Western Digital Raptors versus RAID Arrays
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Are you in the market for a data storage solution that offers peak performance and reliability? Isn't it quite frustrating that huge amounts of information do not settle your dilemmas? Then sit back and relax because this article should provide all the information that you're looking for.
There are numerous data storage setups varying from multiple RAID setups to those Western Digital birds of prey -- Raptors! Throughout this article we will analyze the best bang-for-the-buck opportunities. We will examine the downsides and upsides of the specific RAID levels, and point out, without regrets, how they perform in comparison with WD Raptor alternatives.
Furthermore, we are going to find out how each of the aforementioned setups perform and their level of reliability. We will emphasize the possible "worse case scenarios," where the damage caused can be crucial. All in all, reading this article will make you familiar with the modern internal storage solutions and what the market offers; ultimately you will be able to decide which one fits your needs. Let's begin!
Brief Intro to RAID
RAID is the abbreviation for Redundant Array of Independent Drives. It represents a data storage solution that is based either on some form of replicating or dividing. What you need to know is that there are dozens of variations of the possible RAID schemes. At first there are the RAID levels. Out of these, you can sort of mix them, which result in "nested levels."
To maintain the article's simplicity I won't include the proprietary variations. Therefore, before we proceed, let's see the possible standard RAID levels and then a few of their most popular nested schemes. At that point, we will be able to draw the conclusions regarding their advantages and disadvantages.
Keep in mind that since this article's main purpose is not giving in-depth information about RAID arrays, we won't dwell on the technical details. We will briefly glance over to the most common setups and see their cons and pros. As a result, we'll be able to compare them head-to-head with Raptors.
RAID 0 | Minimum: 2 drives. Data Striping. |
RAID 1 | Minimum: 2 drives. Disk Mirroring. |
RAID 3 | Minimum: 3 drives. Data Striping with dedicated parity. |
RAID 4 | Minimum: 3 drives. Data Striping with dedicated parity. |
RAID 5 | Minimum: 3 drives. Data Striping with distributed parity. |
RAID 6 | Minimum: 4 drives. Data Striping with dual distributed parity. |
RAID 1+0 | Minimum: 4 drives (even number). Mirroring + Striping. |
RAID 0+1 | Minimum: 4 drives (even number). Striping + Mirroring. |
RAID 3+0 | Minimum: 6 drives (even number). Striping dedicated parity. |
RAID 5+0 | Minimum: 6 drives (even number). Striping distributed parity. |
RAID 5+1 | Minimum: 6 drives (even number). Mirroring + Striping distrib. parity. |
Data mirroring means that the data is stored equally on multiple drives to maintain a higher degree of accuracy and fault tolerance. This is crucial for critical data that you cannot afford to lose. Data striping means that the data is divided throughout the drives and ultimately offers a higher level of performance due to the increase in speed.
In their names the 0 usually stands for striping techniques and, therefore, gives that much-needed edge in performance. On the other hand, 1 is for mirroring and equals redundancy for enhanced data reliability. Nesting means combining these approaches and ultimately benefiting from both of these mixed techniques. Therefore, nesting requires doubling the necessary number of disks.
Performance and reliability-wise, an enthusiast that aims for the best wouldn't need to go further than 4 disks. The 3+X and 5+X nested schemes are preferred for large databases and servers. As a home user, I'd ask myself the following questions:
"Can I afford to lose my data?"
"Am I willing to sacrifice speed gains for fault tolerance?"
"Am I willing to sacrifice fault tolerance for speed?"
"Can I afford, financially, to choose both?"
The answers can help any user to decide. If s/he aims for the enhanced speed rather than fault tolerance, then RAID 0 is the way to go. This is the best bang for the buck considering its availability (2 disks). The performance gains are also amazing. But what if fault tolerance is more important than speed? Then RAID 1 is the solution. For a home user that stores critical data, RAID 1 offers enough data reliability. (What are the odds that both of the drives will die at the same time? Other than a power surge...)
If the user is able to shell out a bit more, then RAID 1+0 (or 0+1) is unquestionably the best option. That is because you benefit from the best of both worlds. It's like picking out the pros from both. The only downside to this is that it requires four disks.
Now that you understand how RAID arrays work we can move on.
Next: Western Digital RAPTOR >>
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