Size of backup drive required?

[Radboy16]

Just a quick summary of my system:
240Gb SSD (OS and programs)
3Tb HDD (Media/Games/Other Programs, etc...)

Trying to decide between a 3rd backup HDD size: 3Tb or 4Tb?

I've been looking around and the price difference between a 3Tb and 4Tb HDD varies widely. I want a backup drive, and clearly a 4Tb drive would fit everything, but I was wondering if a 3Tb would make the cut as well.

I don't plan on filling up my original 3Tb drive all the way, as I don't think I could possibly have that many games, and I don't really have any videos or music that I store. So within a few years I don't think i'll even reach 80% capacity on the drive.

From what I have read, backup software like Macrium uses compression for their images, and also excludes System Restore Points/ File history. Would it be possible to always garuntee that my two hard drives would fit onto a 3Tb backup drive, maybe by allocating ~300-500Gb for File History and restore points on my source drives, combined with image compression from Macrium Reflect?

My main concern is that the price difference between a 3Tb (~$90) and 4Tb (~$130) Western Digital Blue drive is roughly $40, according to NewEgg. I have to save where I can these days, but a refurbished/Used drive just won't cut it for me.

Is it possible to fit backup images of all my drives on a single 3Tb or should i just fork out the extra money for a 4Tb?

 

[RealBeast]

With prices being fairly close, I would opt for the larger drive to insure that you have sufficient space for now and the near term future.

I agree that buying a refurbished drive is a bad idea, as the warranty period is quite short.

 

[dstarr3]

If this is just going to be a backup drive, I would suggest WD Reds instead. More reliable, longer warranty.

 

[Radboy16]

With prices being fairly close, I would opt for the larger drive to insure that you have sufficient space for now and the near term future.

I agree that buying a refurbished drive is a bad idea, as the warranty period is quite short.

Are you referring to the sufficient space available on my source drive, or the space available on the backup drive?

If this is just going to be a backup drive, I would suggest WD Reds instead. More reliable, longer warranty.

Wouldn't my drive technically last longer because it is a backup drive to begin with? If I stick to incremental/differential backups every week or month, that wouldn't be stressing the drive as much as a normal hard drive, and hopefully result in less reads/writes.

Also, would the extra year of warranty (3 Yrs) really be worth it? From what I read, HDDs usually fail within the first year, or last beyond the warranty. I just don't see the justification in an additional $20-30 ontop of what I already was iffy about.

 

[RealBeast]

For a backup drive you don't need Red drives, it is not going to be in any kind of array or even be operating much of the time. A Blue is more than adequate for your needs.

You just don't need storage array drives like Reds anyway, or heavyweight storage drives like HGST enterprise drives such as the helium series -- they have 5 year warranties, much higher MTBF (or conversely lower AFR). I use loads of He8 drives, but that would be silly for your situation, stay with Blue -- when you are not running the drive constantly the extra cost is not rational. Simply save the anti static bag and silica desiccant and use them to keep the drive stored when not in use.

I always recommend that you get a little more capacity than you think that you need, 4TB will do that for you and will not fill the drive to an excessive point but will give you more room for future data that always is more than expected.

 

[Radboy16]

[snip] Stay with Blue -- when you are not running the drive constantly the extra cost is not rational. Simply save the anti static bag and silica desiccant and use them to keep the drive stored when not in use.

Will do. Thanks for the advice! I was planning on sticking with blue. WD has been pretty good to me, I trust their drives.

Quick question though. Are there ways to keep the drive in my case so that I don't have to keep putting it in/out, and just have windows keep the drive off until needed. Or is it inadvisable to keep the backup drive inside in case of power surges, etc., which could result in loss of the backup data?

 

[dstarr3]

The best backups are on hard drives that are disconnected from power, kept someplace warm and cool, and ideally off-site. If it's plugged in to something and there's a power surge, that could kill it along with your original. Or if, god forbid, your house burns down or gets broken into or something, it could get stolen/destroyed along with your original. Keep the hard drive in a desk drawer at the office or something, best backup method.

 

[RealBeast]

Agreed, best if it is powered down and disconnected. You can do that in your case using an IcyDock MB971SP-B like THIS. It is also an easy way to attach and eject the drive.

 

[dstarr3]

It's also best to actually power down the machine while the backup drive is attached, and then remove it. Powering down the PC is a sure-fire way to make the hard drive park the RW arm. Ejecting it without parking the arm can make it more delicate in transportation, as the heads are suspended near the platters instead of someplace else safer. There are some software solutions that claim to be able to park the RW arm on command, but they don't work all the time, and it's impossible to tell when they work and when they don't. Whereas you can be sure that once your machine is properly powered down with the hard drive connected, the RW arm was parked properly and the hard drive is thus safer for transport.