Wake-on-LAN Guide: Waking a Sleeping Computer with Power Remote

Power Remote can wake a sleeping computer from your phone or another device, so you do not have to walk over and press the power button. This feature uses the industry-standard technology called Wake-on-LAN, often shortened to WoL.

This guide explains what Wake-on-LAN can do, what must be enabled on the computer, and what to check if the computer does not wake.

The Short Version

Power Remote wakes a computer by sending a special local network message called a magic packet.
Wake-on-LAN works on the same local network. It is not intended to wake a computer over the internet.
The most reliable setup is a sleeping computer connected to the router with an Ethernet cable.
Wake-on-LAN wakes a computer that is asleep. It usually cannot turn on a computer that is fully shut down.
The computer must be paired in Power Remote while it is awake, so the app can remember its hardware address.

How Wake-on-LAN Works

When a computer goes to sleep, most of the system powers down. If Wake-on-LAN is enabled, the network adapter stays lightly powered and listens for a magic packet. Power Remote sends that packet over your local network. When the matching adapter receives it, it tells the computer to wake.

 Your phone          Your router         Sleeping PC or Mac
Power Remote  -->  Wi-Fi / Ethernet  -->  network adapter  --> wakes
         magic packet            magic packet

Power Remote learns the computer's MAC address during pairing. The wake signal is addressed to that hardware address, then broadcast across the local network because a sleeping computer cannot reply to normal discovery requests.

What You Need to Set Up

On the Computer You Want to Wake

Connect the computer with Ethernet if possible. Wake-on-LAN is much more reliable over a wired connection. Many computers, including many Macs, do not wake from Wi-Fi when they are fully asleep.
Enable wake for network access. On macOS, open System Settings, then Battery or Energy, then Options, and enable Wake for network access. On Windows, open Device Manager, find your network adapter, open Properties, and enable Allow this device to wake the computer and Only allow a magic packet to wake the computer. You may also need to enable Wake-on-LAN in BIOS or UEFI.
Pair the computer in Power Remote while it is awake. After pairing, Power Remote can store the MAC address needed for Wake-on-LAN.
Put the computer to Sleep, not Shut Down. Wake-on-LAN is designed for sleep. A fully powered-off computer usually cannot hear the wake packet.

On Your Network

The sending device and the sleeping computer should be connected to the same router or local network.
Avoid guest Wi-Fi networks, client isolation, or access point isolation. Those features often block devices from seeing each other.
If you use a mesh Wi-Fi system, try sending the wake request from a device connected to the same access point or switch as the target computer.

Important: Sleep and Shutdown Are Different

Wake-on-LAN can wake a computer that is sleeping. It cannot help if the network adapter has no power. If you want to wake the computer later, choose Sleep instead of Shut Down, and keep the Ethernet cable connected.

Common Reasons Wake Does Not Work

1. The Computer Was Shut Down

A fully shut down computer is usually not listening for network packets. Put the computer to Sleep and try again.

2. The Computer Is Not Really Asleep

Sometimes the display is off, but the computer is still awake because a keyboard, mouse, phone, sharing service, or system setting is keeping it running. In that case, a wake command appears to do nothing because there is nothing to wake.

3. The Computer Is Using Wi-Fi

Wake-on-LAN over Wi-Fi is limited and inconsistent. Use a wired Ethernet connection for the computer you want to wake whenever possible.

4. The Computer Uses a USB or Thunderbolt Ethernet Adapter

Some laptops and Apple Silicon Macs can wake only through built-in Ethernet. USB and Thunderbolt Ethernet adapters may lose power during sleep and miss the magic packet.

5. The Router Is Blocking Broadcast Traffic

Power Remote sends the wake signal as a local broadcast. Some routers and mesh systems filter these packets, especially between Wi-Fi and wired Ethernet. Look for settings such as AP isolation, client isolation, guest mode, IGMP snooping, multicast enhancement, or multicast-to-unicast conversion.

6. Apple Silicon May Dark Wake

On some M-series Macs, a magic packet may wake the computer for network activity while the screen stays off. The Mac may be awake even if it looks dark. If it starts responding on the network after the wake request, Wake-on-LAN worked.

Power User Checks

These checks are optional. They are useful when the basic checklist looks correct but the computer still will not wake.

Check Wake-on-LAN on macOS

pmset -g | grep womp
sudo pmset -a womp 1
pmset -g assertions | tail

A value of womp 1 means Wake-on-Magic-Packet is enabled. A MAGICWAKE assertion usually means macOS is listening for magic packets on the network adapter.

Check Whether the Packet Arrives

sudo tcpdump -i en0 -nne 'udp port 9 or udp port 7'

Run this on the target computer while it is awake, replacing en0 with the wired network interface if needed. Then send Wake from Power Remote. If packets appear, the network is delivering the wake signal and the remaining issue is likely a computer, adapter, firmware, or sleep setting. If no packets appear, the router or access point is probably blocking the broadcast.

Check Why a Mac Woke

pmset -g log | grep -iE "Wake.*due to|DarkWake.*due to|Entered Sleep" | tail -20

If the reason mentions WOMP or Magic Packet, the wake packet worked. If it mentions USB, HID, Bluetooth, or another device, something else woke the computer.

Quick Checklist

The target computer is asleep, not shut down.
The target computer is connected by Ethernet, preferably built-in Ethernet.
Wake for network access or Wake on Magic Packet is enabled.
BIOS or UEFI Wake-on-LAN is enabled when required.
The computer was paired in Power Remote while awake.
The sending device and target computer are on the same local network.
The router is not isolating devices or filtering broadcast traffic.

If every item above is true and Wake still does not work, use the optional packet check to find out whether the signal reaches the computer. That usually tells you whether to focus on the network or on the computer's wake settings.

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