Always make a backup for your files

Why would you update gigabytes at a time? Your first sync would be GB's sure but after that you only sync new files / updated files.

Maybe I should have said days, not hours. It took me a full 24 hours to download the new DOOM, and that is my download speed. Imagine doing that but with only a sixth of the speed.

1 hour ago, Nevander said:

Because like I said above, doing both would require me to sit around for hours days while my shitty upload speed tries to upload the GBs of shit I need to back up. I'd rather buy two or more external HDDs, two or more fire proof safes, back up to all of them, and store them separately all in different locations with all but one being off site. I'd literally rather do all that than do online backups.

But you're not doing that, right? You're not doing online and you're not doing offline. So what are you doing?

I use iDrive to back up my key stuff online.  Fortunately this works out to be only about 2 GB in total and the day by day changes are relatively small and run at 1am so it is very low impact for me.  I have a lot more data than 2 GB on my PC obviously, it's just that most of it is stuff I downloaded to begin with (Steam games, Vimeo files, etc) so I can always get it again if I need to.

My favorite thing about iDrive though is the Sync function.  This allows you to specify a folder which will be kept in sync across all your PCs.  Among other things, I keep my Doom stuff in there, so that whether I am at my desktop or my laptop, I will always have access to the same WADs, save files, editors etc.  Since I travel frequently, this is very handy.

6 hours ago, Jon said:

But you're not doing that, right? You're not doing online and you're not doing offline. So what are you doing?

How do you know I'm not doing a backup right now? You don't.

3 hours ago, Nevander said:

How do you know I'm not doing a backup right now? You don't.

I was just trying to figure out if you had anything to contribute to the discussion.

Always make a backup for your files aaand don't be a dumb bitch, got it.

You never suck dust out of a PC. You take it outside, open it up, and blow it out.

Vacuum cleaners generate static electricity. C'mon now...

On 7/24/2017 at 11:00 AM, Pegg said:

that doesn't sound safe for the PC :P .

Vacuuming out the dust is very important, and a good thing. Dust can eventually bridge connections, especially in hardware that runs a modern PC speeds, and double especially if you smoke near your PC. Nicotine will bridge connections, and attract dust, which attracts more nicotine. Also the dust clogs up your cooling system. Yes, vacuum. But be *very* careful not to nick any of the components on circuit boards, or to discharge any static electricity. Finally don't get the vacuum motor near the HDDs.

On 7/24/2017 at 11:03 AM, leodoom85 said:

It is....better avoid a shocking experience :P

Doubtful that you'd get a significant shock from computer power supplies. They typically have 5 and 12-volt outputs which you won't feel unless you have a cut, or you put them in your mouth! But your computer should be unplugged before removing any connections, memory, cards, etc because of the risk of shorting something to power or to ground - easy way to fry something.

On 7/24/2017 at 11:07 AM, Memfis said:

How bothersome it is to set up some sort of automatic backup that would be performed once in a while? Maybe like on a few selected folders or something. I can't imagine doing it by hand.

Over the years, I came up with a system. Basically I leave the OS on C: drive, and try to not install anything there (or, if I only have a C: drive, anything I add starts in a custom root folder). Any new programs go into a "Programs" folder on D: (or C: if there's no D:), and any data goes into a root folder on D: (or C:\Data).

The idea is that I have one or two folders which contain everything I've done to that computer that's non-OS related. That makes it really easy to just backup those one or two folders. By the way, it also makes it very easy to transfer my data to any new PC I may get. I usually also have an "Installs" folder that contains all program setups.

The OS can always be reinstalled from disk, CD, DVD, or manufacturer recovery partition. My programs can then be reinstalled from the Installs folder. And my data is in one root folder.

On 7/24/2017 at 11:54 AM, Doohnibor said:

I once cleaned all the data from a HDD with a vacuum cleaner ; )

No joke...   many many years ago I removed some dust from the inside of a machine. While I was at it I thought it wouldn't be a bad idea to clean off the dust from the top of a Harddrive with the tip of the vacuum cleaner. 

I somehow must have temporarily forgotten that HDDs are not sealed airtight...     The inside of the HDD was not so happy about my cleaning idea....  ; )

HDDs *are* sealed - they're supposed to be anyway. You may have fried it with a static electricity zap. Or, if you moved the PC to clean it, into a colder or warmer environment, then moved it back and quickly powered it up, condensation can form and kill a drive too. Finally, the vacuum motor can degauze a drive, ruining it.

But, as far as I know, drives are vacuum-sealed to keep contaminants out. The platters typically rotate at 5,000 to 15,000 RPM. At those speeds, the smallest amount of dust, dirt, or sand will destroy the bearings or platter surface. They are too precise and store too much data in a small area to risk exposure to any outside influence.

This reminds me that I really should cut down my 30gb doom folders.

On 10.2.2018 at 0:06 AM, kb1 said:

HDDs *are* sealed - they're supposed to be anyway.....

 

But, as far as I know, drives are vacuum-sealed to keep contaminants out. .....They are too precise and store too much data in a small area to risk exposure to any outside influence.

This is not true. Only a few very specialised modern HDDs are sealed and filled hith Helium.

Almost all HDDs have small holes. The inside of a HDD is also designed to keep a specific kind of airflow going.

For some more details google  -  HDD breath hole.