PRO-TEK’s Guide to Best Practices for Long-Term Archival Storage of Data

Introduction

In today's digital age, data is an important asset and the lifeblood of organizations in every industry. Whether digital records, databases, multimedia files, or historical documents, ensuring long-term data preservation is vital. It helps maintain information continuity, support research, meet legal and regulatory compliance, and safeguard digital copies of multimedia works. 

This guide from PRO-TEK Vaults provides best practices for long-term archival storage and data preservation. It covers data's physical attributes, factors causing degradation, necessary systems for managing and protecting resources, and methods to maintain data integrity and completeness. 

This is just an introductory guide, and PRO-TEK plans to publish more information about data preservation best practices in the future.

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Understanding Data and Storage Media

Data refers to any information recorded or stored in digital format. Its physical characteristics are associated with the storage medium, which can range from magnetic tapes, hard drives, and solid-state drives (SSDs) to optical discs and cloud storage.

Types of Storage Media:

• Magnetic Storage Media:
  
  • Hard Drives: Data is stored magnetically on rotating platters accessed by read/write heads.
  • Magnetic Tapes: Linear Tape-Open (LTO) and other magnetic tapes use a magnetic coating to store data sequentially.
• Solid-State Storage Media:
  
  • SSDs: Data is stored electronically on flash memory chips, offering faster speeds and better durability than traditional hard drives.
  • Flash Drives: Portable storage devices using flash memory for data transfer.
• Optical Storage Media:
  
  • CDs/DVDs/Blu-rays: Use reflective surfaces to store data as tiny pits, read by lasers.
• Cloud Storage:
  
  • Remote Servers: Data is stored on third-party remote servers, accessible via the Internet, and spread across multiple locations for redundancy.

Factors To Consider In The Physical Storage Of Data

Data degradation refers to the gradual loss of data integrity, which can lead to corrupted files or data loss. The following factors contribute to data degradation:

• Bit Rot: Digital media can experience bit-level corruption over time, resulting in errors.
• Media Degradation: The physical storage media (e.g., magnetic tapes, SSDs) can deteriorate over time.
• Hardware Failure: Hard drives and SSDs have limited lifespans, and frequent use can lead to breakdowns.
• Environmental Factors: Extreme temperatures, humidity, and electromagnetic interference can accelerate media degradation.
• Obsolescence: Outdated data formats or storage technologies can become inaccessible if the required hardware or software is no longer available.

Best Practices for Physical Data Storage

To ensure the long-term preservation of data, organizations must address several critical factors when physically storing data:

Environmental Control

Maintain optimal temperature and humidity levels to prevent media degradation in storage environments. For example, PRO-TEK’s multimedia storage environment is maintained at 60-65⁰ F and 45% relative humidity.

Learn more about Acclimatized Warehouse

Archival Packaging

Use protective packaging that prevents damage to storage media from environmental hazards. 

Security

Implement robust security measures, including access control systems, security cameras, and controlled visitation, to safeguard storage facilities and their data. For example, all visitors to PRO-TEK Vaults facilities must pass through three access control points to reach the archival storage space and be accompanied by authorized PRO-TEK employees.

High-Touch Accessibility

If you need it, you can get it. 

Learn more about Asset Management

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Applying Physical Archiving Techniques to Digital Archives

Although digital archives differ from physical archives, many archival techniques can be adapted for digital data preservation. PRO-TEK believes in the adaptability of the principles and techniques developed for physical archiving to the digital realm. 

These techniques, honed over centuries of managing physical collections, provide valuable insights that can enhance digital assets' long-term preservation and usability. The adaptability is a testament to the skills and expertise of archivists, data preservation specialists, and information management professionals, as well as their ability to evolve with the changing data storage landscape.

Provenance and Original Order

Maintaining provenance is essential for understanding the origin and custody of digital data. Detailed metadata should capture creation dates, modifications, and transfers of digital assets. Preserving the original structure of file systems and directories helps retain data context.

Redundancy and Replication

Redundancy can be ensured by maintaining multiple copies of digital files across different storage media and geographic locations. Redundant copies safeguard against data corruption or loss.

In physical archiving, redundancy often involves creating duplicate copies of essential assets and storing them in different locations to protect against loss due to disasters or deterioration. This concept directly applies to digital archives, where redundancy and replication are critical for safeguarding data against loss or corruption.

• Multiple Copies: Just as archivists create multiple physical copies of vital records, digital archivists should maintain numerous copies of digital files across different storage media and geographic locations. This strategy ensures that if one copy is compromised, others remain intact and accessible. Redundancy is significant for digital archives because digital media are susceptible to failures and degradation.

• Geographic Dispersal: Physical archives often store copies of important materials in different locations to protect against localized disasters. Digital archives should employ a similar strategy by distributing data across multiple data centers in other geographic regions. This protects against natural disasters and mitigates the risk of data loss due to localized hardware failures or cyberattacks.

Read the article on Linear Tape-Open (LTO) Storage

Whether your organization relies on physical storage media or digital archives, developing a long-term preservation strategy is critical. By routinely migrating physical and digital assets to current formats and storage systems, you ensure their continued accessibility for future use. Delaying action could lead to permanent data loss, making it impossible to recover vital information. Here are some ways to prepare:

‍Data Migration

Plan for regular data migration to new formats and storage media as technology evolves. This practice helps avoid data loss due to format obsolescence.

Preservation Strategies

Use stable formats (e.g., TIFF, PDF/A) for long-term preservation and regularly review storage systems to keep pace with advancing technology.

‍Ensuring Data Integrity and Completeness

Maintaining data integrity and completeness over time is crucial for archival storage. As data is accessed, it may face corruption, degradation, or loss risks. PRO-TEK recommends fixity monitoring, checksum testing, and other integrity-checking methods to address these issues.‍

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Fixity Checks 

Fixity refers to data's unchangeability. Use checksums or cryptographic hashes to verify data stability over time. Regularly recalculate checksums to ensure that no unauthorized alterations have occurred.

Version Control

Use version control to track modifications and enable reversion to previous versions if needed, ensuring data traceability. 

Backup and Recovery Plans

A comprehensive backup and recovery plan is not just good practice, it's essential for protecting data against loss due to hardware failures or disasters. This plan should include regular backups of critical data and secure storage of these backups in multiple assets.

• Regular Backups: Perform regular backups of all critical data, ensuring that these backups are stored securely and redundantly.

• Recovery Testing: Regularly test the recovery process to ensure that backups can be restored quickly and accurately during data loss.

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Conclusion

Long-term archival data storage requires careful planning, regular testing, and proactive management to ensure data remains intact, secure, and accessible for future use. Organizations can better protect and manage their digital assets by adhering to the best practices outlined in this guide from PRO-TEK Vaults. 

As technology continues to evolve, it's important to focus on new data preservation methods and tools that enhance the integrity and completeness of archived data. PRO-TEK will continue to provide updated resources and guides to help professionals stay at the forefront of data storage and archival best practices.

Please schedule a consultation today to learn more about our data storage solutions.

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