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Turn off extra Hard Drives

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by gweb09

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I want to build a system with multiple hard drives but don't want all of them to be running at all times. Is there a motherboard or software that allows you to turn off hard drives when not in use? The reason for this is threefold. Wear and tear, cut down on heat, and cut down on noise.My understanding is that a hard drive spins constantly even when not being accessed. Is this correct?
Thanks for the help and this site

4 replies

by thechas

Yes, the hard drive platter spins constantly.
However, the typical MTBF for modern hard drives is years. So, your drive is apt to be replaced for reasons other than being worn out first.
Keep in mind, that the most wear and tear occurs during the startup and read/write phases, not the idle run time.

Anyhow, most motherboards have in the power management section of BIOS settings the option to turn-off the hard drives after they have been idle for a set period of time.
You can also set up rules in Windows power management setings to shut down the drives after a set period of inactivity.

If you really want the extra drives to be off, Trios makes a hard drive selector switch.
The switch is designed to make it easy to switch between different operating systems on a single computer. But I see no reason why it could not be used to disable extra hard drives.
Keep in mind, that your motherboard and operating system will only recognize drives that are present when you boot the system.

Chas

by gweb09

Thanks for the Trios tip. Multiple operating systems is one goal for my new system. I use the power management feature in WIN98 SE all the time to turn off my 1 hard drive and don't see any drive selection options available. On a personal note, your answers are always among the most accurate and informative. Thanks.
gonefishin

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