vinceJan 3, 2023

PSA: take some time in 2023 to back up your/your family's CD-Rs (and other recordable media) full of memories you threw into storage 10+ years ago; there's a decent chance they've started to rot!

the tenuously thin layer of dyes/adhesives holding the data *will* break down over time, rapidly so if their environment is uncontrolled, the surface was previously nicked/contaminated, or they were cheap ones to begin with

Show threadvince

thanks to error correction, and with the help of free, modern file forensics tools (e.g. PhotoRec/TestDisk) even damaged disks may have recoverable contents. use your OS or a disk imaging tool to save a raw ISO/"master" image ASAP, which you can later mount (or carve) for the files within

cloud storage and USB drives are cheap today (especially in comparison to the size of CDs and JPEGs from the 2000s), and what price would you wish you could pay to get the data back once it's truly lost?

Jan 3, 2023 at 6:35amMetatext
Show threadvinceJan 3, 2023

if you don't have a disc drive readily available, they're easy to find with both USB-A and USB-C connectivity. i've had good luck with an Asus ZenDrive U9M (~USD $35) and a Pioneer BDR-XS07UHD (~USD $200). for 99% of discs the $35 one is perfectly adequate

so, don't give up hope if you notice deterioration setting in, but definitely don't put this off either!

Show threadvinceMay 5, 2023
(this is a fediverse/mastodon server sync thing i think, but i'm seeing a lot of replies to this thread now that weren't visible/didn't notify me at the time... i doubt anybody cares too much now, but in case i'm wrong about that, i'm sorry for not replying at all)
Show threadJohn Stringer M5JFS 📡🛰️🔭🌌Jan 4, 2023

@0x56 Sound advice. IMHO, if you don't have 3 copies of the data, you don't have it at all.

I also suffered with an unreadable CD-R due to the full surface adhesive paper label stuck on it. It had started to warp the disc. Careful removal of the label with IPA relieved the bending stress and the disc was readable once more.

Show threadvinceJan 5, 2023
@M5JFS wow, that's a failure mode i haven't seen, glad it worked out though
Show threadWayne's AccountJan 25, 2023
@0x56 I got one free on Gumtree. Gumtree is the Australian version of Craigslist with much less kink and freaks.
Show threadPolychrome Jan 5, 2023
@0x56 personally I'd recommend against flash based USB drives for long term storage - data stored on unpowered flash media begins to decay after a few years.

If you can get a mechanical USB hard drive that'd be the better option over the long term.
Show threadRachelJan 6, 2023
@0x56 I would pay to forget everything that happened 10+ years ago
Show threadAdam DemasiJan 6, 2023

@0x56 I definitely strongly recommend this, although Aaru (https://github.com/aaru-dps/Aaru) is better for data recovery from discs. It also makes sure you use an appropriate format, iso isn’t always the right one.

Also worth noting: CD-R/RW will rot sooner than DVD-R/RW (and presumably later media like Blu-ray) will, because CDs were made with very little protection between the label layer and the data layer, while DVDs separated the two by a thick layer of plastic. So get the CDs done before the DVDs.

GitHub - aaru-dps/Aaru: Aaru Data Preservation Suite

Aaru Data Preservation Suite. Contribute to aaru-dps/Aaru development by creating an account on GitHub.

GitHub
Show threadAdam DemasiJan 6, 2023
@0x56 I used Aaru a few months ago to rip about a hundred discs, CD and DVD, that I burned over the years, mostly 10+ years ago. Recovered all but a few that were either poor quality (cheaper no-name brands) or had really bad scratches, even then it can keep trying again as many times as you want, because eventually a bad sector might successfully read. A backup missing a handful of sectors is better than no backup.
Show threadRobin FRANÇOIS 💿Jan 6, 2023
@0x56 You might want to have a look at the Aaru open source tool for making those images.
Show threadvinceJan 6, 2023
@r2gf thanks, @kirb mentioned this as well... i started looking at redump/DiscImageCreator for inspiration the other day, but Aaru seems to have a much broader vision of support. admittedly i'm still early in researching many aspects of preservation, but discoverability of the tools is definitely a limiting factor in learning more
Show threadRobin FRANÇOIS 💿Jan 6, 2023
@0x56 @kirb If you have any questions on Aaru, I'm happy to help.
Show threadvinceJan 6, 2023
@r2gf @kirb <3 thank you :)
Show threadfuomag9Jan 16, 2023
@0x56 I tried reading an old one and my Darwin kernel crashed :(