Backing up ripped CD files to iCloud.

[Sam Spoons]

That's a good point

[ef37a]

Well done to Hugh for backing up on NAS drives!

Cloud storage is very ungreen. I have read that soon some one third of the electricity consumption of the island of Ireland will be that of data centres and they also use vast amounts of water to cool the servers.

Hardware storage is so cheap! I have just ordered 500G SSD for 30 quid a TB is only about a nifty.

Dave.

[Tomás Mulcahy]

That's probably because we do not generate enough of our own electricity. Not to worry, interconnector to France is almost completed I think it is too easy to blame cloud for emmisions. It is still way lower than inefficient home energy uor car seage. That's something people can do something about, but too many folk do not care about always on power supplies, lights, poor insulation, speeding, idling at the shop etc.

[ef37a]

That's probably because we do not generate enough of our own electricity. Not to worry, interconnector to France is almost completed I think it is too easy to blame cloud for emmisions. It is still way lower than inefficient home energy uor car seage. That's something people can do something about, but too many folk do not care about always on power supplies, lights, poor insulation, speeding, idling at the shop etc.

There are many things that are "to blame" Thomas but I have read about the massive growth of data centres* in New Scientists and seen at least one documentary about it.
Yes, many of them run on solar and other 'green' power but computers turn almost all their electricity straight to heat, not motion or making anything. Then they dump that heat into a handy river.

*Someone probably got a huge bonus for coming up with the term "cloud"! Makes the public think the storage is somehow celestial and harmless.

Dave.

[BigRedX]

How important is your data? For it to be decently secure it needs to backed up in two different locations, and for most home users that means a local backup and one "in the cloud".

As we can see from the OP not having a proper back-up strategy can lead to problems.

[ef37a]

"How important is your data? For it to be decently secure it needs to backed up in two different locations, and for most home users that means a local backup and one "in the cloud". "

Or! Copy to TWO SD cards and post one to a mate!

Dave.

[BigRedX]

"How important is your data? For it to be decently secure it needs to backed up in two different locations, and for most home users that means a local backup and one "in the cloud". "

Or! Copy to TWO SD cards and post one to a mate!

Dave.

So you buy a new SD card and post it off each time you add or change a file?

You're lucky that you can get everything on an SD card. All my important data – work, compositions and recordings for my bands, iTunes library and other various bits and pieces currently occupies about 6TB.

[ef37a]

"How important is your data? For it to be decently secure it needs to backed up in two different locations, and for most home users that means a local backup and one "in the cloud". "

Or! Copy to TWO SD cards and post one to a mate!

Dave.

So you buy a new SD card and post it off each time you add or change a file?

You're lucky that you can get everything on an SD card. All my important data – work, compositions and recordings for my bands, iTunes library and other various bits and pieces currently occupies about 6TB.

I am not meaning people involved in saving files for professional/business reasons (how long BTW does 6TB take to upload?) The thread is about a personal music collection. There are thousands of data centres around the world saving billions of data files many of which are people's photos, videos and old tunes that they will hardly ever open again. The centres however have to still keep the stuff safe.

Dave.

[Dynamic Mike]

I'd love to know what percentage of stored data is actually ever accessed. Are we just destroying the environment with photos of a funny shaped potatoes and dumb cats?

[ef37a]

I'd love to know what percentage of stored data is actually ever accessed. Are we just destroying the environment with photos of a funny shaped potatoes and dumb cats?

This does indeed seem to be the case. I bet I have several TBs of old drives and cards/sticks collected over the last 10 years or so, hardly ever look at it.

Dave.

[BigRedX]

I am not meaning people involved in saving files for professional/business reasons (how long BTW does 6TB take to upload?) The thread is about a personal music collection. There are thousands of data centres around the world saving billions of data files many of which are people's photos, videos and old tunes that they will hardly ever open again. The centres however have to still keep the stuff safe.

Dave.

Both local and remote backups are incremental in that only new and changed files are added or overwritten. The initial remote backup was done when I had considerably less than 6TB but IIRC it still took a couple of days. At the moment the remote backup takes between 10 minutes and a couple of hours overnight depending on what I've been doing during the day.

And my iTunes library which is the result of 50+ years of buying records and CDs and several years off and on transferring the contents to my computer is just under 2TB. The idea of having to do all of that again, especially re-digitising all the vinyl that isn't available in a more convenient format, fills me with dread so I'm glad that it's reasonably securely backed up.

Of course you can never tell if a backup is viable until you need to restore your data from it...

[Sam Spoons]

Of course you can never tell if a backup is viable until you need to restore your data from it...

I know...

[tea for two]

initial problem is that the original computer, to which the iPad was synced. died and took out it's SSD.

Trying to sync the iPad to a different computer risks it being wiped clean, you can't easily at least, transfer a music or video library from an iPad though it's easy to go the other way.

I have just bought replacement for my lost camera connection kit of ebay so hopefully that will allow me to recover and backup the videos but the CCK doesn't allow the transfer of audio files.

(and with 5000+ songs and a corrupted library with lots of duplicates it's a long job to get it all sorted out and she has, as yet, not managed to find the time).

Is the SSD on the pc gone for good for sure.
If it's a proper apple cck fingers crossed does the jobby for videos.

You knoooow sorting it that's your jobby as you are dogs body gopher for your Mrs S.
Instead of you wasting away playing AOS.

[Sam Spoons]

Yes, the original SSD is toast...

I would gladly sort the stuff out but it's a job only she can do.

I like playing AOS (amongst other genres)

[MOF]

Not to worry, interconnector to France is almost completed

But some of their nuclear reactors are off line for scheduled repairs, so there’s not a lot of spare electricity yet. I saw this on Fully Charged fairly recently but can’t remember when, in order to post a link.
This link is interesting though (Octopus Energy CEO) he covers data centres and how the electricity market does and should operate.
What I can’t understand is why governments still go for large projects (more pylons) when there’s so much roof space still without pv panels that could contribute to our electricity needs and wouldn’t require permits for extra connections to the grid.

https://fullycharged.show/episodes/greg ... -and-more/

[Tomás Mulcahy]

Not to worry, interconnector to France is almost completed

But some of their nuclear reactors are off line for scheduled repairs, so there’s not a lot of spare electricity yet.

Sure, it’s fine it is scheduled. The Inter conector is not completed either. The converter is 20km from me. Currently avoiding the main road home since some of the new cable is along there. Can’t wait to see inside the station, although the modern thyristor based ones are not as cool as the vintage mercury arc valve ones, the AC is somehow thinner

A nuclear plant in Ireland would be way better than sketchy local solar PV, but it’s never gonna happen.

[MOF]

Nuclear is too expensive and takes too long to build, whereas solar panels on every roof along with battery backup, and hopefully soon vehicle to grid/home, will sort out our electricity supplies.

[ef37a]

Nuclear is too expensive and takes too long to build, whereas solar panels on every roof along with battery backup, and hopefully soon vehicle to grid/home, will sort out our electricity supplies.

Yes, I think people should have solar when they get an EV? Automatically get a battery back up as well!

Just this week there are solid plans in my local paper Northampton chronicle&echo to run a cable from a 49.9GW solar being built near Harpole down through a main, Weedon rd to West Northampton Substation Countess rd.

Be months of road works and disruption, I live but few 100m at NN5 5PF but these things need to be done. Naturally the "villagers" are not happy!

Dave.

[MOF]

I forgot to mention that in addition to the battery you’ll need a ‘gate’ or ‘island’ to allow you to use your battery in the event of a power cut, it stops your power from going back out down the power lines.
Just getting a battery without solar panels makes sense on the right tariff, it enables you to get cheap or free green energy when it’s in surplus and then sell some of it back to the utility company at a profit at peak times.

[Tomás Mulcahy]

Nuclear is too expensive and takes too long to build

Ah right I see. Just been looking at some articles about electricity generation costs. I'm disappointed, I really wanted a nuke. France are planning to build 14 more. I wonder what the costing/ justification is...
https://ieefa.org/resources/frances-nuc ... les-growth

[MOF]

I'm disappointed, I really wanted a nuke. France are planning to build 14 more. I wonder what the costing/ justification is...
https://ieefa.org/resources/frances-nuc ... les-growth

Even if the cost was ‘too cheap to meter’ as originally promised in the UK, when first being built, the storage of waste is problematic to say the least and along with decommissioning the reactor is consequently very expensive.
Then you still have to purchase the fuel and it’s a centralised ‘one point of potential failure’ or in Ukraine’s case a target, pv is distributed and the fuel is free, as is the battery storage.

[Tomás Mulcahy]

Understood, but I am still left wondering why they ARE building them rather than NOT.

[MOF]

My hunch would be to retain nuclear capability on the military front. Either that or inertia i.e. we’ve always had nuclear power stations (since the 1950s) and from a CO2 perspective it sort of makes sense.