A recent study by Blackblaze.com on 25.000 -consumer grade- drives over four years showed an Annual Failure Rate (AFR) of 5.1% in the first 18 months, that is, 1 in 20 new hard drives failed within the first 18 months of use.

 

The study also showed that between 18 and 36 months of use, the statistical reliability of the remaining drives increasead: only 1.4% of drives failed (about 1 in 71!).

 

But after 36 months of use, surviving drives lost their reliability dramatically and showed an AFR of  11.8%, that is, the odds stacked up against 1 in 8 drives. 

 

Based on their research, Blackblaze calculates that the median life of hardrives is about 6 years: in other words, after six years, half of the drives will have developed a fault.

 

The theoretical 1.000.000 hours Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF) given by manufacturers as a measure of reliability takes a completely different meaning under this "real life" analysis!

 

To find out how to prevent a heartache and be prepared  for a hard drive failure, give me a ring on
079 04 087 117.