HDD Idling question ?

[naseem142]

Hello,

I have 1 SSD and 1 HDD , i put some programs on my HDD that i don't use often like some software , games , etc.. So since i don't use it often the HDD goes to sleep after a while.

Is this a good thing? I did some research and they say that spinning up from sleep can hurt an HDD more than running 24/7 , but articles never get the point they always damn stall and never give an answer. I'd like to know the opinion of experts on here..

Should i leave my HDD 24/7 even though i don't always use it ( i still use it quite often but less than my SSD files ) , Or just leave it like this and let it sleep whenever windows has already set it to?

Thanks!

 

[Gallarian]

If you think about it, letting your HDD 'sleep' when not in use and spin up when needed is exactly the same as when you shut down and turn on your PC. I'd say that its not a problem you should be concerned about, but you should probably ensure that all your data is backed up (good practice anyway).

 

[naseem142]

If you think about it, letting your HDD 'sleep' when not in use and spin up when needed is exactly the same as when you shut down and turn on your PC. I'd say that its not a problem you should be concerned about, but you should probably ensure that all your data is backed up (good practice anyway).

I don't know, they are not exactly the same thing. an hdd is a fragile mechanical structure and this stress every now and then might affect it real bad.. or at least what my knowledge tells me so far.

 

[jsmithepa]

Letting HD go to sleep is perfectly normal, but just don't overdo it. Is not unlike a car, you don't want to have it sit idle for an hour burning gas and wearing the bearings, but waiting on a traffic light for 2 minutes, just leave it running as there is some extra wear for frequent start/stop.

In real life, I recommend a HD sleep of 30 minute and no less. Seems to have heard the WD Green let you set for 15 mins max. Do that.

 

[Gallarian]

If you think about it, letting your HDD 'sleep' when not in use and spin up when needed is exactly the same as when you shut down and turn on your PC. I'd say that its not a problem you should be concerned about, but you should probably ensure that all your data is backed up (good practice anyway).

I don't know, they are not exactly the same thing. an hdd is a fragile mechanical structure and this stress every now and then might affect it real bad.. or at least what my knowledge tells me so far.

You misunderstand; I mean when your turn off your PC, youre HDD is doing exactly what its doing when not in use when the system is on (i.e. its 'asleep').

So when you turn your PC on, the HDD goes from idle to 'spinning' up just as it does if your not using it.

As such, it is fair to say that a HDD is designed to be able to do this without causing harm as its exactly what they did for decades before SSDs came along.

 

[naseem142]

If you think about it, letting your HDD 'sleep' when not in use and spin up when needed is exactly the same as when you shut down and turn on your PC. I'd say that its not a problem you should be concerned about, but you should probably ensure that all your data is backed up (good practice anyway).

I don't know, they are not exactly the same thing. an hdd is a fragile mechanical structure and this stress every now and then might affect it real bad.. or at least what my knowledge tells me so far.

You misunderstand; I mean when your turn off your PC, youre HDD is doing exactly what its doing when not in use when the system is on (i.e. its 'asleep').

So when you turn your PC on, the HDD goes from idle to 'spinning' up just as it does if your not using it.

As such, it is fair to say that a HDD is designed to be able to do this without causing harm as its exactly what they did for decades before SSDs came along.

I keep my PC running for 16+- Hours a day , so it's different from the 20 min sleep time that i just checked it was set at , idling for that many hours is different than sleeping and waking up every time i have to use my HDD.

But as you guys say that it's fine , i set the timer to 30 mins sleep time.