March 26

Home storage graph from Storage Visions 2010 at CES HD videos, 12 megapixel cameras, digital music collections, oh my. Is there any question of why our storage needs are growing out of control? The average home user now has more personal data than ever. Which leaves many looking for large and reliable storage solutions. Let’s take a look at what you can put to use.

The home server

While it may seem intimidating, setting up a standalone server is easier than you think. Even hardware requirements are lax. Got an old Pentium sitting around? Install a new hard drive with a Linux distribution and you have a home server. Be prepared to spend many hours configuring your settings.

Network storage unit

These are available at your local computer store. Available in a single or multiple drive set up with the option to customize with various RAID configurations. Pop in a hard drive, connect to your home network, and away you go. Access your music from any location in your home.

The external hard drive

Not as accessible as the network storage unit but portable and simple to use. Not setup required. Simply connect via USB/Firewire/eSata and your data is there. Just be sure to handle with care. Although they are portable, all drives do not react to physical shocks kindly.

Recordable media

CDs or DVDs. Cheap, easy to use, and still effective as ever. Backing up music or photos to a recordable disc takes minutes. Although reliability issues may creep up after 10 – 15 years.

There are plenty of options available to the home user each with their own pros and cons. The important thing to remember is to backup your data because every storage medium can fail without warning. As we always say, it’s not a matter of if, but when. CBL Data Recovery recommends that you try to keep at least 2 copies of your data in different locations to minimize the chances of data loss.

Category: data loss prevention, helpful hints

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