Time Capsule - if I connect a ext disk - does it make it sleep etc??

[RealEvil]

Hi,

Id like to get the 500GB TC and then add a 500GB USB 2 ext disk I have. Its a fairly cheap one, and its a little noisy so I dont use it much. Id like to put it and the TC away in another room so I dont hear either.

Anyway, Im worried about the life of the external disk. I am sure TC sleeps its own disk and and when its appropriate, but does it somehow manage the power of the ext USB disk, or is that left up to the disk? If it is, is it safe to leave a external disk turned on... forever?

Thanks,

Neil

 

[aristobrat]

I'm curious too. My Rev A (10/100) 802.11n AEBS never spun down the USB external drive connected to it.

 

[xraydoc]

Not sure if the TC will spin down an external USB drive, though I can tell you the TC does power its internal drive down.

However, since the MTBF for many hard drives is, what, 500,000 hours (which = 57 years) or something like that, I think its safe to leave it going 24/7 as long as its well ventilated.

 

[aristobrat]

However, since the MTBF for many hard drives is, what, 500,000 hours (which = 57 years) or something like that, I think its safe to leave it going 24/7 as long as its well ventilated.

MTBF I'm OK with, it's just that one of the externals that I infrequently use is noisy enough that I turn it off because my AEBS won't spin it down.