On 2/6/06, Chuck Norcutt <chucknorcutt@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> I'm using a pair of 160 GB IDE drives mounted in USB conversion cases to
> do my backup. I have no concerns about their electronic or mechanical
> life since the only time they're ever powered on is when they're
> actually performing a backup which is, at most, once a week. I'm too
> lazy to do it more often than that. I also don't back them both up at
> the same time to minimze (but not eliminate) the chance of copying a
> virus or damaged file onto both backups. One of them could certainly
> have a premature failure but not likely both at the same time.
Hi Chuck,
As I understand it, starting and stopping a drive can do more damage to a
hard disk then letting it run continually. I partially followed your
earlier advice and purchased a second 120GB hard drive for backup but chose
to install it in the computer. This computer runs 24/7 and the hard drives
never spin down. The original drive C, a 2GB Quantum ran for over 10+ years
and the only reason I replaced it with a 120GB drive is that I needed the
space and I was afraid it was reaching the end of its road. There are still
2 other older drives in the system, a 3.2 GB Quantum (Linux drive) and a
20GB Quantum (Win drive D), the 3.2GB being 8+ years in age and the 20GGB 7
years in age. I'll purchase a USB conversion case in the near future as
I'll need to transfer backup data to new drives when my computer is
upgraded.
BTW, if anyone has any advice, I'll be upgrading from Win98SE to Win XP Pro
in the coming week (because my wife works for a school we were able to get
an academic discount). I've recently switched from running Linux 90% of the
time to running Windows 95% of the time since more time is spent doing image
work in Photoshop. I could leave Linux up running for months at a time
without a reboot. Actually, I believe I rebooted Linux only a handful of
times from a total system lockup in 12 years. I am rebooting Win98SE at
least once a week. Hopefully XP will offer better stability. Anyhow, I've
cleaned up the registry with Registry Mechanic, deleted unnecessary programs
and files and will defrag before installation. I believe there is a dry run
I can do that will identify any potential problems before the upgrade and
I'll hold back on changing the file system to NT until after the upgrade so
I'll have the option to revert back to Win98. If there is anything else I
should be aware of , please jump in and let me know.
Richard
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