# backup these days?



## monkeyboy (Aug 16, 2013)

I'm planning a new storage server, at least 10-30 TB. What is the current recommended way of backing up such a server... and I mean a _real_ backup (off-site storage, restore multiple past states, etc). I'm still using tape for my smaller servers, but it seems expensive and unwieldy...


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## vermaden (Aug 16, 2013)

Expensive - LTO4/LTO5/LTO6 Tape Library with two or more drives.

Cheap - Single LTO4/LTO5/LTO6 SAS drive.


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## monkeyboy (Aug 17, 2013)

*I*s there any storage technology that approaches $1/TB? *O*r even $10/TB? I'd like to store at least 0.5-1 TB "forever" for no more than $10. It should be on some kind of removable media not unlike a CDROM or tape cartridge.


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## Terry_Kennedy (Aug 23, 2013)

monkeyboy said:
			
		

> I'm planning a new storage server, at least 10-30 TB. What is the current recommended way of backing up such a server... and I mean a _real_ backup (off-site storage, restore multiple past states, etc). I'm still using tape for my smaller servers, but it seems expensive and unwieldy...


I asked this question over 3 years ago and there still isn't a good, generic answer. I go into more about what I call "The Ostrich Syndrome" here.



> Is there any storage technology that approaches $1/TB? Or even $10/TB? I'd like to store at least 0.5-1 TB "forever" for no more than $10. It should be on some kind of removable media not unlike a CDROM or tape cartridge.


Well, now that LTO-4 is two generations behind (LTO-6 came out at the end of 2012), companies are starting to phase out their LTO-4 drives and media. It is often possible to pick these up used at a substantial savings. I expect pricing on LTO-4 to continue to fall, probably bottoming out when LTO-7 is released.

You can probably purchase used 500 MB disk drives for under $10, but I'd bet that the future readability of stored tapes is better than that of stored disks.


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