# Safe archival compression: reclaim space, keep the raw

- Link: https://jcody.com/insights/safe-archival-compression-reclaim-space-keep-the-raw/
- Published: 2026-10-26T11:30:00-04:00
- Author: Jeffrey Cody

Archival compression is how I get storage back from a very large video archive without
ever putting the originals at risk. With close to 100 TB of footage, some of it 
impossible to reshoot, I do not take chances.

## The rules I do not break

 * Originals are never modified.
 * Compression runs on copies, never on the source.
 * A quality score decides whether a compressed copy is allowed to stand in for 
   the original.
 * Nothing is removed until the new copy is verified and I approve it.
 * Every step leaves a record.

## How the quality gate works

I compare each compressed file against its source with an objective quality measure
called [VMAF](https://github.com/Netflix/vmaf), and I also check that the new file
is meaningfully smaller. If a clip does not clear the bar, the original stays exactly
as it was and the file is logged. A shaky drone clip missed the mark once, and the
system kept the original, which is the whole point of having a gate.

## Log it, park it, move on

One bad file should not stop the line. A file that fails is logged and parked for
a human decision, and the run continues. I learned that rule in marketing long before
I used it with AI: do not stop the show for one problem, flag it and keep the curtain
moving.

## Keep the raw

Compressed copies are for working, sharing and everyday use. The raw files stay,
for the day an edit needs the full-quality source. Reclaiming space and keeping 
the raw are not opposites if the process is careful.

This sits on top of the [golden record](https://jcody.com/insights/golden-record-indexing-fingerprinting-25-years/),
which tells me exactly what each file is before I touch a copy of it. If you have
an archive that is out of room, [let us talk](https://jcody.com/contact/).

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_Written with AI assistance. Every idea, opinion and experience here is mine. I 
just thrive on strategy and execution more than eloquent wordsmithing._