caffeinate and PowerToys Awake for Teams status: do they work?
No. caffeinate on macOS and PowerToys Awake on Windows stop the computer and the display from sleeping, but they do not simulate keyboard or mouse input. Teams decides you are Away from the time since your last input, so it still changes your status after about 5 minutes. To stay Available you need a tool that produces input, such as a mouse jiggler or TeamsActivo.
Two different timers
The confusion comes from treating two things as one. A computer has a sleep timer, which decides when the display turns off and the machine suspends, and an idle counter, which records how long it has been since you last pressed a key or moved the mouse.
Keep-awake tools act on the first. Teams reads the second. You can hold a computer awake for a week and its idle counter will still say that nobody has touched it.
What each tool does
| Tool | System | Prevents sleep | Simulates input | Stops Away from inactivity | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
caffeinate | macOS, built in | Yes | No | No | Free |
| PowerToys Awake | Windows, part of Microsoft PowerToys | Yes | No | No | Free |
| Power and lock screen settings | Any | Yes, by raising the timeouts | No | No | Free |
| Mouse jiggler (USB or app) | Any | As a side effect of the movement | Yes | Yes | One-off purchase or free |
| TeamsActivo | macOS, Windows, Linux, Android | Yes, while it is active | Yes, 1 pixel and back after 60 seconds idle | Yes | €5 + VAT per month |
caffeinate on macOS
caffeinate is a command included in macOS. Run from Terminal, it holds a power assertion for as long as it is running: caffeinate -d keeps the display from sleeping and caffeinate -i keeps the system from idle sleeping. Press Control-C to end it.
It is the right tool for a long download, a backup or a build that must not be interrupted. It does not press keys or move the pointer, so macOS still reports a growing idle time and Teams still turns Away. Menu bar apps that wrap the same keep-awake mechanism behave the same way unless they also move the pointer.
What does work on a Mac is described in how to keep Teams active on a Mac.
PowerToys Awake on Windows
Awake is one of the utilities in Microsoft PowerToys. It keeps the PC awake indefinitely or for a set time, optionally with the screen on, without you having to change your power plan.
Like caffeinate, it tells Windows not to sleep. It does not send input, so the Windows idle counter keeps running and Teams marks you Away after about 5 minutes. See how to keep Teams active on Windows for what resets that counter.
What these tools do solve
Teams turns Away for three reasons on a computer, and keep-awake tools address one of them.
| Cause of Away | caffeinate or PowerToys Awake | Activity simulator |
|---|---|---|
| The computer goes to sleep | Prevented | Prevented |
| About 5 minutes without keyboard or mouse input | Not prevented | Prevented |
| The session is locked | Not prevented | Not prevented |
So if your status only changes because the computer goes to sleep, a keep-awake tool may be all you need. If it changes while the screen is on and you are reading, it will not help.
What works instead
Anything that produces input the system counts as yours: a USB mouse jiggler, a free jiggler app, or TeamsActivo. They are compared in mouse jiggler or TeamsActivo, and the complete picture is in the guide to keeping your Teams status Available.
TeamsActivo covers both timers. While it is active it keeps the display from sleeping, and after 60 seconds without input it moves the pointer 1 pixel and back. It does that only while Teams is open, so there is no need to run caffeinate or Awake next to it.
No tool keeps you Available with the screen locked, and a lock enforced by your organisation takes priority. Use these tools on your own devices and within your organisation's policies.
Frequently asked questions
Does PowerToys Awake keep Teams status green?
No. PowerToys Awake keeps the PC and, optionally, the screen from sleeping. It does not simulate keyboard or mouse input, so the Windows idle counter keeps running and Teams turns Away after about 5 minutes.
Why does Teams show Away when my screen is still on?
Because Teams does not look at the screen. It looks at the time since your last keyboard or mouse input. A screen kept on by caffeinate, PowerToys Awake or a long timeout does not count as input.
Does setting sleep to Never stop Teams from going Away?
No. It stops the computer from sleeping, which removes one cause of the Away status. The change after about 5 minutes without input still happens with the computer fully awake.
Should I run caffeinate together with TeamsActivo?
There is no need. While TeamsActivo is active it already keeps the display from sleeping, and it also produces the input that keep-awake tools do not.