Hard Drives - Do You Trust Your Data With Them?
With internal hard drives breaking the 2TB (that is, Terabytes) threshold and external drives hitting 8TB, it may lull one into a false sense of security that the same technology that brings these ultra-high densities also brings correspondingly higher reliability. While it is true that today’s hard drives are much more reliable than they were 25 years ago when the personal computers hit the market with their 10MB—state-of-the-art drives—they are still one of the weakest components in your system.
Now, couple that with the fact that if you have a 2 Terabyte drive you are probably going to stuff it full of data (pictures, movies, emails, personal documents, tax forms…) and there will definitely be some data there that you do not want to lose. Using the higher density drives means you will put more of your important data at risk if the drive fails, which in time, it will.
Backup Your Data
There are many options available today to preserve that data. One of the easiest things to do is to back your computer up—REGULARLY! It should become a habit like brushing your teeth every day, or taking out the trash once a week. Regularly scheduled backups will keep your important data safe and secure should your hard drive suddenly byte the dust (sorry), buy the farm, push up daisies…or in other words—die.
Programs like Acronis and Ghost, and online services such as Mozy, Keepit SugarSync and Acronis Online Backup solutions can provide you with the protection you need to backup or image your hard drive. You can run parallel or redundant drives but that costs more money, power and takes up space, while generating more waste heat (more on this later).
Backing up your data is critical to preserving the important information on your system, but there are other things one can do to maximize the life of your hard drive. Remember that there are many factors that affect how long a piece of electronic equipment will function.
Hard Drive Reliability Factors
Temperature
Temperature plays a big part in reliability, so make sure that your system’s vents are cleared of dust and that the fans are working properly. That includes the back of the PC where the cables connect. If you see dust collecting around the connectors or seams, it is getting there because the exhaust fans pull air into the cabinet through these openings. Clean them out to maximize the airflow, and make sure that the cabinet is not buried in a corner with little airflow around it. Periodically, clean the dust out of the interior of the PC cabinet, especially from the heat sinks attached to the processors on the motherboard and the video card and around the hard drive case. The Disk Doctors Hard Drive Manager allows you to not only backup, image and restore your hard drive, it also monitors the hard drive health to let you know about problems before they occur.
Overclocking
If you have overclocked your processor(s) then you will be generating even more heat inside the enclosure making it even more important that the vents are clear. Dust on the components insulates them and causes the internal temperature of the IC’s to increase, decreasing reliability.
Vibration
Vibration is another problem, especially for the hard drives. Although the laptop drives are ruggedized, try to minimize any external vibration that the system may be exposed to. And, try not to carry it around while it is up and running. The jostles, bumps and thumps the laptop feels will transfer to the hard drive and put additional stress on its protection systems to keep the drive operating normally. You run the risk of getting a head crash that could end the life of the drive.
With some simple maintenance and care, along with proper and regular backups, you should not have to worry about losing important data if the odds are against you and your hard drive meets an untimely end. It is best to be proactive rather than reactive when it comes to the feeding and care of one’s hard drives.
Here are our Recommended Data Backup Solutions
- True Image 2010
- Keepit
- Ghost
- SugarSync
- Mozy
- ElephantDrive
Keepit
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Keepit is an online backup solution that is simple to use, automatic and secure. Keepit automatically backs up your default folders every day and you can choose which files or folders to backup. Your files are securely encrypted before they leave your computer so nobody else will ever see what you are backing up online. You files are safe with Keepit. There are two different storage facilities to ensure redundancy so your files can never be lost or destroyed. See our review of the Keepit Online Backup Solution. Get 10% off of your Keepit purchase when you use the following Coupon Code:
Code: whatsabyte
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Norton Ghost 15
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Norton Ghost - Too many unexpected things can happen to your computer that would make you wish you had this program. If your hard drive crashed, Ghost would be there to restore your data to a new drive. If the Operating System (Windows) crashed, Ghost 15 can restore it back to a working state in minutes! Check our Norton Ghost Reviews for more information.
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SugarSync Online Backup and Sharing
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SugarSync takes the online backup solution to a new level. SugarSync is the only cloud backup solution that allows you to backup, sync and share files across an unlimited number of computers. That means you can access, edit and share any of your files from any PC – and whatever changes you make will automatically replicate across all your computers. You can store documents, photos, music, video files – and once you are synced, you can access them from any web browser or smart phone. You can even share photo albums and stream entire music collections directly from the Internet. See our Review of the SugarSync Online Backup Solution. SugarSync is also available for business users to take advantage of the many file sharing, backup and collaboration tools available to keep productivity at a maximum and data loss to a minimum. Read more about the SugarSync Business Solution.
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Mozy Online Backup
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Mozy is an easy to use, smart, and economical way to protect your data. All you have to do is install it on your computer, set it up, and then never worry about data loss again.
Mozy is effortless to set up and performs backups automatically in the background.
Mozy encrypts all files on your computer before data transfer and backs up open and locked files. See our full Review of the Mozy Online Backup Solution. Get an extra 10% off an annual subscription to Mozy just by entering the following Mozy promo code:
Code: MARCH
Get an additional 10% off a bi-annual subscription just for entering the following promo code:
Code: MARCH
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ElephantDrive Online Backup
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ElephantDrive is an online backup, storage and sharing solution dedicated to keep your data safe, secure and accessible from anywhere in the world. Home users get unlimited online storage for your photos, music, video, documents, and all other valuable files you may have accumulated on your hard drive. The business edition ensures that your entire team is backed up and can and access files even if they are on the other side of the world. ElephantDrive is committed to providing individuals and businesses simple but powerful tools for protecting and accessing data. More Information about ElephantDrive.
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