running an external HD 24/7?
 

Wondering if someone could give me some advice please

I have an External HD and an Asus RT-N56U router that has USB ports on it. I was wanting to add my External HD to it so that it can be networked as a back up device for laptops around the house.

I'm just wondering on the wear and tear on a HD 24/7 or will this only become active when when used? I wasn't sure if it would simply shut down like windows does when they aren't active.

Re: running an external HD 24/7?
 

Wear and tear is not generally an issue. Repeatedly shutting down a drive causes more wear than leaving it on 24/7. However if power use is a concern you can program it to shut down when idle either directly on the drive or possibly on the router too, depending on what software you have on the router.

Re: running an external HD 24/7?
 

I run 2 external drives 24/7 on my media server.
Neither have had an issue and qasdfdsaq is right about turning them on and of causing more "wear"

The only drawback and it's not really a drawback is that the drives take a few seconds to spin up when accessed.

Re: running an external HD 24/7?
 

I've got the same router as you and have had an external drive on the go for maybe a couple of years. I go on the logic that it will fail one day and I make sure I've got a copy of everything important somewhere else (eg on our home network, or better still in a different building, or both!).

I'm using a WD drive, don't think it spins down, but it's upstairs so can't hear it. One thing though, the router's only USB2 so it's not the quickest option.

Hope this helps.

Cheers

Grim

Re: running an external HD 24/7?
 

Some external drives may have an automatic timed spin down when idle, but running a drive 24/7 is better than excessive stop/start.

Take care that drive and power supply do not have their cooling obstructed - better for the drive to be vertically orientated, as that gives better passive cooling.

Re: running an external HD 24/7?
 

I have the same router and have a 2.5" HDD on USB connected to it 24/7. it's been running on it since I got the router between 18 months and 2 years ago I should think. no issues at all. I also have a USB memory stick plugged in 24/7 too - also absolutely fine.

Re: running an external HD 24/7?
 

Thanks for the feedback I'll get that sorted tomorrow then

Re: running an external HD 24/7?
 

Just to echo what others have said it will be fine. I used to have a twin bay external usb/esata drive enclosure that ran 24/7 for 3 years before I found usb 2.0 wasn't quick enough for me so I put them internal instead. In my case it was a DIY enclosure so I just used old desktop drives in it but you will find any off-the-shelf external hard drive has a normal internal hard drive at its core. These drives are ofcourse fine for 24/7 use and the only factors could be how well designed the enclosure cooling is or if your drive is in direct sunlight, as heat can have a dramatic effect on the speed and lifespan of a mechanical hard drive.

Re: running an external HD 24/7?
 

There is a interesting report from an on-line storage company into the longevity of the standard drives that they use.

Seems the median HDD life (at which 50% are still running) is about 6 years.


Out of curiosity I had a look at the stats on my HDD:

It's been running for about 12,500 hours and has been started 3,000 times. Maybe I should think about a replacement.

Re: running an external HD 24/7?
 

12,500 hours and 3,000 cycles is nothing. I have drives with 35,000 hours and 5,000 cycles that are nowhere near needing to be replaced. I've even seen laptop drives with over 50,000 cycles on them...