guidox / PC
Enable **Energy Saver** in **Settings > System > Power & battery** or run **powercfg /setactive** on the saver scheme, and expect a lower refresh rate and dimmer display while it is on.
Energy Saver is an overlay on the active power scheme, not a plan of its own. The overlay state and the scheme are separate and both visible.
powercfg /getactivescheme
powercfg /list
Get-ItemProperty 'HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Power\User\PowerSchemes' | Select-Object ActiveOverlayAcPowerScheme,ActiveOverlayDcPowerSchemeThe most visible change is the display refresh rate, which drops to 60 Hz. On a 120 Hz laptop that is the battery saving you feel immediately.
Start-Process ms-settings:powersleep
Get-CimInstance Win32_VideoController | Select-Object Name,CurrentRefreshRate
powercfg /overlaysetactive OVERLAY_SCHEME_MIN
Get-CimInstance Win32_VideoController | Select-Object CurrentRefreshRate**energyrecommendations** and the battery settings turn the saver on at 20 percent by default. The threshold is configurable in the same page.
Get-ItemProperty 'HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Power\User\PowerSchemes' | Select-Object * -ExcludeProperty PS*
powercfg /energy /duration 30 /output C:\temp\energy.html
Start-Process C:\temp\energy.htmlBackground app refresh, sync and some animations are reduced. The energy report lists the settings that changed, which is more reliable than the marketing text.
powercfg /batteryreport /output C:\temp\battery.html
Start-Process C:\temp\battery.html
Get-ItemProperty 'HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Power\PowerSettings' -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue | Select-Object -First 3 * -ExcludeProperty PS*A desktop with a fixed power supply gains nothing and loses the refresh rate. For a plugged-in workstation, keep the saver off and use a sleep timeout instead.
powercfg /overlaysetactive OVERLAY_SCHEME_NONE
Get-CimInstance Win32_VideoController | Select-Object CurrentRefreshRate
powercfg /query SCHEME_CURRENT SUB_VIDEO VIDEOIDLEThe overlay follows the battery state, so a laptop that boots on battery starts with the saver on. Checking after a restart tells you what the default really is.
Restart-Computer
Get-ItemProperty 'HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Power\User\PowerSchemes' | Select-Object ActiveOverlayAcPowerScheme,ActiveOverlayDcPowerScheme
Get-CimInstance Win32_VideoController | Select-Object CurrentRefreshRate
Get-CimInstance Win32_Battery | Select-Object EstimatedChargeRemaining,BatteryStatusThe display's driver keeps the mode, or the setting is per app. Check Settings > Display > Advanced display for the active rate.
The machine is a desktop with no battery on an older build. The overlay exists only where it can save power.
The saver is a small lever. Check the battery report for wear and the top consumers in Settings > Power & battery.
That is the automatic threshold. Change it, or disable the automatic behaviour in the same page.
No. The plan sets processor and device behaviour; the overlay trims display and background activity on top of it.
Yes, mainly through the refresh rate. Turn it off before playing.
Not natively. The trigger is the battery level or a manual toggle; a scheduled task can flip the overlay with powercfg.
Turn it off with powercfg /overlaysetactive OVERLAY_SCHEME_NONE or the Settings toggle, and confirm the refresh rate is back.
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