hey everyone,

I am about to write a script to manage daily backup on a USB HDD.
The server that holds the data works 24 hours a day and therefor, is seldom rebooted.

I have 2 options :

OPT 1 : I mount the usb drive once and for all, and copy the data to it when I need to (twice a day, no more) and never unmount it. Except when the server is rebooted of course.

and OPT 2 : I mount the drive, copy the data and unmount it ASAP twice a day when the time has come to backup the data.

So, what would you do, and why would you do it like that ?

Kind regards,

Hi,

A backup is made with the purpose of being able to restore data if something goes wrong. Seen from that point of view it is a very bad habit to have your backups close to the machine(s) or even in the same room.

Mount the drive, make the backup, unmount the drive and store the drive in a safe place (preferably off-site, or in a fire proof/resistant safe). Also check on a regular base if the backup you made can be restored.

A few horror scenario's I've encountered:
- Fire in one of the computer rooms: Tape unit and tapes also burned, they were in the same room.
- Unable to restore crashed system: Backups were in a different room, but on top and next to a (crt) monitor, which made them useless over time.

All this does depend a bit on the importance of the data, but I hope you get the point

Hope this helps.

Mmmm, (didn't think of that.)...

Thanks for the advice. I'll keep it in mind.