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ReadyNAS 214 4 Bay expandability
Hello. My readyNAS214 4 bay is starting to full up. Currently, I have 4 disk each 2 TB. I was curious how I could expand this system in terms of total storage. Can I increase the storage by repla...
whclcdr_sav wrote:
Can I increase the storage by replacing disk one by one ( with more capacity) or do I have do do this all at once?
You need to replace two disks with the larger size - you can then upgrade the other two later on.
Total capacity is "sum the disks and subtract the largest". So today you have 8 - 2 = 6 TB (~5.45 Tib). Replacing two disks with 8 TB would give you 20 - 8 = 12 TB (10.9 TiB).
How large the disks need to be depends in part on how quickly your storage is growing. But something between 4 tB and 8 TB is probably sensible for you.
Often getting somewhat larger drives now will work out cheaper in the long run. For example, you could double your storage either by getting four 4TB drives or two 8 TB drives. Both options cost about the same now (at least in the US). But the 8 TB option would make the next expansion cheaper (just upgrade the third drive to 8 TB, and you will grow the volume from 12 to 16 TB).
whclcdr_sav wrote:
what is the best types of drives for this system that will not "break the bank"? Thanks
I recommend Seagate Ironwolf and Western Digital Red Plus for your NAS. Both will perform well, so you could just get whichever has the best price . Avoid the Western Digital Reds. Most desktop drives in the 2-6TB drive (and the Reds) use SMR technology, which is not well suited to OS-6 ReadyNAS.
8 TB Ironwolf or Red Plus drives are about $150 each in the US at the moment, 6 TB models are about $120, and 4 TB models are about $75. So you are looking at $150-$300 for a pair.
whclcdr_sav wrote:
Also, what is the max storage this system can be expanded to
There is no known capacity limit.
whclcdr_sav wrote:
Can I increase the storage by replacing disk one by one ( with more capacity) or do I have do do this all at once?
If you are upgrading a pair (as I suggested above), then you hot-swap one disk (NAS running), and wait for the sync to be completed. Then hot-swap the second, and it will resync again. The second resync will take longer, because the NAS is expanding your storage (and not just resyncing).
Netgear recommends backing up the NAS before doing this. I agree - and think everyone who owns a NAS should have a backup plan in place. RAID isn't enough to keep your data safe.
whclcdr_sav wrote:
Can I increase the storage by replacing disk one by one ( with more capacity) or do I have do do this all at once?
You need to replace two disks with the larger size - you can then upgrade the other two later on.
Total capacity is "sum the disks and subtract the largest". So today you have 8 - 2 = 6 TB (~5.45 Tib). Replacing two disks with 8 TB would give you 20 - 8 = 12 TB (10.9 TiB).
How large the disks need to be depends in part on how quickly your storage is growing. But something between 4 tB and 8 TB is probably sensible for you.
Often getting somewhat larger drives now will work out cheaper in the long run. For example, you could double your storage either by getting four 4TB drives or two 8 TB drives. Both options cost about the same now (at least in the US). But the 8 TB option would make the next expansion cheaper (just upgrade the third drive to 8 TB, and you will grow the volume from 12 to 16 TB).
whclcdr_sav wrote:
what is the best types of drives for this system that will not "break the bank"? Thanks
I recommend Seagate Ironwolf and Western Digital Red Plus for your NAS. Both will perform well, so you could just get whichever has the best price . Avoid the Western Digital Reds. Most desktop drives in the 2-6TB drive (and the Reds) use SMR technology, which is not well suited to OS-6 ReadyNAS.
8 TB Ironwolf or Red Plus drives are about $150 each in the US at the moment, 6 TB models are about $120, and 4 TB models are about $75. So you are looking at $150-$300 for a pair.
whclcdr_sav wrote:
Also, what is the max storage this system can be expanded to
There is no known capacity limit.
whclcdr_sav wrote:
Can I increase the storage by replacing disk one by one ( with more capacity) or do I have do do this all at once?
If you are upgrading a pair (as I suggested above), then you hot-swap one disk (NAS running), and wait for the sync to be completed. Then hot-swap the second, and it will resync again. The second resync will take longer, because the NAS is expanding your storage (and not just resyncing).
Netgear recommends backing up the NAS before doing this. I agree - and think everyone who owns a NAS should have a backup plan in place. RAID isn't enough to keep your data safe.
Thank you very much for your answer and your suggestion. You are the second person to tell me WD Red was not a good choice for drives! As for backing up, I synch my files each week with a portable drive so if there is a "disaster", I at least have a copy.
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