For those of you running media file servers...

[Pandamonium]

I have probably 2GB of workable data that I consider very important. Then I have about ~150 DVDs and ~100 albums that I'd like to have on my network. What I'd like to do is have disc images of my DVDs/CDs, and mount/unmount them from the MCE interface. (I don't know that there is a mounting plugin that does this, but that's no the point.) The point is I want my media in a LOSSLESS format.

So I'm looking at ~1.5TB of media. And I know that I'll be adding to my collection, so I need ample headroom for expansion. I know RAID isn't viewed as a viable backup solution, but what method do I have for backing up my files? For *my* convenience, I am leaning towards a RAID1 array. That way I most likely won't have to rerip 60-70DVDs if I have a multiple drive failure. Do I have any options other than external HDDs? It just seems overkill to have RAID1 AND external HDDs..

 

[Bremen]

I was looking for backup solutions for a similiar setup. Frankly the cheapest thing I could find was just using another hdd. Tape drives are insanely expensive, I have no clue why, should be simpler than a hdd, and for more space you just need a longer tape... frankly if I do have a multi disk failure I'll just be reripping everything (of course with 2 comps with 6 optical drives combined it won't take that long)

 

[wetcat007]

My current backup method is sharing files with friends, that way I can get stuff back if I need it and they can enjoy the media.. If anyone knows a cheap decent backup solution for a couple TB of data, that'd be awesome to know.

 

[jameswhite1979]

I would suggest a second HDD that is not inside the same box as your current data this could be as a ext USB or better still a network SAM solution which is what I would opt for.

 

[Pandamonium]

The problem is that if I'm already looking at 1.5TB of data, (probably 2TB by the end of 2007), I'll need 3 external 750GB drives in addition to probably 8 750GB drives in a RAID1 array. It seems awfully wasteful to maintain a backup this way...

 

[MerlinRML]

Since you are "backing up" your DVD collection onto digital format on your hard drive already, I don't see the necessity for another form of backup on top of that. I would definitely recommend getting that 2GB of work data backed up separately to some kind of backup solution. whichever type you choose.

While I understand your dilemma about the time/effort of having to recreate your media library from originals in the event of a failure, I would argue that the cost of additional backup outweighs the value of having the digital version backed up.

I'd create 1 or 2 RAID 5 volumes to hold your data. That way, you've reduced your chances of losing data when an individual disk fails which is the most likely failure. In the event of a catastrophic failure, such as the machine blowing up, a fire burning down your residence, etc. You'll have a lot more important things to worry about than the time it will take to rebuild your media library from originals. And while it will take time/effort, it is not impossible, unless you have some media that is unique content that you cannot purchase again.

 

[Matthias99]

My current backup method is sharing files with friends, that way I can get stuff back if I need it and they can enjoy the media

Works pretty well other than the fact that it's blatantly illegal for you to redistribute the files like that. Online backup services are another story, although it would take a long time on most home connections to upload that much data (not that big a deal; just let it run in the background for a week or whatever, and then make incremental backups after that.)

Since you are "backing up" your DVD collection onto digital format on your hard drive already, I don't see the necessity for another form of backup on top of that.

I would have to agree.

If you insist on backing up multi-terabyte datasets -- the only reasonably cheap method for most home users is to back up onto either another backup server (with a large RAID array of cheap SATA/IDE drives), or a bunch of external hard drives. Tape drives work well, but they are expensive, due mostly to being niche products. The actual tapes have a low $/GB cost, however, which is nice if you want to make multiple backup sets (for offsite storage, or to take snapshots over time so you have multiple versions to fail back to.) They're also extremely reliable, and can be stored for decades in proper conditions. I would be concerned about the reliability of a hard drive put in storage for more than a few years.

Also, to save space, you can make lossless rips of CDs to formats like FLAC. And if you don't need all the special features/menus/etc., you can save a considerable amount of space with little quality loss by ripping just the movie and compressing the DVDs to MPEG4/AVC/H.264 -- MPEG2 is fairly inefficient compared to newer codecs, and you probably don't need things like foreign-language audio tracks. You could also use lossless video encoding like Huffyuv, but it is unlikely to save you much (if any) space over MPEG2.

 

[Pandamonium]

Hm...... I see your points about the redundancy of this all. If there were CD/DVD carousels that could stream content over my network (ideally integrated with the MCE interface), I'd just dump the discs in the carousel and forget about a media server. The thing is, I don't want to dig through discs to find the movie or artist I'm looking for. I think it'd be far more convenient to just have a list that I can work with from MCE. I suppose I could change my plans to use RAID5 instead of RAID1 (I'm not quite sure the savings in HDD money will offset the expenses of a hardware SATA RAID card). I just wish there were an easier way to do this.

 

[Penth]

For as cheap as hard drives are these days, if your data has any value to you I'd go for RAID 1 + an external hard drive that isn't always connected. Also, shadow copies is a nice extra for when you accidentally delete or change a file and want to go back to an older version without pulling out your external drive and going through the archive.

Microsoft is working on a home server that is supposed to backup your machine daily and get older files that you need. It's in a closed beta right now (I'm not in, but it sounds pretty cool.)

Anyway, RAID 1 + External drive.

 

[BoberFett]

I'm in the process of doing this, and I'll be going the RAID 5 route. That'll protect me from a single HD loss. CDs will be FLACed, and DVDs will be DivXed to maximize quality/space. In the event the whole server is destroyed, well, I get to re-rip my media. Backing up a couple TBs is just too expensive.