I am a new Mac user. Switched from Windows after 13 years. Does Apple not have an option to hibernate the computer? The only options I see on my MacBook running 10.8 are sleep and shut down. On my windows computer, I usually shut down the computer probably about 4 or 5 times per month max. It's always on hibernation. Any option for this in Macs?
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Hibernation on a Mac?
- Thread starter mac.fanatic
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Yes, but why don't you like sleep? Hibernation takes longer than just putting it to sleep, and only 1% of your battery charge is used for one hour of sleep.
Setting it manually, setting it automatically.
Setting it manually, setting it automatically.
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This should answer most, if not all, of your battery questions:
Apple Notebook Battery FAQ by GGJstudios
The F.A.Q. includes the following topics:
______________________________________________________
This should answer most, if not all, of your battery questions:
Apple Notebook Battery FAQ by GGJstudios
The F.A.Q. includes the following topics:
- BATTERY INFORMATION
- BATTERY LIFE FROM A CHARGE
- AC POWER
- CALIBRATION
- BATTERY LIFESPAN
- CHECKING STATUS AND HEALTH
- CHARGING
- WHAT IS A CYCLE?
- BATTERIES ARE NOT COVERED
- BULGING OR SWELLING BATTERY
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Sleep pretty much gives you the best of both hibernation and standby on windows. Use sleep, it barely uses any battery, and it can start up quickly like standby.
Because between on my Windows computer, I would hibernate it for a few days before I use it again. Also, I used to put it on hibernate for hours and not use it. It was more convenient than shutting down and letting it boot up every time. Is there not an option like this for Macs?
The way I see i, sleeping is good for when you're stepping away from the computer for like 20 minutes or so and not have to shut down and reboot. I don't see the sleeping feature being used as the hibernation feature where I could leave my computer in hibernation for a few days before having to use it again.
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This is exactly the reason for me to have this concern.
There is only sleep and shutdown. Nothing else. If you're going to be leaving it on sleep for ages, then leave it plugged in.
I've heard it's not good for the battery to leave the adapter plugged in; especially on the newer unibody models. What's the point of keeping it plugged in and on sleep for a couple days? I see shutting down as when you know that you're not going to use the computer for a few days and hibernation as an on and off thing.
I can sleep my Macs for hours, even days (my MacBook Pro can sleep for four days without being connected to the power adapter). Thus if you need for your Mac to be not used for several days and not being connected to the power adapter, you should look at SmartSleep (second link in post #2).
Btw, hibernation is the process of copying the contents of the RAM to your HDD and then shutting almost down, then upon awakening copying the contents from the HDD back into the RAM. Depending on how much RAM you have, that can take 30 seconds and much longer (HDDs read/write at 80 to 100 MB/s, SSDs read/write at 300 to 400 MB/s, thus 4 GB takes 10 (SSD) to 45 (HDD) seconds to being copied from the RAM onto the HDD and then back again from the HDD into the RAM.
Please don't misunderstand my post as not understanding your need, just showing you what is going on behind the veil.
PS: http://osxdaily.com/2010/10/11/sleepimage-mac/
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I may not have posted it yet, but take a read here:
______________________________________________________
This should answer most, if not all, of your battery questions:
Apple Notebook Battery FAQ by GGJstudios
______________________________________________________
This should answer most, if not all, of your battery questions:
Apple Notebook Battery FAQ by GGJstudios
______________________________________________________
In other words, it is OKAY to leave the Mac plugged in.
No, it isn't bad for the battery to leave it plugged in. At max capacity the battery will cycle charge/discharge so the battery life doesn't degrade.
The point is... I don't see the point in arguing about a feature that doesn't exist. You either shut it down or put it to sleep. How you go about that is up to you.
If you were shutting your previous computer down 4-5 times a month with windows and still using hibernate, it means you probably can use sleep for 99% of the times you previously used hibernate.
With the proper bits set for the hibernationmode, the system will dump the inactive ram when it is sleeped for a much faster hibernate and restoration. the only down side is a small bit of sluggishness directly after awaking the machine.
I remember coming across a few of the bit settings on Apple's sit in the pmset manual. But it only had a few of the many possible combinations. I complied a list of what the various bits do and the correct combinations. I have it around somewhere. If asked for it, I'll dig it up for posting.
Technically there is a hibernation-like feature in Mac, it's new with 10.7 Lion and its called Resume. If you didn't know, when you shut down or log off, it saves all of your current open programs and their positions, then reopens them upon startup or when logging back in. It isn't exactly the same as Hibernation, but it is pretty darn close, and also is faster in my opinion than hibernation is.
Also, there is technically a hibernation mode that kicks in when your battery hits <1% that saves all of your data to the HDD, then shuts itself down like hibernation would.
To be clear, your options are between using the Resume feature (which works phenomenally), using Sleep (which also works well, assuming you will not be leaving it in sleep unplugged for more than 3-4 days), or using 3rd party apps (which in my opinion don't work very well).
My personal recommendation is just use Resume. Shut down when you are done using you're laptop, then when you start back up, everything will be there just like it was when you turned it off in the first place. You will notice a tick box when logging off/shutting down/restarting that says " Reopen windows when logging back in". Check that ticker box and resume will automatically take care of the rest.
Also, there is technically a hibernation mode that kicks in when your battery hits <1% that saves all of your data to the HDD, then shuts itself down like hibernation would.
To be clear, your options are between using the Resume feature (which works phenomenally), using Sleep (which also works well, assuming you will not be leaving it in sleep unplugged for more than 3-4 days), or using 3rd party apps (which in my opinion don't work very well).
My personal recommendation is just use Resume. Shut down when you are done using you're laptop, then when you start back up, everything will be there just like it was when you turned it off in the first place. You will notice a tick box when logging off/shutting down/restarting that says " Reopen windows when logging back in". Check that ticker box and resume will automatically take care of the rest.
The resume feature of Lion doesn't work well with everything. On my Blackbook I used to make dvds in iDVD and have it encode them as I was in a class at the university. When it came time to switch rooms, I'd put close the lid and be on my way. When I got to the next class, I'd open it up and iDVD would keep going like nothing had happened. Of course I could have just made it sleep, but I've also done this and left my Blackbook alone and forgotten for a week. When I'd turn it back on, iDVD was there still encoding. If it was sleeping, I'd lost the project because iDVD wouldn't have let it shut down correct when the battery drained. Lion's resume feature wouldn't work with projects like this.
The second feature you mention is called Safe Sleep. It was introduced near the end of the Powerbook G4's life. In this mode the battery will sleep the machine until it reaches 5%. When it does, it will transfer the ram contents to a sleep image on the drive. This is the default for Mac laptops since its introduction. The only downside is, it can leave you with a dead battery if the machine isn't used for a while.
Resume works if all of your applications don't mind having their processes stopped and the system shut down. Sleep works as long as you have a healthy battery and ready access to a AC outlet. 3rd party apps are not needed to hibernate a Mac. All that's needed is the Terminal and one line of text. It works very well and I've never had a problem with it.
Just hibernate the dang thing. It's faster than resume, safer than sleep, and works well if you don't mind the slight wait.
There's such feature as "Windows hibernate" on mac, but it is not documented. No purchase or application download is necessary.
http://www.macworld.com/article/1053471/sleepmode.html
Essentially, you need to execute a single command as root from terminal (like command prompt in win) and mac switches from sleep mode to hibernate mode with complete shut off, until you revert it back.
Personally, I only can see myself using "sleep" for as long as my Mac is connected to the power source. Discharging the battery while not using the hardware seem just silly. I do not always know in advance, when closing the lid, whether I will disconnect the mac from power source or not.
I often relocate my laptop when it's off and hibernate seems like very good option for that. Slightly longer wake up is not an issue at all (it takes much longer to manually restore each application into desired state). Also, I always do know my battery is fully charged... again, it's silly to bring your laptop to some meeting with limited access to power outlets and realize it was noticeably discharged to be extensively used.
I'm new to Lion/Mountain Lion, but with Snow Leopard i was only rebooting my laptop once in a month or even two (upon installing OS updates) - keeping my battery charged, and my working environment always ready and in usual condition.