So I got my new mini up and running and so far I like it. What do you guys recommend with respect to turning off the mini or just letting it sleep? If it's storming out and there are power bumps or risk of power outages would you recommend shutting down the mini as opposed to leaving it on?
Or maybe you don't even let it sleep, just keep it on all the time?
Tks.
My early 2009 Mini has been on just about 24/7 since I bought it, nearly six years ago. I have it set to go into sleep mode after 20 minutes of inactivity. It is running just fine, still with the original HDD. The only time it is shut down is if I am going to be away more than a few days, on the odd occasion that I want to take it to work, when a software update requires it….. or when the electric power supply goes down, which happens quite a bit here. Thunderstorms are common enough around these parts.
I use a good quality UPS, with AVR, which provides protection from surges and smooths out mains voltage fluctuations. It is plugged into an earthed socket using a surge protected power board, which I replace after about 3 years.
I replaced my original 2005 Mini after less than four years when the HDD and the power supply failed. It had a hard life, with a mains power supply that fluctuated widely. Often it did not provide the grunt to kick fluorescent tubes into action. Also I was using a primitive UPS that did not have AVR, and I had not earthed the socket it was plugged into. That UPS was repaired a couple times before it was cooked out beyond repair by a surge that left half of southern Thailand without electricity for several hours.
The power supply to the neighbourhood was upgraded a few years ago (heavier cables and bigger transformer), and I installed an earth in a couple of the power sockets in my apartment (earth wire to a copper peg driven a couple of metres deep and three pin plugs). So now an easier time for the UPS and the Mini's power supply, neither of which have given me any problems since!
