Long agent turns and workflows need a Mac that stays awake. Keep Awake has four levels, and the strongest one works with the lid closed.
Choose a level
Open Settings › General › Sleep and set Prevent sleep:
- Off: your Mac sleeps as set in System Settings.
- Mac Only: while BeyDock is open, your Mac doesn't go to sleep. The display can still turn off.
- Mac and Display: neither your Mac nor its display goes to sleep.
- With Lid Closed: your Mac stays awake even when you close the lid. The display turns off when you close it.
You can also use the Keep Awake item in the menu bar, turned on under Settings › Menu Bar, or the Keep Awake control in Control Center. See Menu bar, widgets and Control Center.
Keep Awake works only while BeyDock is open.
Closed-lid mode needs a signed build
macOS can't be kept awake with the lid closed by ordinary means. BeyDock uses a small power helper that runs with administrator rights, and that helper is only available in a build signed with a developer certificate. In an unsigned build, the setting shows that it needs one, and your Mac stays awake only while the lid is open.
The first time you choose With Lid Closed:
- BeyDock registers the helper when you pick the setting. If macOS still needs your approval, BeyDock opens System Settings › Login Items and the status line reads "Allow BeyDock in System Settings › Login Items".
- Click Open Login Items and allow BeyDock.
- Come back to Settings › General › Sleep. The status reads "Ready", and "Stays awake with the lid closed" while it is active.
If registering fails, use Try Again or Register.
Closed-lid mode is new and still being checked on real hardware. Try it on power first, on a ventilated surface.
Battery and heat
- Below 20 percent battery, BeyDock lets your Mac sleep again. It resumes at 25 percent.
- If your Mac gets too hot, BeyDock pauses too.
- Keep your Mac on a ventilated surface, not in a bag.
What happens when the lid closes
Once the closed-lid mode or the workflow option is on, Settings › General › When the Lid Closes appears:
- Turn off the display and keyboard backlight.
- Mute sound. The built-in microphone also turns off, so calls need AirPods or an external microphone.
- Low Power Mode. It also turns on below 40 percent battery or when your Mac gets hot.
- Pause every other app. This skips editors, terminals, browsers, password managers, meeting apps, VPNs, local model servers and databases. Apple's own apps, BeyDock and Docker Desktop are never paused, and are marked "never paused". Pause these apps is a list of apps that always pause. It starts with Slack, WhatsApp and Discord, and Add App picks more from your running apps or the Applications folder.
Everything comes back when you open the lid. If BeyDock quits or crashes, the helper restores sleep, power mode and any paused apps.
Workflows
Workflows have their own switches under Settings › Workflows: Prevent sleep while running keeps the Mac awake while a workflow runs, and Even with the lid closed extends that to a closed lid, with the same battery and heat limits. They are independent of your general setting.
Agents and workflows on an SSH host keep running while your Mac sleeps, so you don't need Keep Awake for them.