is off" setting. This will keep your MacBook awake even when the display turns off due to inactivity.
If you use your MacBook with the lid closed and an external monitor, you may want to download an app like Amphetamine or Caffeinated from the Mac App Store. These apps can override your Energy Saver settings and keep your MacBook awake while the display is closed.
Another option to prevent your MacBook from sleeping is to set up hot corners. A hot corner is a feature that allows you to trigger your screensaver by moving your mouse pointer to a specific corner of your screen. This can be useful when you need to step away from your MacBook but want to keep it awake.
By adjusting these settings, you can prevent your MacBook from automatically sleeping when plugged into a power adapter and maintain its activity according to your preferences.
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Using hot corners and screensavers
To prevent your MacBook from sleeping, you can set up hot corners to trigger a screensaver. This feature is not enabled by default, so you must configure it in your System Preferences.
To set up hot corners, go to System Preferences and click on "Hot Corners". You will see a small window with four boxes, each corresponding to one of the four corners of your screen: top-left, top-right, bottom-right, and bottom-left. To add an action to a corner, click on the box for that corner and select an option from the menu.
To start the screensaver, you can set the mouse pointer to the top-left corner of your screen. You can also set the bottom-right corner to "Quick Note" to quickly jot down your thoughts. If you want to lock your screen, move the pointer to the top-right corner.
Additionally, you can set a black screensaver and use VNC to set the mouse pointer to the corner to engage the screensaver and dim the screen as much as possible until the sleep timer turns off the LCD lighting.
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Keyboard shortcuts for display sleep
Keyboard shortcuts are a handy way to put your Mac display to sleep without putting the whole computer to sleep. You can achieve this by pressing certain key combinations.
Firstly, you can set up a hot corner and a black screensaver. This involves using VNC to set the mouse pointer to the corner of your screen to activate a black screensaver, dimming your display until the sleep timer turns off the LCD lighting and data to your screen.
Another option is to use the following keyboard shortcut: Control + Shift + Fn + Power. This will put your display to sleep without affecting the rest of your system.
Additionally, you can set sleep and wake settings for your Mac. This includes specifying the duration of inactivity before your Mac goes to sleep and setting it to wake for network access. You can also prevent automatic sleeping when the display is off by turning on "Prevent automatic sleeping when the display is off" in your system settings.
It's worth noting that some keyboard shortcuts may not work with certain keyboards, such as the Touch ID power button on Apple's latest keyboards.
By utilizing these keyboard shortcuts and settings, you can efficiently manage the sleep and wake states of your Mac display while keeping the rest of your system active.
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Using third-party apps to keep MacBook awake
There are several third-party apps you can use to keep your MacBook awake. One such app is Amphetamine, which is a powerful and customizable keep-awake utility for macOS. It can keep your MacBook awake through a simple on/off switch or automatically through configurable triggers. Amphetamine also offers a range of features, including the ability to lock your Mac's screen after a period of inactivity, move the mouse cursor periodically, and allow your display to sleep while keeping your Mac awake. However, it is important to note that Amphetamine is not yet laptop-ready, and your MacBook may go to sleep when you close the lid even if the app is running.
Another option is to use keyboard shortcuts to prevent your MacBook from sleeping. For newer MacBooks without an "Eject" key, the combination is Control + Shift + Fn + Power. Alternatively, you can set up hot corners to trigger your screensaver and engage the screensaver when you're away from your Mac. This can be done by setting a hot corner and a black screensaver, so you can use VNC to set the mouse pointer to the corner to activate the screensaver.
Additionally, you can adjust your sleep and wake settings in your Mac settings. You can set your Mac to go to sleep after a specified duration of inactivity or set it to wake for network access. You can also prevent automatic sleeping by turning on "Prevent automatic sleeping on the power adapter when the display is off." These settings can be found in the "Energy Saver" or "System Preferences" section of your Mac settings.
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Frequently asked questions
Go to System Settings > Battery > Options. Turn on "Prevent automatic sleeping on power adapter when the display is off".
Go to System Settings > Lock Screen and select the menu next to "Turn display off on battery when inactive". Change it to "Never".
You can install a third-party app, like Amphetamine, to keep your MacBook awake with the lid closed without connecting a monitor. Alternatively, you can use the Mac sleep scheduler to have it sleep at night and wake up in the morning automatically.
