There are widespread misconceptions about shutting down and restarting Windows 10 systems. When using your system, it is important to understand that shutting down the system is not to be considered as an option, but as a necessity. If you have been using your PC on for days or weeks without restarting or shutting it down, you are doing a lot of damage to it. There are many reasons why you should do so on a regular basis.
Hibernating or Sleeping the System
When you hibernate your Windows 10 system, it requires lesser time to turn back on. During hibernation, the state of the system gets saved on its drive. When you turn the system on, the state gets re-loaded.
Another option is to keep your PC in sleep mode. In this mode, all the components except the RAM go into sleep mode. But the system’s battery will continue to drain, even though at a slower rate.
Even when the latest Windows 10 systems come with the sleep option, it doesn’t mean that you should use it excessively. There are many reasons why you should restart your PC on a regular basis.
1. Longer Lasting Hard Drive
A hard drive has moving parts and the longer it is going to work, the more wear and tear will occur. When you keep your system in sleep mode, some systems will still be running in the background. This includes the Windows 10 update and anti-malware programs. This means that the drive will continue to be in use when you think it is not. When you keep the system shut down, when not in use, you are reducing the wear and tear and increasing the hard drive’s life.
2. Updates Take Effect
When you shut down the system, it allows it to implement the updates. Even when all the security patches and other application updates are downloaded, it is during the shutdown and boot up process that the updates are applied. If you do not shutdown or restart the system for weeks, you are literally putting your Windows 10 system at risk of malware attacks even when the security patches have been downloaded.
For example, if you have asus smart gesture download windows 10, it will need the system to be restarted for a full installation.
3. Reduce Power Consumption
Another advantage of shutting down the system when it is not in use, is that it reduces power consumption. Whether you are using the PC for official or personal use, it helps reduce your utility bills. This is a significant benefit considering that many users leave their systems turned on for weeks at a stretch.
4. Fixing Errors & Bugs
When a system boots up, it is not just the application updates that it applies. It can also run automatic diagnostics and fix system errors. If you leave your computer without shutting down for a long time, it is going to increase the number of errors and bugs it has.
All these errors can cause applications to slow down, cause system freezing, and affect internet connectivity speeds. When you should down the PC every day, it will also prevent the CPU from getting overloaded.
5. Improved PC Performance
Shutting down your Windows 10 system is also going to flush and clear the RAM of all the different data and processes it has to handle. The result is improved performance when the system turns on, making it work more efficiently.
Every app you run on your system is going to consume RAM. Even if you close the app, some trace data elements will still reside on the RAM in the form of cache. This can interfere with the performance of other programs that you may want to run. When you shut down the system, the memory gets refreshed and works at its optimal levels.
Thus, there are many reasons why you should shutdown and/or restart your Windows 10 system on a regular basis.