Backup

Copies against catastrophe: the work existing in enough places that no single failure can end it. Three copies, two media, one elsewhere.

Backup is the acceptance that everything fails: drives die, buildings burn, accounts lock, ransomware arrives. The classic rule, three copies, on two kinds of media, one off-site, is not superstition but arithmetic, independent failures multiplying into acceptable odds.

The neglected half is restoration: a backup never test-restored is a hope, not a copy. Verification on schedule, versions kept deep enough to survive corruption that spreads quietly, and automation over discipline, because discipline has bad weeks. Every studio owns this lesson eventually; the only choice is whether tuition is paid in advance or in masters.