[ale] burning blu-ray discs

[JD]

Thanks, but aren't HDDs for archival like - 40 yrs on a shelf?

My google-fu found this:
http://serverfault.com/questions/51851/does-an-unplugged-hard-drive-used-for-data-archival-deteriorate
which makes a case AGAINST using HDDs.

I've never had a HDD refuse to spin up after being on a shelf, but ... there is
always tomorrow. ;)  There are probably a few 80G WDs around to test with -
they've been unplugged at least a decade - maybe longer.

Also - the cheap optical media I've used ($20/100 discs) doesn't seem to fail as
quickly as others report.  Only about 5 discs have shown any bit errors since
2004-ish. The data is validated when retrieved using 10% par/par2 files.  All
data has been reconstructed with the help of the par2 files so far.

So ... the m-disk stuff seems smarter for longer-term, important, storage. I'm
convinced.  BTW - I didn't think that $140/25 25G discs was expensive - compared
to a spinning HDD - it is just a tiny bit more, but 5 yrs vs 100+ yrs? SOLD!

Wanted to ask about using SSDs for archival storage ... I have an unused 16G
SATA M.2 SSD - that should easily store any critical household records
"forever", right? ;) Since it is unused and doesn't have any moving parts - that
means "forever".



On 08/13/2014 03:40 PM, Jim Kinney wrote:
> The m-disk reads like a Cd/DVD/Blu-ray but the data doesn't degrade. It's
> extrapolated lifetime is 1000 years based on Navy stress testing.
> It's only for archival storage. Uses a special burner (that doesn't cost
> but maybe a few dollars more than a normal one) to write the disks. Any
> reader can read them.
> 
> Typical lifetime of a spinning disk (in use) is 5-8 years (for enterprise
> grade, 24-7 on line). Tape's can last 20-30 years with proper storage (LTO6
> 2.5TB is rated for 30 years with proper storage and costs $60/tape - the
> drive is $4k)
> 
> The mdisk is a specialty archival media. Think financial records, tax
> records, family records, etc. or 42 thousand pictures of your cats per
> blu-ray disk :-)
> 
> 
> On Wed, Aug 13, 2014 at 3:06 PM, JD <jdp at algoloma.com> wrote:
> 
>> On 08/13/2014 10:25 AM, Jim Kinney wrote:
>>> M-Disc Bluray Recordable Media 25 GB Branded (25 Disc Pack) $130
>>
>>
>> Guess I'm just confused by optical media these days. It isn't cheaper,
>> isn't as
>> convenient, it isn't re-writable 100,000x AND costs more than a spinning
>> disk.
>>
>> I suppose if there are HIPPA or other regulatory requirements, but in a
>> house?
>> What am I missing?
>>
>> BTW, I have over 1,000 backup DVDs here (mix of 4.7 and 8G) ... but stopped
>> using optical when HDDs became less expensive.  Slowly moving those to
>> 2+TB HDDs
>> that can be connected via a USB3 dock.
>>
>> Can someone please enlighten me?
>>