Differences between Hibernate and Sleep

Hibernate and Sleep are two power modes that Windows can enter in an attempt to conserve energy when you're not using your computer. Sleep mode is meant to be used for short periods of time when you'll be away from your computer, but you want it to respond quickly when you return. Open documents and applications are stored to memory, and the system enters a "pause" state. Since reading from memory is faster than reading from disk, restoring your system from sleep mode is a fairly quick operation.

Hibernate mode, on the other hand, is intended for when you're going to be gone for a longer period of time. Open documents and applications are stored to disk in a file named C:\hiberfile.sys, and the computer actually shuts down, thus making its energy requirements zero. When you return, you restart your computer and your documents and applications are read from the disk file and restored just as they were before the system entered Hibernate mode.

You may find that your Windows 10 system doesn't have the Hibernate mode option on the Shutdown menu. If that is the case, you will need to enable this option. To enable the Hibernate mode on your Shutdown menu, follow these steps:

1. Select the Start icon (the Windows icon to the far-right of the Taskbar) and then select the Settings icon (looks like a small gear) from the list on the left side of the resulting context menu. Windows displays the Windows Settings dialog box.
2. Select the System option. Windows displays the System section of the Settings dialog box.
3. Select the Power & Sleep tab on the left side of the dialog box. Windows displays the Power & Sleep section of the Settings dialog box.
4. Select the Additional Power Settings link under the Related Settings section. Windows displays the Power Options dialog box.
5. Select Choose What the Power Buttons Do link and then select Change Settings That Are Currently Unavailable near the top of the dialog box. Windows enables the list of options in the Shutdown Settings group.
6. Click the Hibernate check box to turn on this option.
7. Click the Save Changes button. Windows again displays the Power Options dialog box.
8. Close the Power Options dialog box.
9. Close the Settings dialog box.
10. The Hibernate mode option is now available on the Shutdown menu.

If you know you'll be away from your system for an extended time (a couple of days or more), then you should tell Windows to Hibernate rather than simply putting it to Sleep. This will help conserve energy, which can be very important if your system happens to be a laptop. If you put the system in Sleep mode, it is possible that it will still drain power and, over time, run out of juice. However, when your available power drains to a dangerously low point, Windows automatically enters Hibernate mode and then shuts down so that your work is not lost.

 This tip (12621) applies to Windows 7, 8, and 10.