Which of the following types of storage requires some direct human action in order to make access to the storage media physically possible?

Question

Options

• ANear-line
• BOff-line
• COn-line
• DFar-line

• A
  15% (3)
• B
  75% (15)
• C
  5% (1)
• D
  5% (1)

Explanation

Off-line storage (B) requires a human to physically retrieve and load the media - think tape cartridges in a vault or DVDs in a drawer - before any data can be accessed. The media is completely disconnected from the system until someone intervenes.

On-line (C) is always immediately accessible with no human intervention, like a hard drive or SSD already attached to a running system. Near-line (A) is a middle ground - media like robotic tape libraries that can be accessed automatically without a human, just with a short delay while the robot retrieves it. Far-line (D) is not a standard industry term and serves as a distractor.

Memory tip: Think of the prefix as physical distance from the computer - "on" means attached and ready, "near" means close but needs a moment (robot-handled), and "off" means completely removed and requiring a person to bring it back.

No community discussion yet for this question.