PT10.2 changes power plan to "high performance" and sometimes doesn't change it back

[iain_m]

Hi all

A while ago I noticed that PT9 changed my laptop's screen brightness when run. The reason transpired to be that PT silently changed the Windows power plan from balanced to high performance.

I understand why this would be a good idea (albeit apparently undocumented by Avid!), and when PT was closed, the power plan would change back to balanced.

With PT10.2 I have noticed on a few occasions that closing the program does not always change the power plan back to balanced. This is inconvenient because it means the CPU is left pegged at 100% and therefore stays hotter for longer.

Could Tech Support comment on this automatic power plan switching behaviour, and whether it is user-adjustable?

Thanks.

[iain_m]

Could any other Windows users comment on this?

I'm assuming that since I've seen the automatic power plan switching on 3 computers using PT9 and PT10, it's standard behaviour.

Curiously, searching online for information about power plan switching (not specific to PT) uncovers lots of discussions centred on how Windows power plans can't be changed automatically.

So it's weird that PT can do this in an undocumented way.

[jeam25]

Seriously ?

[iain_m]

Originally Posted by jeam25

Seriously ?

[iain_m]

Just found this in the 10.3 installation guide:

Pro Tools automatically switches to the “High Performance” Power Management settings on launch. Windows reverts to the previously selected Power Management settings (if different) when exiting Pro Tools. Consequently, when optimizing the Power Management settings for Pro Tools, you should always only optimize the High Performance configuration.

So at least it's documented, even if it doesn't always seem to work smoothly!

[iain_m]

This is still happening occasionally. :-|

[soybalm]

wow, I remember a video telling me to make protools turnoff visual themes by right clicking on the icon and selecting properties and maybe compatibility to find the visual theme tick box but not the power plan. Good to know!

[iain_m]

It would be nice to get an insight into how PT actually does this - there's no sign of anything in the Windows task scheduler.

Also, users of computers with power plans that are customised for audio (e.g. the Dell Precision laptops have a specific 'pro audio/video' low latency power plan) could find the automatic switching to 'high performance' a hindrance.