Data degradation

Not to be confused with Software rot.

Data degradation is the gradual corruption of computer data due to an accumulation of non-critical failures in a data storage device. It is also referred to as data decay, data rot or bit rot.^[1] This results in a decline in data quality over time, even when the data is not being utilized.

Primary storages

Data degradation in dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) can occur when the electric charge of a bit in DRAM disperses, possibly altering program code or stored data. DRAM may be altered by cosmic rays^[2] or other high-energy particles. Such data degradation is known as a soft error.^[3] ECC memory can be used to mitigate this type of data degradation.^[4]

Secondary storages

Data degradation results from the gradual decay of storage media over the course of years or longer. Causes vary by medium:

Solid-state media

EPROMs, flash memory and other solid-state drive store data using electrical charges, which can slowly leak away due to imperfect insulation. Modern flash controller chips account for this leak by trying several lower threshold voltages (until ECC passes), prolonging the age of data. Multi-level cells with much lower distance between voltage levels cannot be considered stable without this functionality.^[5]

The chip itself is not affected by this, so reprogramming it approximately once per decade prevents decay. An undamaged copy of the master data is required for the reprogramming. A checksum can be used to assure that the on-chip data is not yet damaged and ready for reprogramming.

Magnetic media

Magnetic media, such as hard disk drives, floppy disks and magnetic tapes, may experience data decay as bits lose their magnetic orientation. Higher temperature speeds up the rate of magnetic loss. As with solid-state media, re-writing is useful as long as the medium itself is not damaged (see below).^[6] Modern hard drives use Giant magnetoresistance and have a higher magnetic lifespan on the order of decades. They also automatically correct any errors detected by ECC through rewriting. The reliance on a factory servo track can complicate data recovery if it becomes unrecoverable, however.

Floppy disks and tapes are poorly protected against ambient air. In warm/humid conditions, they are prone to the physical decomposition of the storage medium.^[7][6]

Optical media

Optical media such as CD-R, DVD-R and BD-R, may experience data decay from the breakdown of the storage medium. This can be mitigated by storing discs in a dark, cool, low humidity location. "Archival quality" discs are available with an extended lifetime, but are still not permanent. However, data integrity scanning that measures the rates of various types of errors is able to predict data decay on optical media well ahead of uncorrectable data loss occurring.^[8]

Both the disc dye and the disc backing layer are potentially susceptible to breakdown. Early cyanine-based dyes used in CD-R were notorious for their lack of UV stability. Early CDs also suffered from CD bronzing, and is related to a combination of bad lacquer material and failure of the aluminum reflection layer.^[9] Later discs use more stable dyes or forgo them for an inorganic mixture. The aluminum layer is also commonly swapped out for gold or silver alloy.

Paper media

Paper media, such as punched cards and punched tape, may literally rot. Mylar punched tape is another approach that does not rely on electromagnetic stability. Degradation of books and printing paper is primarily driven by acid hydrolysis of glycosidic bonds within the cellulose molecule as well as by oxidation;^[10] degradation of paper is accelerated by high relative humidity, high temperature, as well as by exposure to acids, oxygen, light, and various pollutants, including various volatile organic compounds and nitrogen dioxide.^[11]

Example

Below are several digital images illustrating data degradation, all consisting of 326,272 bits. The original photo is displayed first. In the next image, a single bit was changed from 0 to 1. In the next two images, two and three bits were flipped. On Linux systems, the binary difference between files can be revealed using cmp command (e.g. cmp -b bitrot-original.jpg bitrot-1bit-changed.jpg).

• 
  0 bits flipped
• 
  1 bit flipped
• 
  2 bits flipped
• 
  3 bits flipped

Causes

This deterioration can be caused by a variety of factors that impact the reliability and integrity of digital information, including physical factors, software errors, security breaches, human error, obsolete technology, and unauthorized access incidents.^{[12][13][14][15]}

Hardware failures

Most disk, disk controller and higher-level systems are subject to a slight chance of unrecoverable failure. With ever-growing disk capacities, file sizes, and increases in the amount of data stored on a disk, the likelihood of the occurrence of data decay and other forms of uncorrected and undetected data corruption increases.^[16]

Low-level disk controllers typically employ error correction codes (ECC) to correct erroneous data.^[17]

Higher-level software systems may be employed to mitigate the risk of such underlying failures by increasing redundancy and implementing integrity checking, error correction codes and self-repairing algorithms.^[18] The ZFS file system was designed to address many of these data corruption issues.^[19] The Btrfs file system also includes data protection and recovery mechanisms,^[20] as does ReFS.^[21]

See also

• Checksum
• Database integrity
• Data curation
• Data preservation
• Data scrubbing
• Digital permanence
• Digital preservation
• Disc rot
• Error detection and correction
• Link rot
• Media preservation
• RAR archive file format has optional recovery
• PAR2 recovery file format

References

1. Rouse, Margaret (25 March 2020). "What is Bit Rot?". Techopedia Dictionary. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
2. "The Invisible Neutron Threat | National Security Science Magazine". Los Alamos National Laboratory. Retrieved 2020-03-13.
3. O'Gorman, T. J.; Ross, J. M.; Taber, A. H.; Ziegler, J. F.; Muhlfeld, H. P.; Montrose, C. J.; Curtis, H. W.; Walsh, J. L. (January 1996). "Field testing for cosmic ray soft errors in semiconductor memories". IBM Journal of Research and Development. 40 (1): 41–50. doi:10.1147/rd.401.0041.
4. Single Event Upset at Ground Level, Eugene Normand, Member, IEEE, Boeing Defense & Space Group, Seattle, WA 98124-2499
5. Li, Qianhui; Wang, Qi; Yang, Liu; Yu, Xiaolei; Jiang, Yiyang; He, Jing; Huo, Zongliang (April 2022). "Optimal read voltages decision scheme eliminating read retry operations for 3D NAND flash memories". Microelectronics Reliability. 131: 114509. doi:10.1016/j.microrel.2022.114509.
6. "Preserving magnetic media". National Archives of Australia. Retrieved 3 November 2020. High temperature and humidity and fluctuations may cause the magnetic and base layers in a reel of tape to separate, or cause adjacent loops to block together. High temperatures may also weaken the magnetic signal, and ultimately de-magnetise the magnetic layer.
7. Riss, Dan (July 1993). "Conserve O Gram (number 19/8) Preservation Of Magnetic Media" (PDF). nps.gov. Harpers Ferry, West Virginia: National Park Service / Department of the Interior (US). p. 2. The longevity of magnetic media is most seriously affected by processes that attack the binder resin. Moisture from the air is absorbed by the binder and reacts with the resin. The result is a gummy residue that can deposit on tape heads and cause tape layers to stick together. Reaction with moisture also can result in breaks in the long molecular chains of the binder. This weakens the physical properties of the binder and can result in a lack of adhesion to the backing. These reactions are greatly accelerated by the presence of acids. Typical sources would be the usual pollutant gases in the air, such as sulphur dioxide (SO2) and nitrous oxides (NOx), which react with moist air to form acids. Though acid inhibitors are usually built into the binder layer, over time they can lose their effectiveness.
8. "QPxTool glossary". qpxtool.sourceforge.io. QPxTool. 2008-08-01. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
9. "Bronzed CD alert!". IASA Information Bulletin no. 22. July 1997. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 3 August 2007.
10. Małachowska, Edyta; Pawcenis, Dominika; Dańczak, Jacek; Paczkowska, Joanna; Przybysz, Kamila (26 March 2021). "Paper Ageing: The Effect of Paper Chemical Composition on Hydrolysis and Oxidation". Polymers. 13 (7): 1029. doi:10.3390/polym13071029. PMC 8036582. PMID 33810293.
11. Menart, Eva; De Bruin, Gerrit; Strlič, Matija (9 September 2011). "Dose–response functions for historic paper" (PDF). Polymer Degradation and Stability. 96 (12): 2029–2039. doi:10.1016/j.polymdegradstab.2011.09.002. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
12. Sheng Lance, Li (22 July 2015). "What is data decay?". Tech in Asia. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
13. "Definition of data degradation". PC Magazine. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
14. Hakob, Mike. "Data Decay: What are the Causes?". FormStory. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
15. Triches, Robert (16 March 2006). "Forskare: Billiga cd-skivor håller bara i två år". Aftonbladet. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
16. Gray, Jim; van Ingen, Catharine (December 2005). "Empirical Measurements of Disk Failure Rates and Error Rates" (PDF). Microsoft Research Technical Report MSR-TR-2005-166. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
17. "ECC and Spare Blocks help to keep Kingston SSD data protected from errors". Kingston Technology Company. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
18. Salter, Jim (15 January 2014). "Bitrot and atomic COWs: Inside "next-gen" filesystems". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on 6 March 2015. Retrieved 15 January 2014.
19. Bonwick, Jeff. "ZFS: The Last Word in File Systems" (PDF). Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA). Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
20. "btrfs Wiki: Features". The btrfs Project. Retrieved 19 September 2013.
21. Wlodarz, Derrick (15 January 2014). "Windows Storage Spaces and ReFS: is it time to ditch RAID for good?". Betanews. Retrieved 2014-02-09.