Do you RETIRE your hard drives at a specific point?
 

Do you give your hard drives a finite lifetime and unconditionally replace them by a certain date (say, the end of the manufacturer's warranty), or just wait until they fail?

I have a RAID5 array so it's redundant - one drive failing will not lose any data - but I'm not sure about twiddling my thumbs until the drives fail. By then you probably won't even be able to buy a 300GB drive anyway. :)

Thoughts?

I run daily backups on my essential drives until it dies.

I usually change when I buy new computers. Every 3-5 years I would say!

The other thing to consider is the need for increased space. My RAID5 array totals about 850GB in size, 5 years ago I wouldn't have dreamed (or needed) this sort of space. I may end up replacing the drives before I need to.

I run a RAID0 setup, which isn't as 'data safe' as other setups, but I tend to replace my boxes long before any components wear out. The old drives? I use them for data backup.

Isn't that a bit like acquiring a 30 year old van to use as an ambulance? :)

I only let them retire once they crash.

I use servers for a max life span in a live environment of 3 years. I only replace
hard drives if they die before that. :2 cents: