What's a better choice...2nd hd to use in raid OR to use as external backup drive?

[dude_56013]

Ok so im sick of waking up sometimes and seeing my computer crapped out with a virus (or any other error) that involves a complete reinstallation or otherwise...i just got done working out a virus for the last 10 hours and its just really getting to me, the day before that a dll errored out...so i've come to this conclusion but idk which is the best since im not experience in using either.....


buy an identical hdd to the one i have (320GB seagate) and run the RAID setup (the one that mirrors your regular hd...maybe raid 1?) OR get a larger hdd (probably a 500GB seagate) and buy and external exclosure and be able to back up computer files on all my computers instead of just one.....

another thing i just thought of which makes me want to lean towards the external is that if you get a virus, its going to place itself on both hdd in the raid setup correct?

anyways..help me out and weigh opinions..would like to decide by black friday..tomorrow..because newegg has some specials on external exclosures...

thanks a ton guys..you are always a load of help!!!

 

[Lowndsey]

to start with your best bet is to learn better computer security so you dont keep getting viruses

 

[Celegorm]

to start with your best bet is to learn better computer security so you dont keep getting viruses

That's really the only way to keep your stuff safe. If you do the RAID 1 (the mirroring) when one drive gets a virus, the other will. Also if you send everything to extremal, you could be sending the virus off with it, which in the end would make buying that kinda worthless.

Get thigns more secure by getting a good AV, then get a normal internal HDD and just run it as a data drive, don't RAID it.

 

[dude_56013]

ha ha ha....good AV...thats hillarious!! do you know how many programs i have tried with no avail? a crap load!...kaspersky and spy bot and ad adware is my current...at times i've had norton and avast and various others.....besides that...what should i go with as far as raid vs external?

 

[superman22x]

Those are anti SPYWARE that you listed. I use NOD32 and havent had a problem. Maybe its not really a virus you are getting.

 

[dude_56013]

kaspersky is not anti spy its an AV...its one of the most top rated

 

[dude_56013]

it's pretty pathetic though, that most of my SPYWARE programs have cought more VIRUSES than my AV software ever did....just shows that it doesn't really matter what you pay for....except in my case i didn't have to pay for anything...if i did, i would be even more ticked off....

 

[DJ-CHRIS1]

If you want a real solution to Virus's, get a professional quality Anti-Virus like NOD32

Anyways, yeah the Raid 1 won't do anything but protect against drive failures. You want to try something like disc imaging, so if you have a problem you can restore a previous image.

 

[blackjack]

If you don't want to fork out to much then partition your current HDD then get hold of Norton Ghost or Acronis True Image software then make a back up image of you drive, make a boot able floppy or CD disk then store your back up on your partition and as I do burn a back up image on disc as extra back up.

 

[dude_56013]

thanks blackjack...good idea but A)my hdd is only a 320GB and i will be dual booting with Vista soon...so even less space B)The last time my hdd crapped out, it all crapped out..completely erased...but it could work for other people! Good advice...

i think i have decided to just go with an external and just backup everything once a week...like i mentioned, mainly my problems don't lie in virus's, they lie in what I install, and if something doesn't seem to sit well with the computer it sometimes happens because i used 30-40+ apps on a day to day basis.....i mentioned the virus thing because when i DO get a virus...its always some pesky little critter that you can't stop!!

DJ Chris...thank you..i have looked into this, and probably will again in the future...

Thanks all

Zac