To avoid losing your data, you should follow recommended backup practices:
You should have 2 or 3 copies of your files, stored on
at least 2 different storage media,
in different (physical) locations.
The more important the data and the more often the datasets change, the more frequently you should back them up.
Automatic backup is preferred!
Be careful with storing important data on external drives and flash memory devices (USB/MicroSD cards). They pose a security risk due to their portability, are easily damaged or lost.
Suggested Backup workflow
When working with regular research data (no personal/confidential data) you can use either SURFdrive (1 TB) or OneDrive (1 TB) as an active storage solution, and then regularly back things up using the Project Data Storage. See the Storage Solutions page for more information about these solutions.
Questions to consider for your backup strategy
How will you back up your data? What storage solutions meet your needs?
How often will you make full backups (backing all your data) and incremental backups (backing up only the data and files that have changed since the previous backup)?
How long will backups be stored?
How much storage space will be required to maintain this backup schedule? Will multiple storage devices be needed to successfully backup all your data?
How will you keep track of different versions of data, especially if backing-up to multiple devices? If using versioning software, which software will you use (Git, Subversion)?
Will you be using any backup tools or applications?
If the data are sensitive, how will they be stored securely?
- How will you manage the secure deletion or destruction of data if required?
How and when will you test your backup system?
Are your back-up systems managed by the same service? (What if TU Delft get’s hacked - do you still have access to all the research data?)