KryoFlux

KryoFlux consists of a small hardware device,{{cite web|title=Software Preservation Society - Glossary KryoFlux|url=http://softpres.org/glossary:kryoflux}} 191206 softpres.org{{cite web|title=Software Preservation Society - News 2010-02-18|url=http://softpres.org/news:2010-02-18}} 100220 softpres.org which is a software-programmable FDC system that runs on small ARM-based devices that connects to a floppy disk drive and a host PC over USB, and software for accessing the device. KryoFlux reads "flux transitions" from floppy disks at a very fine resolution.{{cite AV media|first=Clint|last=Basinger|publisher=YouTube|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqLv8d-W-9c&t=5m11s|title=LGR - Kryoflux USB Floppy Disk Controller Overview|date=January 14, 2012|accessdate=April 25, 2020|time=5:11}} It can also read disks originally written with different bit cell widths and drive speeds, with a normal fixed-speed drive.{{cite web|title=Software Preservation Society - Glossary KryoFlux|url=http://softpres.org/glossary:kryoflux}} 191206 softpres.org The software is available for Microsoft Windows,{{cite journal|date=October 25, 2016|first=John|last=Durno|journal=Code4Lib Journal|issue=34|title=Digital Archaeology and/or Forensics: Working with Floppy Disks from the 1980s|issn=1940-5758|oclc=1061064470|url=https://journal.code4lib.org/articles/11986|url-status=live|archive-date=December 25, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191225064214/https://journal.code4lib.org/articles/11986}} Mac OS and Linux. The KryoFlux controller plugs into a standard USB port, and allows normal PC floppy disk drives to be plugged into it.

Because the device operates on data bits at the lowest possible level with very precise timing resolution, it allows modern PCs to read, decode and write floppy disks that use practically any data format or method of copy protection to aid in digital preservation.{{cite news|work=The Register|publisher=Situation|title=Lost artworks by Andy Warhol found on 80s-era FLOPPY DISKS|url= https://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/04/25/warhol_amiga_artworks_found/|url-status=live|archive-date=June 28, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170628052801/https://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/04/25/warhol_amiga_artworks_found/|first=Neil|last=McAllister|location=San Francisco|date=April 25, 2014}} It has been tested successfully with many generations of floppy disk drive including 8", 5.25", 3.5" and 3" mechanisms, and dozens of disk formats including numerous schemes originally designed to prevent software piracy, allowing the preservation (typically to an image file stored on hard disk or other modern media) of programs and data that will inevitably succumb to data degradation as the original physical media deteriorates and becomes unreadable over time.{{cite web|work=Eurogamer|title=Your Amiga games are likely dying|first=Lewis|last=Packwood|date=December 3, 2017|url=https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2017-12-03-your-amiga-games-are-likely-dying|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200226091009/https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2017-12-03-your-amiga-games-are-likely-dying|archive-date=February 26, 2020}} The image files produced may be rewritten to fresh disk media or, more commonly, used with software emulations of the original systems.

When reading old disks (especially those stored in non-climate controlled environments for long periods) there are a number of problems that can arise, including weakening of the magnetic field storing the data, deterioration of the binder holding the metal particles to the plastic disk surface, friction issues preventing the disk rotating freely in its outer protective sleeve, and issues caused by physical misalignment of the drive that originally wrote the disk or the one being used to read it. Users have detailed{{cite web|first=Gough|last=Lui|work=Dr. Gough's Techzone|title=A detailed description of recovering a number of old disks and problems encountered|url=http://goughlui.com/2013/04/21/project-kryoflux-part-1-the-board-and-associated-hardware/|url-status=live|archive-date=January 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200108122032/https://goughlui.com/2013/04/21/project-kryoflux-part-1-the-board-and-associated-hardware/|location=Australia|date=April 21, 2013}} various techniques to aid in the recovery of data stored on such marginal disks.

• {{Official website|https://www.kryoflux.com/}}

Category:Digital preservation

Category:Floppy disk computer storage

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