5.1.3 Practice Questions Storage Devices

Reprogammable memory Explanation Flash devices store information using programmable, non-volatile flash memory. Common flash devices are MMC, SD, SDHC, and XD memory cards as well as USB thumb drives. DLT drivers use magnetic tape. Hard disks and floppy disks use magnetic disks and platters. Optical drives use a reflective surface and optical readers.

Hard disk Explanation Hard disks use magnetic disks and platters. Optical drives such as DVD or CD-ROM drives, use a reflective surface that is read by an optical reader. Flash devices such as SD cards store information using programmable, non-volatile flash memory. DLT drives use magnetic tape.

DLT tape Explanation DLT tape systems are used primarily for backups. The large storage capacity of these systems make them ideal for server backups. CD-R and DVD-R do not provide sufficient storage capacity for server backups. RAID is a data protection method that preserves data on hard disks if one disk in a set fails. It is not considered a back mechanism.

Hard disk Explanation A hard disk has a large memory capacity, is fast, and is relatively inexpensive. Optical disks are also inexpensive, but are not as fast and do not provide the storage capacity of hard disks. USB flash drives are not as inexpensive as hard disks with equal storage capacity and are not available with the capacity as the larger hard disks. Solid State Drives (SSD) have a large memory capacity and are fast, but are much more expensive than comparable hard drives.

No moving parts. Lower power requirements Explanation Solid state drives have the following advantages when compare to hard disk drives: They have lower power consumption. They have no moving parts (and hence less prone to failure) They are faster They are less susceptible to physical damage (from dropping) They are smaller and lighter. They are smaller and lighter. They use standard SATA disk interfaces. The storage capacity for SSDs is small in comparison to HDDs. SSDs are several times more expensive than comparable HDDs.

Inexpensive Explanation Solid State Drives (SDDs) are generally more expensive than hard disk drives (HDDs). Some advantages of SSDs over HDDs include the following: They are faster They have no moving parts so they last longer. They have lower power consumption. They are less susceptible to physical damage (from dropping) and immune from magnetic fields. They are smaller and lighter.

Non-volatile memory chips. Explanation Flash devices store information using programmable, non-volatile flash memory. Common flash devices are eMMC, SD, SSD, MiniSD, MicroSD, memory sticks, and USB thumb drives. DLT drives use magnetic tape. Hard disks use magnetic disks and platters. Optical drives use a reflective surface and optical readers.

Tape drive Hard disk Explanation The following are magnetic storage devices: A hard disk is a thick magnetic disk encases in a thicker protective shell. A tape drive (also called a digital linear tape or DLT drive) stores data on magnetic tapes similar to audio cassette tapes. Optical discs such as CDs and DVDs use lasers for both reading and writing information. Flash devices store information using programmable, non-volatile flash memory. Solid state drives are flash devices with a storage capacity similar to a small hard drive.

Hard disk drive (HDD)

Solid state drive (SSD)

Optical disc

Hard disk drive (HDD)

Solid state drive (SSD)

Optical disc

Hard disk drives (HDD) are thick magnetic disks made of aluminum platters, They use read/write heads to access data stored on the platters. They have up to several TB in storage capacity and their cost per MB is cheap. Solid state drive (SSD) is a flash device with storage capacity similar to a small hard drive. They are faster than other devices. They have no moving parts and last longer than other storage devices. Optical discs use lasers to read and write information that is stored in the form of pits in their reflective coating. They are ideal for storing and playing music and video. They are portable and cheap and have a long shelf life.