Is it better to keep your computer on at all times or to turn it off when not using?

Question

and why? I've heard rumors that it's better to leave it on.

Answer 1

You really need some kind of balance. Leaving your computer on for too long can wear out your fans and cause you to run out of memory and cause a lot of disk swapping due to memory leaks in your applications. However constantly rebooting the machine is not really a good thing either because the startup process wears on the hardware also.

I would suggest restarting your computer about once a week. This should give you a good balance.

Answer 2

You got a lot on conflicting answers. A basic rule of thumb is that if you will not be using it for over 8 hours, turn it off. You will have less dust build up inside the case, use less electric and will clear the cache each time so Windows runs better. If you do leave it on for any length of time when it is not being used then for your own safety you should lock your internet connection (Zonealarm does this quite well) or put the computer in sleep mode (this will disconnect the Ethernet connection on the newer ones). You may even find, if you do turn it off, that you might enjoy other things in life as well.

Answer 3

Best balance between cutting down the thermal shocks of starting & stopping and letting it have a rest from time to time is to turn on & off once each per day.

Answer 4

It's debatable, but I believe it's better to leave it on because it's sort of a "shock" to the processor everytime you cold boot. I doubt that it would cause trouble if you shut it down everyday, but from what I've read, it's generally a good idea to leave it running suspended.

Answer 5

its not necessary to keep ur computer on at all times,put it on only if needed otherwise if u need ur computer after every 15 minutes or else then u can keep ur pc in standby mode this comes when u click on start menu on turn off pc,in standby mode the pc consumes almost negligible amount of power

Answer 6

I was told years ago that turning it off resulted in cooling then reheating when on AND that continual process resulting in "cracking' in the connections on the boards.
We were told that a constant low stable voltage / heat was better for the CPU . . .
The monitor depends on whether it has a screen saver mode . . . old ones did not and you could have phosphor burn in if left on the same display for awhile.

Answer 7

I think that it is better to turn it off. It saves power and for you it saves money that you can use for other things. Plus your at less risk for a virius if it is off.

Answer 8

i think u do not leave it on just like that, but instead, put it to standby or sleep mode. then, restart your computer every few days to ensure maximum performance.

Answer 9

When not in use you should turn it off.