I think, for now, "pool" data store is the most sensible way of managing storage space. This is year 2011, we should not care where we put something, how much free space does a particular storage device has, etc... When we use pool(s), all we need to know is this: "My total storage space is 10TB, free space is 2TB, used 8TB". With S.M.A.R.T and many other sensors we can more of less predicts which storage device in the storage pool that's going to fail in near future, and to use the volume manager to "move" the data off that dying storage device to another, and then remove the said storage device. When we add another storage device, we can add it to an existing pool, or we can make a new pool altogether...
The problem is that Windows 7 can't even remember where I told it to install to install programs (to be fair I have Indexing turned off).
Every month I have to manually search for a program, because Windows has forgotten the shortcut details!
If I let Windows look for the program, it takes stupendous amounts of time to find it (i.e. I can navigate to the location much faster, unless it is a system file).
The same is true with documents and pictures.
I have a hierarchical file structure (like a library) so I can usually go straight to the file I want.
You seem to be suggesting that a library would be more efficient, if the books were fitted with RFID tags and then strewn about at random.
To find a given book you just enter the RFID code into a scanner and then wander around the library waving it around, until you locate what you want.
I guess it would work if every shelf had a reader.
SMART doesn't provide 100% protection from failure.
Allegedly ~50% of failures are due to controller failures (which also affect SSDs).
"All SSDs do is replace a hard drive’s head disk assembly - the platters and heads - with a lot of flash chips. The rest of the stuff is the same - and that stuff accounts for about half of all drive failures."
SSDs no more reliable than hard drives | ZDNet
"The most common failure cause for the 7200.11 was faulty firmware, which would issue the error code "000000CC." This led the Storelab engineers to coin the term "CC fly" (tsetse fly). Faulty drives would slow down and subsequently die after rebooting."
Typical Failures And Data Losses : Study: A Look At Hard Drive Reliability In Russia
zzz2496, That is what RAID does. I have several rack storage slices, put a series of HDDs in, becomes one big glob of space. A drive goes bad, pull it out and put a new one in, without turning the machine off. The data gets reconstructed on the new drive. Automatically.
If you are using RAID with data protection (e.g. RAID 5) you have a reasonable chance of getting your data back.
The best part? It doesn't matter what OS you run. Its all in the hardware.
I still see debates about which is better (hardware or software RAID).
Funny, but if I want to take stuff with me I certainly care. I can't just "hope" that data appears magically on my USB drive. If I want to access files on a CD-Rom i just put in, I damn well be care because otherwise i won't be able to find the files.
I agree.