Disk Failure Rates More Myth Than Metric

Lucas123 writes "Using mean time between failure rates suggest that disks can last from 1 million to 1.5 million hours, or 114 to 170 years, but study after study shows that those metrics are inaccurate for determining hard drive life. One study found that some disk drive replacement rates were greater than one in 10. This is nearly 15 times what vendors claim, and all of these studies show failure rates grow steadily with the age of the hardware. One former EMC employee turned consultant said, 'I don't think [disk array manufacturers are] going to be forthright with giving people that data because it would reduce the opportunity for them to add value by 'interpreting' the numbers.'"

Re:Never had a drive fail

[Anonymous Coward]

Wait. You've got a huge Wang, and you're throwing it out? D00d, that's just uncool. Give it to someone else at least. It would be fun to ask people "wanna come see my huge Wang?" just to see their reaction! :)

hah. captcha word: largest

Re:Never had a drive fail

[serviscope_minor]

I'm about to lug a huge Wang hard drive out to the trash pickup on Monday - weighs over 100 pounds... still runs. Actually it uses removable platters but still...

<Indiana Jones> IT BELONGS IN A MUSEUM!</Indiana Jones>

Re:Never had a drive fail

[STrinity]

I'm about to lug a huge Wang

There needs to be a -1 "Too Easy" moderation option.

Re:There are only two kind of peeps...

[BSAtHome]

Real men don't make backups; they cry.

Re:Never had a drive fail

[Zak3056]

The only possible response to that is this Penny Arcade. [penny-arcade.com]