On or Off? Should I leave my computer running?

Russ Levanway — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:30:00 GMT

A simple question?

Should I leave my computer on all the time, or turn it off when it’s not in use? This seems like a simple question, but it’s one of the most common we receive as an IT company. The question is important, and the answer is not as straightforward as we wish it would be.

Many people have the impression that leaving their computer on and running all the time is the best thing they can do for their computer. What is the logic behind this?

Theoretically leaving your computer on all the time is better for your computer hardware, especially the hard drive which stores your files and programs. These drives have moving parts that tend to expand and contract slightly as they heat up and cool off when the computer is started up and shut down. Increasing the frequency of this cycle can slightly increase the risk of hard drive failure.

That being said, the reality is hard drives fail on computers that are running all the time and on computers that are shut down and started up frequently. Statistically, the difference in failure rate is miniscule. For the typical desktop or laptop computer, it is unlikely you will extend the useful life of your computer by leaving it on all the time. Most computer components are designed to last for years, and you will likely need to upgrade your computer system before those components wear out.

So does that mean I should just shut down my computer when it is not in use? Maybe not.

If you frequently use your computer during the course of a work day, it doesn’t really make sense to shut it down for your breaks or if you will be away from your desk for some time. Restarting your computer and re-opening all of your programs can often take a lot of time. During periods of inactivity, computer power management functionality will put the computer into a power-conservation mode.

There is one more very important consideration to keep in mind. In many company networks, virus scans, system updates and patches, and backups are performed overnight. Turning your computer off will prevent these tasks from happening, or result in them being performed during your work day, slowing you down in the process. Your home computer is probably also scheduled to be scanned for viruses and download patches overnight. To avoid having these tasks performed on your computer during the day, you should leave your computer running overnight on days these tasks will be performed.

Recommendations

Our recommendation is for you to make sure power management features are enabled on your computer, and leave your computer running during your work day. In addition, find out what days of the week your computer will need to be on overnight so maintenance tasks can be performed. The rest of the time, shut your computer down to conserve energy.

Will the Cloud Take my Job?

Steve Evans — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 00:57:00 GMT

I was recently asked on Twitter if I thought that cloud computing was going to mean less work for IT Pros. After thinking about it for a while, the conclusion I came to was that it would not only help me, but it would allow me to continue to live and thrive on the Central Coast where the scenery is great and the jobs are limited.

Here is a list of my thoughts on the topic in bullet point format for easy consumption:

The computer meant less work for all kinds of office workers whose jobs were replaced by computers. However companies that brought in computers became more efficient, grew as a business, and quickly had more (better?) work for those employees to be doing.
Java/C# is more efficient (from a labor perspective) and less error-prone than C/C++ which is more efficient and less error-prone than assembly. We use these better “tools” to produce better and less error-prone programs with a lot less effort.
When NT started to replace Novell it left a lot of systems administrators who did not update (upgrade?) their skills with limited work options. In this industry we are expected to almost continually be updating our skill set. When anyone working in technology stops learning they quickly become less and less relevant.

Do I think that a drastic shift to cloud computing will mean those at the bottom of the IT Pro totem pole will be in trouble? Yes. Does that bother me? No. The IT Pro profession is not going anywhere.

The cloud vendors are going to need people to run their clouds, and they are going to need highly skilled, highly paid, and highly respected IT Pros to do that job. IT Pros that install the operating system from a CD need not apply.
I am an IT Pro but by and large the job I do is not being replaced by the cloud. I architect IT solutions to meet business needs. Cloud Computing has just offered me another tool to offer my clients to meet those needs.
The IT Pros that right now do a job that a script could do in a fraction of the time are giving us all a bad name. If I was paying someone to create accounts all day I would not be happy. I would much rather pay someone like me (and hopefully you) to automate that process based off of HR data (just as an example).

As you can see from my lists, I believe that cloud computing will actually make me more relevant as an IT pro. We have years of companies migrating to the cloud ahead of us. They are going to need experts to turn and I plan on being one of those experts. As the competition heats

"Learn to adapt! Stop trying to determine how to hold onto the job you have and start trying to determine how to get the next job that you want." Steve Evans - SerkTools

up and more and more cloud offering come online, the need for IT Pros up to date on the topic will increase. The great thing about cloud is that no one has access to the location except for the cloud vendor which mean all companies will be perfectly fine with me running their cloud environments from my office on the beautiful Central Coast.

Cloud Computing is the new and exciting technological challenge we are faced with. Along with those challenges come new technical opportunities for folks like us. My advice, “Learn to adapt! Stop trying to determine how to hold onto the job you have and start trying to determine how to get the next job that you want.” If you have any questions about cloud computing, please feel free to contact me via my website at SerkTools

IT Pro Talk

On or Off? Should I leave my computer running?

A simple question?

So does that mean I should just shut down my computer when it is not in use? Maybe not.

Recommendations

Will the Cloud Take my Job?