Storage methods

The most common type of long-term storage that uses thick magnetic disks encased in a protective housing to store data.

• Hard Disk Drive (HDD)

• Optical Drive

• Flash Storage

• Solid State Devices (SSD)

A storage device that uses light instead of magnetism to store information. This include CD-ROM, DVD, and Blu-ray devices.

• Optical Drive

• Flash Storage

• Solid State Devices (SSD)

• External Hard Disk Drives

A compact, portable storage device that uses special memory chips to store data.

• Hard Disk Drive (HDD)

• Optical Drive

• Flash Storage

• Solid State Devices (SSD)

A device with similar capacity to an HDD that uses flash storage instead of magnetic disks to store data. SSDs are much faster and more durable than hard disk drives but usually are more expensive.

• Optical Drive

• Flash Storage

• Solid State Devices (SSD)

• External Hard Disk Drives

An HDD that can be connected as a peripheral to a computer.

• Flash Storage

• Solid State Devices (SSD)

• External Hard Disk Drives

• Heat-Assisted Magnetic Recording

The smallest container within a computer's storage system that is used to store information such as data, settings, and commands used in a computer program. A file is the smallest container that can be copied, deleted, or moved within a file system.

• File

• File Format

• File System

• Compression

The way a file is organized. File formats are indicated by an extension such as .jpg, .gif, .png., .mp3, .wav, .wma, .mp4, .avi, and .wmv.

• File Format

• File System

• Compression

• Encryption

The methods and structures that an operating system uses to organize files on a storage device like a hard drive. File systems often use directory structures to keep track of files.

• File System

• Compression

• Encryption

• File Permissions

Reencoding a file to consume less storage space.

• File System

• Compression

• Encryption

• File Permissions

The process of converting information so it cannot be understood without decrypting it using a key, especially to prevent unauthorized access.

• Compression

• Encryption

• File Permissions

• Journaling