[ale] Recommendation for off-line storage?

[Robert Story]

On Wed, 10 May 2006 15:31:20 -0400 Allan wrote:
AM> I have several hundred Gigabytes of data that's in my way.  I need to keep
AM> it, but I don't need regular access to it.  More data is coming in now
AM> that will eventually need the same treatment.

For hot-pluggable, rack-mounted and OS-neutral storage, go with Firewire or
E-SATA. Something like these:

http://www.granitedigital.com/catalog/pg33_firewireidehotswapjbodraid_.htm
http://www.granitedigital.com/catalog/pg56_satahot-swapbackup8.htm

Two copies is great. I'm assuming one will be kept off-site?

If the data is important, you might also want a way to verify it, either
periodically (drives do go bad), or when you restore. The quick-n-dirty way I
do that is using md5sum.

You might also want to establish a regular verification process. Once a
month/week, grab one drive and verify the contents. This will also keep the
mechanical parts in good working order. After you've gone through each drive
in one set, rotate that set w/the off-site set.

Another option, which would be much cheaper, would be a dual-layer dvd burner.
A little more time consuming up-front, but cheaper and much more portable than
tape. And given the unknown reliability of burned media, i'd verify/re-burn
once in a while (again, depending on how paranoid you are).