tegwin
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| posted on 29/1/09 at 11:32 AM |
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Backing up and securing files at home?
Over the last 2 years I have taken an average of 15 photos a day... Thats a lot of photos!
I currently have them stored on various PCS across my home network which is a nightmare.... knowing where the photos are is one thing... but I am
scared that if one of the PCS gets a virus I will loose all or part of my photo collection... which I dont want to do!
I have found various network storage boxes... Some with 1Tb... but on a single drive... How safe am I storing all my data on 1 disk? If it dies on me
im screwed....
You are talking big money if you want a network storage device with more than 1 disk drive in it....
So what is the lo-cost solution (and burning them onto CD is not an option!)
I could build a basic PC with raid 5 for the same price they are asking for a 2 disk netowkr storage box... Although im not sure what OS I could run
on it, and im not sure how secure it would be...
What do you all do?
[Edited on 29/1/09 by tegwin]
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Would the last person who leaves the country please switch off the lights and close the door!
www.verticalhorizonsmedia.tv
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chrsgrain
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| posted on 29/1/09 at 11:57 AM |
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I'm working on my PhD at the moment, and the data is very valuable - I work on the basis that it has to be separated in time and place.... so
there have to be at least 2 backups done at separate times in 2 physical locations in addition to the prime source.
I'm running Mac - my main computer is a laptop, which is connected to an external hard drive at work, which backs up automatically (TimeMachine)
and at home I drop the files onto my desktop over the home network (and then for extra safety - that disk is backed up onto another external
drive).
Other than converting to Mac and running time machine (!) how about looking at one of the peer to peer backups eg http://www.cucku.com/ or getting a
tape drive and backing up regularly and taking the tapes into work.
Chris
Edited to add - I think I'd use cucku - put together a machine with a massive hard drive, drop all the current photos onto it, then move it
somewhere safe (parents house?) then use the automatic update function in cucku to keep it up to date.
[Edited on 29/1/09 by chrsgrain]
Spoing! - the sound of an irony meter breaking...
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Davey D
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| posted on 29/1/09 at 12:37 PM |
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Im running a mini home server for all my important stuff. It has 3x hard drives. 1 for the operating system, the other 2 contain the data which is
mirrored between the 2, so if 1 drive should ever fail, i still have the data on the other drive
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Worzey
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| posted on 29/1/09 at 12:51 PM |
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Don't confuse storage with backup.
Any files on a NAS/SAN or other type of online storage can still be attacked by a virus or other malware.
Raid devices make it more robust but don't stop viral attacks.
If you want peice of mind you need offline backup e.g. to tape or CD etc.
If CD/DVD isn't large enough look at Blu-Ray as an alternative or a proper backup tape solution.
Caterham R400
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bartonp
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| posted on 29/1/09 at 01:16 PM |
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Create several free webemail accounts & email files to yourself!
Yahoo is supposed to be unlimited.... time to find out!
[Edited on 29/1/09 by bartonp]
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Jasper
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| posted on 29/1/09 at 01:28 PM |
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I used 2 internal drives, one for OS and one from files, then back up to two external HDD's which I don't leave attached. Cheap and fairly
secure.
If you're not living life on the edge you're taking up too much room.
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yellow melos
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| posted on 29/1/09 at 01:34 PM |
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You have a few solutions depending on your budget.
1. Network Attached Storage.
can get one with raid for under £200 with 2 650gb hdd. (good dumping ground, always on, has redundancy ) virus and attacks can be a problem although i
have never heard of one being killed yet.
2. Dump the photos to DVD/Blue Ray.
Can be time cosuming and you would want to have 2 copies of each one. and you have to search through them to find what you want. is the cheapest
option.
3. Tape Backup device.
can be expensive and this is only a backup not a dumping ground so you still have to store the data some where.
4. Iomega Rev Drive.
These are basically a Removable HDD. so you can use them 1 as a datastore and the other as a backup. only 170GB maimum capacity at the moment but can
can have as many disk as you want !
5. cheap low spec PC with a SATA Raid card. and 3 disks.
Has bas the best of both worlds, can use as a Network starage box. 1 drive for the OS ( linux.. as it's free ) other disks can be a mirror on
the Raid card where you can dump all your data. machine can have AV/ anti spyware but you can not have this machine on the internet. multiple machine
access to the data store, can seperate the the areas of storage per user.
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Pdlewis
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| posted on 29/1/09 at 02:10 PM |
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For small doc/photos i use MOZY online backup 2gb for free and has a very good client which runs periodically and sends copies to their server which
also does versioning so i can restore to a previouse version if required
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orbital
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| posted on 29/1/09 at 04:45 PM |
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Offiste is the way to go if you want to have complete piece of mind. No amount RAID technology is going to help if your house burns down, water pipe
breaks or some chav steals your PC!
I've used These guy's for quite a while and have been very happy with there
service. But they're plenty more online storage site out there if you have a nose around. Just something to think about 
Cheers
Dave
[Edited on 1/29/2009 by orbital]
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britishtrident
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| posted on 29/1/09 at 09:04 PM |
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Maplin had an offer on twin SATA RAID NAS box --- might be finished now but it was 65 quid just add 2 SATA drives.
Access to the box by FTP not Windows networking it will be more secure against windows vruses.
The other alternative is buld a NAS box using FreeNAS --- very easy to do.
[I] “ What use our work, Bennet, if we cannot care for those we love? .”
― From BBC TV/Amazon's Ripper Street.
[/I]
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:{THC}:YosamiteSam
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| posted on 31/1/09 at 09:59 AM |
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buy a cheap lap top or pc - connect a big hardrive / NAS then NEVER CONNECT that one to the net - save one copy to your 1st pc - then save the same
copy again to the 2nd one - if you have something really important you need multiple copies
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Jubal
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| posted on 31/1/09 at 10:00 PM |
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I am paranoid for the same reasons. I use Windows Home Server on an old Dell mini tower which has two disks in for data storage and uses its own form
of nifty magic to mirror that data. Works very well indeed and it automatically backs up all the PCs in the house too. Twice it has saved me from
knackered PCs and I am back up and running in minutes once a new HD is sourced. I am running out of space tho so an upgrade is imminent (which I will
do by buying a case which supports more drives).
As well as backup/NAS it of course streams music and videos and there's a growing list of add-ins which extend the functionality. I back up the
critical stuff on the WHS both locally and to an external drive which I then take to work for safe keeping. You can download the WHS software as an
eval and run it for 120 days if you have a spare PC to stick it on. I used linux previously but the functionality and ease of use for the rest of the
family blows any linux distro into the weeds.
It's all a bit belt and braces but I have nearly 10 year's worth of irreplaceable digital photos and latterly video which I definitely
don't want to lose.
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