Fish Chris Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 Up until now, I've always left my PC on 24/7, because 1) I used to hear that turning it on (read; heating it up) and turning it back off (read; cooling it back down) over and over, was worse for a PC, that just leaving it on constant, and 2) my landlord (who pays the full electric bill anyway) has said, "Yea' I've always just left my PC on 24/7.... and I agreed that I had too"..... Now lately, I've been hearing guys say its better to turn them off (maybe its just better for there electric bill, which again, I don't pay one) but then, when would I schedule my PC to do automatic updates ? ......not just backing up the HD on an auto scheduled basis, but also for my virus scans, which I used to schedule for every night at 2am ??? Hmmmm, Fish PS, I think it's worth mentioning that in the 12 years I've owned a PC, after running them 24/7 the entire time, I've "never fried one" or had a HD go out on me...... and these have been cheap, crappy, factory built PC's....... Hmmmmm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boon Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 Meh. I have a box here that has like 235 days of uptime now... Leave it on unless you're a bit of a tree-hugger. When it's just idling it uses about as much power as a lightbulb. Yes you go through hard drives and fans a little faster but with the speed computers are improving you'll be upgrading long before it becomes an issue. Quote 10.x volts fo' life! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1992Chevy K1500 Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 The hard drive was not meant for 24/7 use. Hard drives for regular computers were designed to take the strain of on/off operation. Running a HDD 24/7, even if it's not spinning, will cause it to fail earlier. If you want to run it 24/7, get a server hard drive. They were meant to run continuously. there's nothing wrong with running it 24/7, it just hurts your hard drive. It will still last a long time, just not as long as it would turning it off and on. Ex.: You leave your computer running 24/7 and the HDD only last 9,000 hours. It likely would have lasted 10,000 hours if you had shut it down. It shouldn't matter too much unless you keep a lot of files on your drive. Quote My comp setup (Not bad for what it is): HP Compaq Presario V6120US laptop with: 15.4" widescreen AMD Turion 64 X2 1.6GHz processor 2x1GB stick DDR2 SDRAM (667 Mhz) Seagate Momentus 500GB SATA HDD 128MB shared video memory Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit 12 cell Lithium Ion battery (actual battery usage time: 6 hours) What it does: On a USB 2.0 Wireless card Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish Chris Posted September 16, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 Well, I estimate (actually, I just calculated it with my new "Convert" app, on my iPod Touch ) that my HD has about 60,000 hours on it..... and its a (from what everyone tells me) crappy, low cost HD, which has gradually became 80% full, over the last 7 years. And its still going .....until tomorrow morning, when I pull the plug, to set up my new PC. Peace, Fish The hard drive was not meant for 24/7 use. Hard drives for regular computers were designed to take the strain of on/off operation. Running a HDD 24/7, even if it's not spinning, will cause it to fail earlier. If you want to run it 24/7, get a server hard drive. They were meant to run continuously.there's nothing wrong with running it 24/7, it just hurts your hard drive. It will still last a long time, just not as long as it would turning it off and on. Ex.: You leave your computer running 24/7 and the HDD only last 9,000 hours. It likely would have lasted 10,000 hours if you had shut it down. It shouldn't matter too much unless you keep a lot of files on your drive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TritonBoulder47 Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 I've always left my Desktops on 24/7... And as of late, my laptop is on 24/7 as well... The only time they shut down if for auto-restarts after some updates... Quote 2011 Dodge Durango Citadel AWD HEMI - LOADED Stereo: STOCK Emergency Equipment: Morotola - Federal Signal - Feniex - Gamber Johnson Performance: MOPAR Performance - Diablo 911 Calltaker / Diaptcher, Volunteer Ambulance Driver, Rescue Tech, Fire Fighter, Fire Policeman, Emergency Equipment Installer / Repairman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SQMonte Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 I always leave mine on, mainly because i'm too impatient to wait for it to boot up when I need to get on it. Have never had an issue with doing so. Quote Alpine CDA-117...Memphis 16-X03 CDT Audio SQA-4100...SEAS Prestige H1396...Crescendo MP-6 Soundstream Rubicon 1.2500d...Digital Designs 3512f Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soulman07 Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 I own one old school hard drive I pulled from a windows 95 PC that stayed on 24/7, the drives around 13 years old now. It had around 2.5 years of uptime on it before it was scrapped. An amazing 9gb 4200RPM 2mb cache beast... It's still kicking with no errors or bad sectors. I've also worked in office spaces with non-server based pc's being used as servers with 5+ years worth of uptime and no visible signs of failure. Just depends, I haven't had any problems with drives failing from seagate/hitachi/quantum. WD drives that I have used in the past seem to be prone to failure though, loud wines, and clicking as well. Operating temperature may be something you want to look at as well when your HD's are on. Mine have all run in the 25-30C range (knock on wood) Some drives will run a lot warmer. Heat and proper ventilation has a lot to do with it. If not then it could make it a bit more prone to failure. Quote 1993 Chevrolet SWB Pickup Viper 791XV Primer Stage 5/8 Static Drop Kinetik HC1800 Big 3 Knu Flex 0 Team Tex Flex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricM9104 Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 Mine's on 24/7. Can't stand to sleep in a silent room. Quote 2015 Honda Civic LX 4dr | 24k miles Stock H/U and mids/highs Power Acoustik GW3-12" D2 Sub HiFonics BXX1200.1D @ 1ohm Random 2.5^3' dual ported box NVX LOC Stinger wiring throughout 1977 Chevy SWB Cammed 350 Dual exhaust Cheap Wish stereo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LoudNLow931 Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 Mine is on 24/7(unless I leave my house for a few days) Only time its off is if I leave like I said or If I have to restart for something. Quote 2008 Dodge Ram 2500 6.7l Cummins 4 FT1s C1600.2 8 PWX 8s ONX2.100 Audio Technix Wiring & Sound Deadener My Youtube Feedback Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobonit Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 Heat will kill a pc more than the actual act of leaving it on 24/7. As long as you keep it reasonably cool, you should be fine. With the power management of newer pc's, it uses less power at idle as well. Newer processors also use less power and generate less heat. Oh, and clean the dust out everynow and then. Quote 97 Maxima SE Bunch of shit going in, check out the build Build Log Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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