Closing the laptop lid after finishing work is such a common habit that it is rarely questioned.Simply lower the screen and walk away, confident that the equipment will be ready to use again at any time.
However, while this practice is not necessarily harmful in the short term, there are technical reasons why it is not advisable to always rely on sleep mode instead of regularly shutting down or restarting your computer.
When you close the lid, most modern laptops go into sleep mode.Under this state, the system stops most of its processes, keeps applications open, and keeps files in RAM, using a minimal amount of power to stay ready and wake up almost instantly when the lid is reopened.
This mode is designed to offer convenience and speed, especially when only short breaks will be taken.
Unlike a complete shutdown, sleep does not clear memory or stop all internal processes.The operating system and applications are “paused” while the computer continues to consume energy, even in small amounts.
For those using MacBook, these settings can be reviewed in the Battery and Display options in System Preferences.On Windows laptops, the settings are found in the power and display options.
In most everyday situations, closing your laptop and letting it sleep is perfectly safe.It is a recommended option when you will take a short break, change the environment, attend a meeting or simply want to get back to work in a short time.
Today’s devices, both from Apple and other manufacturers, are optimized to manage sleep mode efficiently, minimizing the impact on battery and hardware.
However, using this mode exclusively can cause problems if it becomes the only way to “turn off” the computer.By not restarting or shutting down, the system and applications remain loaded in memory.As days go by, background processes, minor errors, or small software glitches can accumulate and degrade overall performance.
Some of the most common symptoms of prolonged use of suspension alone include:
These problems are aggravated if demanding programs are used (video editing, games, image processing) or external peripherals are connected.Additionally, it is possible for the laptop to be accidentally reactivated in a backpack, generating heat and consuming battery power unnecessarily.
Shutting down or restarting the laptop kills background processes, frees up memory, and allows the operating system to boot from scratch.This simple action usually resolves minor operating problems and prevents the accumulation of errors.Restarting is also essential to complete the installation of pending updates, both security and functional.
If your computer responds slowly, applications do not close correctly, updates are available, or several days have simply passed without a restart, it is advisable to shut down or restart before looking for more complex solutions.Although there is no hard and fast rule, experts suggest restarting your laptop at least once a week, or turning it off if it will not be used for an extended period of time or before transporting it.
In summary, using sleep mode is safe for most everyday situations, but it is still necessary to periodically turn off or restart the laptop.Thinking about the suspension as leaving the engine from auto-ignition to a brief stop helps to understand why it is not advisable to abuse this function if you want to prolong the good performance and useful life of the equipment.
