On Tue, 28 Aug 2007 11:28:35 -0400
"Richard Carter" <carter.r.a.l@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Folks,
Is it better to leave a system running all the time or is it
better to shut it down over night, on weekends, holidays etc?
In the past I have always shut my Debian system down over night
etc for 3 reasons:
1) I put backups on my 80GB external HD which I usually leave shut
down even when I boot the rest of the system. It's about the same
age as my internal 160GB HD so I hoped to reduce the probability
of it failing at the same time as the internal HD by starting it
less often.
2) I hoped to reduce the probability of being hacked by shutting
down, although I do have a firewall installed.
3) I thought it was a waste of electricity, and money, to have a
machine running that wasn't being used.
But I notice that most backup utilities are designed to backup
automatically at the same time every day or week. That seems to
assume that the system is always running.
I'd appreciate your advice.
Robin Carter
I've always gone for leaving my machines on. I feel there is less
wear and tear on components by leaving the machine on.