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Most dependable back-up option for your computer?

michaeljkrell

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I am looking to get an external hard drive for backup purposes, but it seems that no matter which one I look at there is a 50/50 chance that the thing will die in 6 months and don't want to buy a backup for the backup. Is there one that is more dependable? Is there another system out there that is more fail proof?
 

grimslade

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No. Failure is a certainty.
 

grimslade

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The point of the backup is, the odds are minimal that both the backup and the original will fail at once. So if the backup fails, you replace it. And if your main drive fails, you recreate that from the backup. Most external hard drives come with either a 3- or 5-year warranty. I just had one fail, and Western Digital sent me a new one.

If you don't like the idea of the backup failing, consider getting a RAID system. My current external HD is a 2-drive array from Western Digital. Each drive is 500GB and they are mirrored--each one contains everything on the other. The internal software/firmware handles all that seamlessly. The idea is, if one half of the mirror fails, you pull that drive, slide in a new one, and the drive recreates the mirror. That's the theory. I haven't had to try it in practice.
 

michaeljkrell

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Originally Posted by grimslade
The point of the backup is, the odds are minimal that both the backup and the original will fail at once. So if the backup fails, you replace it. And if your main drive fails, you recreate that from the backup.

Your right. I guess I never thought about it that way.
 

Jumbie

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..
 

Gradstudent78

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Originally Posted by michaeljkrell
How did you get more than 1 year?

In the technical details it says 5 year warranty

Edit: saw the one year warranty, wierd, 5 year must be a typo, sorry about that
 

05charley

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Originally Posted by michaeljkrell
I am looking to get an external hard drive for backup purposes, but it seems that no matter which one I look at there is a 50/50 chance that the thing will die in 6 months and don't want to buy a backup for the backup. Is there one that is more dependable? Is there another system out there that is more fail proof?

You might want to think about backing up more than just your hard drive. PCs are cheap enough that you can have one at another location in case of fire or other loss. You can periodically back up one and transfer important data to the other - I'm thinking accounting data that you don't want to lose. You can also Norton Ghost your hard drive to a new one and keep the old one at a separate location. I'm sure this wouldn't work for a lot of applications, but will for simple business systems.

I had a friend in Miami a few years ago who kept a backup of her accounting system on a disk in her desk drawer. One night thieves broke in and took her computer and her desk. Once you have had a disaster like this you spend some time to figure out a recovery plan. My accounting data is on a PC that never goes on the Internet.

Another company lost their factory to a fire. All their backups were in the building and were useless. It took employees months to manually reenter data from hard copy that survived the fire.
 

whodini

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Depending on your internet connection (and patience), what about an online backup?

Personally, I use two back up drives that are only turned on when they are needed. Saves a hell of a lot of wear and tear and I'm sure they'll last several computers.
 

michaeljkrell

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Yeah, the seagates have a 5 year warranty, but the reviews on Amazon are really bad.

I guess will look to get two of them. I have a fairly nice fire-proof safe, so I should be good in case of a fire.
 

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