1 x 2tb Drive or 2 x 1 tb (in RAID 1) Drive for a NAS?

[Blueprint]

Thinking about buying a NAS enclosure and was wondering what's the best configuration? Should I put two 1tb WD Red Drives in RAID 1 or have 1 2tb drive and then upgrade to another 2tb drive later on and put those in raid 1? Would I need RAID 1 for my drive/s when I first get them or would they last long enough (half a year or so) so I can add another and put those in RAID 1? 

 

Thanks.

Blueprint

[FlashingKool_Z]

I'd be surprised if a Red dies within half a year 

[markes12344]

western digital drives typically last for years, very few, to the abused drives get a short life span. 
if your going to buy a second 2 tb drive in a year may as well start with the bigger drive. 

Personally, for consumer use, i wouldn't bother with a Red id go Black or if only used seldom a Green. Its just Red drives are ment for constant use ware n tear, on that note it sure aint gunna die on you any time soon. 

 

The only issue you may find is if in 3 years you need more storage, could you ever add a 3rd drive and raid5 or a 4th drive and raid10? if not the 3tb or 4tb drives are there. 

[Captain_WD]

Hey there Blueprint,

 

As @FlashingKool_Z mentioned, WD Red drives should last much more than half a year without issues or bad sectors in NAS environments as they are equipped with NASware and TLER.

Depending on your storage space needs and your budget, you could go either way. If you plan to definitely upgrade in the future, I would recommend getting 1x2TB and a separate external drive for backups of your important data until you get your second drive and put them in RAID1. Do have in mind that RAID1 offers redundancy but it is not a backup as if you NAS fails, there's a high chance that both your drives will fail too and you won't have a backup.

 

@markes12344 has a good point on using the drives. While WD Red are designed for NAS/RAID environments, WD Black and WD Green would also do the job, depending on what you will be using that NAS for. If you'd like to share how the NAS device would be used, we would be able to give you some advice on how to proceed with the drives.

 

Hope this helps,

 

Captain_WD.

[Blueprint]

 

Hey there Blueprint,

 

As @FlashingKool_Z mentioned, WD Red drives should last much more than half a year without issues or bad sectors in NAS environments as they are equipped with NASware and TLER.

Depending on your storage space needs and your budget, you could go either way. If you plan to definitely upgrade in the future, I would recommend getting 1x2TB and a separate external drive for backups of your important data until you get your second drive and put them in RAID1. Do have in mind that RAID1 offers redundancy but it is not a backup as if you NAS fails, there's a high chance that both your drives will fail too and you won't have a backup.

 

@markes12344 has a good point on using the drives. While WD Red are designed for NAS/RAID environments, WD Black and WD Green would also do the job, depending on what you will be using that NAS for. If you'd like to share how the NAS device would be used, we would be able to give you some advice on how to proceed with the drives.

 

Hope this helps,

 

Captain_WD.

 

Thanks,

 

Yeah, it will be used for video, music and general file storage. I will be backing up folders across the internet to another house across the country, so fixing the drives will be a bit of an issue if one does fail.

[Captain_WD]

Thanks,

 

Yeah, it will be used for video, music and general file storage. I will be backing up folders across the internet to another house across the country, so fixing the drives will be a bit of an issue if one does fail.

Well, If you are planning on streaming those, WD Red would be the most secure thing. If it would be just for general storage and occasional backup, I would say WD Green would do the job for you just fine.

Either way, since you'd be far away, I'd suggest monitoring the health of those drives more regularly just to make sure you won't lose any valuable data.

 

Captain_WD.

[Blueprint]

 

Well, If you are planning on streaming those, WD Red would be the most secure thing. If it would be just for general storage and occasional backup, I would say WD Green would do the job for you just fine.

Either way, since you'd be far away, I'd suggest monitoring the health of those drives more regularly just to make sure you won't lose any valuable data.

 

Captain_WD.

 

Ok thank you. You've been very helpful.

[Captain_WD]

You are welcome

Feel free to ask if you have more questions.

 

Captain_WD.