237: You Are Not a Datacenter

Peer Backup Risks

Peer-to-peer backup strategies present unique challenges and risks, as discussed by John Siracusa, Casey Liss, and Marco Arment. They highlight the potential pitfalls of relying on friends or family for data storage, emphasizing the strain it can place on personal relationships. John points out that most people lack the infrastructure to safely manage others' data, saying, "You are not a data center. You don't have a climate-controlled thing with aisles and aisles of racked computers."

You are not a data center. You don't have a climate-controlled thing with aisles and aisles of racked computers.

--- John Siracusa

The hosts agree that while peer-to-peer solutions might be better than nothing, they recommend professional services for reliable data protection 1 2 3.

   

Cloud Backup Limits

The discussion on storage solutions reveals the complexities of cloud-based backups and their limitations. Casey Liss and John Siracusa address the controversy surrounding Backblaze's 30-day retention policy, which deletes backups if an external drive isn't connected monthly. Casey expresses indifference, but acknowledges the frustration of users who expect perpetual data retention for a minimal fee.

I don't understand why people think it's acceptable for backblades to hold onto this data in perpetuity just because they're paying them $5 a month or whatever it is.

--- Casey Liss

Additionally, they discuss CrashPlan's migration woes, highlighting the challenges of transferring large backups and the potential need for re-uploading data 4 5.

   

Metadata Handling

Handling metadata during backups is a nuanced issue, as John Siracusa explains the differences between Ark, Backblaze, and CrashPlan. Ark is praised for its meticulous metadata preservation, capturing every detail, unlike Backblaze, which often overlooks these elements. John notes the importance of metadata for users who rely on it for file organization, stating, "If you use that stuff extensively and you do a backup, but like that's how you organize your files, right? And you do a backup and you restore and all that stuff is gone. That is essentially data loss for you."

If you use that stuff extensively and you do a backup, but like that's how you organize your files, right? And you do a backup and you restore and all that stuff is gone. That is essentially data loss for you.

--- John Siracusa

The conversation underscores the need for users to choose backup solutions that align with their data preservation priorities 6.