> Sun NVRAM will eventually die.  [...] Long periods of storage seem to
   > shorten battery life.
   
   Well, long periods of being powered down will, unless you stop the
   clock first.  If it's powered up, the clock is running off Vcc power
   and the battery is basically out of the loop - but when it's powered
   down, the clock oscillator and divider chains are sucking juice from
   the battery.  If you stop the clock, there is no switching going on and
   thus no current draw; battery drain is then supposedly reduced to the
   point where battery life is approximately shelf life (ie, the major
   drain is battery-internal leakage).
   
   Whenever I take a machine out of service, even if I expect it to be for
   only a day or two, I'm always careful to stop the clock first.


very interesting.  how does one stop & start the clock?