Question for people who backup their files on optical media

When you burn data onto optical media like CDs/DVDs, say in Nero. Do you just use the data verification or do you make an actual checksum file like crc32, md5, sha, etc. and burn it with the files so you can check it afterwords ? (Like way afterwards, ie: 1 year afterward when you decided to put those files back onto your computer)

 

I don't generally use all those error-checking features. Usually a simple write does the trick, especially with the buffer underrun protection in all modern burners...

I would not keep a burned optical disc with data for more than a few months. Shelf life on optical media has been shown to be poor, and in the summer heat, even worse. If you are going to make weekly backups, use an external hard drive

Higher end optical media tends to last longer. I have had cheap media not last a week, and some last more than four years.

 

Btw.. Cheap media doesn't mean media that costs little money. Some media that costs good money in stores (like Memorex) is, ehh, not so hot. I have never had a CD stop working, even ones I burned on the first media I found in like 1999 - not that I still have too many of those lying around - but just to be on the safe side, I say go with Taiyo Yuden or Verbatim. Also, did you know that media lasts longer lying down instead of standing up on edge? Too bad, cause it's easier to store standing up! And, naturally, RW goes bad easier than just R...

Oh, and the method I use for backing up is fingers crossed, I suppose. I make a backup of all my stuff every couple of years or so, when I'm planning on formatting but don't have a computer to temporarily copy my stuff to over the network, so if something goes bad between backups, all my valuable files are gone! Gone! I guess I'm lucky since I've never had anything happen with my data

Malia

 

If you have the option DVD-RAM has very good error correction. If you can't afford to loose it I would suggest some high quality discs.