How can I protect the hard drive

Sean Black wrote:
In article , Macc
Eldon writes

Mike Henry wrote:

In , Macc Eldon
wrote:

As Sky+ records everything to enable instant rewind & doesn't know
whether my TV is on or off it seems that the hard drive is recording
over & over again 24/7. Apart from turning the digibox off, which
is impractical due to programs I want recording, is there anything I
can do to preserve the life of the hard drives please?

To preserve the life of the hard drive, don't turn the Sky+ off or put
it into standby (spinning the drive up and down all the time and
stressing it). Leave the Sky+ on 24/7 at a constant temperature to
minimise stress on the rest of the components, in a well-ventilated
location.

Thanks to the three of you. I have tried putting it into standby and,
as Mike C said" it does still record. However that was before I read
the posts from Loz & Mike Henry. If I should decide to leave Sky+ on
24/7 would leaving it on "TV Guide" rather than on a channel still
have the unit recording the previous x minutes.

Am I being overprotective & the life of the hard drive is not
substantially shortened by constant recording & re-recording?

I've had a TiVo for about 4 years now, it also constantly records,
whether "on" or in standby, had no problems with the HD. Having said
that, I'm sure it's bound to fail in the next few days :-)

My first Sky+ the HD failed after about 6 months, replacement has been
running fine (left on all the time) ever since, probably 18 months to 2
years now.

So long as it's well ventilated, there really shouldn't be any problem.
I've really got to stop worrying about whether things may fail at some
time in the future & just enjoy them. Thank's for your advice.

"loz" wrote in message
...

"Mike Henry" wrote in message
...
To preserve the life of the hard drive, don't turn the Sky+ off or put
it into standby (spinning the drive up and down all the time and
stressing it). Leave the Sky+ on 24/7 at a constant temperature to
minimise stress on the rest of the components, in a well-ventilated
location.

It's a good idea.
But my house seems full of hard drives!
What about the cost of electricity and the impact on the climate?
Plenty of people suggest switching off appliances altogether rather than
putting them on standby, yet alone leaving them switched on 24/7.
Is it preferable to replace hard disks or pay increased electricity costs
and suffer the consequences of global warming?

:-)



If the disk fails due to you switching it off and on, then you also need to
consider the additional resources and electricity needed to manufacture a
replacement, which could be considerable. Maybe you contribute less to GW
by leaving it on?

--
Tumbleweed

email replies not necessary but to contact use;
tumbleweednews at hotmail dot com

"Tumbleweed" wrote in message
...
Is it preferable to replace hard disks or pay increased electricity costs
and suffer the consequences of global warming?
If the disk fails due to you switching it off and on, then you also need
to consider the additional resources and electricity needed to manufacture
a replacement, which could be considerable. Maybe you contribute less to
GW by leaving it on?

Absolutely.
And then there is the issue of disposal of the failed drive.
Is it recyclable?
Does disposal contribute more to global warming?

Who said these decisions were easy?
No wonder most people just dont care...

loz