Turning off second HDD

[AddRAM]

Roland has the answer.

But turning it off, na ya can`t do that, but if I only did a backup once a month I would just disconnect the drive, it only takes a minute or less.

 

[Layback Bear]

Okay, we are trying to re-invent the wheel.
Just unplug the drive and put it some place safe. Done.

 

[westom]

Am I the only person that ever wanted to turn off a backup Hard Drive?
Do most people just let them run? Just curious.

Understand some basic semiconductor concepts. Semiconductors use PN junctions to isolate the various circuits in an integrated circuit. That means voltage on all other pins must remain within VCC and Ground so that reverse currents do not pass through those PN junctions - that are not intended to conduct current. If you disconnect DC voltages (ie VCC), then voltages on signal wires might exceed those limits - causing semiconductor damage.

Some semiconductors are specially designed to avert this damage. Is that true of semiconductors in your disk drive? I have never seen disk drive specifications that says yes or no. So I (and others) cannot say if that might cause damage or overstress.

Good practice is to always remove AC power cord from its wall receptacle before disconnecting both DC voltage and signal cables from that drive.

Is that desirable? First define what is to be protected from. What is the life expectancy of a disk drive? Maybe 100,000 hours. That means operating ten hours every day for ... 27 years.