Lifespan of computer systems

[caspur]

Is it just me or do computers have a far longer lifespan than most people keep them for?

Most of the parts have MTBF for decades of use. And I'm sure everyone has stories about some old computer system from the 80s that still works.

Is there any specific reasoning behind designing parts which have such long lifespans when their actual service life is much shorter.

For example, if a processor is designed to run at stock speeds for 100 years. Would it not be more advantageous for the manufacturer to run it faster (and correspondingly hotter) with a service life of 10 years, which is more than sufficient.

 

[InflatableBuddha]

As you've noted, only some computer components (CPUs, RAM, etc.) can last for decades. Hard drives and optical drives obviously don't have that sort of life span.

Taking the example of processors though, I can think of a few reasons why manufacturers wouldn't clock them at faster (and hotter) stock speeds:

• 
  Not all CPUs can pass rigorous testing at high frequencies. So you'd be left with low yields and correspondingly higher prices.
  
  Fast, hot CPUs would suck up an ungodly amount of energy - how many consumers would want to pay for the extra energy consumption?
  
  Fast, hot CPUs would require expensive (and possibly noisy) cooling solutions. Too difficult to mass produce mid-range HPs or Dells with such expensive cooling at acceptable prices.

 

[chinaman1472]

Peace of mind for the consumer.

 

[0roo0roo]

hundred years? really?

perhaps they can't really make it any cheaper.

i guess there is the old story of ford where they looked through junk yards at model t carcasses to find out which parts were not worn down and then downgraded those components since they were over built.

how hat would apply to cpus i dunno.

and well cpus are meant to perform stably in wide variety of conditions. if you underbuilt/overrated the cpu spec and it basically fried quick in hotter areas that would be no good.

and well, MTBF doesn't really mean what you think it does.
you see drives rated at 50-100 years all the time. and we all know that isn't true.
http://www.dansdata.com/raid.htm
http://www.dansdata.com/gz075.htm
http://searchwincomputing.tech...d68_gci1171104,00.html

 

[anishannayya]

Originally posted by: InflatableBuddha
As you've noted, only some computer components (CPUs, RAM, etc.) can last for decades. Hard drives and optical drives obviously don't have that sort of life span.

I have an old IBM Aptiva with a 500 MB hard drive, and it is fully functional. Every component, down to the original mouse. I even use it to this day. I just cycles through family photos (hid the comp in a cupboard, and got a LCD monitor). Why waste perfectly good hardware?

Oh yeah, BTW, the pictures come off of an 80 GB HDD I had lying in around and wasn't using.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Well, counter to this thread, I sold my friend a motherboard that seems to have broken down on him in less than a year of usage. Parts do wear out.

 

[RebateMonger]

Tempts me to fire up my 1981 Franklin 1000, an Apple II clone. I still have the complete computer, with two external floppies, 64KB of RAM, and a CPM-Plus card. Still got the original Infocom "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" box with invisible navel lint in a plastic bag, too. Never know what might become collectable, heh? Last time I seriously used it was in 1988, I think.

 

[GullyFoyle]

Originally posted by: anishannayya

Originally posted by: InflatableBuddha
As you've noted, only some computer components (CPUs, RAM, etc.) can last for decades. Hard drives and optical drives obviously don't have that sort of life span.

I have an old IBM Aptiva with a 500 MB hard drive, and it is fully functional. Every component, down to the original mouse. I even use it to this day. I just cycles through family photos (hid the comp in a cupboard, and got a LCD monitor). Why waste perfectly good hardware?

Oh yeah, BTW, the pictures come off of an 80 GB HDD I had lying in around and wasn't using.

How old could this really be, if it has a 500 GB hard drive? Is the drive newer than the system?

 

[BladeVenom]

RoHS compliant electronics will greatly reduce the lifespan of computer systems. An example is the 360. Also read about tin whiskers.

 

[ther00kie16]

Hard drives can last long if built well. Current gen hard drives have MTBF of about 90 years. I have a 5 year old Hitachi Deskstar that I've put through hell. I even accidentally shocked it once and it still works. Problem is most people don't take care of their computers well so things clog up and heat starts to kill things.

 

[betasub]

Originally posted by: DanDeighan

Originally posted by: anishannayya
I have an old IBM Aptiva with a 500 MB hard drive, and it is fully functional. Every component, down to the original mouse. I even use it to this day. I just cycles through family photos (hid the comp in a cupboard, and got a LCD monitor). Why waste perfectly good hardware?

How old could this really be, if it has a 500 GB hard drive? Is the drive newer than the system?

LOL, that's a 500 MegaByte harddrive, perfectly standard for circa 1990.

 

[0roo0roo]

Originally posted by: ther00kie16
Hard drives can last long if built well. Current gen hard drives have MTBF of about 90 years. I have a 5 year old Hitachi Deskstar that I've put through hell. I even accidentally shocked it once and it still works. Problem is most people don't take care of their computers well so things clog up and heat starts to kill things.

didn't read the thread?

mtbf doesn't mean what you think
you've been playing russian roulette and getting lucky.
you are lucky, until you aren't

 

[BladeVenom]

Originally posted by: ther00kie16
Hard drives can last long if built well. Current gen hard drives have MTBF of about 90 years. I have a 5 year old Hitachi Deskstar that I've put through hell. I even accidentally shocked it once and it still works. Problem is most people don't take care of their computers well so things clog up and heat starts to kill things.

Hard drives usually won't last past 10 years. Even after 7 the failure rate skyrockets.

MTBF is based on them all being new. So if you test 100 hard drives for one year and only one fails they say it has a 100 years MTBF. Even though it's impossible for any individual hard drive to last anywhere near that long. So MTBF only applies to brand new equipment without any wear.

 

[JackMDS]

When something has No moving part and its core components are pieces of encased silicone made by chemical process there is No reason Not to be eternal as the White Sand on a tropical beach (silicone).

HD, PSU, CD-ROM, etc, that moves or get Hot, do not last forever when actually used.

Some people might have the same computer for 5 tears and they actually use it less that I use mine in a month.

 

[phisrow]

The other factor to consider is the difficulty of cleanly controlling component lifespan. Unless you are phenomenally careful about manufacturing absolutely uniform parts, you'll end up with a reasonably broad distribution of failures.

Because of the thin margins on most computers sold, a single warranty repair/support incident can wipe out any profit made on that system. Failures are really bad for both the vendor and the customer. Since the vendor cannot precisely control the failure distribution, they have to engineer parts to, on average, last longer than necessary, so that not too many will fail while still in service.

A similar phenomenon applies because of variation in environment. A computer sold to household users has to be engineered to survive shipping, and three years of living under somebody's desk, getting kicked from time to time, and sucking cat hair and cigarette smoke in 90 degree heat. Most computers will receive much less abuse, and last longer; but the vendor can't afford to deal with warranty issues on the computers that will be abused.

 

[Bateluer]

Things with moving parts, such as hard drives, won't last nearly as long as other parts. I could likely run my Core 2 for decades, but the hard drives in that system won't last that long. One of the reasons why solid state media is going to become bigger in the future.

 

[RichUK]

"Bathtub Curve"

 

[Zepper]

Most mobos will last a good long time. The weakest components on most are the interconnects and the electrolytic caps (only the best of those caps have a useful working life of up to 10 years, and some are nasty counterfeits that may be good for only 3 years at best). Beyond that, most early mobo deaths are due to unintentional misuse/damage or the bad caps issue (see the badcaps site). I'd be mighty perturbed if any mobo I bought didn't make it to at least 5 years by which time it is long obsolete anyway. I suppose junky PSUs could take a toll on a mobo as well.

.bh.

 

[nineball9]

Originally posted by: JackMDS
When something has No moving part and its core components are pieces of encased silicone made by chemical process there is No reason Not to be eternal as the White Sand on a tropical beach (silicone).

Jack, you know better! You meant "silicon" not "silicone" .

 

[phisrow]

Originally posted by: nineball9

Originally posted by: JackMDS
When something has No moving part and its core components are pieces of encased silicone made by chemical process there is No reason Not to be eternal as the White Sand on a tropical beach (silicone).

Jack, you know better! You meant "silicon" not "silicone" .

Perhaps his mind's eye was focusing on features of the beach other than sand...

 

[Zepper]

Yes, soft silicone enhancements are more pleasant to consider...

.bh.