StevenG Loc: Long Island, NY

I recently purchased an iMac computer (my MacBook Pro died). At the same time I purchased the Adobe Lr/PS monthly package. I previously used Lr 5 and PS CS6). All of my photos from here on out are being stored on a 4 TB external drive. There are no photos on my computer's hard drive. (My old photos from Lr 5 were "updated" to work with my subscription Lr CC. So when I open Lr CC, I just select which Lr drive I want to open.) All of my photos from Lr 5 and Lr CC are backed up on another 4 TB hard drive which I am using for Time Machine. Finally, my computer's data and the external hard drives are backed up to the cloud. (I purchased a subscription to Backblaze.)

So to summarize: 1 All photos are maintained on a 4 TB external hard drive. 2. All photos are backed up on 4TB Time Machine. 3. All photos are backed up to the cloud.

Here is my question: Is this backup system sufficient, or should I use another 4TB hard drive to back up my photos (or is this overkill)?

This is the system I am planning to stick with, so it would not be helpful at this point to hear that this is a terrible backup system or that you do it differently. I know everyone has their own system. I just want to know if I am good as is, or if Ishould use another external drive for additional backup.
Thanks.
Steve

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Three copies (working, local backup and off-site DR) sounds adequate to me. I do the same except I also archive important work to MDisks.

jak86094

The one thing I would suggest is to have a copy offsite...so if that is the Time Machine backup, that would work. You could give it to a family member or keep it at the office so that if your house was destroyed by fire, hurricane, etc. you wouldn't lose everything. Just Bring that drive home for backup of the main 4 TB HD once a week or every other day, then move it out of the house (e.g., to your car) til you return to the office. The other suggestion would be to have a backup on a different medium, i.e., other than a spinning HD. Could be the Cloud or a backup service. Just ideas I've heard discussed by those who should know. Good luck.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

The Backblaze cloud is the OP’s off-site (DR) copy.

StevenG Loc: Long Island, NY

Thank you TriX.
Steve

StevenG Loc: Long Island, NY

Thank you, jak86094. I have subscribed to a cloud backup service: Backblaze.
Steve

chrissybabe Loc: New Zealand

System sounds good. However picture this -
Earthquake - internet is down at least at your place (or maybe not at your place but definitely power outage at several locations between you and the online storage), Time Machine out because something hit it (or a power surge took it out as the mains wires crossed somewhere), and the portable HDD fall on the floor.
Unlikely ? No, I have seen it (or its equivalent).
So maybe you should add another portable 4TB and keep it off site (not at your place) preferably 200 miles away (and not once a year but as often as you can).

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Been through a bunch of hurricanes.
Doing something on the computer with pictures is NOT a priority for days.
Computers are shut off before they hit, not turned on afterwards until power is stable.
He should be fine.
If I thought it might be required, I might put my pocket drive backup in a zip-lock bag.

abc1234 Loc: Elk Grove Village, Illinois

Overkill. All you need is Backblaze. The Time Machine is totally necessary. Too late now but you would have been slightly better off with an internal drive. Other than showing off a lot of hardware, I never saw the value of an external HDD. At one time, it was portability but since you back up to the cloud, you can retrieve pictures wherever you are.

If one still wants to use two local drives, then set up a RAID array.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Mine are on my tower's hard drive; copy on a pocket drive; copy in the cloud; with a convenience copy on laptop.

mborn Loc: Massachusetts

traderjohn Loc: New York City

To me, if I were that place and all those conditions existed, a bunch of pictures would be one of the things on the bottom of my concerns.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

I use 4 copies. One external hard drive on the computer, one elsewhere in the house, one at a relative's house 20 miles away, plus a cloud backup.
Power surge blasts computer and connected drive, the elsewhere in the house disk covers it.
House burns down, relative's house drive covers it.
Hurricane wipes out the state, cloud backup covers it.
Larger disaster would probably wipe out me too. Not covered.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Sounds good to me. I have two external drives and a NAS, so that's three. You can have a dozen backup drives, but if you don't backup often enough, you can lost a lot of work. I backup at least every other day.