Storage

Devices
Magnetic Storage
Definition/Characteristics: or magnetic recording
How it works: it uses different patterns of magnetization in s magnetisable material to store data and is a form of
non-volatile memory
Examples of Devices/Media: Hard drive, discs

Solid State
Definition/Characteristics: circuits or devices built entirely from solid materials and in which the electrons, or
other charge carriers, are confined entirely within the solid material.
How it works: the electrons or other charges are carried to the device
Examples of Devices/Media: Hardware, hard drives

Optical
Definition/Characteristics: It is a disk drive that uses laser light or electromagnetic waves within or near the
visible light spectrum as part of the process of reading or writing data to or from optical discs
How it works: Uses laser light or electromagnetic waves within or near the visible light spectrum as part of the
process of reading or writing data to or from optical discs.
Examples of Devices/Media: DVD player

Advantages and Disadvantages

Type of Storage

Typical Size

Uses

Advantages

Disadvantages

Hard Disk Drive

Small easy to hold

It is used as a
backing storage
device

It can do multiple
copies of data

Can be vulnerable
if laptop/pc break
Has a low storage
capacity

Portable HDD

Easy to carry

Used to back up
files that could be
deleted

Can range from

high to low
storage

Can break and not

have a high
capacity

Magnetic Tape

Range from small

to large

Holds files, media

and raw data

Safe way to store

data

Can snap and be

stretched and slow

Memory Stick

Small portable size

Used to store
media, files and
other

Small meaning its

portable

Lost or damaged

Flash memory card

Small , easy to
hold

Hold data files

Ranges from 10GB

to 32+ GB

Can be lost and

damaged

Storage Methods
Youve looked a lot at storage methods and what storage devices are used for. But you havent looked at how the
data is actually stored and accessed on a device.
Answer the following questions:
1. What is SEQUENTIAL storage/Access?
In computing, sequential access memory (SAM) is a class of data storage devices that read their
data in sequence. This is in contrast to random access memory (RAM) where data can be accessed
in any order. Sequential access devices are usually a form of magnetic memory. Also cassettes use
the sequential storage so if you were to look for a second clip youd have to go through the first one.
2. Give one storage device/media that uses the sequential method of file storage
Memory stick
3. Give one advantage and one disadvantage of sequential method of file storage
Advantage- holds a high amount of files
Disadvantage- can take you a long time to find a file

4. What is Random Access? A type of computer memory that can be accessed randomly; that is, any
byte of memory can be accessed without touching the preceding bytes. RAM is the most common
type of memory found in computers and other devices, such as printers.

5. Give one storage device/media that uses the Random Access method of storage
Magnetic tape storage devise
6. Give one advantage and one disadvantage of the Random Access method of storage
Advantage- you can access the stored files easily
Disadvantage- it only allows you to do things in any random order

Backup
1. What is the definition of Backup? The procedure for making extra copies of data in case the original is lost
or damaged.

What is the difference between Backup and Backing Storage?

A backup copy is a secondary copy of a file you have on your computer. Backing storage would be an usb drive, NAS
or tape drive used to store your file backups.

Give two reasons why backups should be used/ made

If you were to lose something important on your devise you can rely on a backup to keep your work safe.
People can hack your devise and delete everything on your devise