The phrase 'have you tried turning it off and on again?' might actually be sound advice.
It depends on the computer. A Windows computer should be shut down, or even better, restarted, once a week or so with ‘fast startup’ turned off to ensure it properly shuts down all processes and cleans up. Mac computers tend to be a little more stable and may only need to be restarted with system installs or upgrades.
A Linux machine usually needs few restarts.
One advantage of a restart is that it clears everything from memory, which might resolve misbehaving applications – a slow computer running hot for no obvious reason may need this remedy as a last resort.
However, multiple power-downs per day may stress the machine and reduce its lifespan.
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Asked by: James Moore, via email
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