Chromebox Sleep Timeout Concerns
Why does my Chromebox keep going to sleep?
My board cuts off frequently during teaching, and I have to mess with the box to turn it back on.
The board keeps resetting and making me log into my portal during a class or lesson.
For security reasons, the district has set the Chromeboxes to lock the current user session and go to sleep after 30 minutes of inactivity.
How to Wake a Chromebox
When the Chromebox sleeps after 30 minutes of inactivity, the device enters a low power consumption mode, and the HDMI connection to the panel is lost. The following steps will restore the connection between the device and the panel.
When starting this procedure, you will notice that the Chromebox power LED is illuminated in solid white, although no display is showing from the Chromebox on the panel screen.
1. Go to the Chromebox and press the power button once.
2. Allow a moment for the Chromebox to restore its normal power operation and reestablish an HDMI handshake with the Promethean panel- When this occurs, the panel will display the message "Switching Sources…" with a status symbol indicating that it's connecting to the source.
3. Wait for the message to disappear. The panel will return to the Connect Source screen (image indicating a device needs to be connected).
4. Return to the Chromebox. You should notice that the power LED is illuminated white but now slowly flashes every couple of seconds- When this occurs, the HDMI handshake is restored. The panel is now detecting the Chromebox as a connected input source again.
5. Press the power button again on the Chromebox.
6. Wait a moment, and the Chromebox display will be restored. The locked profile screen will appear, prompting you to enter your WakeID password to sign back in.
How to Power Cycle a Chromebox If You Lose Touch Interaction
Long-press (press & hold) the Chromebox power button until you see the power LED turn off. Then press the power button again- This procedure will reboot the unit.
Best Practices for Using Your Chromebox
Your Chromebox is a computing device like your staff laptop, and its resources should be refreshed daily. I have noticed significant performance issues when users have kept their sessions logged on for several days without a reboot. We recommend shutting down the Chromebox at the end of each school day OR restarting the Chromebox while already signed into a session.