Copy That Floppy: A Cambridge Framework for Fragile Disk Preservation

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Overview

Developed as a core component of the Future Nostalgia project—an initiative spearheaded by the Cambridge University Library with backing from the Digital Preservation Coalition—this manual provides a professional methodology for creating disk images from legacy floppy media for long-term archival purposes.

Current Status: Good to Go | Open For Updates Last Updated: November 21, 2025

🛠 Contribution & Feedback

If you have suggestions or updates, please utilize the following channels:

• Open a GitHub issue
• Edit the page directly

Scope and Intent

This documentation is tailored for preservation practitioners. The primary goal is the creation of high-fidelity disk images to ensure data longevity.

What is covered:

• 8-inch disks
• 5.25-inch disks
• 3.5-inch disks
• 3-inch disks

What is NOT covered:

• Writing data to disks
• Step-by-step software tutorials (due to the rapid evolution of tools)
• File extraction (the focus is on the image, not the contents)

Prerequisites

The guide assumes the reader possesses a foundational understanding of digital preservation and is comfortable with:

1. The use of write blockers.
2. Software configuration across various operating systems.
3. Navigating the command line (CLI).

Example of the type of environment you may encounter:

# Example: Checking a device mount in a Linux environment
lsblk /dev/sdb
sudo fdisk -l /dev/sdb

Origins of the Guide

This framework is the result of collaborative synthesis, drawing from:

• Expert interviews within the retro-computing community.
• Specialized digital preservation workshops.
• Community events, such as the Copy that Floppy Cafe.
• Peer review and community editing.

It builds upon existing scholarship, specifically the Archivist’s Guide to Kryoflux and the iPRES 2024 sessions regarding obscure media.

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🗺️ The Preservation Workflow

The process is divided into five primary phases:

1. Identifying your carrier: Determining the physical format.
2. Acquiring hardware: Sourcing compatible drives and controllers.
3. Cleaning and maintaining: Managing mold, dirt, and physical degradation.
4. Imaging floppy disks: Creating a flux stream and raw images.
5. Further steps and where to get help: Post-imaging workflows and external resources.

Note: Throughout this text, the terms floppies, floppy disks, carriers, and disks are used interchangeably.

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1. Identifying Your Carrier

The initial phase of any workflow is the accurate identification of the media. To assist in this, practitioners should consult:

• Know Your Digital Storage Media (UTSA Libraries Special Collections).
• The Museum of Obsolete Media.

Supported Formats

While many exotic formats exist (as documented by the Obsolete Media museum), this guide focuses exclusively on the following:

![Figure 1: Comparison of 3.5", 3", 5.25", and 8" disks]

Identification Strategies

Once you have narrowed the size down, gather as much metadata as possible:

• Labels: Read all handwritten or printed text on the disk.
• Provenance: Interview the depositor or research the source of the collection.
• Documentation: $\text{Photograph} \rightarrow \text{Archive}$. Always take a high-resolution photo of the physical disk to preserve context for future researchers.

Physical Indicators

Different disks have specific physical markers that reveal their density:

3.5-inch Disks

The number of holes on the bottom is a key indicator:

• High Density (HD): Two holes. Usually marked with "HD" in the top right.
• Double Density (DD): One hole.

5.25-inch Disks

These are more ambiguous. Some DD disks feature a colored hub ring (white, black, or gold) around the center hole, though this is not a universal rule. There is also the possibility of a hard... [Text ends here]