Does putting a laptop into standby mode protect the hard drive as much as doing a full shutdown?

Does putting a laptop into standby mode protect the hard drive as much as doing a full shutdown?

Does putting a laptop into standby mode protect the hard drive as much as doing a full shutdown? I carry my laptop around with me (often not in its protective laptop case even) and want to know if, to protect the hard drive, I need to do a full shutdown between moves or if standby mode is just as safe?

    Requires Free Membership to View

    Login

    SearchMobileComputing.com members gain immediate and unlimited access to expert guides for mobile deployment, management and security, industry trends, and more-- all at no cost. Join me on SearchMobileComputing.com today!

    Kate Gerwig, Editorial Director

    By submitting your registration information to SearchMobileComputing.com you agree to receive email communications from TechTarget and TechTarget partners. We encourage you to read our Privacy Policy which contains important disclosures about how we collect and use your registration and other information. If you reside outside of the United States, by submitting this registration information you consent to having your personal data transferred to and processed in the United States. Your use of SearchMobileComputing.com is governed by our Terms of Use. You may contact us at webmaster@TechTarget.com.

Standby is fine. When you go into standby, everything that is in memory is written to the hard drive. A significant number of laptop users almost never shutdown their laptop.

This was first published in February 2005

Back to top