Ok to leave the macbook on 24/7?

Is it damaging to leave the computer on all the time or nearly all the time? I'm constantly wanting to leave my computer on overnight to leave it doing tasks and stuff, but I've always used a desktop in the past. With my desktop, I've never felt uncomfotable leaving it on all the time. Is it ok to do the same with the macbook, provided that it's left on a desk?

The only real concern about leaving a computer on all the time would be that it is relatively taxing on the lifetime of the cpu (the higher the temperature and the longer the cpu is run the shorter it will last). When put in perspective however this is a pretty insignificant concern for a few reasons. First of all I really doubt we are going to be worrying about a cpu frying in 10 years from now. Second of all mobile processors are made from the creme of the silicon crop with less impurities and much higher tolerances for heat. For this reason the relatively high temperatures (60-70c) that a macbook can experience at low usage levels shouldn't really put the cpu at any heightened risk. You should be fine leaving it on all the time even though "technically" it won't neccesarily last as long it will last plenty long enough.

Similar Messages

  • Does it harm the battery to leave the MacBook pluged in all of the time?

    Does it harm the battery to leave the MacBook pluged in all of the time?

    It is OK to leave your battery hooked to the charger most of the time. The only time I unhook mine from the charger is when I calibrate. You should calibrate your battery once a month. This keeps your battery healthy for when you need to use your MacBook portable.

  • Leaving the Macbook plugged in w/battery out. Is it safe?

    I typically use my macbook on my external hdtv so i keep it plugged up with the battery removed. Is this safe to do or should i always unplug it when i'm not useing it.
    it just a hassle to plug it up everytime i want to use it. And i took the battery out because i'm not using it in the traditional method.
    Should i be concerned if i leave it plugged up? Will this do any harm?
    thanks
    ~chris

    cpage76 wrote:
    I typically use my macbook on my external hdtv so i keep it plugged up with the battery removed. Is this safe to do or should i always unplug it when i'm not useing it ... And i took the battery out because i'm not using it in the traditional method.
    Safe? Well, it won't harm the computer, but if you have important files on the computer, you're putting them at risk. If the power is lost - if there's a power outage, brownout, or you accidentally pull the power cord out, you're shutting the computer down in a very "harsh" manner - essentially crashing it - so your hard drive would undergo undue stress and wouldn't get the safe shutdown it requires to help safeguard your files.
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    Matt

  • Can I leave the battery in my macbook even though I always have it plugged

    Hi just bought a Macbook over the weekend and am new to mac after a few days I totally enjoy the os and probally will never use windows again but my question is I leave my macbook plugged in all the time should I leave the battery in and is ok to leave the macbook on all day while I am downloading files thank you

    Hi, and welcome to the Apple Discussions.
    You can leave your battery in if you leave it plugged in all the time, however it may affect the battery life negatively. See this article: http://www.apple.com/batteries/notebooks.html
    And if you do decide to leave it plugged in with the battery in, you should calibrate the battery regularly.
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  • Is there a way to use an external display while keeping the Macbook open?

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    could you not just connect it with the vga adapter and then turn the brightness of your screen all the way down so there is no light? i had to do that for my ibook g4 when i cracked the lcd, but thankfully i have my macbook now.

  • Do i need to leave my MacBook at the store after a genius appt.?

    All I need is the bottom panel and trackpad fixed. Do I need to leave my MacBook at the store? I'm afraid they will go thru my stuff or something..

    It's unlikely they will fix it while you wait. They won't go thru your stuff, but if you are that concerned then make a complete backup. Make a new user account; log into the new account and delete your Home folder.

  • Is it better to leave your macbook pro in sleep mode during the night or have it shutdown all night?

    Is it better to leave your macbook pro in sleep mode during the night or have it shutdown all night?

    During sleep, your MacBook consumes a little part of the battery, so it won't harm leaving it in sleep mode. Also, you will be able to start using it quickly, as you don't need to wait until Mac OS X turns on.
    I only recommend you to turn off the MacBook if you are not going to use it for days in order to save battery, but apart from that, you don't need to turn it off

  • Any problem leaving my MacBook on all the time for the new AppleTV?

    I now have two new AppleTVs, both of which Home Share with my one MacBook.
    Home Sharing only works when my MacBook is powered up and iTunes is running.
    Questions are...
    Is there a problem with leaving my MacBook plugged in and turned on all the time? Battery health?
    Is there any way to make iTunes Home Sharing work with the cover closed?
    Suggestions?

    I'll clarify my questions. I am using my MacBook the same way you would use a home computer, like a MacPro or a MacMini. I have it hooked to a home TV and I use a bluetooth keyboard and magic pad to operate it. It just sits next to the TV like cable box does.
    Issue #1) My MacBook is plugged in and turned on all the time, 24/7. This is not a problem for a MacPro or MacMini since neither one has a battery, so my first questions are: Will this destroy the battery's ability to maintain a charge when I do occasionally use my MacBook as a portable? Also, could this be a fire hazard since laptop batteries tend to get warm?
    Issue #2) With the cover closed, the MacBook continues to operate as long as it is receiving periodic input from the keyboard or trackpad. However, once the TV that it is connected to is turned off, the MacBook goes to sleep since it's no longer hooked to a display, either it's own (cover closed) or the TV monitor (turned off). Next question is: Is there any way to keep this MacBook and iTunes operating in this condition (turned on, but cover closed and TV monitor off) so that I can continue to HomeShare with the other AppleTVs in the house?

  • If i leave my macbook pr pluged to the power would it get damaged?

    If i leave my macbook pro retina late 2013 pluged to the power a long time would the battery it get damaged?
    Or the power goes directly to the computer. If so ? how many time do you recommend to leave it pluged to the power ?
    Thanks.

    If you keep you computer plugged in always, battery health will diminish.
    Run it on battery couple of hours a day. Battery needs "exercise" to keep battery in optimum condition.
    For more info: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1446

  • Is it better to leave my Macbook plugged in most of the time or not?

    I've read different answers on the internet. Some people say that keeping your macbook plugged in is like not using the battery at all. Others say that keeping it plugged in most of the time is bad for the battery, for various reasons, either it makes the battery too hot or the constant charging and discharging during use is somehow detrimental. Everybody agrees that you should use it purely on battery at least once in a while, and many say that one should do a full discharge and charge once a month or so, to "exercise" the battery.
    My question can be restated as: What is the optimal charging schedule for battery life, assuming that I have constant access to an electric outlet?

    Do not let the MacBook or other battery powered Apple products run their battery flat.
    To do so will damage the longer-term life and deep-cycle charge capabilities of them...
    There is information about general battery and product health in the Apple support articles.
    •Mac notebooks: All about batteries - Apple Support
    •Apple Portables: Troubleshooting MagSafe adapters - Apple Support
    •Find the right power adapter and cord for your Mac notebook - Apple Support
    General:
    http://www.apple.com/batteries/maximizing-performance/
    You can check the System information section for battery and charging status, also note
    the charge cycles and life or health of the battery there.
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  • Is it ok to leave the charger connect to my macbook pro?

    Is it ok to leave the charge connect most of the time? or can I blow something out if it is connected? just thought of asking cuz i have been leaving it on.

    I do it all the time with no ill effects.  At least once per month I will use the MBP under battery power to about the 40% discharge level to keep the battery happy.  Here are Apple articles on MBP battery usage which you may find helpful:
    https://www.apple.com/support/macbookpro/batteries_power/
    Ciao.

  • What the Macbook Pro should have

    Hi guys, 2 weeks ago I purchased my first Apple laptop - the Macbook Pro 13", before that (and still sometimes) I used PC. Even though the design is great, there are things that could be done to make it perfect. Here is my list, please tell me what you think about it.
    1 - A delete button one the keyboard, I noticed that the Macbook Pro doesn't have one before purchasing it, but after using if for 2 weeks noticed how important it is.
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    3 - HDMI port - most of the laptops already have it, I don't see why none of the Macbooks has it. If I want to connect my Macbook Pro to my TV, I have to spend extra money on MiniDisplay to HDMI adaptor (it's not like Apple products are any cheep, so spending extra money on things that should have been there on first place is NOT good).
    4 - Numerical Keyboard - I know there is no room for it, but a button like Caps Lock could be used, when it's pressed certain buttons from the keyboard could act only as numerical keyboard and when pressed again, the keyboard could be back to normal.
    5 - The screen resolution of the 13" Macbook Pro should have been like the 13" Macbook Air.
    6 - The CD Drive is unnecessary, nobody uses it nowadays. Nobody listens to music from a CD and nobody installs any software from a CD, everyone uses the Internet for these things, the little part of people who are still using CDs, DVDs, etc. have other devises such as: DVD or Blue-ray players, HiFi systems and Desktops. The room that is taken by the Optical Disk could be used for a bigger battery.
    7 - Better cooling system - when watching a move the laptop gets so hot that I literally can't put it on my lap (lol what a paradox, a laptop that cannot be put on a lap), also I would love to be able to close the lid and leave the laptop works (it is great when downloading big files or scanning software is used), but with that cooling system I'm afraid that it would overheat.
    8 - Last but not least - The screen bezel. It's too big, Macbooks should be bezelless, it would make them much better looking.

    DS had some great points, I'll chime in as well.
    1.) I agree, it'd be handy to have. It definitely took some getting use to but once you do and modify your keyboard workflow it becomes second nature.
    2.) I ended up investing a USB extension cable, Apple makes them I believe. At least they use to, I've had mine for years. While the cable dangling off the side of the machine is a bit of an annoyance, it's a necessity if I want to double up my AirCard (USB) with a thumb drive. USB 2.0 is still the "standard" and as such it's going to be the de facto peripheral port. Apple is historically slow about adopting non-standard peripheral interfaces unless they pioneer or champion it. It wouldn't surprise me if Apple still doesn't offer USB 3.0 this time next year. Thunderbolt/Light Peak is brand new tech, and as such it's going to take a while to have peripherals that support it. There are NAS devices that have it, they were just announced this week.
    Here's a link regarding its deployment - http://www.tuaw.com/2011/04/13/intel-distributing-thunderbolt-developer-kits-thi s-quarter-more/
    3.) I agree that HDMI would be nice but with Thunderbolt supporting HDMI, I really don't see Apple adding another video out port. There's no room left on the I/O strip on the 13" MBP for it. Apple use to include adapters (when the MBP first came out) but they've since stopped doing that and gouge with adapters. Thankfully there are numerous 3rd party offerings at a fraction of the price.
    4.) I agree, I forget which "redesign" of the keyboard layout got rid of the Num Lock key. I know my 15" MBP (Santa Rosa) has it. I currently use my iPhone as my numerical keyboard, there's a great little app that pairs the phone to your computer via Bluetooth. It works great as an alternative.
    5.) Marketing 101. By introducing it via a future revision this encourages current owners to want to upgrade/switch and thus move more units and tout it as a "feature upgrade." I was pretty shocked the i5/i7 update to the MBP 13" did not introduce the 1440 resolution.
    6.) This is where you'll get disagreement. Rule #1 of proper Internet forum posting, don't use words like: everyone, everyone, most, all, nobody, no one, etc. Especially without evidence to back it up. While you don't use it, people do. I use mine daily, my co-workers use their drives daily. That's 11 people right there, which is 11 more than "nobody."
    7.) Apple has never called their computer a "laptop." They've always referred to is as a portable computer. Matter of fact, they strongly discourage the use of their portable computers on your lap due to how the heat dissipation process works through the top case. So the problem(s) you're experiencing are to be expected, you're using the machine in a method that is not recommended by the manufacturer. They even discuss that in the "Getting Started" booklet that came with your machine.

  • How can I set up Cinema Display as a main screen and leave my macbook pro as a second screen instead?

    How can I set up Cinema Display as a main screen and leave my macbook pro as a second screen instead?

    I learned that the Dock is positioned at the chosen edge of whatever Display is positioned farthest to that side.  E.g. for the Dock to be positioned on the right side of the Cinema Display (instead of the right side of the MacBook), the Cinema Display must be oriented (by dragging) to the right of the MacBook monitor on the "Arrangement" tab of the Displays Preference Panel.

  • Why doesn't the Macbook work lid-closed??

    I've only just discovered that the Macbook will try to go to sleep every time i close it's lid. For me, this is possibly the most annoying thing that any laptop could ever do!
    I know the Macbook is designed for lid closed use when external keyboard, mouse and display are connected. But if it doesn't overheat in this situation, then why should it be a problem without any of these connected!?
    I use my laptops esentially as desktops. Download and encode video overnight, play mp3's 24/7 and don't want to leave the lid open for dust to collect just to be able to do these things.
    Can anyone think of anything to explain this crazy behaviour? Or vouch for the use of software to work around this, such as sleepless.
    Macbook (White) 2.0GHz   Mac OS X (10.4.6)   - 2Gb RAM, 80Gb HD

    Wtihout knowing Aple's specific reasons I would think that it were a safely reason. With the lid closed it would hence but unknown if it were on. There are no lights or anything to say this so potentially you can grab it and move it as though you would when off. Thi s could be extremely bad, even with the sudden motion sensor.
    When it is connected to an external monitor you will at minimum have to disconnect it and USB mouse/keyboard which does give you time to think that it's on.
    I have the same issue as you do though as I have a PowerBook currently running as a server. I use a very high tech device to keep the lid open just enough to keep the thing from sleeping.… it's called an eraser.

  • The MacBook Pro will not allow me to cut-and-paste to and from or to click-and-drag to the external drive. I can copy-and-paste, but then I must send the original to the trash, which doubles the time and effort. Is there any way to cut-and-paste?

    I have recently switched from a PC to a MacBook Pro.
    I have a large number of documents and photographs on a multiterrabite external drive, backed up on a second multiterrabite external drive.
    Both external drives are formatted for MacIntosh. This has been verified by agents at an Apple store and also at Best Buy in two different cities.
    This is the problem:
    The MacBook Pro will not allow me to cut-and-paste to and from or to click-and-drag to the external drive. I can copy-and-paste, but then I must send the original to the trash, which doubles the time and effort. Is there any way to cut-and-paste?
    Also, the MacBook Pro will not allow me to rename multiple documents or photographs. I can click-and-rename a single one, but this is impossibly time consuming. I can batch-rename in iPhoto, but when I transfer the photographs to the external drive, the rename does not transfer.
    I’m reduced to using my wife’s Toshiba to cut-and-past, rename, and transfer documents. It works perfectly. Is there any way to do this on the MacBook Pro?
    Thanks!
    Roderick Guerry
    [email protected]

    Roderick Guerry wrote:
    The MacBook Pro will not allow me to cut-and-paste to and from or to click-and-drag to the external drive. I can copy-and-paste, but then I must send the original to the trash, which doubles the time and effort. Is there any way to cut-and-paste?
    No, this is a philosophical difference between Apple and Microsoft. Apple believes that it's dangerous to cut a file in case the user never pastes it; in that case the file is lost. Microsoft seems to not have this problem (if I remember Windows correctly) because they don't delete the originating file if it's cut but never pasted.
    Even though Macs have a lot of keyboard shortcuts, philosophically Macs have traditionally been mouse-first. This applies to file copy operations. In your case, what a Mac user would do is open the source window, open the destination window (on your second drive), and then Command-drag the selected files from the source to destination window. This is because a normal drag would leave the originals behind, while adding the Command modifier key tells OS X that this is a Move, not a Copy, so don't leave the originals behind.
    (In addition there are different rules for drag-copying within the same volume or between different volumes. If you drag between two folders on the same volume, the files are moved. If you drag between different volumes, the files are copied unless you hold down Command to delete the copies on the source volume.)
    Roderick Guerry wrote:
    Also, the MacBook Pro will not allow me to rename multiple documents or photographs. I can click-and-rename a single one, but this is impossibly time consuming. I can batch-rename in iPhoto, but when I transfer the photographs to the external drive, the rename does not transfer.
    Two problems in this case. First, batch file renaming is not built into OS X unless you build something with Automator. However, there are many utilities that can do batch file renaming which you can find at macupdate.com or on the App Store. Since I work with media I often batch rename using one of the media managers I have lying around like Media Pro or Adobe Bridge (comes with Photoshop).
    iPhoto is a database front end designed to shield the file system from the consumer and let them concentrate on creativity and sharing. As such it is often a poor choice for managing files directly. When you "transferred the photographs" chances are you moved the originals, not the ones iPhoto edited which are stored in a hidden folder.
    Roderick Guerry wrote:
    I’m reduced to using my wife’s Toshiba to cut-and-past, rename, and transfer documents. It works perfectly. Is there any way to do this on the MacBook Pro?
    There will not be a way to do it exactly like Windows. As described above, there are ways to do it "the Mac way." If it is possible to remove judgment on which way is "better" you might find the Mac way to be acceptable, but of course sometimes we simply prefer what we're used to.

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