Leave MBP on all the time?

My MBP (eary 2011, OS 10.6.8) lives most of its life in clamshell mode at my desk, plugged into the power brick and using an external monitor, keyboard, and mouse. I have an external powered USB hub, but no juice is provided to the iPhone dock unless the computer is awake to approve the draw.
My workaround is to set Energy Saver's "Power Adapter" CPU preferences to "Never Sleep." In order to not have the HD running endlessly, I have checked the "Put the hard disk(s) to sleep when possible" box. With this setup, the screen darkens at its own setting, the HD spins down, but the computer's still awake which allows the iPhone to charge. An unexpected bonus is that the MBP comes to life much more quickly than it did having to wake up.
My question is: is this never-sleep setup safe for the CPU? I left it on last night, and the case seemed just the same (i.e., not warm) as when it used to sleep. Anyone try this?
Thanks!
-David Brick
Santa Cruz CA

I do. Lots of people leave it on. I've been going for about a month now without a restart. If you have lots of different little projects going, it's much more convenient. The only concern might be proper care and feeding of your battery:
http://www.apple.com/batteries/
http://www.apple.com/batteries/notebooks.html
charlie

Similar Messages

Time capsule, do i need to leave this on all the time?

hi folks just got a new time capsule drive, and set it up, however i am not sure whether or not i should leave it on all the time? or switch it off when not in use?
does the hdd drive power down when idle?
cheers

hi folks just got a new time capsule drive, and set it up, however i am not sure whether or not i should leave it on all the time? or switch it off when not in use?
The Time Capsule (TC), like most networking equipment, is designed to operate 24x7. However, you can power it down when not in use for either Internet access, file/print sharing, or Time Machine backups.
does the hdd drive power down when idle?
I'm not 100% sure, but I believe it goes into "sleep" mode when there is no disk activity after a certain period of time.

IPod classic won't turn off when plugged into a home theater dock; what's up? will it hurt to leave it on all the time?

I bought a new iPod Classic and it won't turn off when plugged into a home theater dock. Is this normal and will it hurt the iPod if i leave it on all the time?

Hi there,
How old is your Classic? Often, after a couple of years, rechargable batteries begin to fail, especially after such a long period of inactivity. This happens with any gadget with this type of battery.
Try leaving it plugged in for 24 hours, and try again, to rule out that it isn't just really low on charge. If this doesn't help, it may be a good time to buy a replacement. New iPod Nanos and Touches will be released this October.
Below, I've linked to an Apple website which explains rechargable batteries, and why yours may not be working.
Apple - Batteries
I hope this helps, and I hope upgrading your device will not feel like an unnecessary expense. Let me know if you have any more questions,
Nathan

Is it ok to leave ichat online all the time?

My mother and I both have imac's and love them. We also like to ichat everyday...is it ok to leave ichat active all day or close it down after each session?

If you have an always on connection, it's no problem to leave your iChat online all the time. Enjoy the inkernet

Can I leave Powerbook on all the time and music pauses when disc ejects.

I have had an imac at home for the last 4 years and always left it asleep when not using it so I could acces my itunes quickly. I have just upgraded to a Pbook G4 17" and am concerned now that I may not be able to leave it on. I read Apples guide to battery use and they say not to leave it plugged in all the time. I thought this was a machine that could be used all the time? Am i safe to leave it plugged in asleep through the day and night with say 3 to 4 hours use in the evening?
Also, when listening to itunes and i eject a disc the music pauses for a moment. I use a G5 at work and my old imac never did this. Someone I work with has the same Pbook but 15" and hers doesnt pause.
Can any one help with these 2 issues? Love my Pbook but these couple of things are taking the shine off it. Thanks for an informative forum.

It is OK to leave your PowerBook on (plugged in) but remember to use your battery once in a while. Lithium-based batteries have to be used. Fully discharging and recharging the battery every two weeks should be OK.
An alternative is removing your battery with a 50% charge. Apple suggests this if you don’t plan on using your battery for more than six months.

Time Capsule - leaving it on all the time?

Hello: I have a new Time Capsule, and use it as my primary network; it is connected to a DSL modem. Anyway, is there any reason that I should not leave it running around the clock? I have other people in my apartment who use it, so it would be inconvenient to turn it off and on.
Thanks

Mine has been on continuously since buying it when they came out in the UK in March. One thing it does very well is power up and down, minimising energy use. And the hard drive is supposed to be 'server-grade' or some such marketing tag.
Seriously I think it really is meant to be left on all the time, otherwise, as you say, your network will come and go. Uses 30 watts according to the spec, but I don't know whether this is with the disk spinning or static.

AppleTV and iTunes without Leaving Computer On All The Time/NAS iTunes Server

I begrudge having to leave my iMac on all the time just so now and again I can play music, pictures and video from it through AppleTV. My iMac is 2 floors up from the AppleTV, and as there is no wake on LAN working (I can't get it to work if there is (I have Lion)) I don't want to go up there to turn the Mac on when I want to use AppleTV.
So I have read some articles about iTunes servers on NAS drives and wondered if that would be a good solution, anyone try them?
If I did have my iTunes library on a NAS drive with an iTunes server, when I start iTunes on my iMac will it then load the iTunes Library as it does now like if it was a local library? So I can still manage it in the same way as I do on my Mac.
I assume then I could have another computer use the same library on the NAS? (although wont do it the same time due to conflicts)
I have iCloud/Match so not so bothered about music as I can play from the Cloud (although its hit ad miss sometimes), but I have videos and pictures I stream to AppleTV so they are more important. I don't want to have a computer left on all the time so I can use AppleTV.
If this is not possible, then I am thinking of getting a Macbook for the lounge, but then I don't want to have to plug/unplug my external hard drives into it all the time, which I am likely to swap with the main iMac too.
Thanks a lot

P.S. I only play music from iCloud as my iMac is not on. So if I can stream to AppleTV without having a computer on, then I would do that to be faster, work all the time, and save bandwidth.

Is it ok to keep the MBP charging all the time while in use?

will it shortened the battery life? or on the other hand, its good?
because the life count will be less
because i dont shut down my MBP most of the time, maybe i shut it down twice / week, so i keep it charging all the time, even if it;s not in use

No, as long as you make sure it goes through at least 1 charge cycle a month. this address may clear it up further.
http://www.apple.com/batteries/notebooks.html
i hope that answers your question

Any issues leaving Airdisk on all the time ?

I'm looking at getting an external hard drive for my Airport extreme.
Does leaving a hard disk attached all the time, ie never switching it off cause any problems ? Will the drive not fail eventually ?
If I leave the network ( ie leave the house ) does this cause any problems if the disk was mounted on my desktop ?
Is it as fast as a USB drive plugged in directly ?

Does leaving a hard disk attached all the time, ie never switching it off cause any problems ? Will the drive not fail eventually ?
Not really, but it is certainly better if you get a drive, like the maxtor One Thouvh III, that will go to sleep when no client computer is actively connected to them.
If I leave the network ( ie leave the house ) does this cause any problems if the disk was mounted on my desktop ?
No.
Is it as fast as a USB drive plugged in directly ?
No. It could be from to 2 to 10 times slower.

Leave iMac on all the time?

Is it safe to leave my imac (late '09 model) on all the time? I restart it when I update it and I turn it off when I'm gone for more than a day....

I wonder how many watts are used by the iPhone charger to charge it completely. Probably 10W per 2 hrs, so altogether 20W. And since most of us charge them daily, the iMac in sleep uses 34W a day, so only 14W more
The same people that tell us not to leave computers on standby/sleep are the same people that claim the fluorescent bulbs are ecological and we should ditch the tungsten lightbulbs, but they don't mention that fluorescent bulbs have mercury vapor inside which is extremely dangerous and the poor people of China have to dig out mercury ores and suffer cancer. They also don't mention how those bulbs are very nonlinear in their energy usage so they introduce noise in your home grid and that the fluorescent bulb light also induces depression because of limited spectrum.

Leaving it on all the time?

I am doing video compression in Final Cut Pro and Dvd Studio Pro and I often leave my Macpro and 30-inch display on all day at work while it is compressing.
1. Can this burn an image into the LCD?
2. I do not want to turn the screen into sleep mode because I was afraid it may affect processing (perhaps I am wrong), does anyone have any suggestions?
Thanks.

You would need to have a static image on your screen for a very long time (much longer than "all day") to actually risk a burn in. You can set your energy prefs to "sleep" the display without worrying about whatever the computer is doing.

Why does my brand new MBP crashes all the time?

I have baught this mac 4 days ago and since day 1 it crashes. Everything freezes and i have to do hard reset. I cant even use the Force Quit Application. Its getting worse day by day and i am really frustrated about this. Anyone got a clue whats goin on?

return it for another new one. You shouldnt have to deal with this on a brand new mac.

Leaving Macbook Pro on all the time (as a desktop)

Hey guys, I have a 2010 Macbook Pro 17" and I'm thinking about transitioning it to a more sedentary lifestyle and turning it into my desktop. I currently use a PC as my home desktop, but it's old, slowing down, and uses Windows.
I have a few questions as I consider this move.
1) Will I need to keep the screen open on the laptop all the time? I think that MBPs dissipate their heat through the front/keyboard, so if I do find a workaround to keep it closed all the time, will my laptop overheat?
2) If I leave my MBP on all the time and plugged into an outlet constantly, will that drain my battery? I like keeping my main desktop on all the time as I do a lot of downloading, use it as a media server, and also like to access my desktop remotely. For the rare instance I want to unplug the MBP from the desktop setup, will I have any battery left to use?
The reason why I ask is because I'm thinking about two main options. The new iMacs are rumored to be coming out by the end of this month and I might just get that to replace my PC. However, I am thinking about holding off for the next generation of Macbook Airs (whenever that is) and just purchasing that, while turning my current MBP into a functional desktop. What is the downside of the using a MBP as a desktop instead of an iMac?
Please let me know what you guys think and recommend, and if anyone else uses this setup, please let me know how it is! Thanks!

1. Yes, it's possible to close the lid and keep the computer going - there are several threads on this if you search.
Although the MBP vents out the back when the lid is closed, heat does dissipate through through the top (meaning around the keyboard/speakers/trackpad/etc) also. Feel with your the top of your hands the aluminum when you computer is working hard and you will feel the heat - closing the lid will limit this heat escaping to a degree. So while it's likely fine to run the MBP with the lid closed, if it were me I would raise the lid up a few inches when the computer is using high CPU or the fans are working hard. (By the way, if you've been to an apple store, you will see that their laptops are fitted with little plastic bumpers so that when the lid is closed it doesn't close all the way - it could be to prevent sleeping, but instead of modding all their computers they could have just turned off sleep on lid close.)
2. As previously stated, it is good to power cycle your battery every month or so to keep it healthy. This is the nature of Li-ion batteries. Just unplug it and let it "die" once and a while. Leaving it plugged in most of the time won't destroy your battery.
Regarding iMac : It may have a better screen than whatever you currently have - they are stunning. Additionally, the current iMacs are more powerful than your 2010 MBP. But if you do decide to go that direction, I would agree that it may be best to wait till the iMacs come out with the improved Sandy Bridge i7's. If you don't need much horsepower, any of the 3 options will work - why not try out your 2010 MBP as your desktop for a bit and see how you like it, in the meantime you can see when the iMac comes out and compare that to your MBP desktop replacement/new MB Air idea.

Is it better to turn off iPhone at night, or just leave on all the time?

This has often been asked of computers as well - Is it generally thought better to turn the iphone off at night and charge it (if needed) or just let it stay in standby mode all the time and plug in to charge when needed. In other words, just leave it on all the time and sleep when not in use (like my MBP), or on/off, on/off, on/off, etc...

I'd leave it on. I would however shut down and restart the phone once a week or so. Not that it will do anything (i don't think)... but it may keep your phone healthy if there are any bugs in memory.

Can i leave to mac on all the time? does any one have issues with speakers or camera not turning on?

this is a thought I have can i leave it on all the time does it reduce the life of the computor or should i turn off daily? Also have an issues when I do tturn t on 2 times out of ten the speaker or camera does not turn on and I have to reboot again. then it works

Apple recommends leaving your computer turned on 24/7 unless you will be away from it for several days. Read the manual that came with your computer and you will find that documentation. It's good practice to put the display to sleep (System Preferences - Energy Saver) when its not being used.

Leave MBP on all the time?

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for