I run GRsync on my (Linux) machine which has about 700GB of data backed up to a USB hard drive. Initial back up to a long time, but subsequent backups which only deal with changes are quick and efficient.

I realize this package is not much use to most PPRuner's but I wanted to highlight one of the best points. The data on the USB hard drive is neither compressed nor encrypted and can be accessed by mounting the drive on any Linux or Windows computer without any issues.

What filesystem does it use? NTFS?

SSD's lifespan is virtually unlimited for 99% of consumer use cases. Only those with some very unique use cases will ever hit the limit. Despite that, it's a write limit anyway so technically your data isn't at risk (so not an issue for a backup) and all decent drives come with something called overprovisioning to ringfence extra capacity to mostly solve this problem temporarily whilst you upgrade/move your data elsewhere.

Don't buy anything other than an SSD. The brands you should buy are Samsung or Crucial. There are plenty of other reputable manufactuers out there, but these are the best and sell at prices competitive with the dross. Decide how much you need to backup and double it. Models I'd suggest are the Crucial X6/X8/X9, or the Samsung T7 or T9. I'd get any one of those, pick whatever Amazon has on offer. Cases for them are a gimmick, they're mostly indestructable unless you're really trying.

General rules for an external drive method:
Not all USB cables are the same, stick with the ones that come in the box to avoid compatibility issues.
Only have the device phyiscally attached when you want to backup. That avoids ransomware attacks killing your data as well as the backup.
Format it in ExFAT if you know how (although this is probably the factory default for modern drives), this saves any compatibility issues if you decide to move to a Mac computer or anything else down the line. Can also then plug it into a modern iPhone, iPad or Android device if you wish.

The choice of backup software and what you're trying to achieve is the tricky bit. The best solutions give you something called snapshots (same as HowardB's GRsync), where they allow you to go back in time and look at your backup on a given date. Each time your data changes, it records the differences allowing you to pick and choose when you want to see it. You can do this for free and safely with software like Duplicati, or there are many other paid solutions that schedule daily/weekly/monthly backups. The other option is to just do it DIY and copy your important folders in Windows at a regular interval. This is by far the simplest option, but is easily prone to errors.

There are better solutions (small computers called Network Attached Storage) but the price starts to climb pretty rapidly, they're not necessary for small backup jobs and if you keep them in your own house, doesn't solve the break-in/fire/water damage cases. If doing it DIY is too complicated (that's what your son is for!), then like others mentioned, Backblaze will do the job neatly.

Hi giggitygiggity

Great bit of information, thanks.

I bought as Samsung T7 last week, and seems fine. Need to sort a way of finding changes when I connect SSD, as I do not want duplicates, or sit in front of the screen for ages accepting or denying what has been found.

Cheers !

Plenty of people recommending rsync

If you're on Windows then I'd suggest robocopy, rsync can be temperamental on Windows. If you're uncomfortable with a command line there are various GUIs.

Excellent purchase... as far as the physical media's worth, Samsung is a great hardware manufacturer and I'm sure you won't be let down - but Label those Cables!

Good luck with the backup plan and reply or inbox me if I can be of any further help!

Yes, very helpful info, thanks.

Just now Amazon are offering the SanDisk Extreme 1Tb for £149 but the 2Tb for (before discount) £130. Any particular reason for this counter-intuitive lower price? (with discount the 2Tb is even cheaper at £109)

Not sure, it's just Amazon doing their own thing. Get the larger one for less! I managed to nab a 4tb Crucial x9 Pro for £179 during their Black Friday promotion.

This site can help give you an idea of whether you're really getting a bargain as it tracks Amazon price changes. £109 seems like a decent price very near the all time lowest of £104 during Black Friday.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....2435224ff7.png

https://uk.camelcamelcamel.com/produ...context=search

I use Goodsync for that, runs on Macs and Windows PCs, nice clear interface.

Be careful with WD/Sandisk Extreme SSDs
 

I would suggest a bit of caution before committing Sandisk Extreme SSDs to use as backups: I read that there's a couple of class-action lawsuits pending in the US concerning failures of these devices and according to one source, the problems are not to do with the firmware (and are hence not solved by the firmware updates that WD/Sandisk have issued) but are hardware-related. WD have apparently bought out Sandisk. Have a look at:
https://www.digitaltrends.com/comput...avoc-revealed/
PBW

That's interesting. I've only ever used their USB sticks but had previously read good things about their large external SSDs. Reccommendation adjusted!

Completely wrong - your SSD will die in 3-4 years so thats not 'virtually unlimited'. Laptops have lasted 10 years without issue before adn now its a lot less than half. SSD's are generrally 'on-board' chips so a hardware swap out is impossible. My experience of an office full of SSD laptops says they die quickly, and very often - to the point that field techs only get HDD laptops.

Disagree - anyone who uses a laptop with SSD daily will see short life. SSD's dont just lose portions and then ignore the dead parts and use the rest. They just fail, lose a big chiunk of the OS (which is the bit that is R/W most often) and go 100% dead.

Incorrect - you get large dead patches in the chip and you lose files and if its the OS then you lose the entire contents. SAt least with an HDD, it has a distinct are for the FAT/NTFS/APFS table, but on an SSD , the most important part 9which says where all your files are) is as unreliable as the rest.

Never ever ever use an SSD as a backup.

Since 2011, I have had two 1tb WD hard drives in an Icy Box 2 bay External RAID Storage Enclosure. This I run in RAID 1 mode, so the two drive are mirrored, ie I cat two copies one on each drive. This has worked well for me and I only run it when I want to back up some photos, so not a lot of use over the last 13 years.

I have, including some duplicates 139,855 photos backed up from my PC. So in effect I have 3 copies of the photos on each of the three drives. I believe in the aviation world this is referred to as triple redundancy :) :) :).

As the system is getting a bit old and running out of space, (13 years ago my files were in the order of 1.5mb each, now they now range from 10 to 18mb :eek:) I have bought some new kit to do the same thing...

A more modern Icy Box External 2 Bay RAID System and two Seagate IronWolf, 4TB, NAS, Internal Hard Drives to go in it. Hopefully that will do for the next 13 years.

Bought the bits on Amazon Black Friday, but I have Not set it up yet.

Sadly that setup is not particularly fault tolerant. A ransomware attack will take out your primary copy and both backups, if the backup is turned on. A controller failure in the housing will take out both backups. An external force (e.g. fire) will also take out the primary and both backups. A mechanical life issue (bearing failure) will take both backups at roughly the same time.

Perhaps most likely a fat fingered user will also take out both backups in one go, or if a delete goes unnoticed everything.

See also https://www.raidisnotabackup.com/

Raid box only connected and switched on when required (not often = low run time) I have used mine for 13 years now, with no replacement parts.

IF a controller failure took out both backups, I still have the primary.

Primary & backup stored in different locations in home, hopefully one will survive

If I lose one backup, the RAID system allows a rebuild from the surviving drive

Just saw this on YT.