Quote:
Originally Posted by RevTKS69
Unplugging an external HD and storing it for long periods of time is asking for trouble. Especially with newer drives. You have two things to consider, the physical moving parts, and the magnetic media.
The moving parts are designed to do just that, move. The are not designed to be unplugged and left stagnant. Also, there was a note about storing them at proper temperature and such...this is important too. For extended off-line storage, use media that are designed for it.
Stored Magnetic media will eventually fail, period. One of the things about a drive that is on-line and active; the data gets refreshed on occasions and the drives have built-in checks for data integrity. This is crucial. Being taken off-line cripples the drives ability to protect the data.
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Mine are not stored, and turned off, for long periods of time. Although your idea of 'long time' may be different then mine.
I am always work on the content in some way. So all the HD's are being accessed at least a time or more a month. Especially with more content deals.
I used to keep them plugged in all the time, and they would wear out quick just from running 24/7. So if I did not run out of space. The disks would start making noise after a period of time (less that 12-18 months) and I would have to replace before the drive took a shit.
Now I unplug to make sure I do not have to worry about viruses, electrical surges, and other controllable issues. Not to mention, I have TWO copies of all files anyways. Not including the original DV tape.