What is the most reliable long-term archival storage media: hard drive, CD, DVD, USB thumb drive, streaming mag tape, or something else?
by 
HungryGuy
ANSWERS: 4
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usb flash drives are (nearly) indestructable... i dropped mine off the roof (Don't ask why please) and there wasnt even a scratch on it.
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hard drive
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Hard drives are prone to fail over time, CDs and DVDs can be easily scratched, so I guess that leaves USB flash drives as the most reliable electronic storage medium. They almost never fail because they rely on steady-state technology, as opposed to mechanical parts.
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They'll all work the same. The media may outlive the technology support. For example, how many Beta tape readers are there? How many 8" floppy readers? Whatever you choose, if you really want the data accessible in 20 years, use hardcopy (paper) in fireproof storage.
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