How Do You Store Your Videos? (External drive suggestions)

Chet Bang · Jul 15, 2017

Store on YouTube... They will keep it forever!

I've had a few Externals die on me and you'll never retrieve those videos back unless u fork out serious cash for data retrieval.

Zzzoom3 · Jul 15, 2017

Chet Bang said:
Store on YouTube... They will keep it forever!

I've had a few Externals die on me and you'll never retrieve those videos back unless u fork out serious cash for data retrieval.

If you have data you want preserved, you should be archiving across multiple sources and locations (local, network, off-site) as a best practice. Putting data you do not want to lose on a single drive, in a single place is a recipe for tears.

Cloud storage can work if you incorporate it as part of a regular backup schedule. A few folks mentioned NAS devices which, combined with cloud storage, makes an effective on/off site strategy.

Synology has a nice package which works with several cloud services. Packages - DSM 6.1 | Synology Inc.

Freebird32 · Jul 16, 2017

Hard disk drives are very inexpensive since SSDs are becoming main stream and less expensive than they were. Get several HDDs/external enclosures (USB 3) and make multiple backups. I don't use the cloud and have my own. My working drive is SSD on an iMac but I've also got an SSD externally. I've gotten some Lacie drives on eBay and replaced controller boards and drives where needed. I only had one go bad out of 7 that I have and the controller failed, data was OK on HDD. Make your own cloud.

iMario · Jul 16, 2017

Always aim for data redundancy. Buying only one drive would keep you covered, but not really. Any drive defect and you're in for a data recovery service.

I got myself QNAP TS-451A NAS storage 7 months ago, with 2x8TB NAS drives and I still have 2 free slots to expand.
It has many bells and whistles, if you feel like using them, great, if not, you still have a reliable storage, encrypted if you wish so.
I'm quite happy with my purchase.

Used to have Drobo back in the day, but disliked it always due to their proprietary file system.

Zzzoom3 · Jul 16, 2017

Freebird32 said:
Hard disk drives are very inexpensive since SSDs are becoming main stream and less expensive than they were. Get several HDDs/external enclosures (USB 3) and make multiple backups. I don't use the cloud and have my own. My working drive is SSD on an iMac but I've also got an SSD externally. I've gotten some Lacie drives on eBay and replaced controller boards and drives where needed. I only had one go bad out of 7 that I have and the controller failed, data was OK on HDD. Make your own cloud.

Yes agree. However, note that SSD memory does not last forever. The flash memory used in SSD and similar devices have a limited number of read/write cycles. The number is very large but my point is that if you really want to archive data for many years, do not use SSD type devices.

Freebird32 · Jul 16, 2017

I think i was trying to stress importance of redundant backups, regardless of drive type. That is what will save your data from possible loss. My working drives are SSDs because its much faster to process videos. You could even use DVDs for a 100 year archive if your mindful of the storage environment for that.

Zzzoom3 · Jul 16, 2017

Freebird32 said:
I think i was trying to stress importance of redundant backups, regardless of drive type. That is what will save your data from possible loss. My working drives are SSDs because its much faster to process videos. You could even use DVDs for a 100 year archive if your mindful of the storage environment for that.

No argument here.

Writable optical media, however, also has limited life (around 10 yrs I think). The way data is written is different than commercially manufactured media which is not permanent.

PalmettoAerial · Jul 21, 2017

Brojon said:
I'm going to advise against any such items as Western Digital "MyBooks" and the ilk.
The reason for this is that they typically use two smaller (cheaper) hard drives to get the advertised capacity. The way they do this is with proprietary software - usually Linux based - that arranges the two or more disks into a JBOD (Just a Big Old Drive). They do this using RAID 0 config which means they "stripe" the data - alternating tracks between the two drives. If one drive develops problems you've just lost everything as even the data recovery people will struggle with it. Ask me how I know this. In my case Western Digital compounded the issue by keeping the software on some hidden sectors on one of the drives.
So now I do two things:
1 - a network RAID box to store all working materials (I use DROBO)
2 - a USB 3.0 SATA dock that accepts 2.5 or 3.5 hard drives. I use this to archive data to a cheap hard drive which gets filed and put away.
You can get a 3.0 cradle for around $30 and a 2TB hard drive for less than $80.
The external hard drive solution works really well as you can put stickers on the end and use those to lookup what's on them.
I would also mention that I periodically load the drive into the dock and do a disk check which seems to help keep the data intact.

Thanks!!!

darren6270 · Jul 21, 2017

Have you seen the new DragonFlyApp ?

Link here Home

@chrismorace will be able to assist.

Zzzoom3 · Jul 21, 2017

darren6270 said:
Have you seen the new DragonFlyApp ?

Link here Home

@chrismorace will be able to assist.

Oh great .. just what the world needs. Another cloud based video sharing service!

darren6270 · Jul 24, 2017

Zzzoom3 said:
Oh great .. just what the world needs. Another cloud based video sharing service!

It works for me, I much prefer to click one button and then its done. I gave up on managing terabytes of home storage years ago. Life's too short.

HVYMTL · Jul 24, 2017

Zzzoom3 said:
I'm surprised no one mentioned the Seagate DJI Fly Drive about to be released. Portable, 2TB, and it has an integrated UHS-II microSD card slot for fast, easy transfer from drone to drive. 2-month trial of Adobe Premiere Pro CC also ...

Seagate DJI Fly Drive for Drone Footage - Portable Drive with Micro SD Card Slot and USB-C to USB-C cable (STGH2000400) Amazon.com: Seagate DJI Fly Drive for Drone Footage - Portable Drive with Micro SD Card Slot and USB-C to USB-C cable (STGH2000400): Computers & Accessories

I just went and picked one up this weekend. So far so good.. No complaints.

Tech Diss · May 10, 2021

Alxum USB 3.0 Hard Drive Docking Station, a cool tech tool for back up video, photos and movie, clone data.
Allows you to easily insert desktop two 2.5" or 3.5" SATA hard drives, saves hours to swap hard drives or duplicate a hard drive, supports up to 2x 18TB, takes advantage of UASP (USB Attached SCSI Protocol) for SuperSpeed transfer files up to 6Gbps.

Video:

BossBob · May 12, 2021

Tech Diss said:
Alxum USB 3.0 Hard Drive Docking Station, a cool tech tool for back up video, photos and movie, clone data.
Allows you to easily insert desktop two 2.5" or 3.5" SATA hard drives, saves hours to swap hard drives or duplicate a hard drive, supports up to 2x 18TB, takes advantage of UASP (USB Attached SCSI Protocol) for SuperSpeed transfer files up to 6Gbps.

Video:

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Welcome to the forum.
It might be a good idea to check on the age of the thread before posting and resurrecting a 4 year old conversation.
The dock is a good idea and I already use a version of it.