# turning it off



## lenii (Dec 31, 2005)

do you shut your computer all the way down every night? Do you put it in the sleep mode? If so, how often do you shut it down???

I would like to know the best way, that is the easier on the computer.


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

Leave it on, and let it go to Sleep on its own.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

I shut mine all the way down. Force of habit, I suppose. Maybe the homesteader in me wants to save a little energy.


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## lenii (Dec 31, 2005)

it hard on the computer to shut it down all of the time?


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

I guess at 1.3w in usage when my iMac is asleep, I am not too worried about spending much on electricity costs. LOL


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

lenii said:


> it hard on the computer to shut it down all of the time?


That was the theory years ago. In the 1990s there was a concern that laminated computer chips would fatigue through repeated heat cycling (heating & cooling), potentially causing the chips to fail. That may have been true at one time, but I'm told that contemporary IC chips don't have that problem.

As far as shutting down being hard on Windows, as long as Windows is shutdown gracefully that shouldn't be an issue.


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## rzrubek (May 13, 2004)

I leave mine on.


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

Those that have not expanded their RAM Memory may want to every once in awhile shut down to clear the RAM to speed up the computer.
*Random Access Memory (RAM) performs as volatile storage memory for the computer for storing open programs on the system. Sometimes Computer RAM bogs down if we opened multiple applications at the same time as RAM has a small storage space unlike Hard drive. When all the memory is in use the computer slows down. This results in hanging the system sometimes.*

That also means Shutting it down for a few seconds not just doing a restart either. As restart may not clear the RAM as much as shutting it off and turning it back on does.
Also with so many programs now that Download updates you SHOULD Shut down every once in awhile to INSTALL THOSE updates as well , and you may not even know they are there, but with todays many programs they download these updates in the background, these updates ARE important as security holes and such are happening to many programs that you are not even aware of.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

Nevada said:


> That was the theory years ago. In the 1990s there was a concern that laminated computer chips would fatigue through repeated heat cycling (heating & cooling), potentially causing the chips to fail. That may have been true at one time, but I'm told that contemporary IC chips don't have that problem.
> 
> As far as shutting down being hard on Windows, as long as Windows is shutdown gracefully that shouldn't be an issue.


Expanding on those thoughts, I suppose there is logic in saving cooling fans. Processor and power supply fan failure is common, so putting fewer hours on fan bearings would probably make the fans last longer.


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

Nevada said:


> Expanding on those thoughts, I suppose there is logic in saving cooling fans. Processor and power supply fan failure is common, so putting fewer hours on fan bearings would probably make the fans last longer.


I remember I did have to replace a cooling fan on my first PC the small one cooling the processing chip on my HP that I had. It was getting very noisy, didn't take too long and it was pretty easy to do.
But one really has to be up to date on CLEANING out the Vent areas on ANY computer.


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## lenii (Dec 31, 2005)

for all of the info..It helps.


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## Shrek (May 1, 2002)

I always orderly shutdown my PCs when not in use as that was how I was trained.


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## mnn2501 (Apr 2, 2008)

I disable sleep mode, its an idiotic thing that doesn't work the way its supposed to.
Mine stays on most of the time.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

mnn2501 said:


> I disable sleep mode, its an idiotic thing that doesn't work the way its supposed to.
> Mine stays on most of the time.


Same here. Windows sleep mode never worked well. Sometimes it goes into sleep mode and doesn't want to wake up again. It's better to set it to disabled.


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## Belfrybat (Feb 21, 2003)

I shut down the desktop completely, but use the Fn-F1 mode to put the laptop to sleep and probably only shut it completely down every few weeks. Have no idea why I treat the two differently.


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## stifler (Apr 16, 2016)

It's not that hard to shut down my PC, so I turn it off everyday. Several years ago, I always let it on for maybe weeks before I turn it off one or two days, but I stopped since my VGA was broken, and the tech said it's because of my habit on over using the computer. So, I trust him, and never overuse my PC until today.


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## Declan (Jan 18, 2015)

My one at works stays on all the time and just goes into sleep mode after non-use for whatever time that is set for. I do that mainly so it wakes up at the touch of the keyboard in case somebody needs to access it when I am not there without having to wait for it to start up.

At home I shut it down. Kind of weird, but I have this whole thing about not wanting it on in case it has some malware in it. Feels like I don't want it doing something when I am not at it. May be just because I have nothing personal on my work computer and more personal stuff on my desktop (even though not really even that much personal info on this one.)


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

Just look at how many computers run all these robotics these days that are running 24/7 365, even if the plant is not running they sure don't turn off the computers as it would take too long for things to boot back up again at the start of a shift. Ever think of that? LOL


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

Declan said:


> At home I shut it down. Kind of weird, but I have this whole thing about not wanting it on in case it has some malware in it. Feels like I don't want it doing something when I am not at it.


Security is a realistic concern. It's not like the old days when we had dialup or no Internet at all. Persistent Internet connections open the possibility that the computer could be hacked while you're asleep. That's not going to happen if you turn it off.


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## ladytoysdream (Dec 13, 2008)

I turn my computer off, when not using it. 
I shut it down and when it shuts off, I then flip the switch on the multi plug power cord. This way if there ever
is a power surge due to a electric problem, then I am not sweating bullets trying to get to the computer to shut it down.


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## MidwestMatthew (Mar 12, 2016)

ladytoysdream said:


> I turn my computer off, when not using it.
> I shut it down and when it shuts off, I then flip the switch on the multi plug power cord. This way if there ever
> is a power surge due to a electric problem, then I am not sweating bullets trying to get to the computer to shut it down.


No need to sweat bullets over a power surge that has already happened, it will have already nailed your computer long before you can get to it. 

I have an SSD in my laptop, which means I can boot it up and be working within about twenty seconds anyway. Because of that, I prefer to shut down most nights.

When all I had was desktops with spinning hard drives, I'd go days or weeks without a shutdown. A computer at rest doesn't use much energy.

Persistent Internet connections are certainly an opportunity for hackers and spyware. However, it's much better to protect against such breaches (and clean them up promptly if they happen) than to just let them do their thing as long as you're sitting at the computer.


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## tree-farmer (Jul 5, 2015)

I shut it down whenever I'm done with it. I turn everything off when it's not in use, why not the computer?
And besides I hate that flashing LED when it's in sleep mode.


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## scottdennis (Apr 20, 2016)

I vote for turning systems off when you are done using it for the day. As stated in another post, the "always on" connection presents opportunities for attacks and for malware to operate while you sleep. 

But to me, one of the biggest reasons is that Windows just needs a good clean reboot or restart now and then. Now I have to admit; I am a Mac user and before purchasing a Mac I used Linux for many years. So I may be a little biased in my opinion of Windows requiring a reboot.

There is no advantage of leaving it on over night unless you schedule maintenance or activities to run while you are not on the computer. But as stated in another post, I do not believe it will hurt anything.


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

Nevada said:


> Security is a realistic concern. It's not like the old days when we had dialup or no Internet at all. Persistent Internet connections open the possibility that the computer could be hacked while you're asleep. That's not going to happen if you turn it off.


 Well more modern WiFi set ups now if you leave the computer on and do not use it, and it goes into sleep mode, the WiFi itself will Disconnect, and the computer is no longer connected to ANY internet source because the WiFi has stopped the connection between the computer and the WiFi unit.
My friends computer had been doing this and he called his ISP and they told him that.
And mine has been doing it since I switched internet suppliers. And not the same one as my friend has either.
Even if the computer is on and you have it in Sleep mode. The WiFi automatically disconnects. So it is not a Persistent Internet connection any longer.
No Worries then of anyone trying to seek a peek.,


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

arabian knight said:


> Well more modern WiFi set ups now if you leave the computer on and do not use it, and it goes into sleep mode, the WiFi itself will Disconnect, and the computer is no longer connected to ANY internet source because the WiFi has stopped the connection between the computer and the WiFi unit.
> My friends computer had been doing this and he called his ISP and they told him that.
> And mine has been doing it since I switched internet suppliers. And not the same one as my friend has either.
> Even if the computer is on and you have it in Sleep mode. The WiFi automatically disconnects. So it is not a Persistent Internet connection any longer.
> No Worries then of anyone trying to seek a peek.,


I configure Windows to never go into sleep mode. I have the monitor go dim, and eventually turn off the video feed, but I set sleep mode to 'never.' The problem is that sometimes Windows doesn't recover from sleep mode, making a hard reboot necessary.


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

Course I am not on a Windows machine. LOL


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## Shin (Mar 25, 2014)

I shut off the PC, then pull the light switch to shut off all the electronics and any low power draw. 

Also has the advantage of protecting vs. surges et all to use the light switch.


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## Shrek (May 1, 2002)

Nevada said:


> Same here. Windows sleep mode never worked well. Sometimes it goes into sleep mode and doesn't want to wake up again. It's better to set it to disabled.


 Going into Sleep mode and not waking up properly we used to call it going into a compucoma and as others have said disabled sleep mode on windows machines at the plant.


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## Heritagefarm (Feb 21, 2010)

My MacBook can go about a month before I give it a reboot to clear any clogs it comes up with. Battery generally lasts all day, Nd get toted all over the house and used as a TV a lot.


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