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Use case: I am logged in, at one point I locked the machine, and the Lock Screen is being displayed, prompting for a password.

MacOS catalina - 10.15.3

  • I am looking for a way to Sleep the machine without having to put the password to unlock. Via shortcut while in the Lock Screen, or via adding a button/menu item in the Lock Screen.

I couldn't find any way to customize the lock screen in MacOS.

  • I tried setting up shortcuts with Better touch tool - the shortcuts (e.g. Ctrl+Cmd+Options+) work fine while the machine is unlocked, but do not work in the lock screen.

  • I also tried setting up trackpad shortcuts which don’t work on lock screen

  • Finally I also tried creating a MacOS "normal" shortcut (Preferences > Keyboard > Shortcut > All Apps, menu item = "Sleep"), which also works fine while logged in + unlocked but does not work in the lock screen

Why I want this: I setup the machine to not sleep while AC power is ON, this is my preferred setting while in the office. On occasion, say at the end of the day, I still want the machine to enter sleep mode. Often, I find the machine in Lock Screen mode.

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  • How is this different than never locking / sleeping and having a screen saver without a password?
    – bmike ♦
    Feb 16, 2020 at 18:26
  • @Mike I do use a locking policy, I just want to avoid sleep, when the AC power is connected. Typical usecase: office use, the machine connected to servers, apps running etc, I'd rather the machine doesn't sleep. Locking is needed as I'm in an office environment. Occasionally though I want to trigger sleep b/c I'm taking the laptop back home, or going for an extended period of time etc.
    – Ari
    Feb 17, 2020 at 22:21

1 Answer 1

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Limitations of macOS

macOS's Lock Screen is not customisable.

Third Party Tools

Third party tools, such as Power Manager, can be used to customise your Mac's energy saving settings and schedule.

Disclaimer: I work on Power Manager, so feel free to ask technical questions about how it can be used.

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  • Thanks. Can it handle a policy such as: stay on while on AC power for 8a-7p, and Sleep after 30m of inactivity from 7p-8a even if AC power is on??
    – Ari
    Feb 17, 2020 at 22:25
  • Yes. Try the demo and, if you need more control investigate the event editor. If you need support, get in touch via [email protected]
    – Graham Miln
    Feb 18, 2020 at 7:46

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