External Hard Drives and Cloud Backups (Studio Tips)

[@Juliano_DJOL]

Backing up and organizing files and creating files for more files is such a under valued talent! I have a color and name system, clone drives, and even a notepad that I write my back up logs in just to help me remember everything that's on there. I prolly got about 20TB of music, video, and pictures from the past 10-15 years! Seems like just yesterday I was working on pro tools HD on a scuzzy drive lol!

[@henryblaeser]

Sean Divine is the MAN.

[@alwaysinthelab6698]

Perfect timing, hard when you just want to create, gotta take time for organizing.

[@alwaysinthelab6698]

Also, So what’s all on your main drive that’s in the computer?

[@SeanDivine]

yep, it's crucial! my internal is used only for the OS, programs and plugins (not for any of the related content files)

[@alwaysinthelab6698]

@@SeanDivine awesome thanks!

[@intruth1]

Sean is always on the mark with what we need. 💯

[@SeanDivine]

😊🙌

[@JrumBeats]

The most important thing when it comes to music IMO, is storage and file management... Super crucial... thanks for sharing Sean. God bless

[@SeanDivine]

Yessir, so essential bro!

[@robstaylor4234]

I been needing this

[@SeanDivine]

nice, hope it helps!

[@b1j]

Excellent. I found this right after watching your three-year-old video on this topic. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

[@Jasquiat-f7v]

This is one for the books! Thanks G 🙏🏾

[@SeanDivine]

sure thing Jeriel, glad to help

[@andrevitorsantos]

Please make a video about your files organization method

[@SeanDivine]

will see what I can do :)

[@KE010101]

Thanks for the helpful tips Sean

[@wesleykboone4936]

A very overlooked and essential part of the gig. I see your video lighting is getting better. Ever consider using a LAV microphone. You sound lushes (pause), but that big ass mic is distracting as hell, and you wouldn't need to worry about leaning in and keeping your mic to mouth distance consistency. Great info!

[@SeanDivine]

thanks Wesley, I have used lavs in the past and they just don't sound good to me. They tend to pose a lot of noise issues and take a lot of work in post to get them usable. I don't have to process my vocals at all after filming with this setup.

[@RonIrizarry]

Dude killer videos and great channel! Continued success and abundance!

[@ampfly9601]

Good Stuff !!! Thanks for sharing Bro !!!

[@GeorgeAmodei21]

Thank you for making this VIDEO:) George

[@iamantoniofernandez]

Thank you!

[@SeanDivine]

🙌

[@introoutrobed]

Thanks for the time machine backup idea. Thumbs up.

[@weststarr2046]

THANKS A LOT Sean...this is a good one needed, AWESOME!!

[@KeonaJordan]

Is it okay to use USBs? Every-time use a drive it messes up.

[@SeanDivine]

You may need additional power for the drive (use an ac adapter)

[@peterwalsh5068]

Nice video, I need to get external back up drives, but I’m coming from a reel to reel background into digital and have no idea how to save it all to them from my iMac.

[@Ryzasu]

Thanks this is exactly what I needed

[@SeanDivine]

glad to hear it 🙌

[@CRXYTV]

Quick question just wanted to know if you have your plugins for mixing like waves etc on your ssd's ? as i was thinking to move them to a ssd to create space on my Imac and have them with me on the go

[@SeanDivine]

no, the plugins themselves must be on the internal / OS drive. You can store any AUDIO or library files on an external

[@Kosich2]

that song on the background 🤤at the beginning was "only one".

[@SeanDivine]

good ear :)

[@mvrkaba5133]

You should go into how you organize your files on your external hard drives. Everything is on my internal and having to move things is a bit complicated. If you would make an in depth video on what files go where on the external and internal drives it would be greatly appreciated man!!

[@TheSilverConductor]

Thanks alot just what I needed. MusicLuv, Keep Doin Whacha Do! The SC.

[@JARG-yi2fr]

Can someone please explain to me why a lot of artists & producers always have their external plugged in? Is it because they store a lot of their sounds & sessions there or because it speeds up the computer or something? And also if a session is opened from the external hard drive and saved, is this newer, edited version then saved to the hard drive instead of the old version? Thanks :)

[@SeanDivine]

Both :) and yes, if the session file is on the external drive, it will be saved/update there

[@JARG-yi2fr]

@@SeanDivine thanks a ton Sean! 🙏🏼

[@thatguyalex4571]

Thanx man, subbed

[@sifer2407]

Cool. Do you record directly to the solid state? Not a fan of time machine, Rather carbon copy cloner. Good vid, tired of telling folks to backup or clone your sessions.

[@SeanDivine]

yes, the session files / audio are stored on the external ssd

[@nazarenodadamante8703]

4:36 what rack is that??

[@cecilsproject6796]

Thank you for this video. Are the new macbook pro M1 bettter with the cooling?

[@SeanDivine]

Miles ahead of the intel mbp! I have an m1 max and rarely ever hear the fans…and in most cases they don’t turn on at all.

[@cecilsproject6796]

@@SeanDivine waou so cool. What di you think of n2 pro? Cause its the same price as n1pro in france? Somme people say they have problem with music wuthout knowing why...

[@scaz2181]

Should I still do the speed test if I connect my G-Drive directly into my Macbook?

[@SeanDivine]

I would as even the cabling can affect the speeds

[@scaz2181]

@@SeanDivine cool thanks man

[@harshsuniltrivedi8284]

Hey Sean! Very helpful video! Can you share some reviews on the DBX 286s Mic Preamp? for voice overs and singing...

[@SeanDivine]

thanks Harsh, I don't have any experience with that one, sorry!

[@thiernobarry6427]

Hi, Sean. Where did you get that desk? I like it a lot. Looks like it may a custom-built desk.

[@SeanDivine]

It's custom :)

[@thiernobarry6427]

@@SeanDivine thanks. Looks really nice. Cheers

[@NetvoTV]

I notice you have firewire800 in your conmected G drive, my Macbook pro has it but i still haven't had any peripherals to utilise it haha

[@bassManDavis1953]

Sean, what a fantastic tutorial, so much brilliant info. Is it possible to move the plugins and everything else from the HD to the external drives, leaving just the software on the Mac? I have a Mac mini with only 250Gb of space and the only part of logic I have managed to move to my external drive is the instrument library. So would it be to much hard work to move everything else now? Sorry for the long comment.

[@SeanDivine]

Thanks Gary! Unfortunately, the plugins themselves (other than the instrument library / sample content) should be installed on the internal drive with the OS

[@bassManDavis1953]

Thanks Sean, I think I have setup my organising much the same as yours so I must be doing something right 😜 thanks again for such an interesting tutorial.

[@gauravsingh2760]

Hi Sean! Sorry if this sounds a little unrelated but how's your new MBP16 performing in terms of thermals and fan noise? Thank you for all the knowledge sharing - you can't imagine how helpful your videos have been. Cheers...!

[@SeanDivine]

hi Gaurav, I'm using a 2016 15 inch MBP - it's working fine, although it does get hot and the fans go excessively when you're doing processing intensive tasks :/ very curious to see how the new M1 processors progress in terms of thermal performance and efficiency

[@gauravsingh2760]

@@SeanDivine -oh. I thought it was the 16inch. Well, two things about the M1 Mac that worries me is (a) 16 Gb ram (b) Plugin support..I still can't decide between the 16inch and the M1

[@SeanDivine]

@@gauravsingh2760 yes, both of these will change with time... so, I'm patiently waiting :)

[@gauravsingh2760]

@@SeanDivine - Sailing the same boat 😊

[@MonsieurVersatile]

Sean, are you still using CrashPlan backups or have you moved to another service you'd recommend? Thanks

[@SeanDivine]

Still using it!

[@MonsieurVersatile]

@@SeanDivine Great, thanks for the update.

[@keithswan]

Hey Sean, always good video content, super helpful. so thanks for that. Q: Do you have a separate 'recording drive', from your 'library drive'? ie, I have LOTS of libraries, & have one major BIG capacity store for them all. Do you? & then drag what you need onto your session drive? Or are they all there on your session / 'recording drive'? Thanks.

[@SeanDivine]

thanks Keith! in my case, the "working" eternal drive holds both my sessions and any associated audio / sample content

[@user-bg4ny6zu6u]

Super duper is good clones your drive I find better then time machine

[@fourgranted]

Going out to buy one now.. I love the size and it sounds like its reliable. I have a lacie drive now which I had for a while, 2 in fact and I also have cloud redundancy...The Lacie however takes up alot of real estate and it requires electric power. I see this one is just from the computer.. Do you know if there is an added benefit from external drives that require electric power to turn on?

[@SeanDivine]

from my experience, the actual power consumption between ssds and physical spinning drives isn't that much different... of course, with the ssds you get silence and they don't produce a lot of heat

[@jeremyg2245]

Great video! Do you keep the actual plugins on your drives as well? For some reason I've always had issues when trying to save them all to a hard drive.

[@SeanDivine]

thanks! the plugins themselves are on the internal, any associated content (i.e. audio files, sound libraries) is on the external

[@jeremyg2245]

@@SeanDivine Got it, appreciate the response!

[@ABS_AD77]

Hi Sean, thanks for your great videos. I am catching up on them those I missed. Just wondering if you backup your projects on the cloud as well , please kindly let me know if that’s safe to do. Thank you very much. Lord Bless.

[@SeanDivine]

Yep :) 3:48

[@ABS_AD77]

@@SeanDivine Thank you very much Sean. I was looking for something like this. Thanks for sharing valuable information on this video. Thanks Heaps. Lord Bless.

[@michaelorourke5848]

Hey Sean, Great video, How do you go about doing the time machine backup on a pc

[@SeanDivine]

thanks Michael! time machine is specific to mac... pc users, I'm sure there's an alternate solution?

[@CosmicTeapot]

Thanks for the great tips, Sean, they are much appreciated. Quick question: I got a somewhat similar studio set-up (MBP with a Caldigit TS3+) and so far, my plan is to have a dual HDD storage unit (2 clones) for archival purposes plugged into one of the 5Gbps ports (weekly back-ups), and use the USB-C 10GBps port for a 2TB SSD storing vst libraries and projects (so it would be used daily)... but so far, all the most popular products I have been looking into have their fair share of horror stories in the reviews (even the Samsung T7 or the G-Drive) which leaves me slightly scratching my head. I feel like there's no "good decision" I can make, only "least bad" ones... is the data-storage community a bit like the audiophile community? Should I just ignore the naysayers?

[@SeanDivine]

I can only speak from personal experience... my gdrives have been rock solid!

[@CosmicTeapot]

@@SeanDivine Awesome, thanks for having taken the time to answer a question on a six month old video, seriously you’re the best.

[@djinver]

Do you open your Projects through your external disks (and your there) or you move them to main internal disk and then you move them back? Love that video!

[@SeanDivine]

yes, all the project / session files are stored on the external

[@djinver]

@@SeanDivine Thank you cause i'm doing the same and i thought that i am the only one :)

[@jessefallas7094]

Hey Sean, do you leave external drives always mounted and connected or do you eject once you're finished using them? I am asking because of that "disk not ejected correctly" message.

[@SeanDivine]

I leave them mounted until I take my laptop out of the studio. Then I always safely eject before disconnecting.

[@WGBeats]

so this mean for instance that if the external SSD isn't plugged in to the laptop no project and plugins will load because every audio file is on the external?

[@SeanDivine]

That's correct

[@mrlara57]

Hey Sean, i am wanting to download my plug ins into a external hard drive, is this hard drive fast enough? I currently own native instruments plug ins Komplete 14 and want all my plug ins on an external hard drive.

[@SeanDivine]

I use the G Drive SSDs and they're plenty fast!

[@NetvoTV]

How about their new Armorlock model thats somewhat bigger than the 3 model you have, they both rugged and water resistant but is it make sense to get a portable drive thats bigger in physical but same storage size? I like yellow color so I interested in the Armorlock model

[@SeanDivine]

I haven't used the armorlock model but you can encrypt the regular model easily. I'd suggest looking at the read/write speeds as well in making the choice!

[@gitarman666]

Just got my second ssd g-drive What’s your cloning procedure? Or software for cloning? My 1rst 2TB g-drive is partitioned into 3 partitions 1 for each DAW So not sure if a regular cloning would give me the partition structure

[@SeanDivine]

I actually don't use cloning software! I keep my folder structure very simple and simply copy folders at the end of a session. Cloning isn't fail proof and I haven't found a better solution yet...

[@matthaberek]

I was wondering if a 2.3 ghz 8gb 512 GB ssd 2013 macbook pro would be exceptional enough just for vocals. Was thinking of getting a stienberg interface because I really love how you use waves tune real time but also was thinking focusrite for antares autotune access

[@IqbalHossain-vg8vr]

I'm thinking between hdd and ssd to use as a backup drive only for photos and videos and I only use phone and iPad Pro . I've heard hdd doesn't work with phone and iPad due to low power connectivity .so do u think samsung t7 shield 2tb would be a good buy for longterm storage?

[@dennis8213]

Very helpful video, thx! Is a 560mb/s read&write SSD enough for music production as well as video production? I could imagine that a setup of 560mb/s for backup & timemachine and a 1000mb/s for the main production SSD could be nice. What’s your opinion on that ? :)

[@SeanDivine]

in my experience, yes! I'm currently getting right around 500mb/s on the SSDs

[@dadsonanand5820]

Can NAS storage be a n option?

[@nazarenodadamante8703]

how do you connect all of these simultaneously..and do you keep them connected all the time?

[@SeanDivine]

I use a thunderbolt 3 dock - kzbin.info/www/bejne/ioG5iXSNqZeHirs

[@famusaaa]

I have a 2017 MacBook Pro can I get that same exact one you have?

[@SeanDivine]

Yessir, I have a 2016 mb pro

[@lianju85]

how long do hard drives last?

[@mixbymarkus]

Hey Sean, what about storing VST's and AU's? is there a way to off load plugins on a Mac or can they only be used on the main HD?

[@SeanDivine]

hey Markus, you can install the content (i.e. sounds / libraries) for the plugins to an external, but the actual plugin should be on the internal

[@mixbymarkus]

@@SeanDivine gotcha that makes sense thanks!

[@NetvoTV]

How do you Mark different drive to know which is which

[@SeanDivine]

I name them differently when I format them on Mac OS. Then you can use a label or just a sharpie and mark accordingly :)

[@holylambmedia]

After 6+ years I'm going from the big brick hard drives that need to be powered by wall sockets which are four WD My Book Hard Drives 2 are 2 terabyte, 1 is 3 terabyte, and 1 is 4 terabyte, asap I'm getting 2 portable 3 terabyte hard drives(cloning purposes) of my 1.5 terabyte kontakt expansion library and my 1 terabyte sample library 2 more 2 terabyte portable hard drives for project files as I like to save all my audio samples with the project files, the goal is to wait 1-3 years for there to be a 4 terabyte SSD to be $200 or even less, I saw a $60-$80 drop in prices in one year, since I'm only producing fan noise is no issue , so I can be patient for price drops And grab two 4 terabyte ssd (cloning purposes) , two 2 terabyte ssd (cloning purposes) and Thank you for the cloud backup topic.

[@unclebass5]

Does your content drive include all your sound libraries? I have the same 2T but there wont be enough room for all the “Logic” sessions shortly. Thanks

[@SeanDivine]

yes, it does

[@drkfsh3045]

What kind of usb hub do you use for your Mac and is that an m1? Chip? I'm stupid lol. If you say in the video I'm sorry lol

[@SeanDivine]

Check this one out :) kzbin.info/www/bejne/ioG5iXSNqZeHirs

[@alextail44]

Just a quick question. Why do you find it important to have a physical hard drive? Wouldn't it be enough only to have a cloud backup? Cheers

[@Krafty]

what happens to all your data if for some reason that cloud service goes down? You're relying on the cloud service to always be there. Having the physical drive is another back up just in case shtf.

[@djsayeed]

What kind of laptop stand are you using?

[@SeanDivine]

seandivine.com/studio/

[@djsayeed]

@@SeanDivine appreciate it

[@iretaylor3917]

If you’re using a Mac,how do you manage content from Mac to external hardrive. Does all files,etc have to be installed on the Mac first,then transfer to external drive?

[@SeanDivine]

typically, when you install software / instruments they will prompt you for where to put the sound or library content (check custom installation options) and you can place them on an external, while the software itself resides on your internal drive

[@khangram]

Hi , Can I use the sands instead of G-Technology? , look like it fast enough for external sound library.Thanks Sean. SanDisk 1TB Extreme Portable SSD ,Up to 1050MB/s ,USB-C, USB 3.2 Gen 2 .

[@swanebrokendeep]

Hi Sean thanks for this video. I need your help I've got a problem I think between my Mac book pro and my external hard drive. ( Mac book pro 2015, hard drive SSD samusung 1 T0) I can not compose any more I always have cracks during a session and then this error message : "audio and midi synchronization attempt error recognized sampling frequency of 42724, check for conflicts between logic pro and external devices" Do you know how to fix that? I specify that I have the same message when all my devices are unplugged (master keyboard, maschine mk3, audio interface) and all my VSTs are in the external hard drive.Thanks in advance. Swane.

[@SeanDivine]

Hi Swane, I have never seen that message... I would think since it's referencing sample rate, it's more likely that would be something related to your audio interface rather than a hard drive.

[@swanebrokendeep]

@@SeanDivine Hi Sean thanks a lot for your answer! in fact I stil have this message when my audio interface is not plugged! that's why I don't understand anything!

[@jonahpaz.]

Can I improve my cpu power using an ssd? If so, how is it done?

[@JsEscalade]

How do u put all of logics sounds on external ssd drive and have it read automatically? Trying to save storage space on my internal drive. How do u put omnispheres sounds on external drive as well.

[@SeanDivine]

in the case of the logic factory library and omnisphere, it gives you the option to select the location (your external drive) when you're going through the installation process

[@ModernCult]

Can I have Omnisphere on a hard drive and run it on my DAW?

[@SeanDivine]

the sound library, yes. the plugin itself still will be on the internal

[@ModernCult]

@@SeanDivine how would I go about that? Haha Any “easy” explanation?

[@single_cam9199]

How do you do this on pc

[@PreePro]

Which monitor is that?

[@SeanDivine]

it's an lg

[@PreePro]

@@SeanDivine Thank you for the reply. I love your work bro. Keep going!

[@whateva8314]

I’m on MacOS Mojave but I want to upgrade to Catalina. All of my plugins are 64-bit but will I still have to update all of them because I installed them on Mojave? And also, should I get an external hard drive to back up my Mac in case updating to Catalina causes problems?

[@SeanDivine]

I had to update / upgrade quite a few plugins and other software when I made the switch to Catalina. I'd definitely recommend having backups before hand. I had a complete time machine backup + a backup of all my content / important files from the internal drive

[@conrow1157]

Time Machine killed me one time. Thought it will Safe my live but didn’t work out at the end. So I had to reinstall my hole system!

[@LunaticTheCat]

That's why you need multiple redundant backups of your data (as explained in this video), although I'm sure you probably now know this after what happened with your Time Machine. Sorry that happened to you brotha, losing your data can be absolutely devastating :/

[@louis2366]

You could get time machine to regularly duplicate files from your main SSD onto the backup without you having to drag them over

[@user-ob9zo9cr4c]

but I fw working in mess.. only me? but in the same time I know I need put all together.. damn, how to do it? I struggle with shit 2 long . so many demos .

[@NetvoTV]

By the way man, I'm a freelance logo designer and wonder if you or you know anyone need a logo design for their business? I would love to craft a log for, please do let me know if you interested! :)

[@perrypelican9476]

The best thing is to mirror your data drives, which will create exact duplicates in real time. I have a large desktop and have a few usb3 thumb drives inside of the box. I use them to back up vital things very quickly. I also have external drives for what you do. But you have to use a mirroring system that you can set up easily with windows 10. Mirroring is good because if you overwrite yourself external drive when you back up, then what happens if there is a problem in the middle of the backup. It's always better to do backups to alternate drives, meaning one day backup to drive 1 and next day to drive 2 and then start over with drive 1. Another better one is backing up to. To compressed files and have one file for every day if the week and one at the end of the week. That way you can get data that you changed and want to get the version from a week ago or a month ago. It's all about how you want to do it. Simply mirroring data drives is easiest and you can even create multiple mirrors to take one off site every day in case of fire or whatever. I know you do cloud backups, which is off site. Your system is good if you do it every day. I prefer mirroring because it's automatic and better because you don't lose even a second. Your way is weak because if your drive crashes, you can only recover your last backup and lose whatever work you did that day. One day can be very valuable. What if you hire a singer for 1000 bucks or more and your drive crashes before you back it up. If you used a mirror, nothing would be lost. One consideration is to unplug your computer when you go to sleep unless you are running something overnight. A sudden storm can destroy your system with a surge from lightning. Unplugging isolates it. In short here is my recommendation Have -a c drive for your programs and operating system -2 mirrored data drives set up using windows 10 mirroring system -manually or using a back up program copy your data to an external drive at end of day, -have a few USB 3 thumb drives always plugged in for instant backups of vital stuff or to move files to wherever -send vital data to the cloud at end of day or twice a day Note that you can send files to the cloud as often as makes you feel more secure. Make sure you use a very reliable and secure cloud backup provider. Nobody and no company is 100% perfect, so the more redundant, the better. Cloud storage can be gotten quite inexpensively or free in sone cases so using multiple cloud providers can be a good thing. One thing I didn't mention is the ultimate in redundancy which is a RAID system, which is a bit complex and has various configurations. Since I forget the details behind RAID, I leave it to you to research. I like the mirror solution because it's so easy to set up and understand. I think a real time backup like a mirror is a must to not lose a single byte of data unless your computer is totally destroyed instantly by a stampeding herd of large dinosaurs. You always want your data backed up to sone where that is totally offline so no hackers can get to it. That why disconnecting your external drive when not backing up is a good idea. Tbat drive is immune to a virus telling your operating system to format all drives.

[@Juliano_DJOL]

Yall better be carefull with those big ole external hdd's with everything u own on em! I've learned the hard way more than once that they are delicate! They can be great for backing up everything and leaving in a desk at home but if you carry them in your bag u better be careful! SSDs are faster and way more durable but also more $....

[@SeanDivine]

back up, back up, back up :)

[@ernieg]

$ 545 for 2gb Sheeesh

[@charliexu5013]

I feel your neck pain 😂😂😂 use monitor arm please lol

[@KaylahBell]

Thank You!