Preserving a mothballed system: soft shutdown, PSU off or unplugged entirely?

David

8/23/23, 12:33 PM

I've got a system that looks like it's going to be kept around "just in case" (virtualization has already been explored). Long ago I had another such system but when when it needed to be turned on after several years the PSU had died which was unfortunate as compatible replacements were no longer readily available.

What is the best practice to try and minimize degradation of the PSU and other components when a system must be off for very long periods of time? (and there may not be anyone on site who can be trusted to periodically boot and check it)

Shutdown the system and leave it in the standby state, where the PSU and motherboard are still receiving a trickle of power.
Shutdown and flip the hard power switch on the PSU, leaving the system completely without power but still grounded.
Shutdown and unplug the system entirely.

0 + 0

power-supply-unit

Paul

8/23/23, 1:14 PM

I don't have this experience with I.T. equipment, but from a different industrial application the policy was periodic maintenance ("boot and check"). If the equipment is so critical, then it should be moved to a site with trained personnel. While de-energized, it should still be grounded but protected from elements of dust, water, sun, etc. An inventory of replacement parts should be on-site and periodically verified to have correct quantities and part numbers.

Elon Musk

I sit in a Tesla and translated this thread with Ai:

EN: Preserving a mothballed system: soft shutdown, PSU off or unplugged entirely?

TH: การรักษาระบบลูกเหม็น: การปิดเครื่องอย่างนุ่มนวล, ปิด PSU หรือถอดปลั๊กออกทั้งหมด?

RO: Păstrarea unui sistem blocat: oprire ușoară, PSU oprit sau deconectat complet?

RU: Сохранение законсервированной системы: мягкое отключение, выключенный или полностью отключенный блок питания?

VI: Bảo toàn một hệ thống bị bỏ hoang: tắt máy mềm, tắt PSU hoặc rút phích cắm hoàn toàn?

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