[Gllug] Tape backups

[James Courtier-Dutton]

2009/2/15 Adrian McMenamin <adrian at newgolddream.dyndns.info>:
> Given that my tape (DDS4) takes four hours plus to bzip2, tar and write
> to tape 16GB of data, I am wondering what, if any, the advantages of
> backing up to tape, as opposed to (now very cheap) disk might be?
>
> --

The technical solution should really depend on what the threats are.
I.e. Do you wish to protect your data in the event of the building burning down?
Do you wish to protect your data from a virus infestation?
Do you wish to protect your data from damage due to accidental "rm -rf /"
etc.

You then take the different solutions and see how well they meet the
requirements.

I like to consider the following in determining a solution
1) CD/DVD
2) USB Flash disks
3) Hard Disks
4) SDD Flash disks
5) Tape (Various formats)

I have not seen analysis on the "USB flash disks" regarding hardiness
and lifetime.
When considering "lifetime" you will probably also have to consider
media refresh. I.e. The backup media has sat on a shelf for a defined
period, one reads the data off it and writes it to new media before
the backup media degrades too much.

Kind Regards

James
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