As we continue to collect and create more and more digital content, storage and storage management becomes more of an issue. Whilst it's easy enough to add additional external USB and FireWire drives to our Macs, the management of multiple volumes becomes more of a headache. And what about backup? All those precious digital photos and home movies on a single external drive?

One answer to developing a robust and extremely flexible storage solution is provided by Drobo.



Drobo is a range of storage solutions which allow you to both protect your data and start to create a flexible "pool" of storage, allowing you to expand your storage by simply adding additional raw drives as and when required.

In this week's (unsponsored) members show, I take a look at three Drobo devices:

Drobo - The entry level 4 drive unit
UK Amazon Affiliate link - Drobo - 4 Bay FW800 & USB 2.0 Storage Array
US Amazon Affiliate link - Data Robotics Drobo 4-Bay USB 2.0/FireWire 800 SATA Storage Array DR04DD10

DroboShare - The device that connects your Drobo to a LAN to create Networked Attached Storage (NAS)
US Amazon Affiliate link - DroboShare, Network Attached Companion for Drobo

DroboPro - An 8 drive unit with support for iSCSI for fast data transfer
UK Amazon Affiliate link - Drobo Pro - 8 Bay FW800 & iSCSI Storage Array
US Amazon Affiliate link - Data Robotics DroboPro 8-Bay USB 2.0/FireWire 800/iSCSI Storage Array DRPR1A21

Other Drobo devices not featured in the show:

DroboS - 5 drive unit with eSata
US Amazon Affiliate link - Drobo S 5-Bay USB 2.0/FireWire 800/eSATA Storage Array DRDR3A21

DroboElite - Enterprise Level Storage
US Amazon Affiliate link - Droboelite 8BAY Dual Iscsi Storage Array

In detail, the show covers:

• Drobo Product Line Overview
• Drobo
• What is RAID?
• Drobo Dashboard
• DroboShare
• DroboPro
• Smart Volumes
• iSCSI Configuration

Discussions: Forum

Extra! Members Version formats	1280x720 - Full HD Resolution 1280x720 - Full HD Resolution with overscan 960x540 - HD Resolution 640x480 - iPod and iPhone Resolution All versions with embedded chapter markings and available via iTunes, Miro or by direct download from the Extra! members site
Free Version Formats	This show is only available to ScreenCastsOnline Extra! members

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To View the Trailer for the Members Show

Subscribe to either the free versions of the shows in iTunes, and have this trailer plus subsequent free shows delivered to your computer each week by clicking the links below!
Free High Definition version of the show in iTunes or Free iPod version of the show in iTunes



Watch the free trailer of this show from this web page by clicking on the videos below

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Backup! Yes, we all know we should be doing it, but are we doing all that we could or indeed should?

Implementing an effective backup strategy can be quite an overwhelming task - knowing where to start and ensuring that you've gone far enough! There really is no all encompassing answer but it's sometimes good to see what others have done and pick up a few ideas here and there. It's also good to know that some people have bigger problems to address than you have!

So this weeks show is the first in an occasional series of "How I..." tutorials, starting with "How I... Backup"

I've had many requests from people to open up my setup and give you a peak into how I tackle some common problems and topics, so here is a peek at how I tackle my backups.

It's not the ultimate solution (or even possibly the best way) but should give you some ideas on how to address your own requirements. In this weeks show I look at:

• Using and Configuring a UPS
• Local Backups using Time Machine and Time Capsule
• Using SuperDuper to create a bootable backup
• Remote Backups using Amazon S3 and JungleDisk Desktop Client

I've also included a section on my own particular challenges as a video editor and how I manage the gigabytes of video and project files I generate every week. This includes:

• Using Mirrored Drives on the Mac Pro
• Using a Striped RAID 0 Array
• Backing up External Drives using Chronosync

Links:

Belkin UPS
SuperDuper
SoftRaid
Disk Speed Bench X - 0.1
Chronosync

Discussions: Forum

Extra! Members Version formats	1280x720 - Full HD Resolution 1280x720 - Full HD Resolution with overscan 960x540 - HD Resolution 640x480 - iPod and iPhone Resolution All versions with embedded chapter markings and available via iTunes, Miro or by direct download from the Extra! members site
Free Version Formats	THis show is only available to ScreenCastsOnline Extra! members

Become a ScreenCastsOnline Extra! Member
Extra members get access to full versions of the show in AppleTV (HD), ED and iPod resolutions.
Click here for more details on becoming a ScreenCastsOnline Extra! member

To View the Trailer for the Full Free Show
Subscribe to either the free versions of the shows in iTunes, and have this trailer plus subsequent free shows delivered to your computer each week by clicking the links below!
Free High Definition version of the show in iTunes or Free iPod version of the show in iTunes

Watch a low resolution version of the trailer for this show from this web page by clicking on the video below.

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Time Machine must be one of the most useful features of Leopard and should be mandatory for all Macs users. The fact is many people don't backup their critical or precious personal data and leave it until it's too late. Time Machine takes away the pain of undertaking and organising your backups but it does need additional investment in hardware. A simple firewire disk is adequate for most people, but what if you have several Macs? What if you'd like to buy a new disk but you want that wireless router as well?

The answer is to take a look at Time Capsule, the latest backup device from Apple designed specifically for Leopard users and Time Machine. But in fairness, to call it just a backup device does it a disservice. It's a multi-function machine with many roles:

Backup Device - 500GB or 1TB of storage built right in. Enough to service a single mac or multiple macs. Centralise all your Time Machine backups.
Wireless Device - Includes a full blown 802.11n wireless hub allowing you to create a wireless network or join an existing wireless network. You can backup your devices wirelessly and automatically.
GigaBit Network Switch - Includes three wired Gigabit ethernet ports so you can connect wired devices to your network.
Expandable - Add additional USB drives to expand your storage - never run out of space for your backups!
Print Server - Connect a printer and access your printer across the network from both wired and wireless devices.

The real beauty of Time Capsule is just how easy it is to setup and use and that's where this weeks show comes in. In the show I cover:

• Time Capsule Overview
• Typical Networking Scenario
• Installing & Configuring Time Capsule
• Adding Additional Storage to Time Capsule
• Access Time Capsule with Time Machine

As well as Time Capsule, Apple have also introduced the ability to add additional USB storage devices to existing Airport Extreme devices. It's not as straight forward as Time Capsule but if youe have an existing Airport Extreme, it's an extremely cost effective way of centralising your Time Machine backups. Consequently the show also covers:

• Adding Drives to Airport Extreme
• Configuring AirPort Extreme Disks
• Accessing Airport Extreme Disks via Time Machine.

Discussions: Forum

Extra members get access to full versions of the show in AppleTV (HD), ED and iPod resolutions.
Click here for more details on becoming a ScreenCastsOnline Extra! member

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The first full show on one of Leopards most unique features - Time Machine!

We all know what Leopard is supposed to do but in this show I take you from the basics of using Time Machine with the Finder, through iPhoto integration and even take a peek at Time Machine support in OSX Leopard Server. This weeks show is a free show, but I've included a special Extra! members only section at the end of the full show covering some of the more advanced features.

This week's show covers:

• Time Machine Basics
• Using The Finder in Time Machine
• Spotlight Integration with Time Machine
• iPhoto Integration with Time Machine

The Extra! members section also includes:

• Using Storage on Other Macs for Time Machine
• Setting up Personal File Sharing on Leopard
• Sneak Peak at Screen Sharing
• Sneak Peak at Using Leopard Server for Time Machine

Look out for more Leopard related screencasts in the coming months.


Discussions: Forum

Extra members get access to full versions of the show in AppleTV (HD), ED and iPod resolutions.
The free show (or trailer) is at a much lower resolution.
Click here for more details on becoming a ScreenCastsOnline Extra! member

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