Hibernation

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Gloria E
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Hibernation

Post by Gloria E »

Viewing WinPatrol Plus, I found under Hidden Files, the name hiberfil.sys. WinPatol Cloud reports that the file will appear in the root folder (C:) in my case. This file is part of the Windows XP Operating System.

I'm not using XP but doing a search of my computer I found that the file is 2.06 GB's in size. That's a lot of space if it's just used by XP. Searching with Goggle, I found an article in Help Desk Geek that explains how to delete the .sys file using the command prompt.

I went to Power Options found in the Control Panel and discovered that Dell had selected the Preferred plan to Automatically balance performance with energy consumption as follows:

Turn off the display in 1 hour and to Never put the computer to sleep.

I need to know if the file also applies to Windows 7? Also since the computer never goes to sleep, why is the .sys file so large?

Should I delete the file or let it continue growing? I'm not having problems with anything but trying to keep my machine lean and mean.

Gloria E
Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive & well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, red wine in the other, body thoroughly used up. Totally worn out & screaming "Wow, Wee What a ride!

JoeP
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Re: Hibernation

Post by JoeP »

Hiberfil.sys will not grow. It is fixed at about the size of RAM. It is used by Windows 7 if you have hibernation enabled. Check the Advanced Settings for your power plan to see if hibernation is disabled. If it is disabled you can delete the file.

Joe
Joe

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agibsonsw
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Re: Hibernation

Post by agibsonsw »

Don't we have to be a little bit circumspect before deleting this file? Bit of info.

I kinda suspect we should disable hibernation, and then re-boot before deleting this file (if it hasn't already been removed).

I don't use hibernation myself. I think it's a drain on resources and is mostly unnecessary: much better to shutdown the computer occasionally, which improves performance anyway.

Andy.
"I'm here to save your life. But if I'm going to do that, I'll need total uninanonynymity." Me Myself & Irene.

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agibsonsw
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Re: Hibernation

Post by agibsonsw »

Just on this issue of shutdown.. I recall reading about this before but I've not found a definitive description yet from a Google search.

I believe that Windows keeps a trace/log of used applications since startup, partly as "pre-fetch" data. Re-booting enables Windows to re-examine this information and it's data-cache.

I shutdown my computer at the end of the day but occasionally do this during the day if it's running sluggishly.

I understand that keeping a computer on doesn't necessarily cause component issues, but nor does frequently re-booting cause any significant wear to components. But shutting-down at the end of the day is also "eco-friendly" :smile:

He, he.. but I realise that you never asked!
"I'm here to save your life. But if I'm going to do that, I'll need total uninanonynymity." Me Myself & Irene.

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BobArch2
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Re: Hibernation

Post by BobArch2 »

Gloria E wrote:Viewing WinPatrol Plus, I found under Hidden Files, the name hiberfil.sys...
If your environment includes a battery backup system like the APC Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS), then leave the hibernation file in place. The UPS uses the hibernation file in the event of a power blackout and will create/update that file within the time limit specified in your UPS backup parameters.
Regards,
Bob

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Gloria E
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Re: Hibernation

Post by Gloria E »

JoeP wrote:Hiberfil.sys will not grow. It is fixed at about the size of RAM. It is used by Windows 7 if you have hibernation enabled. Check the Advanced Settings for your power plan to see if hibernation is disabled. If it is disabled you can delete the file.

Joe
I finally got around to checking the Power options in Control Panel. My computer manufacturer Dell has selected as the Preferred plan: turn off the display in one hour & put the computer to sleep NEVER, that's what's ticked. I presume that was done by Dell, I know I didn't choose that option. There are other options but I haven't make any changes there.

Since putting a computer to sleep is the same as hiberation, and Dell choose never, I think I could delete or disable, but I think I'll leave well enough alone. Unless you or someone else can give me a good reason why I should let hibernation take place, that is. I shut down the computer if I will be away for an extended period of time, there's storms predicted or happening at that moment or if I'm shutting down at night. I faintly remember reading somewhere on the web that bad things can be done to your computer if it's up and running at night. But that was way before Windows 7 which I think is the most secure operating system ever made.

Gloria E
Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive & well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, red wine in the other, body thoroughly used up. Totally worn out & screaming "Wow, Wee What a ride!

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StuartR
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Re: Hibernation

Post by StuartR »

Gloria E wrote:...
Since putting a computer to sleep is the same as hiberation
...
Sleep and hibernation are two completely different states.

When the computer goes to sleep, it still uses a small amount of power to preserve the contents of memory. When you wake it again it re-initializes all the hardware and carries on.

When the computer hibernates it copies all the contents of memory to the hard drive and turns off the power. When you restart it again it restores the memory from the hard drive and then re-initializes all the hardware and carries on.

See Sleep and hibernation: frequently asked questions for more information.
StuartR


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agibsonsw
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Re: Hibernation

Post by agibsonsw »

Just my personal opinion :cheers: but if you shutdown your computer overnight, and generally save any unsaved work before you move away from the computer (for an extended time), then hibernation is not necessary.

My laptop is nearly always plugged in (when in use) and I've set it to turn off the display after an hour and to sleep after two hours. This will save energy but it's more to do with the fact that I don't want the light, or any whirring, to keep me awake when I'm dosing :smile:

BTW You can find the Power Options quickly by right-clicking the battery icon in the Notification Area. At least, I assume this is the same in Windows 7 as it is in Vista(?).

Don't lose sleep :rofl: Andy.
"I'm here to save your life. But if I'm going to do that, I'll need total uninanonynymity." Me Myself & Irene.

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Gloria E
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Re: Hibernation

Post by Gloria E »

StuartR wrote:
Gloria E wrote:...
Since putting a computer to sleep is the same as hiberation
...
Sleep and hibernation are two completely different states.

When the computer goes to sleep, it still uses a small amount of power to preserve the contents of memory. When you wake it again it re-initializes all the hardware and carries on.

When the computer hibernates it copies all the contents of memory to the hard drive and turns off the power. When you restart it again it restores the memory from the hard drive and then re-initializes all the hardware and carries on.

See Sleep and hibernation: frequently asked questions for more information.
Sorry about my mistake, since the word hibernation isn't mentioned and only the word sleep is, I assumed that they were one and the same. Am I also mistaken that because hibernation's not used that it's not available on my machine and only sleep is?

I visited the link you so kindly provided and viewed the answers, one by one. Now I understand what the three terms mean. :thankyou:
Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive & well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, red wine in the other, body thoroughly used up. Totally worn out & screaming "Wow, Wee What a ride!

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Gloria E
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Re: Hibernation

Post by Gloria E »

agibsonsw wrote:Just my personal opinion :cheers: but if you shutdown your computer overnight, and generally save any unsaved work before you move away from the computer (for an extended time), then hibernation is not necessary.

My laptop is nearly always plugged in (when in use) and I've set it to turn off the display after an hour and to sleep after two hours. This will save energy but it's more to do with the fact that I don't want the light, or any whirring, to keep me awake when I'm dosing :smile:

BTW You can find the Power Options quickly by right-clicking the battery icon in the Notification Area. At least, I assume this is the same in Windows 7 as it is in Vista(?).

Don't lose sleep :rofl: Andy.
I seldom need to save my work, nothing I do needs saving. My computer isn't a laptop, it's a desktop so there's no whirring or light to keep my eyes from closing while sitting at my desk. I find myself nodding more and more often, I think I'll try to find an old fashined clothespin to prop them open.
Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive & well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, red wine in the other, body thoroughly used up. Totally worn out & screaming "Wow, Wee What a ride!

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StuartR
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Re: Hibernation

Post by StuartR »

I only ever use hibernation on laptops, because I want to bring it back quickly when I arrive somewhere, but I cannot afford the battery drain that sleep would cause.
StuartR