Creating and Editing a Power State Template

Security Controls comes with one predefined power state template, named Standard Power. This template cannot be modified. It will:

Initiate an immediate restart of all machines
Enable a logged on user to extend the reboot in one minute increments up to 10 minutes
Bring the machines back online after the reboot

While the Standard template is fine for many instances, you may want to utilize some of the more advanced features, such as the ability to leave the machines in a reduced power or powered off state. To this end, Security Controls enables you to create any number of custom power state templates.

To create a new power state template, from the main menu select New > Power State Template. The Power State Template dialog will appear.

The Power State Template dialog contains two tabs that collectively define the characteristics of the template.

Field	Description
Name	The name that you wish to assign to this power state template.
Description	A description of the template.
Restart and power action	You can specify if a restart should occur and what power state you want to leave the machines. Sleep if possible: The machines are put into a sleep state directly without a restart. This is a low power state that eliminates power to all unneeded areas of a machine. For more detailed information about sleep state, see Sleep and Hibernation Notes. Hibernate, otherwise try sleep: The machines are put into a hibernation state without a restart. This is very similar to sleep state, with the difference being that the machine's RAM is copied to a storage areas (such as a hard drive) before hibernation state is initiated. This enables an end user to very quickly restart the machine, restore the previous state, and resume working. If a target machine is not configured to allow hibernation, the program will instead attempt to put the machine into a sleep state. If the machine cannot be put into a sleep state no action will occur. For more detailed information about hibernate state, see Sleep and Hibernation Notes. Shut down: The machines are powered off. This option is also useful if you simply want to make sure non-critical machines are turned off each night or over a weekend, saving energy. Restart: The machines are restarted and left in a powered on state. Restart, then sleep if possible: The machines are restarted and then put into a sleep state. There is a two minute delay between the completion of the restart and the time the machines are put into the sleep state. The Microsoft Scheduler is used on each target machine to initiate the sleep state following the restart. Restart, then hibernate if possible: The machines are restarted and then put into a hibernation state. There is a two minute delay between the completion of the restart and the time the machines are put into the hibernate state. The Microsoft Scheduler is used on each target machine to initiate the hibernate state following the restart. If a target machine is not configured to allow hibernation, the program will instead attempt to put the machine into a sleep state after the restart. If the machine cannot be put into a sleep state no action will occur. For more detailed information about hibernate state, see Sleep and Hibernation Notes. Restart, then shut down: The machines are restarted and then powered off. This option enables you to provide a warning to any active users about the pending restart. There is a two minute delay between the completion of the restart and the time the machines are shut down. This option is useful if you want to perform a reboot in order to complete a maintenance task but then want the machines to be shut down. The Microsoft Scheduler is used on each target machine to initiate the shutdown following the restart.
Use defaults	This button is tied to the Restart and power action box. When you click Use defaults, all remaining options on the dialog will be changed to the values recommended for use with the currently selected Restart and power action.
If a user is logged on	If you elect to restart or shut down the machines, you can specify the amount of warning that a logged-on user will receive and you can choose the degree of control the user will have over the process. You can: Alert the user that a restart (or shutdown) will occur when they log off. Elect to force a reboot (or shutdown) after a number of minutes have passed. Elect to force a reboot (or shutdown) at a specific date and time. Show a time-out countdown on the user's machine in advance of the reboot (or shutdown) with a specified initial time-out value. To preview the dialog box that the user will see, click Show Sample Countdown. The language box to the right can be used to preview this dialog in different languages. Select the duration to display the standard Windows shutdown message when the shutdown sequence is initiated. Allow the user to extend the time-out countdown up to a specified maximum. Allow the user to cancel the time-out. If a time-out is cancelled the machine will be restarted after the user logs off or manually reboots the machine. Allow the user to cancel the restart.
Used By tab	This tab shows you the Favorites and the agent policies that are currently using this power state template. This is important to know if you are considering modifying the template, as it tells you what other areas of the program are affected.

To save the template click Save. To close the dialog without saving the changes Cancel.

To use a power state template, see How to Initiate Management Tasks.