At some point in your life, you have probably encountered an IT problem, and have been told by somebody who knows more than you do to “try turning it off and on again”.
Popularized by British sitcom The IT Crowd, and many an IT department, the advice may seem irritating. But there are several good reasons why they ask you to do it, besides making your head explode in computer-based rage.
Devices like computers and phones use random access memory (RAM) to store data which is temporary. As you go about your tasks, be it doom-scrolling or endless spreadsheets, this data can become corrupted, causing errors in your device. Restarting your computer clears your RAM, and your device boots up again without these built-up errors, in a known “clean” state. Software that has been causing issues is also shut down during a power off, usually (but not always) stopping the errant process when you reboot.
“Electronic devices are state based machines, as in they start at one state and go to the next in steps. Programs work the same way (code is sequential and logic based). Restarting an electronic device gives it ‘a fresh state’ and re-initialises the device, resetting it back to the initial state,” Your IT Department explains.
As well as this, turning off your computer can help it to cool down when it is overheating, and resolve IP address related issues (such as IP conflicts on your network). It can also trigger updates that need to be installed on your computer, which may include vital bug fixes.
Turning your computer off is good, but sometimes you may have been told to turn it off at the wall (in countries where this is a thing) or to unplug it entirely. This is so that no power is circulating in your device at all. If you simply turn your computer off it may look off, but many computers and other devices still draw a small amount of “standby” power, or power may be circulating from the capacitors. Unplugging your computer and leaving it off for a little while will sort this out.
Your computer problems may be too complicated to fix with a simple restart, but restarting is usually a good option whether you are a power user or my grandad who used their computer as a needlessly complex way to check the cricket scores.
“Electronic devices, especially those with software, can run many programs at once. If one program gets ‘buggy’ or if two conflicting commands are going to a device at once, it can cause ‘issues’,” Your IT Department continues.
“Troubleshooting these issues without restarting the device would take an expert. Rebooting the device is something anyone can do, and it is likely to be the first thing an expert would do as well.”
Essentially though, restarting your computer sets it back to a previous known working state, before you filled it up with garbage. You should try it every once in a while.
