Shutting Down Via Power Button

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Level 1

25 points

Shutting Down Via Power Button

I am curious as to the thoughts of shutting SL on an iMac down using the power button rather than shutting down from the OS. I have been told that there is no problem with this, but my intuition is telling me differently. I can't see how powering off allows Unix to close files, etc.

iMac 7,1 4gb RAM, Mac OS X (10.6.2)

Posted on Feb 28, 2010 11:19 AM

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Answer 1

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Donald Palmer

Level 4

2,170 points

Feb 28, 2010 11:22 AM in response to HarryO5353

Its kinda like turning off the car before you stop.
Risky

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Answer 2

Feb 28, 2010 12:12 PM in response to HarryO5353

Hi Harry05353;

If you use the power button to shut down a Mac then you are risking file corruption on the disk because of any information lost before when the power is shut off. With journalling the chances of this are reduced but they still exist. Any time I am forced to shut down with the power switch, I always repair the disk the next chance I get.

Allan

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Answer 3

HarryO5353 Author

Level 1

25 points

Feb 28, 2010 1:15 PM in response to Allan Eckert

This was my impression as well. I was lead to believe that forcing a shut-down with the power button was OK, but I knew differently....it takes awhile for Unix to close files properly and thus the delay when restarting, or shutting down from the Finder.
I have also been lead to believe that David Pogue, in his latest book, mentions that immediate power-off by the button is OK and an accepted way of shutting down. I don't have the book so I don't know. Just didn't sound right.

Thanks.

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Answer 4

Feb 28, 2010 1:31 PM in response to HarryO5353

Hi HarryO5353;

Since at its heart OS X is based on Unix, I think you past knowledge here will keep you straight.

I don't know about what David Poque has to say on this subject but if this is true then his standing in my eyes has just gone down a bunch.

Allan

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Answer 5

Feb 28, 2010 8:36 PM in response to HarryO5353

And a lot of applications don't write the changes you make in them until they Quit... So, say for instance, you change a preference setting for an application, if it is still running when you hit the power button to shut it down, those changes are not saved.

If you go the the Apple Menu, and select Shut Down, when all the apps quit, any changes you've made will be written to disc and there for you the next time you start that application.

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Answer 6

Mar 1, 2010 5:50 AM in response to HarryO5353

I wouldn't advise it if your computer is running smoothly. If your like me with an old computer and new software, I end up using it sometimes.

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Answer 7

HarryO5353 Author

Level 1

25 points

Mar 1, 2010 6:00 AM in response to Hivetyrant36

I have a 2007 iMac as well, now into it's 3rd year. I have yet to find the need to do this. With my old Powermac G5, I had to use it a few times, but never lost data. Guess I was just lucky with this.

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Answer 8

Mar 1, 2010 6:09 AM in response to HarryO5353

I have never found that I have lost data by doing this though. I also have a TimeMachine backup so I don't really have to worry about file corruption as long as it is not a core file. I have had to reinstall a couple times due to what I think is a faulty model... I have taken it to get repaired twice. I am just unlucky or something... I still love my Mac.

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Answer 9

Mar 1, 2010 6:18 AM in response to Hivetyrant36

Hi Hivetyrant36;

Where I have seen a shutdown with the power button cause problem has not been so much in the area of lose data but in corruption to the directory. This is why I always suggest that one repairs the disk after have to force a shut down with the power button. If you don't correct this corruption in the directory, it can lead to all sorts of weird problems in the future.

Allan

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Answer 10

Mar 1, 2010 7:35 AM in response to Allan Eckert

I totally agree with Allan. Way back, maybe early 10.5 I had a situation where the system locked up requiring restart with the power button (G5 Mac Pro, 2.7GHz) When it restarted, it responded with the dreaded flashing question mark. Fortunately, a quick run of DiskWarrior repaired several directory errors, and I was back in business.

I always figured that the error CAUSED the lockup that required the power button reset, not the other way around. I have not needed such a remedy for some time, but I have time machine and SuperDuper backups available at all times just in case.

Andy

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Answer 11

HarryO5353 Author

Level 1

25 points

Mar 1, 2010 9:31 AM in response to Andy Highberger

Andy,

I used to have a Powermac G5 as well and had to shut down using the power button occasionally. I did not have corruption, but consider myself very lucky as the G5 and the OS at the time didn't support a journaled disk format.

I think that's one of the things that prevents a lot of disk corruption,,,the way the drive is formatted. I haven't had to use DiskWarrior once in the past 2.5 years with this iMac and from Leopard through Snow Leopard, as I never ran Tiger on this machine.

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Answer 12

Mar 1, 2010 2:39 PM in response to Allan Eckert

"Where I have seen a shutdown with the power button cause problem has not been so much in the area of lose data but in corruption to the directory. This is why I always suggest that one repairs the disk after have to force a shut down with the power button. If you don't correct this corruption in the directory, it can lead to all sorts of weird problems in the future."

Well that may solve some of my problems!! Haha, I didn't even think about that.

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Answer 13

Mar 1, 2010 4:08 PM in response to HarryO5353

I have occasionally shut down my Macbook with the power button (pressed briefly) but only because the "are you sure?" dialog comes up and then I select shutdown in that. It seems like a shortcut to that dialog box. Of course if you click and hold it will force shut down which I don't do unless it's unavoidable because of something like a kernel panic. If I press the power button briefly on my MacPro it goes to sleep.

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