MSPNetworks Blog

A lot of people never stop and consider how their data is saved. It’s something we all have, from old photos of our family vacations to the files kept on the server back at the office, but not many people know the actual mechanics behind it. Today, we wanted to go over these specifics, and hopefully make it clear why we always advocate for backup practices.

How Does a Hard Drive Work?

The traditional hard disk drive, often shortened to HDD, works a little bit like a phonograph or gramophone did. Platters inside the drive store your data, layered on top of one another and magnetized. A small mechanical arm sits over them to read and write data to the drive, just as a record player had its needle to coax out the sound.

Much as a record would on a record player, these platters spin. However, rather than having a rate of 33 or 78 rotations per minute, the platters on a hard drive generally reach 7200 RPM. This speed creates a cushion of air that holds up the arm and keeps it from making contact, which would destroy the data the drive contains.

There are actually a lot of reasons that data could be lost if it is stored on a hard drive. As a mechanical system, plenty of issues could arise and cause the drive to fail entirely. The motor that spins the platters could burn out, the arm could catch, or the platters themselves could even break if not handled with care. Whatever the reason, once the drive is rendered inaccessible, the data stored on it is as good as gone.

Once you consider how much you rely on your hard drive to do (like opening, editing, and saving files, surfing the web, and countless other general utilities) the importance of the data on your hard drive is only too clear.

(To be clear, we are not referring to SSD drives right now. As they don’t rely on any moving parts, they are a little sturdier, but certainly not impervious.)

Despite this clear vulnerability, we put our trust in these devices each and every day. Your laptop or computer will have at least one or two, while a business server will use many more. Some of us carry our data around in external hard drives.

Do you really feel comfortable putting all that trust in some fragile moving parts and a tiny cushion of air? And, assuming the answer is no…

Why Would You Ever Only Have Your Data in One Place?

Seriously. If you only have one copy of your data stored on a single one of these hard drives, it is at a higher-than-you’d-expect risk of data loss.

Thankfully, this is very simple to mitigate, especially with our help. We’ve helped many businesses generate backup solutions that are tested to be trustworthy, ensuring that their data isn’t going to be lost if some circumstance were to strike. By storing a second copy of their data on another device in the office, as well as a third (and fourth, and fifth, if possible) offsite in the cloud, we allow these businesses the confidence that comes with knowing that their data isn’t going to be completely lost to them.

To learn more about how we accomplish this, reach out to us directly at (516) 403-9001!

If you have a computer, it has data on it that you’ve stored. Whether it’s the novel you’ve been working on in your spare time or pictures from your kid’s sixth grade graduation on your home PC, or the databases and applications that your business’ infrastructure supports, all of this data is generally stored in exactly the same way. Whatever your case, you should know that your data is terrifyingly fragile - far too fragile to ever be kept in just one place. Let’s dive deeper.

How is Data Stored on a Hard Drive?

A hard disk drive, better known as the traditional HDD, works a little like a record player. Your data is stored on small, magnetic platters that are all stacked together and spin. A small mechanical arm rests over these platters.

To give you a bit of perspective, a record player usually spins between 33 and 78 times each minute. Your hard drive spins about 7200 times in a minute.

This speed creates a cushion of air that keeps the head at the end of the arm from touching the platter as it spins around. The slightest touch could easily destroy the data contained on the drive.

As is true for anything mechanical, these drives are ultimately subject to failure.

Your car doesn’t last forever, and neither do storage drives. The drive’s motor might burn out, the arm might stop working, and many other complications can arise to make the hard drive inaccessible and cause the data stored upon it to follow suit. Everything you do makes the hard drive read and write data, so the stability of your drive is crucial to you.

In fairness, there are also SSD drives that store data without any moving parts. This makes them a little hardier, but these drives can fail, too.

Each day, we trust these devices with our data. Your workstation or laptop may have a couple in it, and the server you rely on almost certainly has many more. Some of us have external hard drives to help us move our data around. If these hard drives are mechanical, all of your data could be lost very, very easily.

So, the question we have to ask is…

Why on Earth Would You EVER Rely on a Single Hard Drive?

There is no gentle way to put it. If you only have one copy of your data that’s stored on a lone hard drive, it is at extreme risk. A single issue could happen, and it could all be gone.

On the other hand, it has also never been easier to prevent data loss. At MSPNetworks, we regularly help businesses establish and manage backup solutions that have been tested and proven to be trustworthy. That way, you can know that your data is safe and accessible, regardless of the circumstances. This involves storing at least one extra copy of your data elsewhere in the office on a separate device, as well as an additional offsite copy—usually in the cloud—that protects it from just about anything chance could throw at it.

Find out more about implementing a backup solution by giving us a call at (516) 403-9001.

If your business is looking to use technology beneficially, the ability to store data is going to be a major consideration you are going to have to confront. After all, not having enough storage space, or having too much, can be major problems for most businesses. Today, we’ll ask some of the most pressing questions you’ll need to answer to get the right (and the right amount of) storage space for your needs.

Storage is a major consideration, no matter your business. If you don’t have storage enough to house your cleaning supplies and instead have to leave them out in the hallway for everyone to avoid, it is a problem, right? What if unsightly clutter isn’t your biggest cause for concern? What if you run a furniture retailer, for example? Being in a position where you don’t have enough warehouse space available to keep your furniture in; or, you have too much warehouse space left over, will both likely end up being expensive.

Business Data

Every piece of your business data tells a story. Data is emails. It’s invoices. It’s every move your business makes. With that much data being kept, data storage has to be structured in a way where it will help the business. Since technology continues to evolve, this means data storage will as well.

The traditional model for data storage has been one made up of three tiers. You have storage facilities, servers that allow users to search those storage facilities and the networking angle that allows more users access to the data. Under this model, a business would have to understand exactly what data storage they need, and will need, for up to five years.

In many cases, five years is too long.

Today there are seemingly superior options that provide all the resources you need. Hyperconvergence is an IT framework that was created to deliberately reduce data center complexity and improve the scalability of physical hardware, while there are many cloud options available that deliver all the computing resources you need for an often-reasonably-priced  monthly payment.

In any case, there are options out there. But you need to know what to look for. Here are four questions you should ask.

1. What capacity do I need? - Understanding the amount of data storage your company needs is a major determination. Today’s cloud solutions are more scalable, but by considering what type of storage your company is ultimately going to purchase.
2. What about my performance needs? - Not all options are created equal. Some are faster and some offer huge storage capabilities. Knowing how you plan on using your applications and databases will go a long way toward helping you know which solutions will be right for you.
3. What does my current IT look like? - One consideration that has to be at the forefront of this process is what infrastructure do you already have in place. Knowing your current needs will help you ascertain how you are going to handle the future.
4. How will you handle your backups? - Every business has to have a backup plan. If you depend on data, you likely can’t afford to lose any of it without some blowback. Having a comprehensive backup and recovery plan will ultimately dictate what any new data storage will look like.

Finding good solutions for your company is important in any regard, but when you are talking about the storage of what is quickly becoming your most prized asset, you should take your time and find the solutions that will work and not hinder your ability to create revenue. Call MSPNetworks to get started finding the right storage for you today at (516) 403-9001.