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There are a set of primordial features and functions expected of any modern information system: a substrate stably carrying data; the ability to repeatedly write, read, erase, reload, and compute on specific data from that substrate; and the overall ability to execute such functions in a seamless and programmable manner. For nascent molecular information technologies, proof of principle realization of this set of primordial capabilities would advance the vision for their continued development. Here, we present a DNA-based store and compute engine that captures these primordial capabilities. This system comprises multiple image files encoded into DNA and adsorbed onto ~50 um diameter, highly porous, hierarchically branched, colloidal substrate particles comprised of naturally abundant cellulose acetate. Their surface areas are over 200 cm2/mg with binding capacities of over 1012 DNA oligos/mg, 10 terabytes/mg, or 104 terabytes/cm3. This “dendricolloid” stably holds DNA files better than bare DNA with an extrapolated ability to be repeatedly lyophilized and rehydrated over 170 times compared to 60 times, respectively. Accelerated aging studies project half-lives of ~6000 and 2 million years at 4 ˚C and -18 ˚C, respectively. The data can also be erased and replaced, and non-destructive file access is achieved through transcribing from distinct synthetic promoters. The resultant RNA molecules can be directly read via nanopore sequencing and can also be enzymatically computed to solve simplified 3x3 chess and sudoku problems. Our study establishes a feasible route for utilizing the high information density and parallel computational advantages of nucleic acids.