Which HDD should I use for backup? And should I go with RAID10?

[ivanlauhk]

I am current running a rack mounted two-sockets server, planning to do bunch of virtualization with NVMe mainly. However, I am planning to do both internal and external backup using HDDs. Which kind of drive should I get for backup purpose? I am going to store backup (around 100-300GB per backup) on the HDD daily, not planning to use HDD for any purpose other than storing backups and few infrequently accessed files. I have heard WD Red Plus is suitable for my case because it claimed to be able to run 24/7 without problem. But I am also considering using WD Black or even Seagate's Barracuda (it saves quite a lot). Which one should I get? And yes I am consider running RAID 10 on the backup HDDs, is it worth it or should I just do it without RAID?

[Kilrah]

"RAID is not a backup".

[Chionele]

Any drive that can store data will do the trick, but like @Kilrah said, RAID is not a backup. RAID is for redundancy, which sure many, myself included, use as sort of a local backup, but you would really need an offsite copy of the data as well if you really wanted to be sure.

I have Reds in my NAS and Blues in my desktop, the Blues being way older and still running just fine. Knock on wood, but the point is that a drive dies when it dies - you can't predict when that happens. What you have to do is to be prepared for when it does happen.

[ivanlauhk]

4 hours ago, Kilrah said:

"RAID is not a backup".

I think you misunderstood me, I am going to have off-site backup but at the same time I want to have a set of backup data myself. I am just asking if I should use RAID for my HDDs (those HDDs are for backup purpose only). My server is going to have NVMe as main drives, while HDD for backing up the content in the NVMe.

 

1 hour ago, Chionele said:

Any drive that can store data will do the trick, but like @Kilrah said, RAID is not a backup. RAID is for redundancy, which sure many, myself included, use as sort of a local backup, but you would really need an offsite copy of the data as well if you really wanted to be sure.

I have Reds in my NAS and Blues in my desktop, the Blues being way older and still running just fine. Knock on wood, but the point is that a drive dies when it dies - you can't predict when that happens. What you have to do is to be prepared for when it does happen.

So I don’t really need a specific type of HDD for backup, am I right? But I’ve heard people saying some drives like the barracuda or wd blue are not meant to be used in servers that run 24/7. That is why I’m confused. I fully understand the life cycle of a hard drive, I am just afraid if I bought bunch of WD blues for backups, and then they all failed because it’s not meant to be powered for such a long time.

[ivanlauhk]

Or should I just go straight for off site backup only? Can having both off-site and on-site backup benefits me in a cost efficient way?

[Kilrah]

I have both on site and off site, but they are both external drives that are only connected to the PC when updating the backup. I swap the location of both regularly.

[Blue4130]

On 1/13/2021 at 11:23 PM, ivanlauhk said:

Or should I just go straight for off site backup only? Can having both off-site and on-site backup benefits me in a cost efficient way?

How far away is your offsite? How fast can you access it? How much is your time worth? How expensive is downtime to you? 

 

Answer those and you can decide it local backup is cost effective.