The current computers have 3 shutdown modes: Shutdown, Sleep and Hibernate. As for the desktops, the choice of these modes is not very different and depends on the needs of each person. On the other hand for laptops, energy issues are always a matter. Indeed the choice of which mode to use for your laptop impacts directly the battery life. In this article we cover which one would be the best in several situations: Shutdown, Sleep or Hibernate.
1. The difference between Shutdown, Sleep and Hibernate:
Shutdown: is a quite familiar shutdown mode with users. When you select Shutdown, all opened programs will be closed along with the operating system. After it has been shutdown, a computer will not consume power. However, if you want it to go back to work, you will have to turn it in, wait for the system to boot, wait for the operating system to run and restart the required applications for the work.
Sleep: also known as Standby or Nap mode. In Sleep mode, the computer is put into a state that consumes less energy than normal. Power is only used to maintain the system’s memory with the applications and data you are working on while other parts of the computer will be shut down to save power. When you turn on your computer from Sleep mode, the system will boot quickly and the data will be retrieved from memory in a few seconds. You can quickly return to work without waiting for the system to restart from the beginning.
Hibernate: also known as hibernation is a less well-known mode. Hibernate is similar to Sleep mode, but instead of saving the data in RAM, in this mode the data will be saved to a file on your hard drive. When you restart the computer from Hibernate mode, like Sleep mode, the operating system and running applications as well as your data will be removed from the hard drive and loaded into RAM so that you can continue the work.
Therefore, when comparing the booting speed between these modes, Sleep mode is the fastest followed by the Hibernate one and obviously the slowest one is Shutdown. However, when comparing the power consumption, we can see Shutdown saves the most power due to no energy use, followed by Hibernate and Sleep mode that consumes the most power. If your laptop is on Sleep mode when the battery is running low, it will automatically switch to Hibernate mode to save power.
2. When to use:
The use of the computer depends on the needs and habits of users. However, very few people take advantage of all the advantages and the convenience of these different modes. There are people who always shut down the computer; there are also some who keep it on 24/7.
Sleep: Sleep mode is useful when you need to leave the computer for a short time, such as nap time. Instead of letting the computer operate, you can put it in Sleep mode to save power and battery. When you come back, you can quickly continue the work, instead of waiting for it to restart and the system’s boot time.
Hibernate: Hibernate mode saves more power than Sleep. You should use this mode when not using the computer for a longer period of time, such as when you sleep at night and plan to continue the work on the computer in the next morning.
Shutdown: This is usually the most common mode for desktop users but those who use laptops often put the machine in Hibernate mode, due to energy saving while still being able to quickly return to work. However, occasionally a few applications may not work properly when launched from Hibernate mode, at this point you will need to shut down and reboot. Sometimes computer users should reboot in order for the system to operate the most effectively.
You should also note the difference with Reboot and Shutdown mode, it consumes power to boot the operating system and the data that are removed from the hard drive. Thus, leaving the computer for a short time, if you choose Shutdown mode, it may consume more power than Sleep.
3. Set your mode:
When you’ve chosen for your commonly used mode, you can set the mode when pressing the power button on the computer or when closing the laptop screen. To change this setting, press the Windows key, type Power Buttons and press Enter. You will see a window of Control Panel to customize.
Now you can customize the Shutdown, Sleep or Hibernate mode when pressing the power button or folding the laptop screen, in two scenarios, when using battery and when being plugged to a power source.
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