I get away from the potential compatibility issues by not compressing the data.

I copy the data to a Windows formatted USB drive [2 TB] and then copy the data onto my Ubuntu desktop.  Since I actually have three 2TB drives internal, that is the primary storage/backup.

The next thing I do is use "rsync" to copy the data to the 6TB worth of external storage.  I do not use any compression or backup keyed to a specific system.  I just start up the script, when all of the drives are mounted, and walk away to do other things, like sleep.  That is the best solution for me.

I use to keep the "file storage" system running 24/7, but no longer.  Since 2010, I have replaced 3 of the 2TB drives.  I have 6 of these drives and a few smaller ones as replacements for other systems.  Plus, my military shock resistant grade of a 2TB USB3 drive.  That is the only 2TB drive that is not ext4 formatted.

I too have specif folders for specific data types.  Music, Movies, and other videos go, on two drive.  Photography, Images and Graphics, Fonts, plus anything else, goes on the last 2TB drive. If I need the data on a Windows system, I copy the data, etc., onto the 2TB drive Windows formatted drive or 16-64 Gig flash drives.

As an extra safety step, I have my storage system's OS on a separate 250GB drive.  So if it goes bad, I would loose very little data.

On 10/17/2017 10:50 AM, Ruth Ann Stewart wrote:
Automatic backups are nice, but I found out the hard way that files backed up 
from one computer can not always be restored to another computer, or even to an 
updated drive or operating system on the same computer.

And since I know that any electronic device will fail at some point, I usually 
just buy whichever one is on sale. Drives are cheap enough that it’s not a big 
deal if I have to replace one, although if I think the drive didn’t last long 
enough, or didn’t perform very well, I will definitely choose a different 
brand/model for the replacement.

I do not have a huge amount of pictures or videos to back up, so my method is a 
little easier than some:

I have a folder on my computer called “All”. Any data I create is saved to 
“All” or one of it’s subfolders.

I have a 3TB external drive attached to my MacBook, which uses it to store the 
Time Machine backup data.
Time Machine makes hourly backups of any files that have been changed.

In addition, on a regular basis, I copy “All” to the external drive, renaming 
it to reflect the date/version.
Also, on a regular basis, I copy “All” to an external flash drive or memory 
card, and then rotate through the drives so I always have several previous 
copies available.

If my “All” folder gets too large to fit on the flash drive, it’s easy enough 
to split it into two folders…..
The more changes I make to my files, the more often I back them up.
Works well for me.



On Oct 16, 2017, at 8:19 PM, Tim-L <webmas...@krackedpress.com> wrote:


If you cannot find a good article that you can trust, then you must take 
opinions of others.

So, this is my opinion about best drives to buy.

Even 1 month old Military specs 2-TB USB Drive can go bad.  Mine did.  At least 
most of it was backed up on a different drive/system.  It only cost me $100 
plus shipping for the original drive - from Walmart of all places.

I always buy the best extended warranty I can get, for all my electronics.  At 
least this replaces the device that died.

First, I personally would not go larger than 2-TB for a drive as your MOST 
needed data, unless you have drives that are designed for NAS or file server 
equipment.  That is my opinion for the drives I can afford to buy, for the 
money I had when I need them. I use a desktop, and its drives as the backup for 
my laptop data. It will end up as a file server - one day.  I believe in a many 
device backup system - as follows;

   I backup the laptop[s] data to my "Silicon Power 2TB Rugged Armor
   A30 Shockproof Standard 2.5" USB 3.0 Military-Grade Portable
   External Hard Drive".  Then take that drive and copy the files to my
   file "server" desktop's 3 different 2-TB internal drives. The are WD
   brand.  Then I use a syncing backup script to the 3 external drives
   - again WD drives - 6-TB internal and 6-TB external.  So, I have at
   least 2 different drives hold the "backups" of the data, if the
   laptop drive goes bad.  It could be easier if I had more money.

I looked at a few places and the "best" drive type I found so far may be the WD Red Pro drives for 
NAS storage.  They cost more than the WS "Black" type, or other brands of drives.  They are 
designed for long life in demanding needs.  I have seen the "red" drives as large as 8-TB for $400 
USD.  The 4-TB run about $150.  If I have the money, I would replace my current drives with these drives.

I currently do not have a NAS storage device - due to the fact I could not 
figure out how to get my Linux systems to work with the current router/NAS 
device I have, or any NAS storage outside of a desktop setup.  That is why I 
hope to get one of my desktops to be a true Ubuntu file server.



On 10/16/2017 06:04 PM, Steve Edmonds wrote:
Hi Charles.
I have just had a new WD Black (supposed to be high(er) reliability) die within 
a few weeks. Replaced under warranty.
The probability of that is low, but it does happen. If the backup is only a 
copy of what is on your PC/laptop then you are not needing such high 
reliability as you always have at least one copy on a failure.

I archive (backup and delete original from PC) so use a little DS216 NAS 
storage unit  with 2 drives configured raid. Less frequently I backup that to a 
single 4TB HD for off site safety (house burns down).

I also bought a drive on Amazon recently and noticed that there was an option 
for $10 extra to cover data recovery in a failure.

I think your best solution will depend upon how much data you need to back up 
and how often, an on-line solution may even work for you.

Steve

On 17/10/17 07:53, charles meyer wrote:
Hi All,

I have a SONY external hard drive that just died one day within it's
warranty period.

SONY won't recover my drive contents so the next time I've got an extra
$500 I'll have to find a data recovery firm.

I need to back up my contents - music, videos, data but I can't seem to
find an objective, independent evaluation of which external hard drives are
most reliable.

Have you found any such article?

Or have you found through experience certain brands more reliable than
others?

Thanks so much!

Charles.



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