Long term data storage?

I'm heading off to college and want to backup my old comp's harddrive so it's data won't be gone 6-7 years down the road. I will be putting the storage device in the closest or wherever for this long period of time.

My question is what is the best storage device I should backup my harddrive with? An external drive, a usb flash drive, or another harddrive (my computer is pretty old so it is still IDE)?

Also, if I don't use a harddrive for a long period of time will it suddenly die after a while?

Thanks!

 

This is an interesting question and one that I don't see posted very often. My guess: write to DVDs or even CDs and store those in a dry/cool place. Why CDs? Because the low data density would cut your losses if a disk got messed up; DVDs would likely be fine, but the risk management aspect of CDs should be considered for the most important files.

How much data do you want to backup anyway?

 

I agree with the above poster about DVD's. If they are going in a closet then they won't be likely to get scratched or anything. I'd make sure to use a real brand and not the generic ones .

It might be a good idea to leave the hard drive in storage too. Just in case, you know?

 

I'm not sure about the cd idea because I've heard (word of mouth so nothing formal) that for long term storage burnt cds can deteriorate but that was in regards to photos you'd wanna show your grandkids 50 years down the line so 6-7 should probably be fine. Depending on how much you want to store there are thumb drives that are pretty affordable, like an 8gig for 40$ and some times there are ridiculas sales for them too.

 

What is the quantity involved? I mean if we are talking 40GB's makes a difference vs 200GB's? Respond and I will offer suggestions. I agree completely with the logic above but when I post back you might see why I inquired?

 

Don't modern DVD's have a lifespan of 20-100 years depending on the type? (If treated perfectly)

 

Alright Greg here are my thoughts. If the guy is trying to save 40GB's no reason on a current HDD he can not carry that. Then CD's or DVD's are just back up. Multiple sources are the key to any data back up strategy. If small enough I believe online could even be an option.

 

Online backup is a great idea. I didn't think of that. Although not without risk as well. It's not unheard of for servers to lose massive amounts of data .

I couldn't agree more about multiple backup medias being the key. Hard drives & DVD's are nice, although wouldn't protect you against a fire or such... Online storage would.

Good idea

 

And Greg I really don't know much about this but I am under the impression that for example Godaddy has my site on a Raid configuration to insure no loss and I believe maybe even off site to insure against fire/water? Anyway redundancy is key and I would just encourage that.


Edit: And Greg not be morbid but if a person burns up in a fire with their HDD and backups? Well do you get my point? At some point you just have to accept lightening will strike so be it?

 

Psh, leave it up to PP to bring down the mood.

 

Yeah Godaddy is probably sufficient for an online backup place. They are cheap too. $4/m is there cheapest package I believe?

Hey maybe people are keeping their last will and testament on their computers nowadays?! .

 

if burning data to DVDs for long term storage there are some specialty DVDs designed for just that purpose... i think KODAK sells some good disks..
below are links to a couple i found with a quick search..

http://www.thenerds.net/VERBATIM.Ve...fid=8&ci_src=14110944&ci_sku=93702^~^VERBATIM
http://www.buyonlinenow.com/viewproduct.asp?SKU=VER95105
http://www.tapeandmedia.com/detail.asp?product_id=VER94906&source=Froogle&REFERER=Froogle

here is a good article on the subject

 

Wow, thanks for the quick replies. I went away to do some work thinking I wouldn't get a response for at least an hour or so :O

Anyway, I'm actually not sure how much I'll be storing yet. It'd be nice to backup all of the data on the drive, which is 110gb, but I could also backup just the important files, which would probably only be 20gb max.

How much space does an average DVD have these days and what are some reputable brands?

It sounds like DVDs, harddrives, and external drives all have fairly similar lifetimes of at least 15 years minimum?

Sorry I didn't catch your drift - by "in storage too", did you mean keep the hard drive in the computer (because I'll be sticking the computer in the closet too) or can I just stick the hard drive in a plastic bag and stick it in the closet?

 

let it in the computer. chances are big, that in 6-7 years, there's no ide-port anywhere anymore so you can't plug it in anywhere anymore.

how about storing on an external small 2.5" hd?

i personally don't like cd's/dvd's for anything i have to trust.

oh, and "nowadays", dvds are the same as always. 4.7gb one layer, 8.5gb two layers..

 

I was saying to keep the data on the hard drive as well as burning the dvds. Then store it wherever you plan to (the closet). It doesn't really matter whether it's in a bag or in the computer. Both will work .

 

agree with greg. use both for storage. but better if you would use cdr for long term storage. have a longer shelf life than dvdr. but make sure the you store it in a dark place because cdr is using so called "dye" which the laser burn and create pits. some manufacturers are using substandard dyes which have a lower shelf life. go for kodak cdr or those cdr using blue dye.

 

THIS LINK SAYS DVD+R can have a life expectancy of 100 yrs if you buy GREAT DISKS... if you buy crap you may not get 2 yrs out of them.... and of course heat and humidity of the storage area play major factors in disk life!

 

I bought 2 750gb Seagate drives of the 'Enterprise' variety. Cost a heck of a lot more, but hopefully worth it. If they are built to withstand server racks etc, then I figure they'll survive my NAS setup!

 

that will be one heck of a NAS...

for my needs i bought a MAXTOR SHARED STORAGE II 1TB..... had it 6 months with no issues

 

I think I'd actually like to backup the full 110gb now. It seems like DVDs/CDs are more recommended but I feel like another IDE harddrive (or can an old machine use SATA as well?) would be more cost efficient? How does the lifespan of DVDs /CDs compare with a regular old harddrive?

 

If I'm not mistaken a quality DVD is more reliable than the magnetic storage in a hard drive. However both should hold up the 6 years.

Just do both. As a fail-safe.

You computer likely doesn't have a SATA port. It is a physically different connection. Computers older than a year or two wouldn't have it. There are always adapters, but I'm not sure the benefit would outweigh the trouble of getting the adapter. You can buy IDE hard drives that size pretty cheap now and it should be fine.

 

There are a few things you can do depending on cost.

Backup to DVDS. Use a Windows Home Server setup with the redundancy option. Setup your own file server with RAID protection. Simple store to external hard drives and put them into a safe storage. If you want offsite backup you could run a server in a data center and use RAID there. You could always throw your data into the 'clouds' and store it with Amazon's S3 service. Mozy also has an offsite backup program with a neat client.