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A media
safe is one that is designed for the safe, secure
storage of various forms of computer and electronic media.
Electronic media is more fragile and easily damaged than
paper media, so there are special requirements for a media
safe.
The fire rating for a media
safe is different from that of a standard fireproof
safe. The rating is still given in number of hours, but
the maximum temperature that can be reached inside the safe
during the test is 125 degrees F, rather the 350 degrees
F allowed with standard safes. So a good media safe would
be rated 1 hour at 125 degrees F, meaning that the safe
could be exposed to a 1700 degree F fire for 1 hour, and
the temperature inside would not rise to more than 125 degrees
F. In addition, there is a humidity requirement for a media
safe - the maximum humidity inside the safe cannot
reach more than 80% humidity during the specified time of
the test.
A media
safe also needs to provide protection from unauthorized
access - some media
safe also carry a burglary rating. The burglary
rating indicates how resistant the safe is to tampering
with common safecracking tools. In addition, computer media
requires protection from dust, magnetic fields, and electrostatic
discharge.
As you can see, the design requirements for a media
safe are much more difficult to meet than those
of a standard safe. The walls and doors have layers of heat
absorbing material. They also have layers of fireproof insulating
foam that expands when heated to protect the contents from
water damage. In addition, the conductive steel casing provides
protection from magnetic fields and electrostatic discharges.
A media
safe offers one other feature to simplify media
storage. You can specify the type and arrangement of the
interior for the storage of the various types of computer
media. For example, you can choose drawers designed to store
3.5" floppies, 4 or 8 mm dat tapes, or CD ROMs.
So there are a number of factors to consider when choosing
a media
safe. You should first decide on the type(s)
of media and amount of storage that you will need. This
will determine the overall size and interior configuration
of the safe. Next, you should decide on the amount of protection
you need - the fire and/or burglary rating of the safe.
In addition, you will need to determine which type of lock
best suits your needs - a key, mechanical combination or
electronic keypad lock.
Choosing the right media
safe is an important decision. Make sure that
you consider all necessary factors when deciding which media
safe is right for you.
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