The Usenet newsgroups move fast. One day your news server may have 250 days of retention, while the next it may have well over 400. If you’re a newcomer to the newsgroups, making sense of retention and placing a value on this service may be perplexing. Hopefully this article clears the mud somewhat.

Retention is simply a number that reflects how long an article stays on a news server. The longer an article stays, especially binary articles, the more storage space is needed. News server companies like Giganews and Astraweb are constantly investing in their networks to provide as many days retention as possible. This competition has led to extensive retention – most major providers are well over 450 days.

But is paying extra for more retention worth it? Probably not. Most articles are reposted over a period of time, so a difference in 100 days, even 200 days, is not likely worth extra money. If a news server company is charging extra and all you’re getting is extra retention, time to keep looking. Here’s a peek at the vanguard newsgroup providers. Most Tier 1 newsgroup providers (Giganews, Astraweb, Highwinds and XS News) all have the infrastructure to support in excess of 400 days.

Provider: Days Retention

1) Giganews: 530
2) Astraweb: 520
3) Newsdemon: 503
4) UseNetServer: 503
5) NewsHosting: 503
6) Thundernews: 465
7) XS News: 303

This week’s rundown shows Giganews in the lead by about 10 days over Astraweb – not too much of a difference. XS News, which resides in Europe, is a bit behind with 303 days, but we’re expecting them to solidly hit 400 days soon. A massive upgrade last year should ensure that XS News remains competitive, but 303 days is already more than enough retention to have a full newsgroup experience.

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