PC Component shelf life/Doomsday PC

[Pc6777]

I have been wondering, how long do pc componets last unsed like if I built a pc then didnt touch it for 20 years and tried to turn it on, what would happen? do hard drives not work if they sit for years and years because they loose magnetism? will motherboards and power supplys have bad caps after so many years? will the flash memory holding bios just die one day? just genuinely curious about how long this stuff lasts, i mean we already know how long stuff lasts when you use it as they degrade with use, but do components degrade while not being used assuming they are not exposed to extreme weather conditions? what if i used old parts I have and put together a doomsday pc, would it even be worth the trouble lol?

[zeusthemoose]

Assuming it gets cleaned so it’s not completely covered in dust, it should still work.
But it’s not really practical. Chances are there will be some major technological changes that make it unusable (such as an entirely new WiFi standard that makes it so your computer can’t connect). So if you ever do need it, you could only only do stuff that’s already there and don’t need to be downloaded.

[Wingfan]

Love this title  

[atxcyclist]

I have some parts in a box that are from 1987 judging by the silk-screening on the boards, but I don't know what I'd do with a 2400 baud modem or where to find an ISA slot these days.

 

In all seriousness though, aside from old leaky batteries, any component at rest in decent environmental conditions should last for decades. Whether it will be useful is completely unknown, because a computer from even 2005 is basically worthless now.

[PeachGr]

One problem is that whatever uses memory batteries (like motherboard) will lose memory (of date, Time etc). 20 years is not much. At work I use 20 years old Celeron processor and works fine (for documents) and a Pentium 4 that... ok that one barely works.

[Moonzy]

47 minutes ago, Pc6777 said:

hard drives not work if they sit for years and years because they loose magnetism?

yes, it is known as data rot.

they lose magnetism and the internal data can be too corrupted to be reconstructed, so you'll be left with a working computer without OS

48 minutes ago, Pc6777 said:

will motherboards and power supplys have bad caps after so many years?

rust on the caps may be an issue, idk about recent motherboards but motherboards back from Pentium 4 days then do have rusted caps when i last looked at them

but this shouldnt be too much of a concern unless it's stored in a moist area

50 minutes ago, Pc6777 said:

will the flash memory holding bios just die one day?

refer back to data rot, it applies to solid state, transistor based storage as well

solid state memory loses data even faster when not receiving charge for a prolonged period

there's also the bios battery to consider as it slowly discharges over time to allow the bios to keep track of time and what not

52 minutes ago, Pc6777 said:

would it even be worth the trouble

worth is very subjective.

but if you want to do such a task, could just power on the computer once every christmas or something to make sure it works before continue storing it

[Pc6777]

I feel like the bios degregation could bottleneck the lifespan of my doomsday PC . Is there any way around that like I know I probably couldn't boot with a bios maybe I could store a copy of bios on DVD but then how would I put it in a motherboard with no bios . It wouldn't be a problem is I lost os I could have relevant files and Linux and a copy of windows on dvds, so hard drives loose data over time but can be formatted and re written to indefinitely as long as they are not worn out? It's not like it will be broken it just can't hold data? 

[Pc6777]

9 minutes ago, Moonzy said:

yes, it is known as data rot.

they lose magnetism and the internal data can be too corrupted to be reconstructed, so you'll be left with a working computer without OS

rust on the caps may be an issue, idk about recent motherboards but motherboards back from Pentium 4 days then do have rusted caps when i last looked at them

but this shouldnt be too much of a concern unless it's stored in a moist area

refer back to data rot, it applies to solid state, transistor based storage as well

solid state memory loses data even faster when not receiving charge for a prolonged period

there's also the bios battery to consider as it slowly discharges over time to allow the bios to keep track of time and what not

worth is very subjective.

but if you want to do such a task, could just power on the computer once every christmas or something to make sure it works before continue storing it

If cmos battery died would the pc still function and just have a bios that wouldn't save?

[Moonzy]

3 minutes ago, Pc6777 said:

I could store a copy of bios on DVD

DVD also suffers from data rot

and you would need a working bios to access the DVD

your computer cant read data without instructions to begin with

5 minutes ago, Pc6777 said:

so hard drives loose data over time but can be formatted and re written to indefinitely as long as they are not worn out? It's not like it will be broken it just can't hold data? 

yes

i think hard disk scan and correct errors when powered on, but can be too corrupted to be fixed when too many bits are flipped/gone

correct me if im wrong

4 minutes ago, Pc6777 said:

If cmos battery died would the pc still function and just have a bios that wouldn't save?

i have no definitive answer for this

but iirc, i booted a computer with cmos battery removed once while diagnosing it

[Pc6777]

Oh I thought DVDs had no data rot and only flash storage and hard drives did, maybe I'm thinking about CDs. Beacause the DVDs or CDs have physical marks that won't change over time correct me if I'm wrong

[Pc6777]

I know flash storage degrades while being written to, but are there any examples of it loosing data when not being used, like have you ever had an SSD just forget stuff and corrupt after a few years or does anyone have a 20 or 30 year old motherboard that still works(did motherards have bios on flash storage that long ago?)

[Pc6777]

Well I'm phyced, when the world becomes fallout 4 I will be in a bunker with my doomsday PC powered by a solar and wind generator playing the DVD version of Skyrim

[Pc6777]

5 minutes ago, CircleTech said:

Solid state devices such as motherboards, CPUs, RAM, and SSDs can in theory last forever if left in a room temperature low-humidity enviornment undisturbed. 

 

Hard drives have a limited lifespan to which they store data of about 50 years, otherwise known as "bit rot". A hard drive will phsically stop working after a few thousand years because the lubricating oil in the motor breaks down.

 

I frequently resell 286, 386, and 486 motherboards, some of them almost 30 years old, and many power on just like it's yesterday. 

What's a hard drives lifespan in general like how long can they last(not last while storing data just last in general) like can you reformat a 50 year old hard drive and install stuff in it and have it work good as new 

[Moonzy]

2 minutes ago, Pc6777 said:

DVDs or CDs have physical marks that won't change over time correct me if I'm wrong

the data is stored on a thin layer of aluminum

and that aluminum layer can oxidate and "rust" away

4 minutes ago, Pc6777 said:

like have you ever had an SSD just forget stuff and corrupt after a few years

personally no, i dont have SSD that's just been sitting around

 

i just remembered that there are things so called tape drives for long term storage, but idk how long they can retain data

 

also, remember to quite or @Pc6777 someone when replying so they can see it

 

all in all, a PC isnt designed to be turned off for pro-longed period, you could search around to see if there are any PC designed around that criteria

[Pc6777]

1 minute ago, Moonzy said:

the data is stored on a thin layer of aluminum

and that aluminum layer can oxidate and "rust" away

personally no, i dont have SSD that's just been sitting around

 

i just remembered that there are things so called tape drives for long term storage, but idk how long they can retain data

 

also, remember to quite or @Pc6777 someone when replying so they can see it

 

all in all, a PC isnt designed to be turned off for pro-longed period, you could search around to see if there are any PC designed around that criteria

I mean I have been half kidding in this thread but I do plan on making a doomsday PC I have all the parts and even a few years of trading disputes or a cold war could make prices skyrocket and new componets not release which would make used parts cost 10x as much and would be a realistic use case for a doomsday PC in case my main has a problem.

[Pc6777]

I feel there's a way to prevent the rust like a certain type of way if storing it or something maybe I will read up on that.

[Pc6777]

I would leave it plugged in all the time if that would be better but if there's a power surge the off chance that I would actually need my doomsday PC would be blown 

[Moonzy]

1 minute ago, Pc6777 said:

I would leave it plugged in all the time

that sounds like a terrible use for electricity

imo PC is a luxury item, not a necessity

 

if i were you and a real FO4 or smth happens, assuming i didnt die from the explosion and the radiation doesnt affect me

i would head to my bunker first, and when things cool down i would go get my gaming rig, maybe after a couple days

 

again, assuming i dont die

[Pc6777]

Ok the fo4 senerio was a joke I'm really thinking like some cold war type stuff or trade stuff that leads to no new parts for years and the used market being dried up plus I mean I can always use them even in 10 plus years as media PC's I just want to know if they will last enough to be worth keeping or they will be glorified metal bricks in 10 20 years. If wifi changes hopefully they release pci cards so old stuff could connect to new 8 g wifi networks and whatnot lol.

[Pc6777]

I would also need to install gpu drivers on that mdisc thing or a tape drive for games I could play on disc lol

[atxcyclist]

9 minutes ago, Pc6777 said:

Ok the fo4 senerio was a joke I'm really thinking like some cold war type stuff or trade stuff that leads to no new parts for years and the used market being dried up plus I mean I can always use them even in 10 plus years as media PC's I just want to know if they will last enough to be worth keeping or they will be glorified metal bricks in 10 20 years. If wifi changes hopefully they release pci cards so old stuff could connect to new 8 g wifi networks and whatnot lol.

Something to think about: Many military and infrastructure facilities are still using Cold War era computing devices. There was a significant amount of monetary investment into these systems at the time, and for the processes they control they still work fine. You joke about the Fallout 4, but there are probably many ancillary installations for various governmental facilities that don't use more than terminals at desks. That hardware is all built on components that are very durable. Those systems also typically have the benefit of being offline, or at least not on the internet you and I use, so they are incredibly secure. An intranet system utilizing terminals and a mainframe is hacker-proof without physical access.

 

I still wish I had my 4.7mhz IBM XT, novelty mostly but it would work until I'm old and grey.

[Pc6777]

A good thing to have with that would be solar flare resistance so essential systems would still be online in a natural or human caused solar flare to take out technology maybe I should put my PC's in a tin foil box

[Pc6777]

11 minutes ago, atxcyclist said:

Something to think about: Many military and infrastructure facilities are still using Cold War era computing devices. There was a significant amount of monetary investment into these systems at the time, and for the processes they control they still work fine. You joke about the Fallout 4, but there are probably many ancillary installations for various governmental facilities that don't use more than terminals at desks. That hardware is all built on components that are very durable. Those systems also typically have the benefit of being offline, or at least not on the internet you and I use, so they are incredibly secure. An intranet system utilizing terminals and a mainframe is hacker-proof without physical access.

 

I still wish I had my 4.7mhz IBM XT, novelty mostly but it would work until I'm old and grey.

Plus old PC parts were made in Japan and stuff higher quality and they were larger and less sense so less stuff on boards to fail I guess 

[mr mans]

Kept dry and cool and dust-free, quality electronics should last decades. 

 

I have the very original PC, an IBM 5150 from 1982, that I still use multiple times per week. I use it primarily for posting on BBS boards (yes they still exist!) and IRC chat, as well as the occasional long-form distraction-free writing. It is connected to the internet and everything, going on nearly 40 years of age. 

 

Here's some pics I posted a few months ago: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/90677-show-off-your-old-and-retro-computer-parts/?do=findComment&comment=13268665

 

640KB of memory, running MS-DOS 6.22

[IkeaGnome]

19 hours ago, Pc6777 said:

I feel there's a way to prevent the rust like a certain type of way if storing it or something maybe I will read up on that.

You could look into desiccants and desiccant packs. We use them all the time here at work when we need to keep things dry, boxes with ECMs and rig control systems, in a very wet underground environment..