Should I Turn My Router Off?

[Geraldine]

I have a wireless broadband router. Should I turn it off when not using it - going on holiday for instance? It doesn't actually have an on/off switch, so I would have to unplug the power cable.

A couple of people at work said they only have their routers on when they are using the PC & I had a bit of a guilt trip thing about carbon foot prints & the energy the little lights could be using.

Geraldine

[SuffolkSue]

I always turn ours off if we are going away, I worry about thunder storms and things like that. Have never had any problems with doing this. As of said thunder storms, I will turn the router off at any time if there is one in the air.

The router is left switched on in the normal course of things, a bit like leaving a TV on standby I suppose.

Then again when we go away I turn anything electrical off and pull out plugs on anything that isn't used, the worrier that I am, LOL

[Velma Dinkley]

I turn my computer off every night, but if I switch it off at the wall and therefore turning off the router, it mucks up the time as it's set to the internet. Also by switching off the router my computer does odd things when I next switch it on, such as the fan running too fast, so I have to restart it.

I do, however, turn everything off when I go away.

I don't think the problem's with my computer as I only brought it last September

[salty]

Turn all switches in the house to the off position if you are going away, you may not be insured if there is a problem when you return.:o

[Pilgrim]

Geraldine, the cost of leaving your router switched on is probably about 10 to 20 pence per week at the very most.

The life of some electronic components can be shortened by incessant switching on and off, but, as routers are usually renewed every few years this should not bother them.

There is a very useful site attached to "The Daily Telegraph" internet site called "Boot Camp" that is packed full of every tip and hint for computer maintainance and help, here is a direct quote from the site author Rick Maybury, "Every time your broadband modem connects to your ISP, your PC is assigned a new IP address, which makes it haarder for hackers to access your files".

I have no connection to this site at all but I find it very useful indeed,

[Guy]

One benefit of switching a router off every night is faster internet speeds.
Many problems with slow broadband connections are caused by router problems solved by switching off.
Cheers
Guy

[Geraldine]

Many thanks for the responses everyone. I always turn power switches off when we are away for any length of time.

I suppose what worried me was that my router doesn't actually have an on/off switch so I would have to unplug the power cable. I don't want this to cause any problems when I fire up the PC on my return.

It seems that turning the router off is probably a good idea.

Thanks again.

Geraldine

[Anne in Carlisle]

I always turn the router off if we go away - it does have an on/off switch at the back.

I read somewhere that it is important to turn the router back on BEFORE turning the computer on. Don't know if this is really true but the one time I didn't do it there were no end of problems. I always remember to turn the router on and let it 'do its thing' before I start the computer now!

Anne

[llamedos]

My PC, printer, external drive speakers, scanner, and wireless router are all connected to one surge connector - which is plugged into the mains socket - every night, I switch off the mains supply using a switched plug. Next morning I just switch the lot on using the same switched plug. I have done this for years without any problems - however, if going away on holiday - I pull the mains plug out.