Summary :
Do you know Wake-on-LAN? Do you know it is rather useful for ordinary Windows users? In this post, MiniTool software will describe why you need to use Wake-on-LAN and provide the way to set up Wake-on-LAN.
- SolarWinds FREE Wake-On-LAN powers up your remote PC with a packet created for its unique MAC address.
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The target computer is connected to the local area network (LAN). The target computer has WoL enabled (see Enable Wake-on-LAN for more information). At least 1 other unattended support computer within the target computer’s network is already “awake” (i.e., 'Online', 'In Session' or 'Blocked') in order to send the “wake up/power on. Wake On LAN is a software utility which can start a computer connected to your local area network either via cable or Wi-Fi. Unlike other, similar tools, Wake On LAN includes a graphical interface which makes turning on computers less complicated than using command line scripts or being required to login to your router to complete the task.
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Wake On Lan Test Online
Windows 10 provides a feature of Wake-on-LAN to allow turn on your computer remotely whenever you are away from it. Keep reading this post, you will get a brief introduction to Wake-on-LAN and how to enable it.
What Wake-on-LAN is and Why You Should Use It
Wake-on-LAN (WoL) is an Ethernet or token ring computer networking standard that allows a computer to be turned on or awakened by a network message, according to Wikipedia. It is a fantastic feature that can be of great use in many home and business networking scenarios.
Wake-on-LAN relies on “magic packets”. After enabling Wake-on-LAN, your computer will detect this package containing its MAC address and turn itself on. Thus, your PC can be woken up by sending it a magic packet from another device on the network.
In this article, you will learn how to find MAC address in your Windows 10 PC with Command Prompt and Control Panel.
To enable Wake-on-LAN feature and make it work, your computer has to meet some requirements:
- The computer’s network card should support WoL.
- The computer is connected with Ethernet.
- The computer must be in either Sleep, Hibernation, or Shut down (normal shutdown)
Do you have any problem in choosing to sleep, hibernate and shut down Windows 10 PC? Keep on reading and you will get the information of great help here.
After applying Wake-on-LAN, you can benefit a lot:
- Access to files and resources on a network on-demand. You don’t have to keep your computer turned on all the time or during idle times.
- Save power. The power your computer consumes will reduction as it doesn’t need to run all the time.
- Manage your computer remotely conveniently.
After learning about Wake-on-LAN in detail, do you want to enable this feature for your computer? If your computer meets the requirements mentioned above, then continue reading and see how to enable it on your computer.
There are 2 parts for enabling WoL: you should enable it on Windows as well as BIOS. The detailed instructions are provided below.
Move 1: Enable Wake-on-LAN on Windows
Step 1: Right-click Start button and select Device Manager from the menu.
Step 2: After opening Device Manager, locate and expand Network adapters. Now, find your network card and right-click it, then select Properties from the drop-down menu.
Step 3: In the pop-up window, switch to the Advanced tab and you will see all the properties available for this network. Then, find Wake-on-LAN property and set its value as Enabled and click OK.
Step 4: Now, switch to Power Management tab. Make sure that Allow this device to wake the computer and Only allow a magic packet to wake the computer are checked, then click OK button.
In this way, you have enabled Wake-on-LAN on Windows
Move 2: Enable Wake-on-LAN BIOS
To make Wake-on-LAN work properly, you should also enable it on BIOS.
At first, you should enter your BIOS. You can do it by pressing a particular key according to the on-screen prompt while your computer is booting. Commonly, the key is Esc, Delete or F1.
In the BIOS menu, please switch to the Power tab and locate Wake-on-LAN entry. Set it as Enabled and save the change.
Troubleshooting Wake-on-LAN
Sometimes, Wake-on-LAN might not work even if you have enabled it successfully. It is most likely caused by the fast startup. To fix it, you should disable fast startup.
Many users encounter slow bootup issue after upgrading to Windows 10. How to fix Windows 10 slow bootup issue? Read this post and find answers here.
Just open your Control Panel and navigate to System and Security -> Power Options. Then, click Choose what the power buttons do from the left pane to get the following interface.
You can find Turn on fast startup option which is enabled by default under Shutdown settings. By default, the setting can’t be changed manually, so you need to click Change settings that are currently unavailable. Now, you can uncheck fast startup option to disable it and click Save changes.
Will you enable Wake-on-LAN on your computer? Follow the steps introduced above, you can enable it easily and fix the problem related to fast startup conveniently as well.
Online Wake-on-LAN Services
Here are some websites that allow sending magic packets to boot up a computer over the internet. They are free services that can be used by anyone.
6. Wake-On-LAN Online
This webpage is able to send the required packet data to your computer over the internet. A useful feature is the scheduler that allows you to send the magic packet on a specific day and time up to a week in advance.
Enter the external IP address and MAC address of the target computer into the boxes. Then press “Wake Up my PC!” The service seems to use both ports 9 and 7 by default but you can add your own with “:[port]” after the IP address. Multiple MAC and IP addresses can be used if you separate them with commas.
Visit Wake-On-LAN Online
7. Depicus Wake on LAN over the Internet
In addition to the Windows tools from Depicus, they also have a page on their website that can send the magic packet over the internet to your computer.
The external IP Address and MAC Address of your computer is required. The subnet mask and password boxes can be left alone if you have no specific need to change them. The page also says the port can be left at the default of 4343 but we got an error if the box was empty. Port 9, 7, 4343 or anything more specific if you wish is fine.
Visit Depicus Wake on LAN over the Internet
Wake-on-LAN from the Command Line or PowerShell
Using the command line or PowerShell to send Wake-on-LAN packets to another computer can be quite useful for business, professional users, in batch scripts and to make desktop shortcuts.
8. Wake On Lan Command Line (WolCmd)
This tool is another entry in our list by Depicus and is a simple command line tool to send the Wake-on-LAN signal. The syntax is quite simple.
WolCmd [MAC address] [IP address] [Subnet mask] [Port]
An example would look like this:
wolcmd 26-63-A4-79-B8-12 192.168.0.40 255.255.255.0 9
The MAC address, IP address and subnet are required but the port will default to 7 if you don’t supply one.
Download Wake On Lan Command Line (WolCmd)
Another useful command line tool we found was simply called WOL. It additionally allows you to supply a password and a custom subnet.
9. Send-WOL PowerShell Script
There are a few PowerShell scripts around that can send a magic packet and this one is hosted on the Microsoft Technet Script Center. Download the script, open it and add the argument for the computer(s) you wish to wake.
Send-WOL -mac [MAC address] -ip [IP address] -port [port]
Save the script and execute it from PowerShell or the command line. Only the MAC address is truly required, the default port will be 9 if you don’t supply your own.
Download Send-WOL PowerShell Script
Use Wake-on-LAN to Start a Computer From your Smartphone
If you are unable to send the magic packet to your PC from another computer, an alternative option is sending it from another device like a smartphone or tablet. There are loads of apps around and the Android app we’ll look at is free, popular and does the job quite nicely.
10. Wake On Lan for Android
This app is quite easy to use because if the computer to start up remotely is switched on and available on the local network, you can find it automatically. Just press the add button and select the device from the list. It’s IP and MAC addresses will be added so you don’t have to do anything else. If you are connecting from outside the LAN, replace the local IP with the external IP or add a new connection manually.
All you have to do is press one of the devices in the bookmarks list to start the computer remotely. A handy function is the ability to add a widget to your home screen that can send the packet data to a selected device just by pressing the icon. By default the magic packet is sent three times, it can be changed up or down in the app settings.
Download Wake On Lan for Android
Test Wake-on-LAN is Working in Windows
If Wake-on-LAN isn’t working or you just want to test to see if the remote computer is receiving the necessary data, try using Wake on Lan Monitor. It’s another tool from Depicus and can be used to test if the magic packet is reaching the target computer.
Launch the tool on the computer you want to send the WOL signal to, set the required port and press Start. Then send a Wake-on-LAN packet from another computer using one of the options above. If the data is received, the tool will display it in the window. If you receive nothing there is something in your set up preventing the packet from being sent.
Note that different programs default to different ports when sending the magic packet. For instance, FUSION WakeUp on Lan and WakeMeOnLan default to port 40000 while WakeOnLANx defaults to port 7. If you are not required to set a port in the program, make sure you know what its default is during testing.
Download Wake on LAN Monitor
Make Sure Your Computer is Wake-on-LAN Ready
To enable the Wake-on-LAN feature in the BIOS, in addition to an obvious option which is usually named something like “Wake on LAN”, you may have to enable an option called “PCI Devices power on” in the ACPI configuration and power management settings.
You also need to make sure the LAN driver in Windows has the WOL feature enabled. Right click on (My) Computer > Manage > Device Manager > Network adapters. Double click on your Ethernet controller and look in the Advanced tab for “Wake on LAN”, “Wake from shutdown”, “Wake on Magic Packet” or similar.
Make sure it’s enabled. Also, go into the Power Management tab and tick “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power”, “Allow this device to wake the computer”, and optionally “Only allow magic packets to wake the computer”.
While the system is switched off, make sure power is still getting to the network adapter by checking to see if the light is on near the connector on the motherboard or card. If not there is no power going to it then other settings may need adjusting.
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ReplyHow you can wake up on LAN your PC if you’re not in the same network?
ReplyPage 2 might help you with that, those options can WOL over the internet which is essentially the same thing.
Replythis is “8 programms to use wake-on-lan to turn your computer on” describing exactly ONE way (WOL) – it is not 8 ways to turn a computer on … grrr :-P
ReplyWe called it 8 ways to… because there are not 8 programs or 8 websites, but a mixture. And you only have so many characters for a title.
Replyturn on and wake up is 2 completely different things.. thats what he meant. Its clickbait in essence xD
ReplyWake on LAN will “turn on” your computer from off, wake up brings the computer out of sleep/standby. Two different things but “wake” is used for both.
Also, the commenter above did not mean the difference between turn on and wake, he was unhappy that the title says “8 ways…” when he believes there’s only one way mentioned.
ReplyThe PC that I wanted to start up has to be on Wi-Fi due to practicality. what I did was get one of those remote controlled smart outlets and set the BIOS to default to power on. I have a UPS and a gas generator so I’m not going to lose power to that PC otherwise. I just shut down the PC as normal then cut the power for about 30 seconds when I want to start it up.
Replyif the power to the network adapter is off while the computer is off, you need to be able to send a broadcast to it to wake it up.
in order to do that, an always on 3rd party device is needed that is in your home network like a tablet or old phone.
for that i wrote an app called wol proxy for android which can do the broadcast for you and still allow you to wake the PC:
play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bianco.wolproxy&hl=en
ReplyHello, i am in brazil! Thanks ( Muito Obrigado!)
ReplySuper !!!!
Thanks a lot…
ReplyFor Android users – small app to wake up your PC
play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ru.freask.pcwakeup
Description here develop.freask.ru/android/vklyuchenie-kompyutera-udalyonno-so-smartfona-na-android.html
It works even in cases where the computer behind the router NAT and port forwarding does not work (and it does not help if the PC is turned off).
thanks
ReplyThanks a lot for providing the information!
I really needed something like this so that I could manage turning on my desktop when I am in college, and fetching necessary files.
Cheers!
This is exactly what I was looking for for years. Thanks Raymond.
ReplyExcellent work! :)
We have been trying to implement this technology for our college project, and this article of yours was indeed helpful. :)
thank you i just recently know about wake on lan
Replyone of the best articles i’ve read recently… thank you very much!
ReplyHa I woke up all my school pcs by this thanks
ReplyGood article! I tested a WOL for my Asus system and it worked like a charm. Saved me driving an hour to turn the PC on!
Cheers!
ReplyYou are just a genius ….
Jeez….crazy
Replywow friend damn good, great for guys like me (net administrators)
Replyexcellent ! & Thanks
ReplyHi Raymond, this is really helpful. I was about to get a timer hardware to switch my office computer on and off at set timings. My only problem was I need to turn it on at times when the hardware is set to “off”. Have racked my brains over this…until I read what you’ve posted. A million thanks!
ReplyThanks my friend, your post was of great help. It saved me a lot of money. I was going to buy a remote power switch and “ATX push to on” from Deltronix. Thanks again.
ReplyVery informative, thank you so much! I’ve been looking for a way to turn my computer on from school + use logmein =)
ReplyHi, Ray
You are a great man.
WHAT A NICE THING!!!! YOU JUST SAVE ME LOT WORK HOURS, because someone have lost the keys of the server’s room, I had to work remotly, but, for a mistake turned off the server, but, I was able to turn it on again with the software Fusion WOL, thanks a lot for your advise.
ReplyNice article, I already use VNC to control my machine but sometimes I forget to leave my PC on. This will help a lot, the only thing I need now is a decent router which supports dynDNS.
Wake On Lan Via Internet
ReplyVery cool!!! I used the wake up from the internet entered my home IP and MAC addy from my office and Voila! My home computer turned on. I used a remote support proggy to turn computer off and access everything THANKS!!!!!
ReplyGreat Post Buddy.
I blog it in my blog.
Thanks….
Wake On Lan Command
cool, thanks Ray!!
Reply
very helpful way Raymond good work
ReplyWell Mr Raymond,
Your site is really the Top!
I’ll be nearly 1 Year that I’m here as a member on this BLOG!
I’m really proud to be a member of Raymond blog.
Thanks for all!