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Entertainment · Routines, age limits and maintenance · entertainment-25

Check, refresh and update the library

Drives fail quietly in storage. A simple yearly check catches problems while you still have good copies.

How

  1. At least once a year, open a sample of files from every drive and confirm they play, as the Library of Congress advises.
  2. Re-check the checksum list on every drive (entertainment-10). Replace any file that fails from a copy that passes.
  3. Copy the library to new drives about every five years, or sooner if a drive shows errors.
  4. Power up any SSD shelf copies and copy their data to fresh media sooner, especially in hot climates (see entertainment-9).
  5. Rotate the off-site copy: bring it home, update it, take it back.
  6. Add new purchases and free downloads to all three copies and update the printed catalogue.

Do these first

Sources

  1. Personal Archiving: Digital Video. Library of Congress, Digital Preservation, accessed 2026-11
  2. Personal Archiving: Digital Audio. Library of Congress, Digital Preservation, accessed 2026-11
  3. Death and the unplugged SSD: how much you really need to worry. PCWorld, accessed 2026-11
  4. Back Up Business Data. US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), accessed 2026-11
  5. NDSA Levels of Digital Preservation (2013). National Digital Stewardship Alliance, hosted by the Library of Congress, accessed 2026-11

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