20% of hard drives used for long-term music storage in the 90s have failed
A report indicates 20% of 1990s hard drives for music storage have failed, emphasizing the need for regular backups and the exploration of more reliable archival technologies not yet widely available.
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A recent report from Iron Mountain reveals that 20% of hard drives used for long-term music storage from the 1990s have failed. This alarming statistic highlights the risks associated with relying on hard drives for archival purposes, as many drives are now reaching the end of their lifespan. The music industry transitioned from tape to hard drives in the early 2000s, but these drives, like their predecessors, are prone to deterioration. Most commercial hard drives are rated for a lifespan of only three to five years, and studios often only access their archives when they need original masters for commercial use. If too much time passes, the data may be irretrievable. While researchers are exploring more reliable archival storage solutions, such as glass storage that could last thousands of years, these technologies are not yet widely available or affordable. Until then, it is crucial for studios and individuals to regularly back up their data to newer media every few years to prevent loss.
- 20% of 1990s hard drives for music storage have failed.
- Hard drives are rated for a lifespan of three to five years.
- The music industry has shifted from tape to digital storage but faces similar risks.
- New archival technologies are being developed but are not yet accessible.
- Regular backups to newer media are essential to prevent data loss.
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4 comments>About a fifth of the hard drives it receives from the media industry for service are completely dead, said [...] Iron Mountain, which specializes in [...] data recovery.
This isn't a music industry source saying 20% of their archive drives are dead. This is a data recovery company stating that 20% of the drives _it receives from the music industry_ are unrecoverable.
I'm making up numbers here but say the music industry has trouble with 5% of their drives, so they send them to Iron Mountain to be recovered, and then 20% _of those_ are dead. That's a lot fewer drives than the title implies.
>However, just like tape, hard drives also deteriorate — with most commercial drives rated to last for only three to five years.
It sounds like the author is referencing lifetime run hours. A drive spinning in a PC or server for 5 years, sure. A drive sitting offline in a controlled storage room for 5 years, shouldn't just stop working.
I think anyone here understands that you should not store valuable data exclusively on a single hard drive then throw it in storage for 20+ years.
Another plug, as always, to the 3-2-1 backup guidance: https://www.backblaze.com/blog/the-3-2-1-backup-strategy/
It's Tom's Hardware linking to a 3rd party article which is a hidden ad for Iron Mountain enterprise services, except they manage to somehow have even less information than an ad article, despite being a "tech" news source.
Related
Backblaze Drive Stats for Q2 2024
Backblaze monitored 284,876 drives in Q2 2024, reporting an annualized failure rate of 1.71%. Two models had zero failures, and the company is exploring AI for predicting drive failures.
Backblaze Drive Stats for Q2 2024
Backblaze analyzed 284,876 drives in Q2 2024, reporting an annualized failure rate of 1.71%. Notable findings included zero failures in two Seagate models and concerns over the 12TB HGST drive's rising failure rate.
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Concerns over digital data preservation grow as vast information is created daily, with organizations like the Internet Archive working to save at-risk content and prevent a potential "digital dark age."
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Iron Mountain highlights that 20% of archived hard drives from the 1990s are unreadable, stressing the need for proactive measures in the music industry to safeguard valuable recordings and improve metadata organization.
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The music industry faces archival challenges as 20% of 1990s hard disk drives are unreadable. HDDs, not meant for long-term storage, complicate remastering efforts, highlighting the need for continuous data backup.