External Hard drive recommendations?

chudies

hi there, i had a scare yesterday that i lost all my data from a hard disc.
fortunately i fixed it, but it made me think "back up more regularly!"

so, does any one have any recommendations for makes/models etc

or suggestions of website/magazines i could do my research on?

i need to back up around 40GB, but i often see external drives around 160-500GB. should i go for a big drive like this? perhaps to back up everyday?

also, dont know much about this stuff, i pressume i need a USB one?

many thanks in advance guys and gals!

albertross_2

The problem with external drives for backup, is that a virus could take out your files, and your backup, all at the same time. Backing up to DVD is safer, with compression, you could get 8-9GB ish per DVD, depending on whether your files are already compressed (zip, mp3, mpg) etc.

But, external usb HD's are easier, try ebuyer/maplin for the odd bargain.

PaulK_3

USB2 is one choice, NAS (Networked through ethernet) drives are another. Obviously the USB2 option would be the easiest to set up and use. Get the biggest drive you can afford as no matter how big a drive you buy now, you will always find some way of filling it up lol
Another solution would be something like this which would mean you can buy a cheap Hard Drive straight off the shelf and just put it into the caddy. This is good as you can then use different drives in it for different things and it's a lot more future proof than a USB external drive that you only have 1 drive in.
There is also a USB to IDE adaptor that you can buy which will also allow you to connect a standard IDE drive straight to USB. The caddys/ adaptors are a better choice in my opinion if you have any basic PC knowledge as they are systems that you can easily change out the drive in future.

skim

I'd go for this one here

http://www.redstore.com/fx/prc_gen.php?manuf_id=319&cat=STO&subcat=enclosur

C-Net CLD-101 USB 2.0 LAN Disk Box £33.02

Has the benefit of a 100mb network connection or USB - the network connection is much faster though.

You have to buy your hard drive separately but it will take up to 480GB.

It also can be used as an ftp server so you can access your files remotely.

Sarjsmith

Hi all, I need to buy an external hard drive as well, Am I right in thinking I don't buy a Sata drive for an Ide drive computer or will all USB hard drive work on all computers????

nickmack

Sarjsmith wrote: »

Hi all, I need to buy an external hard drive as well, Am I right in thinking I don't buy a Sata drive for an Ide drive computer or will all USB hard drive work on all computers????

If you are buying the enclosure skim suggests, you wil need to get a an Ultra ATA drive not SATA to fit in it.

Jzpop

Sarjsmith wrote: »

Hi all, I need to buy an external hard drive as well, Am I right in thinking I don't buy a Sata drive for an Ide drive computer or will all USB hard drive work on all computers????

If the drive is supplied in an external case with a USB connector, then it does not matter whether the external drive is SATA or IDE (in terms of compatability with your PC)

csj_2

Look at SVP (http://svp.co.uk/index.php for their Freecom USB 250Gb hard drive at £58.16 (less 10% if you pay using Google checkout). The product gets good reviews from previous purchasers and the company is second to none for customer service, delivery, returns etc.

diamonds

skim wrote: »

I'd go for this one here

http://www.redstore.com/fx/prc_gen.php?manuf_id=319&cat=STO&subcat=enclosur

C-Net CLD-101 USB 2.0 LAN Disk Box £33.02

Has the benefit of a 100mb network connection or USB - the network connection is much faster though.

You have to buy your hard drive separately but it will take up to 480GB.

It also can be used as an ftp server so you can access your files remotely.

https://www.orb.com gives great access to your home pc, i use it from my mobile & laptop or any other pc

cwoodham

albertross wrote: »

The problem with external drives for backup, is that a virus could take out your files, and your backup, all at the same time.

You can minimise the possibility of a virus getting onto your external drive by

1. Doing an AV/spyware check before you backup.
2. Disconnect from the internet during backup
3. Only have your external drive connected during backup. The rest of the time put it somewhere safe - preferably in another building (e.g. parent's house if they live nearby), in case fire destroys your PC.

Inactive

csj wrote: »

Look at SVP (http://svp.co.uk/index.php for their Freecom USB 250Gb hard drive at £58.16 (less 10% if you pay using Google checkout). The product gets good reviews from previous purchasers and the company is second to none for customer service, delivery, returns etc.

I think you mean £10 not 10%..