Hard Disk Standby

cclloyd9785

Master of Technology
Power User
Local time
9:48 PM
Messages
662
Location
Boston, MA
What is the advantage of choosing the option to let my hard disk enter standby?

I have it enabled on TuneUp utilities to spin down after 5 minutes.

Is it like putting my computer to sleep? Is there a noticeable lag to spin back up and everything?
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Toshiba Satellite L505D-S9565
OS
Windows 7 Home Premium x64, Mac OS X 10.6.2 x64
CPU
AMD Athlon X2 Dual-Core 2.1 GHz
Motherboard
Toshiba Built-In with Insyde H20 BIOS 1.40
Memory
4 GB DDR2 800 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ATI Radeon HD Mobility 3100 Graphics 256MB to 1468 MB Shared
Sound Card
Realtek Mobile ALC272 HD Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
15.6" TFT LCD with TruBrite, Samsung 1080p HDTV
Screen Resolution
1366x768, 1920x1080
Hard Drives
❶:Main: Toshiba 250 GB SATA 5400 RPM
PSU
N/A
Case
N/A
Cooling
Built-in/Open window in winter :P
Keyboard
Built-in
Mouse
Build-in Symantics SmartTouch Pad
Internet Speed
55 MB/sec Down, 9 MB/sec Up
Other Info
❷:Backup: Seagate FreeAgent Desk USB 2.0 5400 RPM
❸:Media: Toshiba 640 GB USB 2.0 5400 RPM Portable Edition
I think standby is short of sleep. Kind of like the hypnagogic state you go through every night in bed.

Try it and find out. I'd assume there is some minor lag when coming back to life, but you may find it acceptable.

The (minor) advantage presumably relates to power savings and less wear and tear on the drive.
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Ignatz Special; 4 speed manual gearbox; factory air conditioning; one of one
OS
Windows 7 Home Premium SP1, 64-bit
CPU
Intel Skylake i5-6600K, not overclocked
Motherboard
AsRock Z170M Extreme 4, micro ATX
Memory
8 GB HyperX DDR4-2666 (2 x 4 GB)
Graphics Card(s)
none; graphics are integrated on CPU
Sound Card
onboard: Realtek ALC1150; external: USB Behringer UF0-202
Monitor(s) Displays
Dell S2340M 23 inch IPS
Screen Resolution
1600 x 900
Hard Drives
System: Crucial MX100 series SSD, 128 GB;
Data: Samsung Spinpoint 103SJ, 1 TB;
Backup: WD Caviar Green WD30EZRX-00D8PB0, 3 TB
PSU
Rosewill SilentNight 500 watt fanless, semi-modular
Case
Antec Solo II
Cooling
Noctua NH-U12S; Noctua F12 intake, Noctua S12A exhaust
Keyboard
Microsoft 200 6JH-00001 USB
Mouse
Dell or Microsoft optical wired; USB
Antivirus
Microsoft Security Essentials and Malwarebytes Premium
Browser
Pale Moon
Other Info
All fans PWM; speeds at idle: CPU circa 500 rpm; intake circa 600 rpm; exhaust circa 600 rpm; CPU temps 27 idle and 47 C load in a warm room (27 C/81 F) when running Intel Extreme Tuning Utility stress test.
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