HDD Maintenance Question

I use a laptop with two external hard drives connected through USB 2.0. One is an 80 GB, and the other is a 250 GB--both are Western Digital. I recently had a 250 GB hard drive die on me after a good 2-3 years of use. But it got me thinking, "Am I getting the most out of my drives?" So here's my question:



Is it better to only turn my externals on when I'm using them, even if that be 8-10 times a day? Or should I let them run longer at a time and perhaps cut down on the on/off cycles to about 3-4 times a day?



I understand that turning electrical objects on and off can, over time, lead to their breaking (due to the fragile parts expanding and contracting with the heat changes). I guess what I want to know is if there are some standard rules for hard drive use that would ensure my maximizing their lifespans.



Please, I'm very eager for replies. I'd really appreciate it.



-Sarge



P.S. As an added note, as far as I know, I do a fairly good job at keeping my externals' temps down with two KingWin external cases with built-in fans. To the touch, the difference in temp when they are on is almost unnoticeable.

Heya,



you mentioned that you would turn the HDDs on and off several times a day. I believe that it is better to have them run for that period of time as that most likely does less damage. Each mechanical device will fail and HDDs tend to last quite some time. By restarting, more stress is put on the device due to the spin-up and subsequently spin-down of the platters. Although I am advising you to let the HDDs run, I myself shut the PC on and off several times a day and have not yet experienced any problems with my current HDD nor with my HDDs in the past.



JAN

Thank you for taking the time to reply! I've read and acknowledged every word, but I'm still looking for input. So if there are any more people out there who think they can shed some more light on this, please do reply!



-Sarge

Enemy #1 on computer parts is heat. I guess your usb drives are in a case without cooling. that means, hdd running -> heat. heat cannot escape, that means, hdd gets hotter and hotter. the hotter the hdd the less live expectancy.

so I would say turn them on only when it is really necessary and let them off as much as possible.

External harddrive power supplys are not designed for 24/7 like a computer. Turn it off when not in use or smoke it.

Thank you, that actually helps a lot. And that's just what I've been doing :-)



-Sarge