What this guide is (and is not)
Idle Sleep after / “never sleep on AC” as the farm policy belongs in always-on-pc-earnapp-setup-europe-2026. When plugged in, turn off my screen after belongs in earnapp-windows-turn-off-display-europe-2026 — a black monitor is not a parked HDD. USB selective suspend / USB Root Hub belongs in earnapp-windows-usb-selective-suspend-europe-2026 — that checkbox can drop a USB Ethernet dongle or a USB disk dock, but it is not the Hard disk tree. When I press the power button belongs in earnapp-windows-power-button-europe-2026. When I close the lid belongs in earnapp-windows-lid-close-europe-2026. Allow hybrid sleep belongs in earnapp-windows-hybrid-sleep-europe-2026. Hibernate after / Start Hibernate belong in earnapp-windows-hibernate-europe-2026. Modern Standby belongs in earnapp-windows-modern-standby-europe-2026. Fast startup, Energy Saver, Efficiency EcoQoS leaf, NIC Device Manager, Wi‑Fi Power Saving Mode, random MAC, EEE / Green Ethernet, PCIe ASPM, Game Mode, Xbox Game Bar, metered NIC, reboot autostart, SmartScreen, new-PC, offline/$0 and first PayPal have their own pages. Here the stall was Advanced power settings → Hard disk → Turn off hard disk after still sitting at 10, 15, or 20 minutes on AC while Sleep is already Never.
RefDeal will not invent a “disk-timeout promo,” a spin-down coupon, or an EU payout minimum copied from a 2023 screenshot. Turn off hard disk after is a Windows power switch (minutes; 0 = Never). EarnApp is a Bright Data client that needs a live, recognisably residential session and a disk that answers when the client writes logs. Install from the tracked invite, then set Turn off hard disk after to Never (0 minutes) on AC — or do not farm a spinning-disk box whose household still wants the platter parked. NVMe and most SATA SSDs often ignore this row; if the OS is on NVMe and the tray still Limited, this page is done — switch to USB suspend, NIC, or offline/$0. A travel laptop can keep a disk timeout; do not farm that chassis overnight.
Confirm it is hard-disk timeout, not screen-off, USB suspend, or Sleep
A 20-minute HDD spin-down is not a screen saver — it is a quiet-hour EarnApp stall on spinning disks, not a missing promo code.
- Control Panel → Hardware and Sound → Power Options → your active plan → Change plan settings → Change advanced power settings. Expand Hard disk → Turn off hard disk after. Screenshot Plugged in and On battery before you touch anything. Settings → System → Power & battery does not show this row — only Screen and sleep
- If Put my device to sleep after is 5, 10, or 15 minutes on AC, that is the always-on guide first. A parked platter after that timeout is Sleep (or Modern Standby), not disk idle. Fix Sleep to Never, then return here
- If the stall is a black panel with Sleep Never and the tray still Online, that is display timeout — leave it. This page is not “keep the monitor on so the disk stays up”
- If the stall is only a USB Ethernet dongle or USB-C dock that vanishes, use the USB selective suspend guide first. Then set Hard disk timeout Never if the OS or EarnApp data sits on a USB-SATA enclosure
- From an elevated Command Prompt: powercfg /q SCHEME_CURRENT SUB_DISK. The disk-idle AC setting is in seconds internally; 0 is Never. powercfg /change disk-timeout-ac 0 is the same policy. Search “turn off hard disk after Windows 11” on Microsoft Learn, not a Telegram “EarnApp HDD unlock.zip”
- NVMe / SATA SSD: this timeout often does nothing visible. If Task Manager → Performance shows an SSD and the tray still Limited after a quiet hour, stop hunting this row — switch to NIC, USB suspend, Modern Standby, or offline/$0
Set hard-disk timeout Never on the EarnApp box, on AC
Do this on the machine that actually runs EarnApp, on the home Ethernet port (or stable home Wi‑Fi) you intend to keep. Do not fight a work laptop whose MDM restores a 10-minute disk timeout, and do not farm a phone hotspot.
- Open /earnapp/ and use the RefDeal tracked invite if the client is not installed yet. The invite attributes a first signup. It does not change Hard disk timeout
- Best EU path: spare Ethernet mini-PC — Turn off hard disk after = Never (0) plugged in. USB selective suspend Off. Turn off my screen after = 2–10 minutes. Put my device to sleep after = Never. Power button Do nothing. Lid Do nothing if it has a lid. Hibernate after Never. Allow hybrid sleep Off. Leave the box on AC, vents clear
- On battery on a real travel laptop: a disk timeout can be reasonable. Farm overnight only on AC with disk timeout Never and Sleep Never
- Tell the household: a dark monitor is supposed to happen; a clicking HDD that never parks on AC is also supposed to happen on a farm box. Do not buy a “spin-down unlock pack”
After disk timeout is Never and Sleep stays Never
Sign in with the same account you intend to keep. Leave the box on AC. Confirm the official tray through a quiet hour. Use /earnapp/ if you never started from our tracked invite.
- Tray Online through a quiet week with HDD timeout Never and Sleep Never: leave it. We will not quote a fake first-day amount. Screenshot your own dashboard if you need a record
- Disk timeout Never but Sleep after still has minutes: switch to the always-on guide. This page’s Hard disk row is done
- Disk timeout Never, stall is a black panel you confused with Sleep: switch to the turn-off-display guide
- Disk timeout Never, USB dock or USB NIC still drops: switch to the USB selective suspend guide
- Disk timeout Never, stall only after a chassis tap: switch to the power-button guide
- Disk timeout Never, tray Limited on a modern laptop with Sleep Never: switch to the Modern Standby guide and run powercfg /a
- Disk timeout Never but Hibernate after still has minutes: switch to the Hibernate S4 guide
- Disk timeout Never, Sleep Never, Hibernate Never, USB suspend Off, screen timeout short, lid Do nothing, hybrid sleep Off, power button Do nothing, tray Online, still $0 after a quiet week with Energy Saver Off, Efficiency leaf Off, Game Mode Off, Game Bar Off, ASPM Off, EEE Off, Wi‑Fi unused or Maximum Performance, random MAC Off, Ethernet NIC checkbox Off, Fast startup Off, and an unmetered home fibre line: switch to the offline/$0 guide (firewall, official binary, Limited)
What we will not claim
There is no RefDeal EarnApp promo code, no published “hard disk timeout bonus,” and no honest EU minimum we can paste from a 2023 screenshot. Primary CTA stays the EarnApp offer with our tracked invite. Hub: /guides/bandwidth-safety/. Starter: /en/start/bandwidth/.