better to leave computer on or off?

UriA702 · 10-17-2007, 07:39 PM

what do you guys think? what maxmimizes hardware life? is it better to leave the computer on 24/7 or turn it off when not in use.
I do understand that when turning on and off often the hot-cold and then cold-hot aspect puts some stress on the hardware, but is it as much stress as leaving the computer on 24 hours 7 days a week?
what are the pros and cons of both sides.
thanks in advance.

Teckademic · 10-17-2007, 07:46 PM

I just put my on hibernate. Iv read around and it seems like its just he say she says. Half say turning it off and on each day hurts the parts, but people say leaving it on hurts the parts.

lovely? · 10-17-2007, 07:48 PM

leaving it on could speed up your drive failure, turning it off could do some things, personally i just put it to sleep. the fans keep going, saves a LITTLE bit of power, and it turns back on in a blink

meanman · 10-17-2007, 07:51 PM

this is a highly debatable topic personally i have two pcs one for gaming and one that runs two game servers the server pc is on 24/7 and has been for months with no problems, my own thought is if you turn your pc on and there is a chance you will be on it at variouse times of the day then leave it on turning it off at bed time

Teckademic · 10-17-2007, 07:54 PM

I don't know a single person who leaves the TV on 24 hours a day. TVs contain many of the same components that computers do. TVs certainly have no problems being cycled on and off.

meanman · 10-17-2007, 07:57 PM

like i said a highly debatable topic

XByteComputers · 10-17-2007, 08:01 PM

All hardware has a MTF rate. Most components generally have a high MTF so most people think that there is no problem with leaving the computers on. When those people who do that generally have higher failure rates due to heat and hardware stress issues. Most consumer grade computer parts are not meant to be left on all the time. The one reason is Heat. Heat is your computers enemy. If the computer generated no heat from anything, it could be left on all the time with no failures to heat. If the computer was designed as a commercial grade computer (i.e Servers, etc.) than leaving it on all the time is acceptable because the MTF is much much higher than your desktop components. If it is just your home computer, regardless of components or cost, shut it off or put it on hibernate. I had an older computer that was left on all the time. That thing broke down on a regular basis. My new computer is now shut down every night or when not in use and i have no failures from it and it is 3 years old.

lovely? · 10-17-2007, 08:02 PM

and that debate begins::::::>>>>>>>>>>>>::::::>>>>>>>>>>>> NOW

lol jk but meanman is right many people disagree on it

b3rt_d4ni3l · 10-17-2007, 08:55 PM

What I do is leave it on all the time during the day. I will usually turn it off when I go to bed (unless I am downloading).

oscaryu1 · 10-18-2007, 12:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by UriA702

what do you guys think? what maxmimizes hardware life? is it better to leave the computer on 24/7 or turn it off when not in use.
I do understand that when turning on and off often the hot-cold and then cold-hot aspect puts some stress on the hardware, but is it as much stress as leaving the computer on 24 hours 7 days a week?
what are the pros and cons of both sides.
thanks in advance.

24/7 is good if you have an good cooler and case fans. How much is your electricity bill and PSU wattage? Efficiency?

10-17-2007, 07:39 PM	#1 (permalink)
UriA702 Gold Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 276	better to leave computer on or off? what do you guys think? what maxmimizes hardware life? is it better to leave the computer on 24/7 or turn it off when not in use. I do understand that when turning on and off often the hot-cold and then cold-hot aspect puts some stress on the hardware, but is it as much stress as leaving the computer on 24 hours 7 days a week? what are the pros and cons of both sides. thanks in advance. __________________ CPU: Wolfdale e8400 Mobo: Asus p5k-se Ram: 4 gb 1066 mhz G.skill 4-4-4-12 Video: EVGA 8800gt Lite-on IDE 20x dvd-ram/16x lite-on dvd-rom Monitor: 22" KDS LCD Raidmax smilodon case 500 watt raidmax psu Photos: http://mynetimages.com/album/uria702

10-17-2007, 07:46 PM	#2 (permalink)
Teckademic Bronze Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Posts: 39	I just put my on hibernate. Iv read around and it seems like its just he say she says. Half say turning it off and on each day hurts the parts, but people say leaving it on hurts the parts. __________________ Just Arrived Inspiron 1520, Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, 2.2GHz, 800Mhz, 4M L2 Cache 2GB, DDR2, 667MHz 2 Dimm 256MB NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT

10-17-2007, 07:48 PM	#3 (permalink)
lovely? Diamond Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: California Age: 15 Posts: 3,737	leaving it on could speed up your drive failure, turning it off could do some things, personally i just put it to sleep. the fans keep going, saves a LITTLE bit of power, and it turns back on in a blink __________________ E4500 @ 2.93GHZ ASUS P5K-DELUXE 2GB OCZ Reaper CL3 @ 800MHZ 3-4-4-15 eVGA 8800GT OZC GameXStream 700W PSU 320GB WD Caviar SATA, 80GB WD Caviar IDE Sometimes scientists make things alot harder than they need to. All they've gotta do is put a big spring on the ground where they think it's gonna land, or send a mission to the moon to erect a sign that says "Welcome to Earth".

10-17-2007, 07:51 PM	#4 (permalink)
meanman Diamond Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: england Posts: 1,721	this is a highly debatable topic personally i have two pcs one for gaming and one that runs two game servers the server pc is on 24/7 and has been for months with no problems, my own thought is if you turn your pc on and there is a chance you will be on it at variouse times of the day then leave it on turning it off at bed time __________________ my sig Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient 95W Edition ocd to 3.15 ghz Abit IP35 Pro (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard Crucial Ballistix 4GB (2x1GB) DDR2 PC2-8500C5 1066MHz EVGA GeForce 9800 GX2 "SSC Edition" 1024MB GDDR3 CoolerMaster Stacker 832 Coolermaster 700W ATX2.2 Modular SLI Compliant PSU member of the cod 4 www.cfclan.co.uk

10-17-2007, 07:54 PM	#5 (permalink)
Teckademic Bronze Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Posts: 39	I don't know a single person who leaves the TV on 24 hours a day. TVs contain many of the same components that computers do. TVs certainly have no problems being cycled on and off. __________________ Just Arrived Inspiron 1520, Intel Core 2 Duo T7500, 2.2GHz, 800Mhz, 4M L2 Cache 2GB, DDR2, 667MHz 2 Dimm 256MB NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT

10-17-2007, 07:57 PM	#6 (permalink)
meanman Diamond Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: england Posts: 1,721	like i said a highly debatable topic __________________ my sig Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient 95W Edition ocd to 3.15 ghz Abit IP35 Pro (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard Crucial Ballistix 4GB (2x1GB) DDR2 PC2-8500C5 1066MHz EVGA GeForce 9800 GX2 "SSC Edition" 1024MB GDDR3 CoolerMaster Stacker 832 Coolermaster 700W ATX2.2 Modular SLI Compliant PSU member of the cod 4 www.cfclan.co.uk

10-17-2007, 08:01 PM	#7 (permalink)
XByteComputers Bronze Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Cheektowaga, NY Posts: 34	All hardware has a MTF rate. Most components generally have a high MTF so most people think that there is no problem with leaving the computers on. When those people who do that generally have higher failure rates due to heat and hardware stress issues. Most consumer grade computer parts are not meant to be left on all the time. The one reason is Heat. Heat is your computers enemy. If the computer generated no heat from anything, it could be left on all the time with no failures to heat. If the computer was designed as a commercial grade computer (i.e Servers, etc.) than leaving it on all the time is acceptable because the MTF is much much higher than your desktop components. If it is just your home computer, regardless of components or cost, shut it off or put it on hibernate. I had an older computer that was left on all the time. That thing broke down on a regular basis. My new computer is now shut down every night or when not in use and i have no failures from it and it is 3 years old. __________________ Processor: AMD Athlon XP 2800+ 2.08 OC'd to 2.20GHz Memory: G.Skill 1GB DDR400 Hard Drives: Western Digital 250GB + WD 80GB Optical Drives: DVD±RW and CD-RW Drives Video Card: GeForce3 Ti200 128MB AGP Keyboard: Saitek Eclipse II Operating System: Windows XP Professional SP2b Other Effects: 3 1/2 Floppy, 12-in-1 Card Reader, Hacked BIOS Chip to allow changes to processor FSB, memory timing, AGP timing, etc.

10-17-2007, 08:02 PM	#8 (permalink)
lovely? Diamond Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: California Age: 15 Posts: 3,737	and that debate begins::::::>>>>>>>>>>>>::::::>>>>>>>>>>>> NOW lol jk but meanman is right many people disagree on it __________________ E4500 @ 2.93GHZ ASUS P5K-DELUXE 2GB OCZ Reaper CL3 @ 800MHZ 3-4-4-15 eVGA 8800GT OZC GameXStream 700W PSU 320GB WD Caviar SATA, 80GB WD Caviar IDE Sometimes scientists make things alot harder than they need to. All they've gotta do is put a big spring on the ground where they think it's gonna land, or send a mission to the moon to erect a sign that says "Welcome to Earth".

10-17-2007, 08:55 PM	#9 (permalink)
b3rt_d4ni3l Platinum Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Milwaukee Posts: 946	What I do is leave it on all the time during the day. I will usually turn it off when I go to bed (unless I am downloading).

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