What really happens if you don’t shut down your PC? Separating facts from myth

In our fast-paced, digital world, our computers have become extensions of ourselves. They are the silent workhorses that accompany us through the daily grind, facilitating our tasks and entertainment.

Most of us, at one point or another, have fallen into the habit of leaving our personal computer (PC) running indefinitely, or falling asleep on them while working only to be brought back by the realization that something has gone terribly wrong when we finally do decide to power them down. I, too, am guilty of this, and I’ll share a personal experience that taught me a valuable lesson about the importance of shutting down our PCs.

For an entire month, I neglected the “Power” button on my Mac. It wasn’t intentional; it just happened amidst my busy schedule and the endless demands of work. My laptop, like a faithful companion, dutifully stayed awake, processing data, running background applications, and remaining in a state of perpetual readiness. It was always there when I needed it, so why bother shutting it down?

Then came that fateful day, the day my laptop decided to rebel. I was in the middle of a critical project and every second counted. I eagerly opened the lid, expecting my laptop to instantly spring to life. Instead, I was greeted by a stuck screen and the unnerving silence of a non-responsive machine. Panic coursed through me as I realized the gravity of the situation. This has happened severally now.

My laptop’s rebellion forced me to confront a harsh reality: prolonged periods without proper shutdowns can have severe consequences.

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Sleep Mode vs. Shutdown

Now, let’s address a common question: Does regularly putting your PC to sleep rather than shutting it down properly make it malfunction?

Well, if “regularly” was out of the question, then the short answer is no. Sleep mode, also known as “Suspend” or “Standby,” is designed to save power while keeping your session and applications intact. It’s a useful feature that allows your computer to quickly resume where you left off.

Sleep mode differs from keeping your PC running continuously. When your computer is in sleep mode, it goes into a low-power state, which means it’s using very little energy and generating minimal heat. This is a far cry from the constant activity and potential overheating associated with leaving your PC fully operational for extended periods.

Back in the day, computer components, most notably the hard drive and fans, were a little more susceptible to possible damage from consistently powering the computer on and off. To avoid these problems, PC manufacturers would discourage frequent shutdowns and restarts.

Nowadays, these parts are manufactured better, so they are able to withstand this kind of stress (both from sleep mode and a shutdown state) to a certain degree. Unless you are constantly powering your PC on and off like a toy, the wear and tear from a daily shutdown is minimal and won’t cause noticeable damage.

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What you should know about leaving your PC on sleep mode

Leaving your PC to sleep over a long and consistent amount of time like a month or more can harm your PC’s health. Why? Power surges or power drops which occur when a machine is powered by its power adapter are more harmful to a sleeping computer than to one completely shut down according to Hampshire.edu.

Leaving your computer on all the time can lead to a shorter lifespan due to increased heat exposure. Even in sleep mode, power is drawn to the RAM, resulting in wasted electricity. While a PC still draws a little bit of power when shut down (unless it’s unplugged from the power source), it still remains a much better energy-saving option. If your device’s power consumption is less, the hardware doesn’t get heated as quickly. When you shut down frequently, the various PC components, such as the battery, will last longer.

Software updates are another thing. When your PC is perpetually online, it may miss important software updates and security patches. This leaves your system vulnerable to malware, viruses, and other digital threats that can exploit weaknesses. Shutdowns clean out minor system issues like bugs, leaked memory, and unused network connections.

In fact, running multiple applications and processes simultaneously without a proper break and shutdown can lead to memory and resource drain. Eventually, your PC may start to slow down or freeze, as was the case with my laptop on that hectic day.

Imagine your PC as a tireless athlete running a never-ending marathon. Over time, the constant activity generates heat and causes wear and tear on the internal components. Without periodic shutdowns, your PC becomes prone to overheating, which can lead to performance issues and even hardware damage.

Finally,

It’s convenient to close the lid of our laptops, go to a meeting, return, and open the laptops to be right where we left off without having to wait for our machines to boot. We save a lot of time in our lives not waiting for our devices to shut down and start back up. But we should not make putting our machines to sleep all the time our modus operandi.

Also, closing your laptop lid before it fully shuts down may cause it to go to sleep instead. If your battery expires while your machine is sleeping without the power adapter plugged in, it may have difficulty waking up. What to do? Plug in your adapter for ten minutes before trying to wake it.

In conclusion, shutting down is the best choice if you won’t be using your computer for a long period of time or if you want to turn it off for good. Sleep mode is the better option if you need the computer again in a short time since you can just wake it back up quickly without having to restart everything.