Your files are dying. That SSD you keep in the closet, the one from your old system "just in case". Yup, degrading as we speak. SSDs are *shockingly* bad at power off retention, esp if it's near it's endurance rating. The JEDEC standard only requires 1 year of unpowered data retention at 30C after max TBW (writes). --- Now here is where physics starts to get goofy. The conductivity of a semiconductor scales with temperature, and electrons have a nasty tendency of floating out of their gates. Powered-on retention is *better* at higher temperatures, Power-off retention is better at lower temperatures. If your closet stored SSD is hot, (like, crazy hot, 55C+), the data retention decreases to less than a week! In other words, MLC NAND likes to run hot, but be stored cold. --- Yes, I'm mostly trying to scare you into backing up your data actively. Cold storage is not a solution. It's not all doom and gloom however. Thankfully, retention goes way up when a drive is closer to new. If you're not close to the max TBW, and storing the powered off drive at a reasonable temp, you start to hit 10+ years of retention. Even so, I wouldn't risk it. Whether spinning rust or the newest SSD, an active archive is a happy archive.
Yes from personal experience has several laptops with ssds that I didnt use for a few years. When I tried to start them up all has corrupted data on disks would not even boot up the OS. For longer term data storage use a regular magnetic hardrive for very long data sotrage. optical disks like cds , dvds, blu ray are superb for long term data stability. Rabbit hole to go down but their also research for using crystals for super crazy long term data storage. As certain materials and their crystal stuctures are extremely stable over very long spans of time and even to different tempature gradients
Backup and appropriate offline storage is important, but so is #DigitalPreservation - there's no point having the .avi file from your camcorder from 1995 faithfully preserved in offsite backup if the format/codec isn't readable any more.
It's time for 5D memory crystals. With up to 360 terabytes of data on a 5-inch square and, due to the high durability of the material, should last basically forever without any bit rot. It's noted as being able to withstand cosmic radiation, endure force of up to 10 tons per square centimeter, and even survive temperatures as hot as 1000 degrees Celsius.
Interesting points... need to check mine. But frankly, SSDs were never designed for cold storage - a bit expensive for that, aren't they? It's like to say, "Yes, your chickens lay large eggs, but they can't replace messenger pigeons!" Tools for a job.
A serious subject but https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--Z43vfWkL0
I think most people know this, but it's insightful commentary around the conductivity of a semiconductor scales with temperature
<wonders if my ZIP drives are still functional>
Multidisciplinary Science and Mechanical Engineering
2moHuh. I found an ssd in a camera used by my son and his cousin. Was in hot storage 8mo out of the year for over 4 years between 30-40C, here in the desert, 100% of all data was recovered without error. I dont this this data is correct. Before I wrote this I copied data off another one that was stored in a drone camara in my travel trailer thats has been with me for over 5 years, last use was over 4 years ago, temps there exceed 40c-50c… again, no failures. I am sus.