There isn't. Sorry, but there just isn't a permanent format. The real problem isn't the storage media but that technological standards evolve. Tape media is

There isn't. Sorry, but there just isn't a permanent format. The real problem isn't the storage media but that technological standards evolve. Tape media is excellent at surviving. I have a 9 track digital tape keepsake from when I used to work with it regularly some 20 years ago. I'm absolutely certain that the data on it is still good. I don't have the 300-pound "dishwasher" drive that can read it, the three-phase power to run it, nor a DEC Vax that understands EBCDIC encoding. The only true solution is a living one, where you have make sure you have the ability to get your data from an old format to a new one periodically. More importantly, you should look into the idea of 3-2-1 Backups. Anything that you intend to keep indefinitely is subject random events, ie fire, flood, tornado, theft, etc. Having multiple archives in separate systems is more import than worrying trying to ensure a single copy will last a long time. Storing less than a gigabyte is very cheap to do in multiple formats, such as USB flash drive, external hard drive, CD, BlueRay disc, etc. You can hedge against data corruption with PAR2 files. Also, consider storing a copy on the cloud, ie Backblack B2, AS S3, etc. Again, I suggest creating PAR2 files and/or using an archive format that can resist damage. Just create calendar events to check periodically the integrity of your archives. Having problems reading a CD, use the hard drive backup to burn a new one. This also a good time to consider if one or more your formats is no longer viable. Finally, realize that a program runs within an environment and those get replaced over time. You need to no only back up your program, but probably want to store the operating system and tools around it.