Mac Pro - Unwanted Waking From Sleep - A Possible Fix

Question

I've suffered intermittent unwanted wakes on my Mac Pro for years, although there have been months in which it seemed to go away. Console consistently suggested that the problem was a USB hub (EHCI), which I traced to my Apple 24-inch HD Cinema Display. Here's a sample from the Console-
11/22/10 10:28:32 PM kernel Wake reason = EHCI
11/22/10 10:28:32 PM kernel System Wake
11/22/10 10:28:32 PM kernel The USB device HubDevice (Port 5 of Hub at 0xfd000000) may have caused a wake by issuing a remote wakeup (2)
When the problem started recurring last month, my "fix" was simple: unplugging the video display's USB cable. The display's USB hub is, of course, no longer available, but I plugged a third-party hub into the USB input that the display had previously been using, plugged in all the peripherals that I'd previously used the display's hub for, and so far no unwanted wakes. The only difference I've noticed is that the display's little power indicator light (bottom left corner) no longer lights up, but that's a small price to pay for being able to put my system soundly to sleep.
If the ghost returns, I'll let you know.
Message was edited by: Crito

Answer 1

This a is common sleep issue. This person has it.
In my sleep tip faq, the first tip I give is this......
"USB devices and hubs often cause Macs to not sleep or wake quickly from sleep (notably HP printers and scanners, HP all in ones, and Cannon scanners). Disconnect all USB except for keyboard and mouse and try. If it sleeps, add one back at a time testing after each one to find the culprit."
DALE