How to Turn On Windows PC Remotely using Wake on LAN

If you do a lot of remote work and need to access your office computer often, you might need to keep it turned on. But it keeps consuming power even when it is not in use. So, instead of keeping your Windows PC on all the time, you can turn it on remotely using Wake on LAN when required.

The Wake-on-LAN feature allows you to power on your Windows PC not only from LAN but also over the Internet. However, you may need to forward the WOL port on your internet router for that. And after turning your PC on, you can easily take remote access using TeamViewer or any other RDP tool.

SEE ALSO: How to Make Your Computer a Web Server?

So, in this tutorial, we are going to show you how to power-on your Windows PC remotely via Wake-on-LAN. We will have to make several changes to Windows and BIOS/UEFI settings to enable Wake on LAN. Let’s start with setting up the BIOS first.

A) Enable Wake-on-LAN in BIOS/UEFI Settings to Turn On your PC Remotely

First of all, we need to enable the Wake-on-LAN feature in BIOS settings. Please note that if your PC doesn’t have this feature, you won’t be able to turn on your PC remotely. However, most modern PCs already have this feature, you just need to enable it in BIOS/UEFI settings.

Step 1: Go to BIOS or UEFI Settings

First, you need to enter the BIOS or UEFI settings of your computer. For every manufacturer, the method to enter BIOS settings is different. Here is the table showing methods to enter BIOS or UEFI settings for major manufacturers.

DELLPress F12 when the Dell Logo is displayed.
HPPress F9 when the HP Logo is displayed.
LenovoPress F12 when the Lenovo Logo is displayed.
ToshibaPress F12 or F2 when the Toshiba Logo appears.
AcerPress F12 as the Acer Logo appears.
ASUSPress the DELETE key while booting up.
OthersTry pressing the Esc, F1-F12, or Enter keys during bootup.

If you press the correct key during booting up, you will see a BIOS/UEFI screen on your PC.


Step 2: Enable Wake on LAN and Save Settings

When you are in BIOS/UEFI settings, look for the Wake-on-LAN setting. For some manufacturers, it may be found in the Power or Network sub-menu. In this tutorial, we have taken the example of Lenovo ThinkPad. Wake on LAN setting is under Network. So, go to the Config tab and select Network.

Go To Bios Uefi Settings Select Network
Go to the Config tab and select Network

Here, select Wake on LAN and press Enter. After that select Enabled (AC and Battery) and press Enter again.

Go To Network Config And Enable Wake On Lan In Bios Uefi to turn on your windows pc remotely
Enable Wake on LAN in BIOS/UEFI

After that save the settings and exit the BIOS/UEFI settings. Now, you are ready to turn on your Windows PC remotely using Wake on LAN.

Save Changes And Exit Bios Or Uefi Settings
Save changes and exit BIOS/UEFI Settings

SEE ALSO: How to Enable Virtualization (VT-x or AMD-v) in BIOS or UEFI Settings?


B) Change Network Adapter Properties to Remotely Turn on your Windows PC

After setting up the BIOS, we need to make some changes in Network adapter properties also. We will have to enable the “wake on the magic packet” to power on your Windows PC (Windows 11, 10, 8/8.1, or 7) using Wake-on-LAN.

Step 1: Open Device Manager

Open the Device Manager on your Windows PC. You can right-click on This PC icon and select Manage to open Computer Management. From there, select Device Manager.

Alternatively, you can right-click on the Start button and select Device Manager. We have used Windows 11 in this tutorial, however, it will also work on Windows 10 and earlier versions of Windows.

Right Click On Start And Select Device Manager To Open Device Manager In Windows 11
Right-click on Start and select Device Manager to open Device Manager

Step 2: Open Network Adapter’s Properties

Now, in the Device Manager window, scroll down to Network Adapters. Here, right-click on your network adapter and select Properties.

Go To Network Adapters In Device Manager And Open Your Network Adapters Properties
Open your network adapters Properties

Step 3: Enable Wake on Magic Packet to Power on Your PC Remotely

In Network Adapter’s properties, go to the Advanced tab. Here, scroll down and select Wake on Magic Packet. After that, select its value to Enabled.

Go To Advanced Tab And Enable Wake On Magic Packet To Turn Power On Your Windows Pc Remotely
Enable Wake on Magic Packet on the Advanced tab

After that, go to the Power Management tab and check “Allow this device to wake the computer“. Finally, click OK to save the settings.

Disable Turn Off Adapter And Enable Allow This Device To Wake The Computer
Disable Turn off the adapter and enable Allow this device to wake the Computer

C) Disable Fast Startup in Windows 11 and Windows 10 PC

Windows 10 and Windows 11 have “Fast Startup” feature enabled by default to speed up booting. But this feature causes problems with Wake-on-LAN. So, we need to disable Fast Startup in Windows 10 and 11 first.

Step 1: Go to Power Options in Control Panel

Open the Control Panel in Windows 10 or Windows 11 and go to Hardware and Sound > Power Options. Here, click on “Choose what the power buttons do“.

Go To Power Options In Control Panel And Click Choose What The Power Buttons Do
Go to Power Options in the Control Panel

Step 2: Disable Fast Startup to Allow Wake-on-LAN

Here, you can change power button functions but these functions are not editable by default. So, click Change settings that are currently unavailable to enable these functions.

Click Change Settings That Are Currently Unavailable
Click Change settings that are currently unavailable

Now, uncheck the “Turn on fast startup (recommended)” option to disable fast startup in your Windows 10 or 11 PC to allow turn it on remotely over LAN or the internet using Wake-on-LAN.

Turn Off Fast Startup In Windows 11 And Windows 10 to turn on your pc remotely using wake on lan
Turn off fast startup in Windows 11 and Windows 10

D) Turn on your Windows PC Remotely using Wake-on-LAN Utility

Now, after you have successfully set up your PC for Wake-on-LAN, it’s time to test it. We will use a small portable utility named WakeMeOnLan from NirSoft to power on our PC using the Magic Packet. But before that, we need to find the IP address and MAC address of the PC that we want to turn on remotely.

Step 1: Find the IP address and MAC address of your PC

You can find the IP address and MAC or Physical address of your computer in network connection properties. So, go to Settings > Network and Internet. Here, click on Properties under or next to your network connection.

Go To Network And Internet Settings And Open Properties Of Network Connection
Go to Network & internet settings and click Properties

After that scroll down and note down the IP address and MAC address of your computer.

Copy Ip Address And Physical Or Mac Address From Network Properties
Copy IP Address and MAC Address from Network Properties

Step 2: Download and Run the WakeMeOnLan utility

Now, download and extract the WakeMeOnLan utility from NirSoft. Run WakeMeOnLan.exe from the extracted files, it will launch the WakeMeOnLan utility.

Extract And Launch Wake Me On Lan Exe File to turn on your windows pc remotely via wake on lan
Extract and Launch WakeMeOnLan utility

Step 3: Add your PC to WakeMeOnLan Utility

WakeMeOnLan utility allows you to scan the local network for connected computers. However, you can also add a computer manually using the IP address and MAC address.

Now, click the File menu and select Add New Computer to add the details of your computer manually.

Wake Me On Lan Click File And Select Add New Computer
Click File and select Add New Computer

Here, enter the IP and MAC address of the PC you want to turn on remotely using Wake-on-LAN and click OK.

Add Computer Ip Address And Mac Address Details To Wake On Lan Utility To Power On Your Computer
Add the IP and MAC Address of your Computer

Step 4: Power On your Computer Remotely using WakeMeOnLan

Now, your computer will show up in the list. Right-click on it and select the Wake Up Selected Computers option.

Right Click On Computer And Select Wake Up Selected Computers To Turn On Your Pc Remotely
Right-click on your Computer and select Wake Up Selected Computers

You will see a confirmation message, click Yes to send a Magic Packet and turn on your Windows PC remotely using Wake-on-LAN.

Click Yes To Send Magic Packet To Selected PC To Turn It On remotely using wake on lan
Click Yes to send the Magic Packet

If you have configured everything correctly, your Windows PC will turn on without any problems.


E) Power On your Computer Remotely Using TeamViewer

Besides the WakeMeOnLan utility, you can also use the TeamViewer remote support tool to turn on your Windows PC remotely. You need to install TeamViewer on your PC first. After that, you can enable Wake-on-LAN in TeamViewer.

Step 1: Enable Wake on LAN in TeamViewer

Launch TeamViewer on your Windows PC (the PC that you want to turn on remotely). After that, click Extras and select Options.

Click Extras And Select Options To Enable Wake On Lan On Team Viewer to turn on windows pc remotely
Click Extras and select Options in TeamViewer

After that click Configure… next to Wake-on-LAN in General settings.

Go To General Tab And Click Configure Next To Wake On Lan
Go to the General tab and click Configure next to Wake-on-LAN

TeamViewer will ask you to assign your computer to a TeamViewer account. You can create one if you don’t have already. And if you already have a TeamViewer account, simply sign in to it.

Assign Your Computer To Teamviewer Account
Assign your Computer to TeamViewer Account

After that, you can enable Wake-on-LAN in TeamViewer to power on your PC remotely. Select Public address, provide the public IP address or public DNS name of your computer, and click OK.

Configure Wake On Lan In Team Viewer
Configure Wake-on-LAN in TeamViewer

Step 2: Turn on your Windows PC Remotely using TeamViewer

Now, go to the PC from where you wish to turn on your PC. Remember, you need to install TeamViewer and log in to the same TeamViewer account there.

Next, go to Computers & Contacts and select the Computer that you want to turn on remotely. After that, click the Wake Up button on the right side.

Select A Computer From List And Click Wake Up To Turn It On Over Wan
Select a Computer and click Wake Up to turn it on

If everything is set up correctly, your PC will turn on successfully.


SEE ALSO: How to Automatically Turn on your PC on Schedule?


Remotely Power On your Windows PC using Wake-on-LAN

Now you can turn on your PC via LAN or WAN and access your computer from anywhere. However, to turn on your PC over the internet, you have to forward a port on your router. The port for Wake on Magic Packet is UDP port 9. After forwarding a port in your router, you have to use your public IP address in the WOL utility to wake up your PC remotely. You can check your router’s manual to get help with forwarding a port.

Hope you liked this tutorial. In case you are facing any issues, feel free to write them in the comment section below. We will try to respond as soon as possible. You may also subscribe to our newsletter to get the latest tutorials directly into your inbox.

Editorial Staff

Hi there, we are the editorial staff at WINDOSPC (former HELLPC). We are a team of funny and technical people. Feel free to get in touch with us via Contact-Us page.

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