Backup vital data and media you'd miss if it disappeared

After the recent hack of the Internet Archive, one of my favourite copyright free radio shows became temporarily un-listenable. So I started to research how to backup my favourite media in case it happened again.

I tend to be a doomer, in my worst imaginings, I picture another Covid lockdown but the people in charge of the streaming services can't make it to work.

However, after researching and speaking to friends, it seems quite common to lose access to precious media for more likely, duller reasons.

Whether it's your work, family photos, or your favourite copyright free tv show, it's all losable, either temporarily or permanently, for many reasons spanning the unlikely-scary-likely-dull spectrum:

Below are some of these reasons, ordered so they get progressively scarier:

Bearing all that in mind, consider backing up vital data or media you'd miss if it disappeared.

The 3-2-1 rule

The 3-2-1 rule for backing up data is recommended by most nerds — and perhaps notably CISA (The USA's official nerds).

The rule states you should have 3 copies of your data stored on 2 different types of storage media with 1 copy stored somewhere else.

This prevents losing your backups in a fire, or because one specific type of media becomes unusable.

For you and me this means…

• Storing the original copy on your computer.
• Storing one extra copy in the cloud (the cloud counts as somewhere else.)
• Storing a third copy on a USB stick, a DVD, or carved into a rock.

So, if you already use cloud storage, storing your family photos with the same level of precaution recommended by Homeland Security may be as simple as dragging and dropping them onto a memory stick and hiding it under the bed.

What's the best memory?

There are two answers to this question.

1. The first time I met my dog.

2. It depends on your situation, budget, and the amount and importance of the data.

Depending on your situation spending money on extra memory could be a silly expense. It depends on how much it would hurt to lose the data and how much data there is. So, before you spend lots of money on a fancy SSD ask yourself if it is appropriate for your needs. Below I present the research I did for my own needs.

My needs:

• Backing up my work
• Backing up my photos
• Keeping a single copy of all the copyright free media I love. It's too expensive to have on the cloud, and in the absolute worst case scenario I could, I suppose, read a book.

So, after trawling the data hoarder subreddit, reading lots of articles^{11 12 13 14}, and watching a bunch of YouTube videos.¹⁵ I made a choice to buy a fancy SSD. Below I think is a fair consensus of the different options:

External Solid State Drives (SSDs) and USB sticks

Jiggle proof. These are more reliable than HHDs as they have no moving parts. There are cases where they suddenly stop working — but newer models are more reliable lasting between 5-10 years.

SSDs are more expensive than HHDs but for that you get better reliability, much faster transfer rates, and a smaller size.

External Hard Disk Drives (HDDs)

These seem to be the least reliable as they have mechanical components — they break under extreme-jiggling. They tend to last between 3-7 years. However, HDDs give you the most memory for your money.

CD, DVD, and BlueRay discs

Depending on the quality of the discs they can last just 2 years or more than 30 years. They require a disc drive to read and write, which is a little annoying.

M-discs

This was the solution I almost went with just because it is cool. M-discs are CDs, DVDs, and BlueRay, but they're made using an inorganic compound that can last up to 1000 years (the M stands for millennium). They can be read by most disc drives but you need a compatible disc drive to write to them.

Tags

• resilience
• saving data
• mild prepping

Published

2 Dec 2024

Updated

2 Dec 2024