Windows Vista introduced some new options in terms of hibernation and “sleep modes.”  The problem is, there’s always been some confusion as to how each of them differ, and which situations call for sleep and which ones call for hibernation.

While the overall intent of both functions are relatively similar, each one goes about it very differently.  Both options will save the work and applications you have running on your system, stop most of the processes running, and reduce the overall power-load needed for the system.  Here are the main key differences in the two:

When you put your system in “Sleep Mode,” the power supply to non-essential and non-critical components is completely withheld- most system operation is shutdown and stopped.  All data that’s currently in physical memory (RAM module) is still kept in internal memory, and the whole system is placed in “stand-by mode,” which can be woken up and used almost immediately.  In Sleep mode, the power load is reduce considerably, saving a lot of energy, however the power must not be cut off.  If power is cut, the system will have to be fully re-booted.

The “Hibernate” function differs in that it stores physical memory to the hard drive instead of internal memory, and shuts off power completely.  While in Hibernate mode, a file named “hiberfil.sys,” which has the same file size as the amount of system memory saved, will be created on the local disk.  When the user wants to use the computer again, the computer will boot up and load the hiberfil.sys file to bring the system back to its original state before hibernation.  Hibernation is the closest thing to a complete shutdown in that it uses absolutely no power while hibernating, but can be brought back to life much quicker than a full re-boot.

Generally speaking, using Sleep Mode is better than using Hibernate.  When you use the Hibernate function, the aforementioned “hiberfil.sys” file can become fragmented and therefore slow down your system significantly.  Also, overtime, using the Hibernate function could cause several instances of the “hiberfil.sys” process and again slow down your system by hogging resources.  Since both Sleep Mode and Hibernate perform relatively the same function, Sleep Mode is much less problematic and troublesome in the long-run.

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