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This certainly sounds like a major issue, but I’m sure they (Google) have backups… right?

by Aeolun 3y ago

droffel 3y ago
Don't worry, they backed it up to Google Drive
chronicsonic 3y ago
Fair point, but so should the user. This is a good reminder to everyone: Your cloud data still needs backing up.
- RockRobotRock 3y ago
  Yep. Cloud storage gives you too many ways out if you make a mistake (recycle bin, revision history) that it kind of hides the fact that it's not a replacement for backups. Plus, you can always get hacked. 3-2-1 guys!
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- gumby 3y ago
  Google’s desktop sync doesn’t actually download googles own files, just files in other formats like pdf. Do you launch a Google takeout request from a from job?
  - xigoi 3y ago
    Well, that’s an argument against using file formats that are locked in to a cloud service.
alternative_a 3y ago
They can always ask NSA.
cjmcqueen 3y ago
Yes, Google backs up to tape. I've seen it done and helped design the training for the process. As of 2019 it was a robust backup process with a pain in the butt restore process. It can and will be done, but it's not fast or easy.
- dataflow 3y ago
  How frequently do they back up to tape? (if this is something you can share)
  - londons_explore 3y ago
    Varies by product. In general, it is a continuous process, and backups may not be 'point in time'.
- FrostKiwi 3y ago
  > As of 2019 it was a robust backup process with a pain in the butt restore process. Would love some more insight on this! Anything or any article you can share on how this is implemented at such scale?
  - dbmnt 3y ago
    When I was there Google used multiple Sun/StorageTek tape libraries at each datacenter. The robots handled much of it, but there was still a lot of manual tape loading and unloading performed by technicians. Once tapes were full they were unloaded and hauled off to a secure third-party facility. They're still sold by Oracle, as far as I can tell: https://www.oracle.com/storage/tape-storage/#rc30p5 https://www.oracle.com/storage/tape-storage/#rc30p5
- saagarjha 3y ago
  This is out of date; Google avoids tape exactly because the restore process sucks.
octacat 3y ago
they had, in May. hahah. But really, why May is a cutoff date? Will we ever get a bug explanation, I wonder.

This certainly sounds like a major issue, but I’m sure they (Google) have backups… right?

by Aeolun 3y ago

This certainly sounds like a major issue, but I’m sure they (Google) have backups… right?

droffel 3y ago

Don't worry, they backed it up to Google Drive

chronicsonic 3y ago

Fair point, but so should the user. This is a good reminder to everyone: Your cloud data still needs backing up.

RockRobotRock 3y ago
Yep. Cloud storage gives you too many ways out if you make a mistake (recycle bin, revision history) that it kind of hides the fact that it's not a replacement for backups. Plus, you can always get hacked. 3-2-1 guys!
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
gumby 3y ago
Google’s desktop sync doesn’t actually download googles own files, just files in other formats like pdf. Do you launch a Google takeout request from a from job?
- xigoi 3y ago
  Well, that’s an argument against using file formats that are locked in to a cloud service.

alternative_a 3y ago

They can always ask NSA.

cjmcqueen 3y ago

Yes, Google backs up to tape. I've seen it done and helped design the training for the process. As of 2019 it was a robust backup process with a pain in the butt restore process. It can and will be done, but it's not fast or easy.

dataflow 3y ago
How frequently do they back up to tape? (if this is something you can share)
- londons_explore 3y ago
  Varies by product. In general, it is a continuous process, and backups may not be 'point in time'.
FrostKiwi 3y ago
> As of 2019 it was a robust backup process with a pain in the butt restore process. Would love some more insight on this! Anything or any article you can share on how this is implemented at such scale?
- dbmnt 3y ago
  When I was there Google used multiple Sun/StorageTek tape libraries at each datacenter. The robots handled much of it, but there was still a lot of manual tape loading and unloading performed by technicians. Once tapes were full they were unloaded and hauled off to a secure third-party facility. They're still sold by Oracle, as far as I can tell: https://www.oracle.com/storage/tape-storage/#rc30p5 https://www.oracle.com/storage/tape-storage/#rc30p5
saagarjha 3y ago
This is out of date; Google avoids tape exactly because the restore process sucks.

octacat 3y ago

they had, in May. hahah. But really, why May is a cutoff date? Will we ever get a bug explanation, I wonder.