Re: The 2019 Operating System Thread
Once built, a machine tends to "stay built" (in that configuration) until retired -- or, repurposed. I rarely update applications on an existing machine but, rather, wait until the next hardware/system upgrade to move to a new set of apps on a new set of machines. The Oct-Dec portion of each year is set aside for "equipment shuffling".
For example, this most recent reshuffle had me move the functionality that had resided on the "Graphics" workstation over to the DTP workstation (which was upgraded, at the same time). The "Graphics" and "CAD" workstations then were upgraded to become the "EDA" and "CAD" workstations (EDA had previously resided on the CAD workstation).
I don't "backup" the portions of a machine that exist on the initial "build images" -- because they (in theory), don't change. So, it's only my "work" that needs to be backed up and I can do that as often as I want -- just by copying those files to another box, file server, archive, etc. So, there's never any "special" backup software involved (and a "restore" is just a copy BACK from the secondary medium).
[E.g., I can "backup" something I've done on a Solaris/SPARC workstation and "restore" it on a *BSD workstation (or a windows workstation, if I've been careful with my file naming)]
I use different sorts of "containers" to great advantage. E.g., instead of copying individual files to another medium, I'll make a tgz (or some other archive format) of the group and, thus, keep them "packaged together". For larger "collections", I create ISO images. And, lately, backup entire virtual machines just by copying a "single file".
Being able to catalog ALL of the files, regardless of where they reside and in which containers (e.g., I can find every copy of "2017taxes" even if its inside a ZIP/TGZ/ISO/etc. and has a different NAME!) means I don't need a backup to be a special type of "thing" (i.e., foo.bkp)
I don't bother with off-sites, anymore (save a few things that I, "as a person", would consider invaluable) as there's just too much "stuff". And, at this point in my life/career, there's not as much downside to that sort of potential "loss". Note that you also need to have backups of the HARDWARE in my business (cuz a device that I used to do a particular job may no longer be available for purchase). E.g., if I had to burn a new bipolar ROM image, will I continue to have:
[This gets REALLY hard when some of the components you've used are 40+ years old! :< ]
Originally posted by Topcat
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For example, this most recent reshuffle had me move the functionality that had resided on the "Graphics" workstation over to the DTP workstation (which was upgraded, at the same time). The "Graphics" and "CAD" workstations then were upgraded to become the "EDA" and "CAD" workstations (EDA had previously resided on the CAD workstation).
I don't "backup" the portions of a machine that exist on the initial "build images" -- because they (in theory), don't change. So, it's only my "work" that needs to be backed up and I can do that as often as I want -- just by copying those files to another box, file server, archive, etc. So, there's never any "special" backup software involved (and a "restore" is just a copy BACK from the secondary medium).
[E.g., I can "backup" something I've done on a Solaris/SPARC workstation and "restore" it on a *BSD workstation (or a windows workstation, if I've been careful with my file naming)]
I use different sorts of "containers" to great advantage. E.g., instead of copying individual files to another medium, I'll make a tgz (or some other archive format) of the group and, thus, keep them "packaged together". For larger "collections", I create ISO images. And, lately, backup entire virtual machines just by copying a "single file".
Being able to catalog ALL of the files, regardless of where they reside and in which containers (e.g., I can find every copy of "2017taxes" even if its inside a ZIP/TGZ/ISO/etc. and has a different NAME!) means I don't need a backup to be a special type of "thing" (i.e., foo.bkp)
I don't bother with off-sites, anymore (save a few things that I, "as a person", would consider invaluable) as there's just too much "stuff". And, at this point in my life/career, there's not as much downside to that sort of potential "loss". Note that you also need to have backups of the HARDWARE in my business (cuz a device that I used to do a particular job may no longer be available for purchase). E.g., if I had to burn a new bipolar ROM image, will I continue to have:
- the tools to create the image to put in the ROM
- the software to "burn" that image
- the equipment to make it happen
- the blank bipolar ROMs to burn!
[This gets REALLY hard when some of the components you've used are 40+ years old! :< ]
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