🚀 go-pugleaf

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On Sat, 28 Mar 1998 12:11:31 -0500, Wayne Meeks wrote:

> Good warning about upkeep of data.  I wonder if others would welcome as I
> would a discussion on list about the bewildering (to me) variety of
> options now available for storing and back-up.  My Colorado tape-cartridge
> drive having apparently died recently, I'm trying to find the ideal medium
> (ideal in this instance means actuarily it might be expected to last as
> long as I will).

I don't know that there is an ideal medium.  Your backup hardware
should be selected to suit your other hardware and your computing
habits.

If your machine configuration is relatively simple and you don't
heavily customize your software and system options you might want to
back up only your data.  For this purpose Zip drives and the like are
wonderfully flexible and quick.  They can also be used to make complete
system backups, although that will probably require spanning media
since it isn't likely that a modern hard disk would be small enough in
volume to back up on a single Zip disk.

There are also larger removable media drives available, including
re-writable optical media.  For heavy duty backup of lots of data,
though, I still prefer a tape drive.  It isn't random access, so it
can't do double duty as a working medium like various disk formats can,
but the capacity and economy are hard to beat.  I've used 4mm DAT
drives on my two most recent machines.  My current drive supports the
DDS-3 DAT standard, so it can store up to 24 Gigs of information.
That's more than I need now, but allows plenty of room for future
expansion and storage volume does tend to mushroom.  It's also fast at
about 10 megs/sec.

Using a medium that allows one to make a complete backup on a single
tape or disk makes backup easier and thus makes one more likely
actually to do it.  It also means you can start the backup and walk
away to let the machine complete on its own, or even schedule backups
for off hours when you aren't around if you leave the CPU turned on.
Just change the tape once a day!

I make a full system backup once a week and differential backups every
day.  I've got a shortcut set up to keep track of what needs done and
do it automatically when invoked; all I need to do is insert the right
tape and double click on the icon.  Making it easy also makes it easy
to keep up the habit.

Remember, in computing the question isn't *whether* something
disastrous will happen to your system and its data--the question is
*when* the disaster will strike.  Good backup strategy is the best
insurance when the dark day arrives.

                                   ------
 Paul J. Bodin <pjbodin@sirius.com>       http://www.sirius.com/~pjbodin
              For PGP public key finger pjbodin@sirius.com
                    or check your favorite keyserver


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