1.5 TB drive for Synology RAID5 NAS ???

[dseeley_123]

I am considering three different drives and would appreciate input. Please suggest alternatives not on this list as well. My plan is to fill a Synology DS509+ with 5 drives and run RAID 5 + spare. Our workgroup is small and we will access this server just a few times a day. We will store 3D modeling files, RAW photos from SLRs, images, mp4 movies, etc. Most IO will be large block transfers of 1-20 MB, not small files or database-type IO. I would like performance to be good but do not want to sacrifice reliability for performance. I will back this unit up to another DS unit.

I am wary of using Seagate drives based on recent personal experience with several 7200.11 units.

These are the drives I am considering:

Samsung EcoGreen HD154UI 1.5TB 5900RPM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152175
This drive seems to be a good candidate and reviews are good at NewEgg and elsewhere. It is on the compatibility list from Synology. My concerns are that it delivers slow performance in some reviews, and that some forum posters here suggest that Samsung mechanisms are not up to snuff compared to other mfgs.

Hitachi HD32000 2TB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822145276
This drive is NOT on the Synology compatibility list, however reviews are excellent at NewEgg, it's fast at 7200 RPM, and Hitachi drives seems to be the most trusted by Synology forum members. This is just from my informal review of recent posts. I am a little confused about the model number on this drive and wonder if in fact it is a part of the compatible series from Hitachi.

WD Green 1.5 TB WD15EADS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136351
I know there are bad sub-versions of this product and don't want to get stuck with one. The sleep/spindown timer issues with this drive scare me for use in a RAID array, although some people suggest these issues are easy to fix.

Any input is much appreciated.

 

[dseeley_123]

Anyone? I know there are people out there using these drives in RAID arrays. It would really help to hear from anyone with experience using low power drives with RAID.

 

[saint19]

What OS do you want install in the RAID?, remember that win vista and win 7 only support RAID array with a max of 2TB.

I have 2x500GB Hitachi and are really good, but personally, i think that you must gwet the WD, are fast (7200) and have good space storage.

 

[dseeley_123]

The Synology NAS device supports large volumes and runs linux. I am really interested in whether these eco/low power drives can hold up in a RAID 5 environment or if they are going to be trouble.

 

[pathasse]

What OS do you want install in the RAID?, remember that win vista and win 7 only support RAID array with a max of 2TB.

I have 2x500GB Hitachi and are really good, but personally, i think that you must gwet the WD, are fast (7200) and have good space storage.

He can do it, but will have to install the MBR to a separate raid or HDD smaller than 2tb. I would recommend a smaller HDD, like 80gb-250gb then you can raid the others as storage seperately. It will run smoother this way anyway.

Check it:
http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/w7itproinstall/thread/1a92d5a5-1114-475d-9a39-9708e512bda7

 

[dseeley_123]

I understand these issues, however they are not pertinent here. I am using a Synology NAS device which can handle large volume sizes and large drives. My question is which of the above drives, or other choices, work well for small workgroup enterprise RAID NAS boxes. I am concerned that the powersaving features of the green drives will cause problems in RAID arrays.

 

[pathasse]

Dont use the green drives. They are for sissy old men. Go with the 7200 Hitachi for sure.