Computer geeks....get in here. Long term storage on flash card? CD? What?

[gotta240]

I have thousands and thousands of pictures i would like to keep safe for a LONG period of time. Printing them is NOT an option.

What is the best way to store pictures for a LONG period of time.

1. CD
2. USB Flash Drive (can get an 8 gig which fits ALL my pics for 30 bucks)
3. External hard drive


I would prefer to just use the USB flash drive but i would like an experts opinion on what is truley the safest and most SURE way to store info for many years.

[Baka Sama]

32GB Flash Drive, 169.00 @ Fry's.


/Thread

[StaticX27]

Nothing in this world is eternal. In terms of reliability, flash memory is probably the best way to go. There are no mechanical moving parts, therefore its theoretically the longest. However, there are lemons out there. I've had flash drives last me years, and some last me months before they die. Hard drives as well. I still have a working Quantum fireball that was a whopping 10GB's, yet I've had a few 250GB's fail on me.

CD's are most likely going to last you around 10-20 years, as plastic does deteriorate over time.

[kevtrinh]

ALL Three if you want true protection.

Although plastic does not deteriorate...the film does get messed up.

Don't get too big of an external hard drives as some actually don't last as long as as smaller one.

You should just use DVD instead of CD due to storage capacity....Keep it out of sunlight.

Flash Card with a reader because maybe in 10 years it'll be non existent.

[eastcoastS14]

ive heard of using the older 60gb ipods as external hard drives....no moving parts either


i dont really know too much about this stuff tho

[hunter8411]

ive heard of using the older 60gb ipods as external hard drives....no moving parts either


LOL If you've ever owned one of these, or worked in a center that services them you would not choose this option. I cant count how many times I've seen the sad face on one of those guys.

I would say DVD/CD's in proper storage and a flash drive for backup.

I do have a 4gig and 2gig HDD from way back in the day that still work fine.....but my pendrive holds more than both of them combined.

[SimpleS14]

USB Flash drive, but I do agree that you need this stuff backed up on three different sources (or locations).

[flip3d]

Redundancy is your friend. Get an external hard drive AND a flash drive.

[Gnnr]

Well, when I deal with network storage we use Magnetic Tape. You don't want anything that can break, or scratch easily (CDs) or anyting with moving parts (Hard Drives) for backup. But thats an expensive option. I guess Flash Drives would be okay depending on the brand. I would use DVD over CD if its GBs worth of data. Back it up on a DVD, use a good blank media brand like Taiyo Yuden. You can read about them HERE (http://club.cdfreaks.com/f33/taiyo-yuden-faq-178622/).

[gotta240]

Thanks a lot guys. I'll use the usb flash drive and cd's. The third source backup being the computer(not reliable). Thanks again and repped.

[Pank]

ive heard of using the older 60gb ipods as external hard drives....no moving parts either


i dont really know too much about this stuff tho

Those arent flash based, they have a hard drive, which is filled with moving parts.

also they fail like a mother

[s14_legend]

i just use a external hard drive then as a back up of a backup use either cd's or dvd's

[sephiroth99]

also, if you really want to be paranoid, burn new DVDs from your old one each 2-3 years... but thats really pushing it

also store one of your backup source at another physical place ie friends house in case of a fire or flood etc.

there is also backup servers. you can pay $x per month and you have a backup space on a server somewhere. its another option

[HyperTek]

burn onto dvds.. eventually after a few years you realize you dont need the backed up data anymore.

[YucA]

ANY type of media is volatile. That is multiplied exponentially when you add moving parts, magnetism or light dependent on reflection...

QUALITY flash based memory is quite cheap nowadays and will honestly be your best bet. If you care about redundancy, then DVD's would be the next in my list. As already stated, stored properly - dvd's should last a long ass time. But if I'd do it and want multiple copies, i would just opt for multiple flash drives...

[BustedS13]

burn to dvdr
keep out of UV light
copy every 10-15 years until dead

or
copy to flash
copy to new flash or new form of media yet to be released every 10-15 years until dead

done

just don't save on a standard HDD.

[BC240]

Flash memory for the win.. I can't think of anything more durable. They use logic gates which eventually wear out (wikipedia says 100k uses guaranteed).. so for backup purposes they are perfect. Also as stated earlier redundancy is your friend, burn a dvd copy and stash it somewhere as well.

P.S. I haven't posted in a year or something, whats up :)

[wangan_cruiser]

What is the best way to store pictures for a LONG period of time.

1. CD
2. USB Flash Drive (can get an 8 gig which fits ALL my pics for 30 bucks)
3. External hard drive





ill use all three and do a back up files for everything and that is the safest thing i got in my head right now.

[StaticX27]

Personally I just change my hard drives every time the break new grounds on space. Change my hard drives every 3-4 years, never had a crash that cost me data.