Storage 101: How to keep your USB drives and external hard drives safe for years to come
We all need more storage nowadays, but buying an external hard drive or USB drive isn’t as simple as just “plug and play.” You have to keep your data secure by maintaining the hardware itself. Far too few people safeguard their hardware, leading to data loss and corruption.
This guide will teach you how to store your hard drives and USB drives safely, keep your data secure and have these devices for years to come. Here’s what you need to know.
Keep humidity at bay
Depending on where you live, humidity can be part of everyday life. USB drives and external hard drives were not designed to withstand moisture. Even when exposed for a short time, it can do severe damage.
With USB drives, you can leave them plugged into a laptop or PC that’s currently on. Your PC has fans to keep it cool and help with humidity, so the USB slots should be safe.
Otherwise, remove your USB drives and place them in a container like the one we’ve listed below. Keep the container out of direct sunlight, away from high shelves (because humidity and heat rise) and consider adding one or two silica gel packets.
We’ve linked to some below designed to work on a military-grade level and can be used for safes, so they should keep out excess moisture with no issue.
Apply this same practice to your external hard drives. Remove the cable connecting to your PC and store those in the same container. While wires are less susceptible to damage from humidity, you might as well maintain them simultaneously.
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Use a surge protector any time your USB drive or external hard drive is plugged in
It’s a good idea to protect your electronics with surge protectors, especially when dealing with data and media storage. Surge protectors need to be rated for your PC or laptop’s power.