Re: Backup's to DVD
On 17/03/14 08:54, Mr Queue wrote:
> Anyone doing anything interesting to backup data to DVD's?
>
> https://packages.debian.org/sid/dkopp
>
> ^^ Looks interesting and overall it's a pretty simple task. Suppose
> I could even use tar and split but just curious what others may be doing
> currently.
>
> FWIW, I'm mostly concerned with cloning my current backups of family
> photos to different media for peace of mind. I already have a pair
> of backup servers in different physical locations but want to add some
> DVD's into the mix.
>
> Those are hard to rm. ;)
On-site backups are of limited value (but offer convenience).
DVD backups are ideal for off-site/secured backups in your use case.
Do you have a fireproof safe? Some security companies provide very cheap
24/7 access lockboxes.
>
>
dkopp works well, as does cedar-backup2 and backupninja. There are also
other open-source tools with similar functionality.
Contrary to one opinion in this thread, most of the "enterprise" (and
very large government departments) I've worked with *do* use DVDs for
backups to some degree. They're also often used by SMEs, with bank and
security lockboxes used to for secure offsite storage.
Tape and online backups (usually outsourced to storage companies) are
the first level of backups, but often DVDs are used as a second level of
data security. The advantages being that retrieving backups from DVDs
doesn't incur an additional service fee; they provide an added layer of
data security, and independence from business wide backup scheduling.
Belts are good, but for full pants security belt and suspenders is better.
As Ralf points out - modern optical storage media is not very reliable.
*If* you don't implement the same (ITIL?) practices you would/should
with magnetic media - that is, check it. You should also use archive
quality optical media for your backups for best results.
cdck, and qpxtool are useful for checking your optical media backups
before trusting them. dvdisaster is my tool of choice as it can add
additional levels of error correction.
As with any backup - it's of little value if kept onsite unless locked
in a fire-proof safe (though I've known "professionals" who kept backups
on the same machine they're backing up!). An additional consideration
with optical media backups is age deterioration, so storage conditions
and media design will determine backup rotation schedules.
Note: all the tools I mentioned are in the Debian repository and IMO are
as good, or better, than the commercial alternatives.
Kind regards
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