Let’s say I have an external HDD with 4 TB of data, and I store it in the shelf.

There is no dust going into it, or anything.

I take it out from the shelf after 10 years, will it work perfectly in theory?
If not, what part can deteriorate and why?

  • jnew1213@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    In theory, it should work perfectly.

    Some old, old drives had a problem where the spindle wouldn’t spin, a phenomenon known as “stiction.” Drives made in the last – maybe – 15 years seem to be immune.

    One other remotely possible issue would be “bit rot.” That’s where the magnetic polarity of a single bit could change over time, often being influenced by neighboring bits.

  • bofh2023@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    I’d personally feel a lot more comfortable if that drive was an SSD, not a spinning/mechanical one. Seems (and this is mostly gut feeling) like more can go wrong with mechanical drives: lubrication, things “sticking” etc.