is it ok to leave pc on for long period

[ukmark]

hello . im new to this site i would like to know how long can you leave a pc on and is it ok or can it damage it ???? i have a super cooler fan on my cpu i run a Athlon 1.7 ghz 2 dvd drives 2 hard drives 40gb power supply q tec 550w twin fan. asus a7v8x mother board any advice would be helpfull thx mark

[YODA74]

mine runs 24/7/365 I never shut down I only re-boot when needed. the more you shut and start up it puts wear on your hardware,by heating up and cooling down.

[jlreich]

Welcome to the http://www.pcguide.com/ubb/pcgubb.gif forums.

Yeah you can leave it on with no problems. If you have XP or win 2000 there are rarely any issues with leaving it on. My machines generally run 24/7. The only time they get turned off is during a big storm. I do reboot the system from time to time. Usually because of installing a program or changing a part.

[ukmark]

thx guys. i was unsure about it... but its nice to know all the same as i down load most of the time and i had to replace the power supply as the old one just gave up on me . now i have bigger supply this one has 2 cooling fans in it so i was unsure about leaveing it on for 2 long as i think that mite have had some thing to do with it failing thank you i can rest that nothing else will not go wrong hopefully cheers mark

[Whyzman]

What Operating System are you using?

[ukmark]

hi my system is windows windows xp professional

[PrntRhd]

XP Pro is quite stable, I have customers who have left theirs running over one year without shutdown.
(Then my device installation required a reboot to install)
:rolleyes:

If the fan failed, it is usually because it was manufactured with a plain bearing instead of ball bearings and it lost lubrication. Cheaper initial cost, you see.

[ukmark]

hi guys . sorry just come back from holiday thx for all the great info ... my comp had good rest for two weeks but now back to work so thx again every one cheers mark

[FrankSG]

mine runs 24/7/365 I never shut down I only re-boot when needed. the more you shut and start up it puts wear on your hardware,by heating up and cooling down.
Do you shut it down during a bad thunder storm? I alway do for fear of it getting zapped by lightening. I do have a surge protector, but I don't think they are a guarantee during a severe storm.

[FastLearner]

FrankSG. That is a very important point you have made. Good surge protectors are extremely expensive, and even the most expensive (household) models are not designed to withstand lightning, which on average generates around 30,000 volts of electricity, if I'm not mistaken.

I usually unplug my home computer from the wall during thunderstorms. And I also disconnect my modem from the telephone jack, too, since lightning of course can fry a computer's mainboard through the modem, too.

[Steve]

I don't think just shutting down the computer helps. You're still directly wired to the electrical system of the house unless you unplug (as FL points out) both power cord and modem. (both dialup and cable)

[Fruss Tray Ted]

Face it.

If left on, you have the benefit of a near constant temp of your CPU, mobo, chips, etc. But the fans run even if you are not doing anything with your pc. There needs to be a trade off. The fans wear out, the dust bunnies accumulate, whatever.

With broadband now, I hope I never get callous enough to not 'pull the plug' on everything when the boomers do a pass through or fly over... but then I can't do anything about it if I'm not there when it happens.

Hmmm, is there a case of anyone going postal on their favorite weatherman?? :eek:

[FrankSG]

I don't think just shutting down the computer helps. You're still directly wired to the electrical system of the house unless you unplug (as FL points out) both power cord and modem. (both dialup and cable)
I agree. I should have mentioned, but when there is a storm I not only shut it down, but I also unplug my modem and all power cords.

[pointone]

You might want to keep in mind that running your system all the time certainly doesn't help with the power bill. :P

[classicsoftware]

I leave it on 24-7. I shut down when we go on vacation and leave the house for a more than just a weekend. I don't give Rat's behind about Thunderstorms. I have a good size UPS to protect the system. The only time I unplug is when we have a power failure as I don't always trust PECO not to send a power surge through the line......

Just my opinion guys....

[FastLearner]

OK, I must ask then...

How does your UPS protect your system against thunderstorms...?

[Whyzman]

Here's good read on UPSs and also Surge Suppressors (in the link)

http://computer.howstuffworks.com/question28.htm

[FastLearner]

Hi Whyzman, thanks for the interesting article. When they say voltage 'spike', I'm not convinced that they're talking about lightning. I'm thinking they mean spikes that can frequently occur in a normal power line setting. If your UPS gets zapped by 30,000 Volts of electricity, it will get burned. Unless you have a model that runs in the many thousands of dollars price range, that is...

I have heard of devices that automatically shut off and only blow a fuse if they get hit with something so powerful (surge protectors, but rated at a higher voltage). This type of device is perfect for home use, but if you're running a server that cannot afford a couple minutes of downtime, well then there's always the expensive UPS route...

Still the best defense, imho, is to just unplug the computer (and modem, router, etc.) from the wall outlet and wait out the storm...:D

Cheaper too!

[Whyzman]

http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatSectionView.process?IWAction=Load&Merchant_Id=&Section_Id=76

Note the $50,000 equipment protection! It certainly appears the insurance also includes surges from lightning strikes...

With 30,000+ volts, perhaps the ups just "vaporizes" thus protecting the equipment...

[pop pop]

I have a Belkin 900VA UPS. It has up to $100,000 connected equipment warrantee coverage should any equipment properly hooked up to it get fried by (and I quote),... "a surge, including surges due to lightening strikes."

Whyzman...You beat me to it but my coverage is bigger than yours :D

[Whyzman]

Hehe...I just grabbed a Belkin link to demonstrate the lightning surge protection.

I hundred big ones is pretty impressive insurance...my computer is but a fraction of that amount... :)

[FastLearner]

Well, I stand corrected. I guess it is possible to find inexpensive protection against lightning strikes. If they're willing to insure the ups users up to 100G, then I imagine the device would probably sacrifice itself, thus protecting all of the computer equipment on the other side of it. And for that price, I'm thinking about ordering one myself.
Thanks Whyzman...:)

But what if the lightning strikes twice? LOL

[halflife70]

i have my stuff hooked with a belkin 900va ups i still unplug everything,i dont want to take the chance of my computer getting zapped then waiting for ever for them to fork over the money for me to build a new computer,cause you know it will take forever,companys dont like to just hand out money,they'll wanna do tests and see where it got zapped,check the pwer out,you'll be lucky to see a check a year later,im not a rich man so i would be outta luck until i had the money,my computer cost 2 grand,more then my car,lol,so i cant afford to take a chance

[FastLearner]

Another interesting angle. Has anyone ever tried to actually get the insurance money after a storm that was tougher than their UPS?

I'd be happy just to hear one success story, as I think halflife70 has made another great point here.

It is probably a huge hassle getting any of this insurance money, and even if you did get anything from them, there would still certainly be a bunch of time without the computer, loss of productivity, etc.

[FrankSG]

Another interesting angle. Has anyone ever tried to actually get the insurance money after a storm that was tougher than their UPS?

I think that in many cases, the loss of one's computer would be a minor issue compared to the loss of data--unless, of course, one has made a good backup.

[classicsoftware]

I have had one client who collected from APC. Most of the time, the surge equipment bites it, not the PC.

[FJM005]

I have a question on this topic.......What should I leave my power settings on Windows XP at if I leave my computer on all the time?

[classicsoftware]

It depends, is your PC part of network and does it share devices?

[123456]

I have a question. I switched to 2000, i like it more than XP. Is 2000 as stable? EDIT: I have 2000 pro.

[classicsoftware]

Windows 2000 is very stable.....

[FJM005]

It shares an interenet connection (DSL) but nothing else. no files or anything. Should I set my hd to shut off?

[classicsoftware]

Is this with ICS, or a router?

[FJM005]

it uses a router

[classicsoftware]

If you don't share files, you can do whatever you want with the power settings. Just one thing, I NEVER EVER EVER use standby or hibernate....

[PrntRhd]

To protect against lightning you have to protect against all ways it can enter..
telephone wire/cable, other devices if local networked..not just the power lines.
A good UPS will give itself up and protect the electronics it is supposed to. It also provides very clean power (no power spikes, sags, or noise) and that makes the PCs last a long time.

[cteas]

ClassicSoftware,

The lightening bolt jumps from the clouds to the ground, and you don't think it can jump across the electronics of a surge protector or UPS? I must admit, I never turn my PC off even during a thunderstorm. I even play games during them. Also, I just replaced two 80mm fans. (Not thunderstorm related)

[classicsoftware]

I have been doing this for almost 15 years. I have never seen lightning damage a computer that has been pluged into an APC Surgearrest or an APC UPS. Not once. It may go through it, but it does not go over it. I guess it's possible for the lighning to go through an open window and strike the computer directly, it's just I've never seen it.

[anton muzic]

Hi all,
this query is off topic (and a bit silly) so it may get transfer....

to all the 24/7 users, i don't know whether you run servers or otherwise but
what do you do about backups and system restores? Are they automatized
somewhat?
I power off when i don't use (sleep time) and depend on the power on to do a good system restore. And i only do a backup once a week or so.

cheers
anton :rolleyes:

[classicsoftware]

I backup my data to an external hard drive every night at 2AM.