Best sleep / no-sleep strategy for my Win 11 desktop PC?

Hi everybody, I have searched the forum for this but I only found a topic about laptops, nothing about desktops.

I am building a new Win 11 rig (Ryzen 7700, Asus TUF B650M mobo, 32 GB Corsair Dominator DDR5 6000 MT/s, 2 TB Samsung 990 Pro NVMe SSD), to replace my current one. I use my current desktop PC all the time (like 12-14 hours a day), and I like to keep all my apps, tabs, etc., open from one day to the next. I wouldn't want to cold boot my PC every day, unless that was really the best solution.

So during my own sleep times, I don't know what would be best for me and my new rig in the long run:

• Daily Sleep: apparently due to some old unsolved bug (for both AMD and Intel), Sleep can slow down RAM performance to 5200 MT/s until the next reboot (see here). But 5200 MT/s instead of 6000, would that really be a deal-breaker for me for everyday use? I'm not sure. It just sucks a little, because when you've paid for 6000 you want to get 6000, not 5200. But if you don't feel the difference...
• Daily Hibernate: maybe better, but at the cost of X GB written per day on the SSD. Some people say that it matters, others say that it doesn't because the SSD can take it. I'd like my SSD to last at least 10 years if possible.
• Keep my PC "On" 24/7: this is what I do currently with my rig. Uses more power, but my PC is instantly ready anytime. As a bonus side effect, I avoid daily On/Off cycles, which tend to be a bad thing on hardware parts such as HDDs. My HDD is rated for 24/7 operation so I'm happy to keep it on at all times, I guess.
• Other solution?

One more question: if Daily Sleep was the most suitable solution, what sleep mode would be best?

• Modern Standby (S0) : seems to be buggy (lots of comments about that), which makes people want to change it to Old Sleep.
• Old Sleep (S3) : needs to be activated manually via a registry hack (see here).

I'm a bit lost here, I really don't know what to choose for my particular use. Thanks in advance for your insights!

My work PC (Win 10) stays on all the time, but I put my home PC (Win 11) to sleep when not using it to save power and wear and tear on the components.

I use Modern Standby and I don't have any issues with it at all.

First of all, depending on its UEFI bios, your system may or may not have S0(modern standby)as an option or it may or may not offer the old S3 sleep we are accustomed to as an option. Since it is a desktop board, I believe you probably would be able to enable s3 sleep if it's not already enabled.

I have a PC and my use is similar to yours. I use it 8-10 hours a day and do not boot daily. I use S3 sleep and have not had any problems with wake issues. I also have fast startup turned off. No hibernation. Yes, when I wake it with my mouse or keyboard, it does take a couple of seconds to wake up, but it does not bother me as long as it dependably wakes. Using hibernation might give me an extra second or two faster but I do not like the large hiberfil.sys file constantly being written to my m.2 drive and using so much space
I also have mine set so that I do not have to enter a password/pin at wake up.

This is what works for me.

my 2 cents.

about SSD longevity.
if you are a light user, I am pretty sure it will last a long time.
if you are a heavy user (write and rewrite) it will last shorter. But if you are a heavy user your hdd storage requirement will change in 5 years time.

I don't config my pc right to the minute detail but if I don't want my PC to sleep, I usually ON the Move Mouse (by Ellabi) software just to make sure the PC is awake and physically switch off my monitors (avoid burn in). However, with SSD (especially NVME) it is pretty fast to turn on again after a sleep. Wake up, go to computer, shake mouse abit, get a glass of water, by them time you're back, the PC is on again.

I don't hibernate it, since last time I read, data will be gone if electricity goes kaput while sleeping. It is safer to use sleep.

This may be a difficult question to answer because much of it is up to preference.

First, I'll note that I am not aware of the issue that you mention regarding memory speed getting throttled when coming out of sleep, so I cannot comment on that.

My own personal belief is that if you want to return to the system the way it was in the morning, Hibernation is an excellent choice. Bear in mind that the amount of data written when hibernating is typically much smaller than the amount of memory you actually have in your system because not all of the RAM will be utilized.

Just to give you an idea, my primary desktop has 128GB of RAM and I hibernate the system roughly 50% of the time when I retire for the evening. I also use that drive extensively for manipulating large files such as ISO images. After about 1.5 years, I am still at 96% of drive life remaining.

I used to be highly paranoid about "using up" my SSDs but I now have thrown that paranoia out the windows for several reasons:

1) I find that it takes a really long time to "use up" an SSD.
2) As cheap as SSDs have become lately, I really could care less about having to replace them after a while. If I can get 5 years, I would be happy, but it looks like I will get WAY more than that. Realistically, I'll probably toss them in the trash before 5 years anyway as newer technologies become available anyway.

Here is my suggestion:

Install an app like CrystalDiskInfo. Jot down how much data has been written to your drive.
Now, use the drive the way you would really like to use it for a period of time, say a month or two.
Check to see how much data was written over that period of time.

From there, it's a simple calculation to get an estimate of how much data will be written in a year, in 5 years, in ten years, etc. and then compare that with the drive endurance rating for your specific drive. I suspect that in all liklihood you will be surprised at how long you can expect your drive to last.

One more tip: This applies only if you are shopping for a new drive. If lifespan is a major worry for you, consider buying a drive larger than what you need. As an example, in one of my systems, a 512 GB Windows drive would have been way more than enough. However, I purchased a 1 TB drive for that system because the lifespan also doubles each time you double the size of the drive. So, a 1 TB drive can accommodate twice the number of writes over its life that a 512 GB drive can. It turns out that I was being overly paranoid, and I could have easily just used a 512 GB drive because even a 512 GB drive will probably outlast the life of that computer.

Follow-up: I forgot to address modern standby...

Yes, there have been a lot of people who complain about modern standby, but I guess that it depends upon the system. I got my first laptop that supports modern standby about 6 months ago. I use modern standby EVERY SINGLE DAY without fail and have never ever once had a single issue with it. It just works absolutely smoothly and flawlessly for me and at least for me, I think it's the greatest thing since sliced bread

gnulab said:

I don't hibernate it, since last time I read, data will be gone if electricity goes kaput while sleeping. It is safer to use sleep.

Click to expand...

You have that backwards. In sleep, RAM is kept refreshed by continually supplying power to it. If power is lost, you lose the contents of RAM. On the other hand, hibernation writes the contents of RAM to a file on your drive and then fully powers off. You can unplug the machine and plug it back in - it doesn't matter. When you power on the system again, it restores the contents of RAM from that hibernation file.

To summarize, it is hibernation that is immune to a loss of power, not sleep. As a result the "safer" option is to use hibernation.

Note too that if your system supports it, you can enable "hybrid" sleep. This writes a hibernation file for safety but then puts the system into sleep mode. This gives the best of both worlds. You get the rapid wake up because the system is only sleeping, but if power is lost, you have the hibernation file as a safety backup.

I don't use Sleep or Hibernate.
I have the monitor set to turn off after 10 minutes of no use.

My days and nights are much more peaceful that way.

Wow guys, I am loving your replies! They are really helpful and give me a new insight on all this. So to all of you, THANK YOU!

glasskuter said:

I have a PC and my use is similar to yours. I use it 8-10 hours a day and do not boot daily. I use S3 sleep and have not had any problems with wake issues. I also have fast startup turned off. No hibernation. Yes, when I wake it with my mouse or keyboard, it does take a couple of seconds to wake up, but it does not bother me [...] I also have mine set so that I do not have to enter a password/pin at wake up.

Click to expand...

We definitely have similar uses. I always wake with my mouse or keyboard. And yes, a couple of seconds would be enough for me. And I don't have password/pin at wake up.
=> This means S3 Sleep would work for me.

gnulab said:

I don't hibernate it, since last time I read, data will be gone if electricity goes kaput while sleeping. It is safer to use sleep.

Click to expand...

=> This could mean that Hibernation is not a good option for me ?

hsehestedt said:

My own personal belief is that if you want to return to the system the way it was in the morning, Hibernation is an excellent choice. Bear in mind that the amount of data written when hibernating is typically much smaller than the amount of memory you actually have in your system because not all of the RAM will be utilized. [...]

Click to expand...

Yes, I agree with you. I think the SSD can certainly handle such amount of data. I have read topics and done some calculations. It shouldn't be a problem. With that said, like gnulab just said, if electricity fails while sleeping, data will be gone with Hibernation. Damn, such a difficult decision !

Also, your last post says that Modern Standby works perfectly well for you. Maybe for me too. Why do you like Modern Standby so much? What does S0 bring to the table compared to S3 Sleep or other solutions? Sorry if that's an obvious question.

Ghot said:

I don't use Sleep or Hibernate.
I have the monitor set to turn off after 10 minutes of no use.

My days and nights are much more peaceful that way.

Click to expand...

=> That's what I currently do with my current rig, so I totally understant you.
I just don't know if I should be worried about component wear. Plus it wastes power.
Also, I have lost data more than once because of electricity cuts during the night. Maybe I should just get a PSU and call it a... night.

Jose Hidalgo said:

What does S0 bring to the table compared to S3 Sleep or other solutions?

Click to expand...

Modern standby actually allows the computer to perform certain tasks while in standby. It takes very brief moments to do things like check e-mail, check for Windows updates, etc. Also, the wake time is near instant, much like a smart phone. On my laptop, as I open the screen, Windows hello is instantly activated and by the time I remove my hand from opening the screen, Windows has already recognized my face and logged me on. It is just that fast. So, it's absolutely wonderful if you are going to close the lid on the laptop, then reopen it again in a little while, especially if you do this multiple times a day such as when moving between meetings or classrooms, etc. No need to perform a shutdown. Just close the lid, and when ready to use the computer again, open the lid. I don't even have to logon again thanks to Windows hello, yet I still have the security in knowing that if my laptop is stolen it won't logon someone else.

I thought modern standby only had it on laptops.


How do I turn it on? Motherboard release 2023.

abactuon said:

I thought modern standby only had it on laptops.

Click to expand...

Some of the manufacturers have slipped modern standby in one a some newer PCs, especially Dell. All all-in-ones have S0. I'm not familiar how the system builder boards do it.

abactuon said:

How do I turn it on? Motherboard release 2023.

Click to expand...

It's already on. To activate it just set the "sleep after" setting in "change when the computer sleeps" in your power options.

The best advice is to turn off any device using mains electricity at the mains switch when not in use since any appliance left on is a fire risk.

Jose Hidalgo said:

Maybe I should just get a PSU and call it a... night.

Click to expand...

I meant an UPS, sorry, I was tired