Steam Machine Keeps Waking Up From Sleep: The Fix and What to Check
Valve fixed the Steam Machine waking up right after sleep in Firmware 108. Which SteamOS update has it, and what to check if yours still won't stay asleep.
You put the Steam Machine to sleep and a few seconds later it's back on. Valve has fixed this in a firmware update that ships inside SteamOS. Here's which update you need, what Valve's notes say, and what to check if yours still won't stay asleep.
Is there a fix for the Steam Machine waking up after sleep?
Yes: Steam Machine Firmware 108. Valve's notes list: "Fixed an issue where the system could occasionally wake up immediately after going to sleep". It also fixes "a rare issue where CPU performance could be degraded until reboot after waking up from sleep".
Firmware 108 went to beta testers in early August (SteamOS 3.8.25 Beta) and reached everyone with SteamOS 3.8.28 on 25 September. It comes with the SteamOS update, not separately.
How do I make sure my Steam Machine has the fix?
Check for updates under Settings > System and install everything. If the problem survived 3.8.28, move on to SteamOS 3.9 (23 October), which fixed "an issue causing firmware updates to occasionally fail to apply on Steam Machine". Valve's notes don't say where to read the firmware version.
Your update channel (Settings > System > System Update Channel) matters too. On Stable, 3.8.28 or later has the fix. On Preview in September, early SteamOS 3.9 builds had their own bug "causing Steam Machine to occasionally wake from hibernation unexpectedly", fixed in SteamOS 3.9.2 Beta on 25 September.
Can the Steam Controller wake the Steam Machine?
Yes, on purpose. SteamOS 3.8 added waking "via connected Steam Controller", and Valve's Steam Machine page sells the built-in wireless adapter as a way to wake the machine without leaving the sofa. SteamOS 3.8.28 added the same for the original 2015 Steam Controller's wireless adapter.
Steam client updates have fixed two bugs here:
- 23 June: "a rare case where Steam Controller could wake up the system after suspend".
- 21 July: "unintentionally waking host devices while shutting down the controller".
So keep the Steam client updated too. Valve doesn't document a setting that stops the controller waking the machine. In the comments on a GamingOnLinux article, a reader blamed the Steam Controller's wireless signal and suggested turning the controller off first, then putting the machine to sleep with another pad, such as an Xbox or PlayStation controller. That's a user's theory, not Valve's, but it's an easy test.
Can USB devices wake it?
Valve has fixed one case: SteamOS 3.8 fixed "spurious wake-ups when using a Logitech Bolt receiver". It names no other device, so unplug receivers and dongles one at a time to find a culprit.
Could HDMI-CEC be waking the Steam Machine?
Valve's notes don't say so, though the HDMI port supports CEC.
Several owners on Valve's Steam Community forum suspect it:
- One, with a Yamaha AV receiver and a Sony TV, said in July the machine "will consistently wake itself up after everything else on the chain sleeps". Turning off the setting that wakes it with the TV didn't help, and an August beta didn't fix it for them.
- Another found on 1 November that a Chromecast with Google TV kept waking the Steam Machine right after it slept. Turning off HDMI-CEC in Google TV stopped it.
GamingOnLinux's Liam Squires-Hand wrote on 29 July, before Firmware 108, that his machine woke itself "all the time" even with HDMI-CEC features switched off.
Still waking up?
- Update to SteamOS 3.9 and the latest Steam client.
- Switch off controllers and unplug USB receivers before sleep, to rule them out.
- Turn off HDMI-CEC on the other devices in the chain (streaming sticks, AV receivers, soundbars).
- Report it. Valve asks for SteamOS bugs on its SteamOS issue tracker on GitHub, and there's a Steam Machine bug reports forum on Steam.
