Reproduce media-set capacity from a reviewed inventory, per-item payload, explicit working overhead and reserve, then compare an independent capacity record.
A quick decision brief for this specific tool
One de-identified storage record; named reviewed media-inventory, per-item payload-size, working-overhead, reserve and independent-capacity records; one decimal GB/TB or binary GiB/TiB unit system; positive whole item count and per-item size; explicit overhead/reserve from zero through 1,000%; and nonnegative independent capacity
Source-preserving record basis, base payload, working overhead/subtotal, reserve, reproduced required capacity, independent capacity and signed reproduced-minus-independent differences in both source and headline units
Multiply only the reviewed whole item count by its documented comparable per-item payload, apply the explicit working-overhead percentage and then the explicit reserve percentage, divide by 1,000 for decimal TB or 1,024 for binary TiB and compare the independent capacity; do not infer codec size, storage architecture, RAID/cloud/NAS, copies, backup, recovery, retention or preservation policy
Choose your path
Reproduce one reviewed comparable-media inventory's payload, working overhead and reserve in explicit decimal or binary units, then compare an independent capacity without designing storage policy.
Keep media payload, proxies/caches/renders and free-space reserve separate instead of relying on a generic 2–4× rule.
Group comparable media, name the inventory and per-item size record, copy the working-overhead and reserve plans, and inspect every capacity component.
Can locate an inventory, unit or planning mismatch without receiving a device, RAID, cache or deletion recommendation.
Compare a reviewed storage plan with an independent capacity value while preserving decimal or binary unit semantics.
Use reviewed-storage-plan basis, enter only source-owned percentages and compare required versus independent source/headline capacity.
Gets traceable reconciliation while performance, availability, copy count, backup, recovery and lifecycle costs remain external.
Understand why bytes, inventory and headroom arithmetic cannot determine long-term preservation or recoverability.
Run decimal and binary exercises, zero overhead/reserve and positive/negative comparisons, then review the external policy checklist.
Can reproduce capacity and name the integrity, replication, restore, retention and format decisions the tool cannot make.
Outputs and checklists are planning aids. Review the linked current authorities and the records, terms, instructions, and requirements that apply to your exact situation before a consequential decision.
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Group only items sharing the entered size basis. Mixed codecs, frame sizes, stream sets, sidecars or measured sizes require separate inventory groups. Apple documentation illustrates why a codec-family name alone cannot own one universal payload size.
Base payload = reviewed whole item count × documented payload size per itemThe responsible plan must state whether proxies, caches, renders, project files, duplicates, snapshots or other working data are included. Zero is allowed only when its source record explicitly defines zero overhead or reserve; no generic multiplier is supplied.
Working subtotal = base × (1 + overhead%); required capacity = subtotal × (1 + reserve%)NIST SI prefixes use decimal multiples. Binary GiB/TiB is a separate selectable path. A signed difference is an audit prompt and does not prove usable array capacity, throughput, redundancy, backup or recoverability.
TB = GB ÷ 1,000; TiB = GiB ÷ 1,024; difference = reproduced required − independent capacityUpdated: August 2026
An exercise inventory has 120 comparable items at 25 GB each, 40% working overhead and 20% reserve. Required capacity is 5,040 GB or 5.04 TB; versus 5,000 GB, the signed difference is +40 GB or +0.04 TB.
A reviewed GiB inventory remains on a GiB/TiB basis, applies only its documented percentages and preserves a negative independent-capacity difference without relabeling a 1,024 conversion as decimal TB.
An operations planner runs unlike camera originals, audio, proxies and renders as separate comparable groups, reconciles their records externally and keeps copy count, snapshots, backup and retention decisions outside the calculator.
Create a source-labelled capacity record from an already reviewed comparable-media inventory and storage plan. Multiply the whole item count by its documented per-item payload, apply only the named working-overhead and reserve percentages, then compare an independent capacity in paired decimal GB/TB or binary GiB/TiB units. The calculator does not infer codec size or choose devices, RAID, cloud, NAS, copies, backup, recovery, retention or preservation policy.