Desktops forum: "turning off PC" = Good/Bad

Some relative points have been made and have made me rethink whether or not leaving a PC is left on is a good idea. I have to draw from my own experience though and respectfully disagree with some posts. I have been doing desktop support for a mere seven years, not really that long in comparison to some. I have however noticed some things that they have not pointed out. Different PC components wear differently, for instance.
For my money, I would want to take into account several components and complete desktop configurations before making a decision about whether it is a good decision to leave it on all the time. CRT's for instance (for my personal experience) should be shut off if left unused for extended periods. This has been proven to me time and time again. Power outages due to storms, car accidents or earthquake (I mention these because I can recall relevant situations for each) can and will give you trouble. A UPS is adequate protection I think, but not as cost effective as shutting the *&%# machine off on nights and weekends. I have found that a cheap desktop HDD is not as durable as a server HDD. Leave them powered on and they will fail with time or the performance will wain. For circuit parts (read motherboard, memory, power supply, CPU and component cards) I have to concur with leaving power on, generally speaking if I disregard outside power problems. Dust, heat, cold, placement and use could also affect that judgment and I don't agree with the blanket statement.
Therefore, I think that a workstation class desktop with a UPS or a server should remain on as long as they are secure and in a controlled environment. A cheap desktop sitting under a reception desk with or without a purse, coat, book or plant sitting on the vent holes should be shut off.

Hi:

Hope after this discussion, we will see a more professional suggestion in the next newsletter.

Frankly speaking, I still don't know which is better and am still confused after over two decades of using computers and hearing stories from all sides.

I do turn off computer at least once a day to save a little energy but I don't know the difference between this and to put it into standby and/or hibernation.

Also, I use soft reboot several times a day for what I heard and also experienced myself that system resources can't be totally released by windows after closing some applications.

So I'd soft reboot the computer after opening several applications and doing some intense works to make system resources fully available for the next round of work.

Look forward to see a good summary report on both sides and giving suggestions under certain scenarios.

I'm no tech person, but we have 7 computers in this house, all of which get left on all the time. We like the convenience of being able to just sit down and do whatever we wanted to do on the computers. No wait time for it to log in and cache everything, and those annoying IM and MSN pop ups (that pop up stopper doesn't even affect). We have no problems with longevity of those computers, one of which is a 6 year old laptop (good reason to leave it on all the time, it's really slow).
I would think you'd do more damage to your on/off switches by using it all the time.

When I need it I put it on, and off when I dont need it. I bought an IBM Aptiva in 1999 and he still in good shape. I use it every day more then 5hrs. I do the same with all my electronic goods and my car. I have to hadmit that I do'nt own a "Home Controler PC". When I will buy one, I will keep it on 24hrs a day.

i always leave my computer on it works fine for me

In a personal environment and using WinXP, with three desktops on broadband (cable), I turn off my PC's after each use. With two of my PC's, I keep them off (until I need to turn them, of course) because they're on cable modem and there's no need to keep them exposed, even though I have two firewalls and a few filters. The PC I use all the time, I will turn off at the end of the night, every night. The first reason is that with WinXP, if I have any important files (like dll., exe, sys, etc.) missing because of numerous causes like improper closing, WinXP will automatically seek these files through rebooting. Your computer boots up by looking for all the files it needs through POSTing, BIOS and then, Windows does the same. The second reason, your monitor (CRT) is similar to your TV. Would you leave your TV on 24/7? And all the other components in your PC, like hard drive (constantly spinning), they're constantly running. Third, you're consuming electricity. Fourth, you have less chance of your PC being booted down improperly, like power spikes or outages. Fifth, with 24/7, a hacker can have all day and night to hack you if you're on broadband. In a business environment, these reason are less important (because companies have larger cash flows) but still apply. Even if you keep them on standby overnight, the PC still consumes electricity, however small, but you still leave yourself open to hackers and/or power problems.

Bad! Leave it ON.

Incandescent lamp failure most frequently occurs when turned on due to power surge hitting cold metal filament. My guess is that electronics of any kind are similarly stressed whenever a drastic state change occurs...like switching power ON.

It's been my practice for the past 20 years, to leave my computer ON except (1) during electrical storms and (2) when I would be away for several days. RESULT: My computers have failed less frequently than those of friends and colleagues who shut down every day (some people shut down every time they left their desks),

This may already have been brought up by someone, but here's my opinion anyway:

I think the extra expense from "wear" caused by either running your PC continuously, or powering it on and off every day, doesn't compare to the extra expense of using electricity all day while only needing your computer at most about 8 hours a day.

Besides, modern computers aren't designed to last much longer than three years anyway, so if you did the smart thing and you got the 3 year warranty, normal wear of internal components (except maybe things like batteries) will most likely be covered anyway.

Apart from the fact that your PC can't empty your mailbox while it's powered off, and that it might take a bit longer to start up again when you need it, I see no reason whatsoever to leave it running while you're not around 2/3 of the time.
If you don't, then on a life span of three years, your computer will be running idle and wasting electricity for two years. How much money would that cost you in comparison?

Back when I was running Windows NT on a P2 I let my computer run 24/7. The hard drive failed 5 days after the 3 year warranty expired. After researching this I determined that newer computers do best if they are turned on in the morning, left on all day (assuming it will be used several times during the day), and then shut off at night. Here are some points to consider:

1) Hard drive life is measured in MTBF (mean time between failure) which is hours. Shutting down at night extends their life.
2) With current computers and even those several years old, soft power is used, i.e. your on/off switch connects to the systems board not to the power supply. Some power is always running through the board. Since the voltages are relatively low, turning a machine on and off does not stress the circuitry that much.
3) For folks who do not use a UPS, shutting down at night avoids problems resulting from power surges, dips, and spikes that may happen over night.
4) Unless you have a bulletproof firewall, there is less chance of being hacked into.

I teach computer classes at the local senior center and have seen 3 computers (different brands) trashed because they were left on continously. They all started with the same problem,
First the fan bearings fail on either microprocessor or power supply.
Next the Computer overheats.
Then the Microprocessor burns up.
Sometime traces on the board board burn open.
Some had the power supply burn out.
The processor, power supply and fan can be replaced, but the burned traces make repairs just about impossible.

It is good to turn off your pc so that your resources can be refreshed

As long as you do not leave your computer online,I am think it is okay.But with my laptop xp I noticed that after awhile I have to reboot.
Irish

If lightning strikes close to home, you might not even notice immediate trouble, but components will start acting up down the road. A threating storm causes me to unplug everything including the surge protectors. When lightning strikes close enough, a surge protector does no good especially if it enters through an unprotected modem. The fuzzy dust that builds up from the fans blowing air through your unit makes an excellent insulator, which builds up heat. If your computer is freezing up for no apparent reason, check for dust or a fan that has quit working. Fans that are becoming noisy need replacement. Blow the dust out of the heatsinks and power supply once in a while. Be reasonable with an air compressor and you should have no problems. If you are not going to use the computer for a while, Turn It Off. Never leave it running while away from home. There goes half my repair work.

I am also confused about to do or not to do. I keep getting different answers. My son is super high-tech and says if you don't need to be online all day long, you should turn it off. However (and there always seems to be a however), you shouldn't be turning it off and on all day long. I have noticed that if I turn mine off and about an hour later, turn it back on, I sometimes hear a screeching, grinding sound and a lot of stuff comes on the screen saying "disc boot failure" and a whole bunch of scary looking technical stuff. It then freezes up and I have to unplug it from the wall and let it boot back up again. My son also says a pc that is on, is more vulnerable to possible hackers. He says just use "common sense," i.e., if you are not going to be using it for a few hours, turn it off. Anyway it's an important question that you pose. I have been planning to ask it, but felt embarrassed about asking such a question on a forum filled with all these high-tech, science people. Maybe we'll get some good advice. BTW, this is an awsome and informative forum -- thanks to all!

I leave my P4 on 24/7; it is used by 4 other people in my house. I run antivirus & other utilities overnight (I turn off my DSL modem). I have always done this and had no trouble with any previous PC's. Speaking as an Electronics tech. of 29yrs; I would however, advise to turn off the PC overnight. Electronic components such as capacitors & semiconductors degrade over time and fail. It's a very good idea to turn off the PC every 3mon and carefully vacuum the dust.
Roy