What actually counts as a copy under the 3-2-1 rule, why a RAID mirror or a snapshot only protects against one kind of failure, and the one-page inventory that exposes the gaps.
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Disclosure: this is my own article (Charles Hartmann, Homelab the Right Way). Written with AI help and edited by me; the setup described is mine.
But it feeeeels like a backup, and isn’t that what really matters? In my setup I have 3 drives (2x 8Tb, 1x 14 Tb) and I finally have the opportunity to do some consolidation and not just have 3 single drives plugged into a server. Zfs, raid , a dedicated backup drive, but I’m still figuring out what the layout should be.
Put the two 8tb in a mirrored raid so if one fails you keep your data. Use the 14tb as a backup that is left unplugged for longevity.
That would be my recommendation which is similar to what I have (4 x 6 tb for twelve gigs of redundant storage) and a couple of 8tb drives I keep for occasional (monthly or so) archival backup.
I agree. This is also nice because if you need more space in the future you can always add 8TB drives in pairs.