If you’re considering a NAS server for your home or business, selecting the appropriate hard drive is crucial. Just as each utensil in a cutlery set serves a unique purpose, NAS drives are designed for specific scenarios. Using unsuitable drive media in your NAS can significantly affect its performance and efficiency. In the past years, hard drive manufacturers have developed server-tailored hard drives (including SSDs) that cater to the unique demands of NAS systems. These drives are designed for sporadic access patterns, continuous operation (24×7), quick read/write cycles, and enhanced durability required in NAS environments.

As of late 2023, the market has seen an evolution in storage capacity, with commercial hard drives reaching up to 22TB and data centers testing drives between 24-30TB. This increase in capacity reflects the growing data storage demands in both personal and professional settings. However, the abundance of options, with more than fifteen top-tier NAS and Data Center class drives available, can make the selection process overwhelming. In this guide, I aim to simplify this process. Below, you’ll find a breakdown of eight different NAS/Server architectures along with the most suitable hard drive options for each, updated to reflect the latest advancements in technology and market trends as of 2023/2024.

Note – Use our Best Price Per TB Calculator tool HERE in order to get the best value storage for your needs. It includes filters for NAS size, redundancy, budget and capacity needs too!

Recommended NAS Hard Drives Best All Round = Seagate Ironwolf HDDs  $50-229  – Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H Best for Synology 2023/2024 Series = Synology HAT3300 HDDs $109-189  Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H Best for QNAP Business = Seagate Ironwolf Pro HDDs $79-399  Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H Best for Enterprise Rackmount = WD UltraStar HDDs $70-550 Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H Best for Synology Enterprise NAS = Synology HAT5300 HDDs $199-599  Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H Best for Budget NAS Builds = Toshiba H300 HDDs $250-450   Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H

Key Considerations in Buying Hard Drives for Your NAS

Before selecting the right NAS hard drive, it’s essential to grasp some key terms in the data storage industry. This knowledge ensures that the drive you choose meets your requirements to the highest standard. Here are some crucial terms you need to know, updated for 2023/2024, to decode the marketing jargon and understand the strengths and weaknesses of each drive:

RAID – Standing for Redundant Array of Independent Disks, RAID is a method of using multiple NAS HDDs simultaneously to enhance capacity, speed, and, most importantly, data safety. Unlike backups, RAID 0 combines total storage for high performance but lacks a safety net if a drive fails. RAID 1 cuts your total storage in half but provides a one-drive safety net. RAID 5 and RAID 6 offer one or two disk safety nets, respectively, and support much larger storage arrays. Other RAID levels exist, but these are the most widely used.

SATA – Despite it’s age, SATA still remains the most popular connection of HDDs in 2023/2024 (despite the rise of M.2 NVMe SSD use in NAS). SATA allows up to 6 Gigabits per second throughput. However, mechanical HDDs rarely exceeded 280MB/s. By 2023/2024, while SATA remains prevalent, advancements in connections like SAS, NVMe, and U.2, particularly in SSDs, have become more significant in enterprise settings.

Saturation – This term refers to the amount of data flowing through an interface/bandwidth. For instance, a SATA HDD might allow up to 600MB/s, but most NAS HDDs achieve around 180-280MB/s due to their mechanical design. Therefore, the saturation for a single drive is lower, at 180/280MB/s.

Platters – These are the disks inside the HDD that store data. Higher capacity drives feature more platters. Although compression techniques can increase space, there’s a limit to their effectiveness.

Rotation Speed – This indicates how fast the platters spin, enabling the arm/actuator to locate and write data magnetically.

Cache – This memory area on the NAS hard drive compiles and distributes data being processed by the disk. Larger capacity NAS hard drives typically have a larger cache, as do drives using Shingled Magnetic Recording (SMR), which requires more handling space due to its unique writing style.

Terabytes Written (TBW), AKA ‘Workload Rating’– A metric often given annually, TBW indicates the amount of data a NAS Hard Drive can handle in a year while maintaining performance. This figure considers the potential for repeatedly filling and emptying the drive, common in data centers or tiered backups. Standard NAS hard drives usually have a TBW of around 180TBW, Pro series around 300TBW, and Enterprise-class HDDs 550TBW or more. This is often referred to as the workload rating.

Magnetic Recording – This refers to how data is stored on the platters. As of 2023/2024, there are several prevalent types: SMR (Shingled Magnetic Recording), PMR/CMR (Perpendicular/Conventional Magnetic Recording), EAMR (Energy Assisted Magnetic Recording), and HAMR (Heat Assisted Magnetic Recording). Each type has its pros and cons, but PMR/CMR remains the most popular for NAS hard drives.

Warranty Length – This is the period during which the manufacturer will repair or replace a NAS hard drive if it fails due to manufacturing issues. Warranties typically range from 3 to 5 years.

These terms are essential for choosing the best NAS hard drive for your system in the context of 2023/2024. Next, we’ll examine different NAS hardware environments and recommend the best NAS hard drive for each.

Best Hard Drives for an Affordable RAID 6 Desktop 6/8-Bay NAS – Seagate Ironwolf (non-Pro)

1-12TB, 5900-7200RPM, 64-256MB Cache, 180TBW, 3yr Warranty, Rescue Data Recovery Services Included $50-229 

For those who are looking at a NAS server for business, or are home users who have made the enterprising move into the Prosumer bracket, then a 6-Bay or 8-Bay desktop NAS solution will become incredibly attractive. At this storage tier, we find a number of very cool and incredibly useful features become more widely available. For a start, we find the utility of RAID 6 (the 2 disk safety net configuration) much more palatable, as it makes less of a dent on our total available storage. Additionally, at this storage size, we start to see much more powerful processors, such as the Intel Core (i3, i5, etc) series arrive, AMD Ryzen and even Xeons. This combined with huge expandability of both memory internally and storage externally and generally with 10Gbe included as standard or available as an upgrade. So, at this scale of NAS storage, the hard drive choice becomes more important, as you do not want to create an internal bottleneck. For this tier of storage, I recommend the Seagate Ironwolf range of NAS drives. They arrive with a large number of 7200RM drives (with 5400RPM in the smaller capacities), a 180 terabytes per year guaranteed workload and the Seagate Rescue service. For those that are not aware, the Seagate Rescue+ package is a data recovery service that is included with your Ironwolf and Ironwolf Pro drives that, alongside your 3 year warranty, includes an additional 3 years of data recovery services.

What that means is that if your drive fails through no fault of your own within reason (so, no, not smashing it with a hammer), you can send the drive off to the Seagate recovery labs and they will try to get that data back. From accidental deletion, all the way through to mechanical and forensic level recovery, this is an impressive inclusion! You should still factor other safety nets in your architecture (backups, UPS, RAID, etc) but given the cost of data recovery services (costing anything from hundreds to thousands of pounds), this is a very, VERY useful inclusion when you need it. Additionally, Seagate Ironwolf hard drives sill manage to be the most affordable NAS drives on the market compared with their competitors, even when including the Rescue recovery included. They are also the only 3rd party NAS hard drive brand that has a tool to monitor drive health available on practically ALL the NAS software GUIs in the market, in Seagate Ironwolf Health Management.

+ Excellent Price Point

+ Rescue Data Recovery Services

+ Seagate Ironwolf Health Management

+ ONLY CMR/PMR Drives in their NAS Range

– Max Drive Capacity is 12TB (Pro Series go up to 22TB)

– Noisier General Operation than WD Red Drives

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? Seagate Ironwolf (non-Pro) 8TB NAS HDD (BF) Amazon USA $149.99 (17% OFF, was $179.99) [LINK] QNAP 1 Bay Home NAS with 4TB Storage Capacity, Preconfigured Seagate IronWolf Dr Amazon USA 13.19 OFF (WAS 155) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for a Small NAS Drive – WD Red & WD Red Plus

1-14TB, 5400/7200RPM (higher Caps = 7200RPM), 64-256MB Cache, 180TBW, 3yr Warranty, WD Red 1-6TB (SMR), WD Red Plus 1-14TB (CMR) $69-379

If you are looking to populate a compact, modestly powered, desktop NAS system (so a 1-Bay or 2-Bay NAS drive), then you have quite a large range of Hard Drives on offer. It is worth highlighting though that larger and more enterprise drives (i.e faster and longer warranty) will be noticeably noisier. Additionally, you will need to factor in that your maximum storage is going to be capped at either a single drive OR (in a 2-Bay NAS with RAID 1)  your storage halved to maintain redundancy. Finally, you will need to factor in that most 2-Bay NAS devices will either have a smaller external network connection (1/2.5Gbe) or are not really capable of saturating a full connection externally. So, baring these factors in mind, I would recommend the WD Red series of NAS hard drives for small NAS systems. They do not typically have more aggressive hardware internally, so the ambient noise when these drives are running will be remarkably low.

The performance, due to the lower rotations per minute (RPM) and cache might not seem spectacularly high, but in a 1-Bay or 2-Bay NAS, you likely could not push much performance externally anyway, so why spend much more on something that in most cases you will not be able to take advantage of. Be warned though, as you reach the much higher capacities above 8TB, the general background noise of the drives will increase incrementally.

+ Affordable Price Tag

+ Low Noise and Power Consumption in 24×7 Use

+ Good base level of Capacities Available

– Some Drive feature Shingled Magnetic Recording (SMR)

– Performance is fairly average in the smaller capacities

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? WD Red Plus Internal NAS HDD 3.5\" - 12TB WesternDigital USA 2 HDD for $399 [LINK] WD 8TB WD RED PLUS HDD B&H USA £159.99 ($49 off) [LINK] WD Red Plus 4TB NAS Hard Drive (BF) Amazon USA 29% OFF, Now $84.99 (was $119.99) [LINK] Western Digital 6TB WD Red Plus HDD (BF) Amazon USA $99.99 (33% OFF) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

Affordable Hard Drives for a RAID 5 Desktop 4-Bay NAS – Toshiba N300

4-18TB, 7200RPM, 128-512MB Cache, 180 TBW, 3yr Warranty, 1-1.2M MTBF Rating $250-450  

A 4-Bay NAS drive is generally when home and small/medium business users start to take their storage seriously. There are such a wide variety of hardware options that arrive at this storage tier, ranging from powerful Intel/AMD processors and DDR4 memory, to 10Gbe and PCIe upgrades. This arrives with the utility if RAID 5, that allows users to have a much larger potential capacity and performance, but still have a single drive of redundancy to fall back on in the event of drive failure. At this degree of NAS storage, you have a much greater potential to not only largely saturate a 10Gbe connection, but alternatively, you can also look into installing 2.5Gbe and 5Gbe upgrades and fill multiple plus gigabit connections directly or via a switch.  In order to maximize this connection, but to also not max out your budget, I recommend the Toshiba N300 range of Hard Drives. Although they are a brand that is generally held commercially in the 3rd place when it comes to NAS media drives, their N300 range arrives at a similar/lower price point than Seagate Ironwolf and WD Red, but also arrives with 7200RPM on all capacities, with the lowest capacity arriving with 128MB caching and scaling up to 256MB quickly in the series. The increase in RPM will increase the background clicks, hums and whirs of the drive, but at 4-Bays, this is something that the NAS enclosure itself will begin to generate too. A high performing and often overlooked drive that, at the top capacity, can hit performance of up to 274MB/s.

+ Well Priced for a 7200RPM and 128/256/512 Cache Drive

+ Available in up to 18TB, even in non-Pro N300 Series

+ Error Recovery Control

– Will Generate More Noise at 7200RPM

– Not As Widely Available

– Not as well regarded as Seagate or WD

The 3.5-inch N300 NAS Hard Drive offers unprecedented reliability for NAS and other high-performance storage systems. It is optimized to meet the reliability, endurance, performance and scalability requirements of 24-hour x 7-day high-capacity storage for personal, home office and small business use. The N300 is available in capacities of up to 18 TB.

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Best Hard Drives for a Small Rackmount NAS – WD Red Pro

2-22TB, 7200RPM, 128-512MB Cache, 300TBW, 5yr Warranty $85-429 

Now we move onto the Rackmount NAS compatible hard drives, we have to start looking squarely at two main factors – Performance and Durability. If you are a business or established Prosumer user, then chances are that your NAS system is going to be used for a much larger % per day than most average users. Whether it is for surveillance, virtual machines, business file-sharing or just a combination of all of them every day, you want drives that are going to give you a good level of performance internally AND externally. Likewise, as the hard drives in even a modest rackmount NAS will be on for extended periods, you need to know that the drive can maintain the promising performance indefinitely AND without braking. This is where we start to look at specifications such as TBW (Terabytes Written), Mean time between failure, workload cycles and the warranty in more detail. For those looking at 10Gbe equipped or at least ’10Gbe Ready’ modest rackmount systems, I would recommend the WD Red Pro series of compatible NAS hard drives. Generally, one of the first Pro series NAS hard drives to arrive on the market, the WD Red Pro series is designed for NAS systems up to 24Bays and is available up to 18TB currently.

What did we say about the WD Red Pro 22TB highest tier model? We reviewed it back on September ’22 and whichever way you look at it, the WD Red Pro 22TB Hard drive is a stone-cold WINNER of a drive – both in terms of what it brings to the end user AND what this new 10-platter/OptiNAND drive design means for the future of the WD drive line up. WD does not over promise with this drive (with performance exceeding the brands reported benchmarks in almost every one of my tests, even using mid-range equipment) and they even nailed the price point in line with previous drives in the portfolio (though there is simply no avoiding that you are going to need deep pockets to fully populate any system with these 22TB drives). That said, much like any other WD Red Pro drive, the more industrial architecture still leads to a slightly higher running temp, noisier operation and slight increased power use. This is to be expected, but with no non-Pro alternative available at this capacity, the feasibility of fully populating a smaller scale system with the WD Red Pro 22TB is going to be both expensive AND noisy. I definitely recommend this drive to larger-scale NAS and SAN environments that need sustained RAID performance, high capacity and storage reliability – just maybe buy some earplugs if you plan on working in the same room as them.

Certainly one of the most expensive NAS HDDs out there, but provides a very good level of storage, performance, durability and overall is a very dependable drive for SMB users (Small/Medium Business) that want a drive they can rely on.

+ Top Tier NAS Drive Performance

+ 300TB/Y Workload

+ Build for up to 24-Bay Servers

– Certainly Noiser than non-Pro equivalents

– More Expensive than the Seagate Pro Option

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for an SMB Rackmount NAS 12-Bay – Seagate Ironwolf Pro

4-22TB, 7200RPM, 256MB Cache, 300 TBW (Newer NT version rates at 550TBW), 5yr Warranty, Rescue Data Recovery Services Included $79-399 

When it comes to the move into Rackmount storage for businesses (novices stop here) then not only do you have to only consider Pro/Enterprise-class drives only, but you can also start to look at drives that include certain business level advantages in terms of coverage and service. Much like the non-PRO series of hard drives mentioned earlier, the Seagate Ironwolf Pro series of HDDs include the Rescue+ data recovery services but also includes an impressive 5 years of the manufacturers warranty. However, it is in terms of performance, capacity and durability that the difference between these two ranges become apparent. For a start, the Ironwolf Pro HDD range arrives in capacities of up to 18TB (20TB promised for later in 2021 thanks to Energy Assisted Magnetic Recording), with ALL drives in the PRO range arriving with 7200RPM and 256/512MB of cache. The result is that these drives will hit up to an impressive 260MB/s, which even in smaller RAID 5 groups will easily saturate a 10Gb connection with just 4-5 drives.I performed te sts on 64MB, 256MB, 1GB and 4GB test files, as well as mixed 70/30% R/W. The results were consistent and largely lived up to Seagate’s claims here.

What did we think of the Seagate Ironwolf Pro larger capacities? We reviewed the new NT series (higher durability at 550TBW over 300TBW in the previous revisions) 20TB version and Straight out the gate, the Seagate Ironwolf Pro 20TB HDD comfortably delivers on it’s promises of performance. This alongside full tested and confirmed compatibility with Synology and QNAP NAS devices means that you have a drive here that can turn any 4-Bay NAS into a 60TB RAID5 Storage colossus – let alone once you start thinking about rackmounts and hyperscale. The pricing at the time of writing is a little muddled (the result of having two SKUs/Model IDs floating around in the market and eTailers having to play catch up) but that should hopefully iron out over time. I particularly appreciate that the workload discussion surrounding ‘Pro’ Class drives at 300TB/yr vs rapid HDD capacity growth is being addressed here with a 550TB/yr version to rival that of ‘Ent’ class drives – whatever the reason/motivation. The value of the Ironwolf Health Management tool is going to be something of debate and the inclusion of 3yrs data recovery services is a nice extra that (with any luck) few will need to use – but having them included in a 20TB HDD that still manages to maintain a similar level of Price per TB vs the bulk of NAS HDDs in the Pro tier increases the value notably. As HDDs continue to increase in scale and Seagate (among other brands) continues to outline their plans to hit 50TB by the end of the decade, the Seagate Ironwolf Pro ST2000NT001 is another good example of an HDD that finds a sweet spot between price, durability and value. Just be aware that this is a drive designed for large-scale use and that means high operational noise and higher than typical power use than non-Pro and smaller cap drives!

In recent years we have seen Seagate reshuffle their range of available capacities to align the capacities from 1-12TB to arrive in the standard Ironwolf range and Capacities of up to 18TB and 22TB to arrive on the PRO series (likely due to those larger capacity options requiring the more enterprise hardware as standard and making a non-PRO version impossible without purposely nerf’ing the lesser drives intentionally. There is crossover in 4-12TB models in between, however, the distinction in RPM, cache, build design and TBW rating is wide enough to justify this. The noise level of the Ironwolf HDD series in PRO is noticeable higher, but given these are designed for larger arrays, this noise increase will be less noticeable over the ambient noise of the whole system generally.

+ Excellent Price Point vs Ironwolf NON-Pro in the Portfolio

+ Rescue Data Recovery Services

+ New NT Version Available with 550 TB Annual Workload

+ Seagate Ironwolf Health Management

+ ONLY CMR/PMR Drives in their NAS Range

– Smallest Drive Capacity is 4TB

– Noticeable Boot Up Noise

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? Seagate 24TB Ironwolf Pro $439 B&H USA $439.99 ($210 off) [LINK] Seagate 24TB Ironwolf PRO HDD (BF) Amazon USA 38% OFF - Now $399 [LINK] Seagate Ironwolf (non-Pro) 8TB NAS HDD (BF) Amazon USA $149.99 (17% OFF, was $179.99) [LINK] QNAP 1 Bay Home NAS with 4TB Storage Capacity, Preconfigured Seagate IronWolf Dr Amazon USA 13.19 OFF (WAS 155) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for an Enterprise Rackmount NAS Server – Seagate EXOS

1-24TB, 72000RPM, 256-512MB Cache, SAS & SATA Options, 550 TBW, 5yr Warranty, $99-519   

Now we finally move into the class of hard drive that is more classically defined at ‘Data Center’ and/or Hyperscale environments. Often choosing between a PRO class and Enterprise-class drive can be ticky at a glance. However, Pro class drives generally arrive with a much longer terabytes written rating per year (ie the amount of data that can be written to the drive throughout its lifespan per annum), arrive in numerous interfaces (so both SAS and SATA generally) and typically arrive with numerous format and encryption standard versions available. These are available because some industries and organizations insist on drive media that features in-built protection and secure erase on the drive itself. Of all the enterprise and data centre-class media in the market, I generally recommend the Seagate EXOS series for any hyper scale system environment. They are very, VERY closely followed by the Western Digital UltraStar class of drives, but the Seagate EXOS series is a little clearer to understand, has larger capacity options available earlier, will hopefully release Mach2 version drives in 2021 (dual actuator/arm SATA drives at 400MB/s+) and generally arrive a pinch lower in price too in like-for-like comparisons against the Ultrastar.

Sound Test Video Live Soon (Below)

Recent changes by Synology in their newest 2021 series of rackmounts systems to ONLY support their own range of HDD media has led to their own drives featuring on their own respective hardware, so make sure to check that your intended NAS rackmount system supports Seagate EXOS drives before you head to checkout!

+ Huge Range of Architecture Options (FIPS, Military Encryp, 4KN, SED, SAS and more)

+ Constantly Evolving (Mach 2 versions, x14, x16 & x18 etc)

+ Comparatively Lower in Price vs Ultrastar

+ New 24TB Model (X24) Version Available in 2024

– Range Can Be Confusing

– Availability Can Be Difficult + Some Models Are ‘Bulk Purchase’ Only

– Noisy!

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? Seagate EXOS Enterprise Server 24TB Hard Drive (BF) Amazon USA 20% off – $479.99 (was $599.99) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for a Business Synology NAS – Synology HAT5300

8-18TB, 7200RPM, 256/512MB Cache, 550TBW, 5yr Warranty, Synology System ONLY, Firmware Control on Synology DSM $199-599 

Arriving on the scene in Jan 2021, the Synology branded range of Hard drives for enterprise server use took ALOT of people by surprise! Synology has always had a long-standing reputation with the production of network-attached storage, so in efforts to produce a complete first-party storage system that includes the software, the network hardware AND the media inside is very what their brand has been all about. In their defence too, these are not just cash-grab drives and are in-fact enterprise-class drives that are being priced at PRO series drives (so an Ultrastar/EXOS drive that is at the price tag of a WD Red or Ironwolf Pro). The drives themselves arrive (at launch anyway) with just three capacities available (8TB, 12TB and 16TB) and the architecture of them is quite eye-catching. A 550TBW per year rating, a 2.5Million MTTF, 256/512MB cache and performance ranging across the capacities from 230MB/s to a reported 270MB/s+. The drives are originally Toshiba M06/07/08 Enterprise drives that have a tweaked Synology NAS firmware onboard, so they are geared specifically towards utilization inside the Synology ecosystem. You can even check and upgrade the individual drive firmware directly from with the Synology DSM graphical user interface too, which is quite a unique and convenient feature for those larger arrays with differing drive versions being installed throughout your server’s lifespan.

You cannot really question the quality of the hardware architecture featured on the Synology HAT5300 range of hard drives. We clearly find here a range of drives that have been designed by Toshiba (an HDD vendor with decades of experience and Synology are not being coy about highlighting the partnership on this media), combined with one of the biggest providers of modern NAS in Synology, with media that is tweaked for use within their NAS systems and despite arriving at a Pro series price tag, arrive with hardware far more comparable to that of Seagate EXOS and Western digital Ultrastar hard drives. With a terrifically impressive annual workload, an approach to drive firmware and upgrades relatively unseen from any other drive for NAS’ and remarkable transparency from Synology in the marketing of these drives on day one certainly needs to be acknowledged. Moreover, Synology is not the first brand to champion the use of locked hard drive media in their service systems and they certainly won’t be the last. Overall, I am happy with the new Synology hard drives and despite possible reservations about where the logic of locked drives and exclusivity on this product and range will be extended to in the future (standard class versions?), I still happily recommend the Synology HAT5300 media series alongside other champions of NAS hard drive in 2021.

The move towards hard drive locking by Synology is something that has impressed some and disappointed others – but if you were going to be installing drive media inside a NAS system for business anyway, then ultimately these are still a very solid and well-performing product for you.

+ Enterprise Drives at a PRO class Price

+ 550TBW on ALL Capacities

+ Drive Firmware can be Updated from within the Synology DSM GUI

– Using them in not Synology NAS Hardware is not Supported

– More Expensive than other Enterprise Class HDDs from Seagate & WD

– Noisy Operation

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? Synology DS1821+/128TB HAT5300 8 Bay Amazon UK 15.47 OFF (WAS 6657) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for a Business QNAP NAS – WD Ultrastar

1-18TB, 7200RPM, 256-512MB Cache, 550TBW, 5yr Warranty, FIPS and SED Options, SATA, SAS and U.2 NVMe SSD Options $70-550  

Finally, we move onto possibly the most well known of the enterprise-class of Hard Drives on the market. When it comes to data center and hyper-scale storage environments, Western Digital’s UltraStar range has the same reputation and long-running recognition as IBM has in the computer industry. They have been the go-to drive media of choice in the huge storage environment’s for years, thanks in large part to the fact they have been designed, developed and improved at the same time as the systems they were going into. In recent years, competitors have taken chunks of the market from them (as they are a larger and slightly slower behemoth to suddenly change tactic) and feature larger product runs that have to last extensive lengths of time to facilitate data center replacement media as needed. Nevertheless, in recent years the Ultrastar brand under WD has diversified hugely and alongside the popular WD Gold label has branched into a vast array of interface types, form factors, media variants and scales. Typically the first drive series to crack into a new capacity tier (the first to crack 20TB too).

Sound Test Video Live Soon (Below)

The Ultrastar series of hard drives will often be compared against the WD Red Pro range of NAS hard drives when considering populating a server. It is worth remembering that the Ultrastar series is designed for both a higher performance AND a much more enduring performance – i.e it can maintain that level, as well as switch between processes, for much longer. Indeed in testing, the Ultrastar even features a much higher Read and Write performance than pretty much any other drive that peaks as high as 280MB/s in our ATTO DiskBenchmark testing below with just a single HDD. Even the IOs (IOPS_ went as high as 19,000, which although low when compared with modern high-end SSDs, for a single HDD is really impressive).

The drives themselves are fantastically dull in appearance of course, as one might expect from the enterprise tier and also feature quite an aggressive spin up noise. However, in much larger scale environments, you will almost certainly not hear the drive media over the ambient system fan noise. Overall still an oldie but a goodie!

+ Consistently High Performance

+ Well-established HDD Drive and Brand

+ Numerous Interfaces, in-Drive Encryption Systems and Choices

– DEFINITELY one of the most confusing product ranges

– Noticeably Noisy at boot

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Best Hard Drives for a Home or Small Business 2023/2024 Gen Synology NAS – Synology HAT3300 Plus Series

4/6/8/12TB, 5900-7200RPM, 64-256MB Cache, 180TBW, 3yr Warranty, Synology NAS Designed, Firmware Update in DSM $109-189 

There is most certainly a clear design choice here to mirror that of the existing regular-class server drives on the market right now. The Synology HAT 3300+ series has been reported several times, not just here on the blog, to be built using Seagate Iron Wolf drive media with specific Synology firmware on board. Arriving with 180-terabyte annual workloads, 5400rpm, 256-megabyte cache, arriving in a CMR architecture and air-sealed – the specifications we see here are all quite standard. The 12TB benefits from an increased RPM and helium sealing, as per most 12 TB drives in the market, but apart from that the Synology Plus hard drive series are going to run quieter than most pro or enterprise-class drives, as well as have a slightly lower power consumption, but are also going to have a slight performance decrease than that of the HAT5300 and HAT3300. But that is only going to be of significance in larger RAID configurations realistically.

The differences between the Synology HAT3300, HAT5300/HAS5300 are pretty much exactly as you would find if you compared WD Red and Seagate IronWolf versus that of Seagate Exos and WD Ultrastar. Indeed, I am a little surprised that Synology has not introduced a middle ground in the form of a pro series drive, but perhaps this is something that will roll out later down the line. Nevertheless, this results in quite a void of performance, durability, and scale between these two ranges when compared to long-term established server hard drive ranges from these other companies filling the gaps of capacity and pro middle ground choices. It should be immediately highlighted that regardless of which Synology hard drive you opt for, you still benefit from firmware updates being actionable from within the Synology DSM software, easier and more streamlined warranty support, and firmware optimization that is specifically tailored towards Synology hardware deployment. We have discussed this at length previously when discussing the Synology enterprise hard drives and SSDs, and although you pay a premium for Synology’s own branded drives when compared to third-party alternatives that people have been using for decades, there are nonetheless merits in using drives specifically geared towards your NAS system rather than requiring a slightly broader design that suits more diverse servers. Here is how the Synology enterprise SATA, enterprise SAS, and mid-range plus hard drives differ in their specifications:

Classification	Enterprise SATA	Enterprise SAS	Domestic SATA
Series Name	Enterprise/XS	Enterprise/XS	PLUS
Model	HAT5300	HAS5300	HAT3300
Interface	SATA 6Gb	SAS 12Gb	SATA 6Gb
Recording	CMR/PMR	CMR/PMR	CMR/PMR
Capacity (5/23)	4/8/12/16/18TB	8/12/16/18TB	4/6/8/12TB
RPM	7200RPM	7200RPM	5400RPM (7200 on 12TB)
Cache	256/512MB	256/512MB	256MB
Sector Size	512e	512e	512e
Max Transfer Speed (Capacity Dependant)	254/260/253/274/281MB/s	241/253/274MB/s	202/240MB/s
Drive Sealing	AIR/AIR/Helium/Helium/Helium	AIR/Helium/Helium/Helium	AIR/AIR/AIR/Helium
Power Use (Idle)	4.07/5.61/4.25/4.00/4.16W	6.62/4.36/4.46W	3.96/3.4/3.4/5.07W
Power Use (Active)	7.76/9.29/7.83/7.63/8.35W	9.87/7.80/8.12W	4.85/5.3/5.3/8.33W
Load/Unload Cycles	600K	600K	600K
Workload Rating	550TB (Annual)	550TB (Annual)	180TB (Annual)
MTBF (Hrs)	2.0/2.5Million	2.5Million	1Million
Warranty	5 Years	5 Years	3 Years

+ Much more affordable than the HAT5300 Series

+ Better range off smaller capacities than HAT5300

+ Drive Firmware can be Updated from within the Synology DSM GUI

– Not Supported on Bigger Synology NAS Systems (eg XS or SA Series)

– Lacks Data Recovery Service of Seagate Ironwolf HDDs

– 12TB Maximum Capacity (at time of writing)

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? Synology DS224+ 8TB 2 Bay NAS Solution installed with 2 x 4TB HAT3300 Drives Amazon UK 113.7 OFF (WAS 747) [LINK] Synology DS224+ 32TB 2 Bay NAS Solution installed with 2 x 16 HAT3300 Drives Amazon UK 318.35 OFF (WAS 1224) [LINK] Synology DS1621+ 24TB 6 Bay Desktop NAS Solution installed with 6 x 4TB HAT3300 Amazon UK 63.02 OFF (WAS 1662) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

IMPORTANT! Compatibility of Hard Drives with Synology NAS Systems

An increasingly important factor when selecting NAS hard drives is their compatibility with specific NAS systems. Over the last 18-24 months, there has been a noticeable trend, especially with Synology, towards reducing the range of compatible, supported, or verified HDDs. Synology has shown a preference for their own HAT3300 and HAT5300 drives, somewhat limiting the choice for users of their systems. This shift marks a departure from the traditionally open approach where most NAS brands, including Synology, supported a wide range of third-party drives.

This change in policy is significant for users needing specific storage solutions or those accustomed to a broader choice of drives. It contrasts with other NAS brands, which continue to support a variety of third-party drives, including the latest high-capacity models. When choosing a NAS hard drive in 2023/2024, it’s crucial to consider not just the drive’s specifications but also its compatibility with your NAS system. This ensures that you can take full advantage of the NAS’s features and avoid potential compatibility issues.

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If you’re considering a NAS server for your home or business, selecting the appropriate hard drive is crucial. Just as each utensil in a cutlery set serves a unique purpose, NAS drives are designed for specific scenarios. Using unsuitable drive media in your NAS can significantly affect its performance and efficiency. In the past years, hard drive manufacturers have developed server-tailored hard drives (including SSDs) that cater to the unique demands of NAS systems. These drives are designed for sporadic access patterns, continuous operation (24×7), quick read/write cycles, and enhanced durability required in NAS environments.

As of late 2023, the market has seen an evolution in storage capacity, with commercial hard drives reaching up to 22TB and data centers testing drives between 24-30TB. This increase in capacity reflects the growing data storage demands in both personal and professional settings. However, the abundance of options, with more than fifteen top-tier NAS and Data Center class drives available, can make the selection process overwhelming. In this guide, I aim to simplify this process. Below, you’ll find a breakdown of eight different NAS/Server architectures along with the most suitable hard drive options for each, updated to reflect the latest advancements in technology and market trends as of 2023/2024.

Note – Use our Best Price Per TB Calculator tool HERE in order to get the best value storage for your needs. It includes filters for NAS size, redundancy, budget and capacity needs too!

Recommended NAS Hard Drives Best All Round = Seagate Ironwolf HDDs  $50-229  – Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H Best for Synology 2023/2024 Series = Synology HAT3300 HDDs $109-189  Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H Best for QNAP Business = Seagate Ironwolf Pro HDDs $79-399  Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H Best for Enterprise Rackmount = WD UltraStar HDDs $70-550 Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H Best for Synology Enterprise NAS = Synology HAT5300 HDDs $199-599  Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H Best for Budget NAS Builds = Toshiba H300 HDDs $250-450   Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H

Key Considerations in Buying Hard Drives for Your NAS

Before selecting the right NAS hard drive, it’s essential to grasp some key terms in the data storage industry. This knowledge ensures that the drive you choose meets your requirements to the highest standard. Here are some crucial terms you need to know, updated for 2023/2024, to decode the marketing jargon and understand the strengths and weaknesses of each drive:

RAID – Standing for Redundant Array of Independent Disks, RAID is a method of using multiple NAS HDDs simultaneously to enhance capacity, speed, and, most importantly, data safety. Unlike backups, RAID 0 combines total storage for high performance but lacks a safety net if a drive fails. RAID 1 cuts your total storage in half but provides a one-drive safety net. RAID 5 and RAID 6 offer one or two disk safety nets, respectively, and support much larger storage arrays. Other RAID levels exist, but these are the most widely used.

SATA – Despite it’s age, SATA still remains the most popular connection of HDDs in 2023/2024 (despite the rise of M.2 NVMe SSD use in NAS). SATA allows up to 6 Gigabits per second throughput. However, mechanical HDDs rarely exceeded 280MB/s. By 2023/2024, while SATA remains prevalent, advancements in connections like SAS, NVMe, and U.2, particularly in SSDs, have become more significant in enterprise settings.

Saturation – This term refers to the amount of data flowing through an interface/bandwidth. For instance, a SATA HDD might allow up to 600MB/s, but most NAS HDDs achieve around 180-280MB/s due to their mechanical design. Therefore, the saturation for a single drive is lower, at 180/280MB/s.

Platters – These are the disks inside the HDD that store data. Higher capacity drives feature more platters. Although compression techniques can increase space, there’s a limit to their effectiveness.

Rotation Speed – This indicates how fast the platters spin, enabling the arm/actuator to locate and write data magnetically.

Cache – This memory area on the NAS hard drive compiles and distributes data being processed by the disk. Larger capacity NAS hard drives typically have a larger cache, as do drives using Shingled Magnetic Recording (SMR), which requires more handling space due to its unique writing style.

Terabytes Written (TBW), AKA ‘Workload Rating’– A metric often given annually, TBW indicates the amount of data a NAS Hard Drive can handle in a year while maintaining performance. This figure considers the potential for repeatedly filling and emptying the drive, common in data centers or tiered backups. Standard NAS hard drives usually have a TBW of around 180TBW, Pro series around 300TBW, and Enterprise-class HDDs 550TBW or more. This is often referred to as the workload rating.

Magnetic Recording – This refers to how data is stored on the platters. As of 2023/2024, there are several prevalent types: SMR (Shingled Magnetic Recording), PMR/CMR (Perpendicular/Conventional Magnetic Recording), EAMR (Energy Assisted Magnetic Recording), and HAMR (Heat Assisted Magnetic Recording). Each type has its pros and cons, but PMR/CMR remains the most popular for NAS hard drives.

Warranty Length – This is the period during which the manufacturer will repair or replace a NAS hard drive if it fails due to manufacturing issues. Warranties typically range from 3 to 5 years.

These terms are essential for choosing the best NAS hard drive for your system in the context of 2023/2024. Next, we’ll examine different NAS hardware environments and recommend the best NAS hard drive for each.

Best Hard Drives for an Affordable RAID 6 Desktop 6/8-Bay NAS – Seagate Ironwolf (non-Pro)

1-12TB, 5900-7200RPM, 64-256MB Cache, 180TBW, 3yr Warranty, Rescue Data Recovery Services Included $50-229 

For those who are looking at a NAS server for business, or are home users who have made the enterprising move into the Prosumer bracket, then a 6-Bay or 8-Bay desktop NAS solution will become incredibly attractive. At this storage tier, we find a number of very cool and incredibly useful features become more widely available. For a start, we find the utility of RAID 6 (the 2 disk safety net configuration) much more palatable, as it makes less of a dent on our total available storage. Additionally, at this storage size, we start to see much more powerful processors, such as the Intel Core (i3, i5, etc) series arrive, AMD Ryzen and even Xeons. This combined with huge expandability of both memory internally and storage externally and generally with 10Gbe included as standard or available as an upgrade. So, at this scale of NAS storage, the hard drive choice becomes more important, as you do not want to create an internal bottleneck. For this tier of storage, I recommend the Seagate Ironwolf range of NAS drives. They arrive with a large number of 7200RM drives (with 5400RPM in the smaller capacities), a 180 terabytes per year guaranteed workload and the Seagate Rescue service. For those that are not aware, the Seagate Rescue+ package is a data recovery service that is included with your Ironwolf and Ironwolf Pro drives that, alongside your 3 year warranty, includes an additional 3 years of data recovery services.

What that means is that if your drive fails through no fault of your own within reason (so, no, not smashing it with a hammer), you can send the drive off to the Seagate recovery labs and they will try to get that data back. From accidental deletion, all the way through to mechanical and forensic level recovery, this is an impressive inclusion! You should still factor other safety nets in your architecture (backups, UPS, RAID, etc) but given the cost of data recovery services (costing anything from hundreds to thousands of pounds), this is a very, VERY useful inclusion when you need it. Additionally, Seagate Ironwolf hard drives sill manage to be the most affordable NAS drives on the market compared with their competitors, even when including the Rescue recovery included. They are also the only 3rd party NAS hard drive brand that has a tool to monitor drive health available on practically ALL the NAS software GUIs in the market, in Seagate Ironwolf Health Management.

+ Excellent Price Point

+ Rescue Data Recovery Services

+ Seagate Ironwolf Health Management

+ ONLY CMR/PMR Drives in their NAS Range

– Max Drive Capacity is 12TB (Pro Series go up to 22TB)

– Noisier General Operation than WD Red Drives

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? Seagate Ironwolf (non-Pro) 8TB NAS HDD (BF) Amazon USA $149.99 (17% OFF, was $179.99) [LINK] QNAP 1 Bay Home NAS with 4TB Storage Capacity, Preconfigured Seagate IronWolf Dr Amazon USA 13.19 OFF (WAS 155) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for a Small NAS Drive – WD Red & WD Red Plus

1-14TB, 5400/7200RPM (higher Caps = 7200RPM), 64-256MB Cache, 180TBW, 3yr Warranty, WD Red 1-6TB (SMR), WD Red Plus 1-14TB (CMR) $69-379

If you are looking to populate a compact, modestly powered, desktop NAS system (so a 1-Bay or 2-Bay NAS drive), then you have quite a large range of Hard Drives on offer. It is worth highlighting though that larger and more enterprise drives (i.e faster and longer warranty) will be noticeably noisier. Additionally, you will need to factor in that your maximum storage is going to be capped at either a single drive OR (in a 2-Bay NAS with RAID 1)  your storage halved to maintain redundancy. Finally, you will need to factor in that most 2-Bay NAS devices will either have a smaller external network connection (1/2.5Gbe) or are not really capable of saturating a full connection externally. So, baring these factors in mind, I would recommend the WD Red series of NAS hard drives for small NAS systems. They do not typically have more aggressive hardware internally, so the ambient noise when these drives are running will be remarkably low.

The performance, due to the lower rotations per minute (RPM) and cache might not seem spectacularly high, but in a 1-Bay or 2-Bay NAS, you likely could not push much performance externally anyway, so why spend much more on something that in most cases you will not be able to take advantage of. Be warned though, as you reach the much higher capacities above 8TB, the general background noise of the drives will increase incrementally.

+ Affordable Price Tag

+ Low Noise and Power Consumption in 24×7 Use

+ Good base level of Capacities Available

– Some Drive feature Shingled Magnetic Recording (SMR)

– Performance is fairly average in the smaller capacities

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? WD Red Plus Internal NAS HDD 3.5\" - 12TB WesternDigital USA 2 HDD for $399 [LINK] WD 8TB WD RED PLUS HDD B&H USA £159.99 ($49 off) [LINK] WD Red Plus 4TB NAS Hard Drive (BF) Amazon USA 29% OFF, Now $84.99 (was $119.99) [LINK] Western Digital 6TB WD Red Plus HDD (BF) Amazon USA $99.99 (33% OFF) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

Affordable Hard Drives for a RAID 5 Desktop 4-Bay NAS – Toshiba N300

4-18TB, 7200RPM, 128-512MB Cache, 180 TBW, 3yr Warranty, 1-1.2M MTBF Rating $250-450  

A 4-Bay NAS drive is generally when home and small/medium business users start to take their storage seriously. There are such a wide variety of hardware options that arrive at this storage tier, ranging from powerful Intel/AMD processors and DDR4 memory, to 10Gbe and PCIe upgrades. This arrives with the utility if RAID 5, that allows users to have a much larger potential capacity and performance, but still have a single drive of redundancy to fall back on in the event of drive failure. At this degree of NAS storage, you have a much greater potential to not only largely saturate a 10Gbe connection, but alternatively, you can also look into installing 2.5Gbe and 5Gbe upgrades and fill multiple plus gigabit connections directly or via a switch.  In order to maximize this connection, but to also not max out your budget, I recommend the Toshiba N300 range of Hard Drives. Although they are a brand that is generally held commercially in the 3rd place when it comes to NAS media drives, their N300 range arrives at a similar/lower price point than Seagate Ironwolf and WD Red, but also arrives with 7200RPM on all capacities, with the lowest capacity arriving with 128MB caching and scaling up to 256MB quickly in the series. The increase in RPM will increase the background clicks, hums and whirs of the drive, but at 4-Bays, this is something that the NAS enclosure itself will begin to generate too. A high performing and often overlooked drive that, at the top capacity, can hit performance of up to 274MB/s.

+ Well Priced for a 7200RPM and 128/256/512 Cache Drive

+ Available in up to 18TB, even in non-Pro N300 Series

+ Error Recovery Control

– Will Generate More Noise at 7200RPM

– Not As Widely Available

– Not as well regarded as Seagate or WD

The 3.5-inch N300 NAS Hard Drive offers unprecedented reliability for NAS and other high-performance storage systems. It is optimized to meet the reliability, endurance, performance and scalability requirements of 24-hour x 7-day high-capacity storage for personal, home office and small business use. The N300 is available in capacities of up to 18 TB.

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for a Small Rackmount NAS – WD Red Pro

2-22TB, 7200RPM, 128-512MB Cache, 300TBW, 5yr Warranty $85-429 

Now we move onto the Rackmount NAS compatible hard drives, we have to start looking squarely at two main factors – Performance and Durability. If you are a business or established Prosumer user, then chances are that your NAS system is going to be used for a much larger % per day than most average users. Whether it is for surveillance, virtual machines, business file-sharing or just a combination of all of them every day, you want drives that are going to give you a good level of performance internally AND externally. Likewise, as the hard drives in even a modest rackmount NAS will be on for extended periods, you need to know that the drive can maintain the promising performance indefinitely AND without braking. This is where we start to look at specifications such as TBW (Terabytes Written), Mean time between failure, workload cycles and the warranty in more detail. For those looking at 10Gbe equipped or at least ’10Gbe Ready’ modest rackmount systems, I would recommend the WD Red Pro series of compatible NAS hard drives. Generally, one of the first Pro series NAS hard drives to arrive on the market, the WD Red Pro series is designed for NAS systems up to 24Bays and is available up to 18TB currently.

What did we say about the WD Red Pro 22TB highest tier model? We reviewed it back on September ’22 and whichever way you look at it, the WD Red Pro 22TB Hard drive is a stone-cold WINNER of a drive – both in terms of what it brings to the end user AND what this new 10-platter/OptiNAND drive design means for the future of the WD drive line up. WD does not over promise with this drive (with performance exceeding the brands reported benchmarks in almost every one of my tests, even using mid-range equipment) and they even nailed the price point in line with previous drives in the portfolio (though there is simply no avoiding that you are going to need deep pockets to fully populate any system with these 22TB drives). That said, much like any other WD Red Pro drive, the more industrial architecture still leads to a slightly higher running temp, noisier operation and slight increased power use. This is to be expected, but with no non-Pro alternative available at this capacity, the feasibility of fully populating a smaller scale system with the WD Red Pro 22TB is going to be both expensive AND noisy. I definitely recommend this drive to larger-scale NAS and SAN environments that need sustained RAID performance, high capacity and storage reliability – just maybe buy some earplugs if you plan on working in the same room as them.

Certainly one of the most expensive NAS HDDs out there, but provides a very good level of storage, performance, durability and overall is a very dependable drive for SMB users (Small/Medium Business) that want a drive they can rely on.

+ Top Tier NAS Drive Performance

+ 300TB/Y Workload

+ Build for up to 24-Bay Servers

– Certainly Noiser than non-Pro equivalents

– More Expensive than the Seagate Pro Option

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for an SMB Rackmount NAS 12-Bay – Seagate Ironwolf Pro

4-22TB, 7200RPM, 256MB Cache, 300 TBW (Newer NT version rates at 550TBW), 5yr Warranty, Rescue Data Recovery Services Included $79-399 

When it comes to the move into Rackmount storage for businesses (novices stop here) then not only do you have to only consider Pro/Enterprise-class drives only, but you can also start to look at drives that include certain business level advantages in terms of coverage and service. Much like the non-PRO series of hard drives mentioned earlier, the Seagate Ironwolf Pro series of HDDs include the Rescue+ data recovery services but also includes an impressive 5 years of the manufacturers warranty. However, it is in terms of performance, capacity and durability that the difference between these two ranges become apparent. For a start, the Ironwolf Pro HDD range arrives in capacities of up to 18TB (20TB promised for later in 2021 thanks to Energy Assisted Magnetic Recording), with ALL drives in the PRO range arriving with 7200RPM and 256/512MB of cache. The result is that these drives will hit up to an impressive 260MB/s, which even in smaller RAID 5 groups will easily saturate a 10Gb connection with just 4-5 drives.I performed te sts on 64MB, 256MB, 1GB and 4GB test files, as well as mixed 70/30% R/W. The results were consistent and largely lived up to Seagate’s claims here.

What did we think of the Seagate Ironwolf Pro larger capacities? We reviewed the new NT series (higher durability at 550TBW over 300TBW in the previous revisions) 20TB version and Straight out the gate, the Seagate Ironwolf Pro 20TB HDD comfortably delivers on it’s promises of performance. This alongside full tested and confirmed compatibility with Synology and QNAP NAS devices means that you have a drive here that can turn any 4-Bay NAS into a 60TB RAID5 Storage colossus – let alone once you start thinking about rackmounts and hyperscale. The pricing at the time of writing is a little muddled (the result of having two SKUs/Model IDs floating around in the market and eTailers having to play catch up) but that should hopefully iron out over time. I particularly appreciate that the workload discussion surrounding ‘Pro’ Class drives at 300TB/yr vs rapid HDD capacity growth is being addressed here with a 550TB/yr version to rival that of ‘Ent’ class drives – whatever the reason/motivation. The value of the Ironwolf Health Management tool is going to be something of debate and the inclusion of 3yrs data recovery services is a nice extra that (with any luck) few will need to use – but having them included in a 20TB HDD that still manages to maintain a similar level of Price per TB vs the bulk of NAS HDDs in the Pro tier increases the value notably. As HDDs continue to increase in scale and Seagate (among other brands) continues to outline their plans to hit 50TB by the end of the decade, the Seagate Ironwolf Pro ST2000NT001 is another good example of an HDD that finds a sweet spot between price, durability and value. Just be aware that this is a drive designed for large-scale use and that means high operational noise and higher than typical power use than non-Pro and smaller cap drives!

In recent years we have seen Seagate reshuffle their range of available capacities to align the capacities from 1-12TB to arrive in the standard Ironwolf range and Capacities of up to 18TB and 22TB to arrive on the PRO series (likely due to those larger capacity options requiring the more enterprise hardware as standard and making a non-PRO version impossible without purposely nerf’ing the lesser drives intentionally. There is crossover in 4-12TB models in between, however, the distinction in RPM, cache, build design and TBW rating is wide enough to justify this. The noise level of the Ironwolf HDD series in PRO is noticeable higher, but given these are designed for larger arrays, this noise increase will be less noticeable over the ambient noise of the whole system generally.

+ Excellent Price Point vs Ironwolf NON-Pro in the Portfolio

+ Rescue Data Recovery Services

+ New NT Version Available with 550 TB Annual Workload

+ Seagate Ironwolf Health Management

+ ONLY CMR/PMR Drives in their NAS Range

– Smallest Drive Capacity is 4TB

– Noticeable Boot Up Noise

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? Seagate 24TB Ironwolf Pro $439 B&H USA $439.99 ($210 off) [LINK] Seagate 24TB Ironwolf PRO HDD (BF) Amazon USA 38% OFF - Now $399 [LINK] Seagate Ironwolf (non-Pro) 8TB NAS HDD (BF) Amazon USA $149.99 (17% OFF, was $179.99) [LINK] QNAP 1 Bay Home NAS with 4TB Storage Capacity, Preconfigured Seagate IronWolf Dr Amazon USA 13.19 OFF (WAS 155) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for an Enterprise Rackmount NAS Server – Seagate EXOS

1-24TB, 72000RPM, 256-512MB Cache, SAS & SATA Options, 550 TBW, 5yr Warranty, $99-519   

Now we finally move into the class of hard drive that is more classically defined at ‘Data Center’ and/or Hyperscale environments. Often choosing between a PRO class and Enterprise-class drive can be ticky at a glance. However, Pro class drives generally arrive with a much longer terabytes written rating per year (ie the amount of data that can be written to the drive throughout its lifespan per annum), arrive in numerous interfaces (so both SAS and SATA generally) and typically arrive with numerous format and encryption standard versions available. These are available because some industries and organizations insist on drive media that features in-built protection and secure erase on the drive itself. Of all the enterprise and data centre-class media in the market, I generally recommend the Seagate EXOS series for any hyper scale system environment. They are very, VERY closely followed by the Western Digital UltraStar class of drives, but the Seagate EXOS series is a little clearer to understand, has larger capacity options available earlier, will hopefully release Mach2 version drives in 2021 (dual actuator/arm SATA drives at 400MB/s+) and generally arrive a pinch lower in price too in like-for-like comparisons against the Ultrastar.

Sound Test Video Live Soon (Below)

Recent changes by Synology in their newest 2021 series of rackmounts systems to ONLY support their own range of HDD media has led to their own drives featuring on their own respective hardware, so make sure to check that your intended NAS rackmount system supports Seagate EXOS drives before you head to checkout!

+ Huge Range of Architecture Options (FIPS, Military Encryp, 4KN, SED, SAS and more)

+ Constantly Evolving (Mach 2 versions, x14, x16 & x18 etc)

+ Comparatively Lower in Price vs Ultrastar

+ New 24TB Model (X24) Version Available in 2024

– Range Can Be Confusing

– Availability Can Be Difficult + Some Models Are ‘Bulk Purchase’ Only

– Noisy!

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? Seagate EXOS Enterprise Server 24TB Hard Drive (BF) Amazon USA 20% off – $479.99 (was $599.99) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for a Business Synology NAS – Synology HAT5300

8-18TB, 7200RPM, 256/512MB Cache, 550TBW, 5yr Warranty, Synology System ONLY, Firmware Control on Synology DSM $199-599 

Arriving on the scene in Jan 2021, the Synology branded range of Hard drives for enterprise server use took ALOT of people by surprise! Synology has always had a long-standing reputation with the production of network-attached storage, so in efforts to produce a complete first-party storage system that includes the software, the network hardware AND the media inside is very what their brand has been all about. In their defence too, these are not just cash-grab drives and are in-fact enterprise-class drives that are being priced at PRO series drives (so an Ultrastar/EXOS drive that is at the price tag of a WD Red or Ironwolf Pro). The drives themselves arrive (at launch anyway) with just three capacities available (8TB, 12TB and 16TB) and the architecture of them is quite eye-catching. A 550TBW per year rating, a 2.5Million MTTF, 256/512MB cache and performance ranging across the capacities from 230MB/s to a reported 270MB/s+. The drives are originally Toshiba M06/07/08 Enterprise drives that have a tweaked Synology NAS firmware onboard, so they are geared specifically towards utilization inside the Synology ecosystem. You can even check and upgrade the individual drive firmware directly from with the Synology DSM graphical user interface too, which is quite a unique and convenient feature for those larger arrays with differing drive versions being installed throughout your server’s lifespan.

You cannot really question the quality of the hardware architecture featured on the Synology HAT5300 range of hard drives. We clearly find here a range of drives that have been designed by Toshiba (an HDD vendor with decades of experience and Synology are not being coy about highlighting the partnership on this media), combined with one of the biggest providers of modern NAS in Synology, with media that is tweaked for use within their NAS systems and despite arriving at a Pro series price tag, arrive with hardware far more comparable to that of Seagate EXOS and Western digital Ultrastar hard drives. With a terrifically impressive annual workload, an approach to drive firmware and upgrades relatively unseen from any other drive for NAS’ and remarkable transparency from Synology in the marketing of these drives on day one certainly needs to be acknowledged. Moreover, Synology is not the first brand to champion the use of locked hard drive media in their service systems and they certainly won’t be the last. Overall, I am happy with the new Synology hard drives and despite possible reservations about where the logic of locked drives and exclusivity on this product and range will be extended to in the future (standard class versions?), I still happily recommend the Synology HAT5300 media series alongside other champions of NAS hard drive in 2021.

The move towards hard drive locking by Synology is something that has impressed some and disappointed others – but if you were going to be installing drive media inside a NAS system for business anyway, then ultimately these are still a very solid and well-performing product for you.

+ Enterprise Drives at a PRO class Price

+ 550TBW on ALL Capacities

+ Drive Firmware can be Updated from within the Synology DSM GUI

– Using them in not Synology NAS Hardware is not Supported

– More Expensive than other Enterprise Class HDDs from Seagate & WD

– Noisy Operation

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? Synology DS1821+/128TB HAT5300 8 Bay Amazon UK 15.47 OFF (WAS 6657) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for a Business QNAP NAS – WD Ultrastar

1-18TB, 7200RPM, 256-512MB Cache, 550TBW, 5yr Warranty, FIPS and SED Options, SATA, SAS and U.2 NVMe SSD Options $70-550  

Finally, we move onto possibly the most well known of the enterprise-class of Hard Drives on the market. When it comes to data center and hyper-scale storage environments, Western Digital’s UltraStar range has the same reputation and long-running recognition as IBM has in the computer industry. They have been the go-to drive media of choice in the huge storage environment’s for years, thanks in large part to the fact they have been designed, developed and improved at the same time as the systems they were going into. In recent years, competitors have taken chunks of the market from them (as they are a larger and slightly slower behemoth to suddenly change tactic) and feature larger product runs that have to last extensive lengths of time to facilitate data center replacement media as needed. Nevertheless, in recent years the Ultrastar brand under WD has diversified hugely and alongside the popular WD Gold label has branched into a vast array of interface types, form factors, media variants and scales. Typically the first drive series to crack into a new capacity tier (the first to crack 20TB too).

Sound Test Video Live Soon (Below)

The Ultrastar series of hard drives will often be compared against the WD Red Pro range of NAS hard drives when considering populating a server. It is worth remembering that the Ultrastar series is designed for both a higher performance AND a much more enduring performance – i.e it can maintain that level, as well as switch between processes, for much longer. Indeed in testing, the Ultrastar even features a much higher Read and Write performance than pretty much any other drive that peaks as high as 280MB/s in our ATTO DiskBenchmark testing below with just a single HDD. Even the IOs (IOPS_ went as high as 19,000, which although low when compared with modern high-end SSDs, for a single HDD is really impressive).

The drives themselves are fantastically dull in appearance of course, as one might expect from the enterprise tier and also feature quite an aggressive spin up noise. However, in much larger scale environments, you will almost certainly not hear the drive media over the ambient system fan noise. Overall still an oldie but a goodie!

+ Consistently High Performance

+ Well-established HDD Drive and Brand

+ Numerous Interfaces, in-Drive Encryption Systems and Choices

– DEFINITELY one of the most confusing product ranges

– Noticeably Noisy at boot

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for a Home or Small Business 2023/2024 Gen Synology NAS – Synology HAT3300 Plus Series

4/6/8/12TB, 5900-7200RPM, 64-256MB Cache, 180TBW, 3yr Warranty, Synology NAS Designed, Firmware Update in DSM $109-189 

There is most certainly a clear design choice here to mirror that of the existing regular-class server drives on the market right now. The Synology HAT 3300+ series has been reported several times, not just here on the blog, to be built using Seagate Iron Wolf drive media with specific Synology firmware on board. Arriving with 180-terabyte annual workloads, 5400rpm, 256-megabyte cache, arriving in a CMR architecture and air-sealed – the specifications we see here are all quite standard. The 12TB benefits from an increased RPM and helium sealing, as per most 12 TB drives in the market, but apart from that the Synology Plus hard drive series are going to run quieter than most pro or enterprise-class drives, as well as have a slightly lower power consumption, but are also going to have a slight performance decrease than that of the HAT5300 and HAT3300. But that is only going to be of significance in larger RAID configurations realistically.

The differences between the Synology HAT3300, HAT5300/HAS5300 are pretty much exactly as you would find if you compared WD Red and Seagate IronWolf versus that of Seagate Exos and WD Ultrastar. Indeed, I am a little surprised that Synology has not introduced a middle ground in the form of a pro series drive, but perhaps this is something that will roll out later down the line. Nevertheless, this results in quite a void of performance, durability, and scale between these two ranges when compared to long-term established server hard drive ranges from these other companies filling the gaps of capacity and pro middle ground choices. It should be immediately highlighted that regardless of which Synology hard drive you opt for, you still benefit from firmware updates being actionable from within the Synology DSM software, easier and more streamlined warranty support, and firmware optimization that is specifically tailored towards Synology hardware deployment. We have discussed this at length previously when discussing the Synology enterprise hard drives and SSDs, and although you pay a premium for Synology’s own branded drives when compared to third-party alternatives that people have been using for decades, there are nonetheless merits in using drives specifically geared towards your NAS system rather than requiring a slightly broader design that suits more diverse servers. Here is how the Synology enterprise SATA, enterprise SAS, and mid-range plus hard drives differ in their specifications:

Classification	Enterprise SATA	Enterprise SAS	Domestic SATA
Series Name	Enterprise/XS	Enterprise/XS	PLUS
Model	HAT5300	HAS5300	HAT3300
Interface	SATA 6Gb	SAS 12Gb	SATA 6Gb
Recording	CMR/PMR	CMR/PMR	CMR/PMR
Capacity (5/23)	4/8/12/16/18TB	8/12/16/18TB	4/6/8/12TB
RPM	7200RPM	7200RPM	5400RPM (7200 on 12TB)
Cache	256/512MB	256/512MB	256MB
Sector Size	512e	512e	512e
Max Transfer Speed (Capacity Dependant)	254/260/253/274/281MB/s	241/253/274MB/s	202/240MB/s
Drive Sealing	AIR/AIR/Helium/Helium/Helium	AIR/Helium/Helium/Helium	AIR/AIR/AIR/Helium
Power Use (Idle)	4.07/5.61/4.25/4.00/4.16W	6.62/4.36/4.46W	3.96/3.4/3.4/5.07W
Power Use (Active)	7.76/9.29/7.83/7.63/8.35W	9.87/7.80/8.12W	4.85/5.3/5.3/8.33W
Load/Unload Cycles	600K	600K	600K
Workload Rating	550TB (Annual)	550TB (Annual)	180TB (Annual)
MTBF (Hrs)	2.0/2.5Million	2.5Million	1Million
Warranty	5 Years	5 Years	3 Years

+ Much more affordable than the HAT5300 Series

+ Better range off smaller capacities than HAT5300

+ Drive Firmware can be Updated from within the Synology DSM GUI

– Not Supported on Bigger Synology NAS Systems (eg XS or SA Series)

– Lacks Data Recovery Service of Seagate Ironwolf HDDs

– 12TB Maximum Capacity (at time of writing)

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? Synology DS224+ 8TB 2 Bay NAS Solution installed with 2 x 4TB HAT3300 Drives Amazon UK 113.7 OFF (WAS 747) [LINK] Synology DS224+ 32TB 2 Bay NAS Solution installed with 2 x 16 HAT3300 Drives Amazon UK 318.35 OFF (WAS 1224) [LINK] Synology DS1621+ 24TB 6 Bay Desktop NAS Solution installed with 6 x 4TB HAT3300 Amazon UK 63.02 OFF (WAS 1662) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

IMPORTANT! Compatibility of Hard Drives with Synology NAS Systems

An increasingly important factor when selecting NAS hard drives is their compatibility with specific NAS systems. Over the last 18-24 months, there has been a noticeable trend, especially with Synology, towards reducing the range of compatible, supported, or verified HDDs. Synology has shown a preference for their own HAT3300 and HAT5300 drives, somewhat limiting the choice for users of their systems. This shift marks a departure from the traditionally open approach where most NAS brands, including Synology, supported a wide range of third-party drives.

This change in policy is significant for users needing specific storage solutions or those accustomed to a broader choice of drives. It contrasts with other NAS brands, which continue to support a variety of third-party drives, including the latest high-capacity models. When choosing a NAS hard drive in 2023/2024, it’s crucial to consider not just the drive’s specifications but also its compatibility with your NAS system. This ensures that you can take full advantage of the NAS’s features and avoid potential compatibility issues.

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If you’re considering a NAS server for your home or business, selecting the appropriate hard drive is crucial. Just as each utensil in a cutlery set serves a unique purpose, NAS drives are designed for specific scenarios. Using unsuitable drive media in your NAS can significantly affect its performance and efficiency. In the past years, hard drive manufacturers have developed server-tailored hard drives (including SSDs) that cater to the unique demands of NAS systems. These drives are designed for sporadic access patterns, continuous operation (24×7), quick read/write cycles, and enhanced durability required in NAS environments.

As of late 2023, the market has seen an evolution in storage capacity, with commercial hard drives reaching up to 22TB and data centers testing drives between 24-30TB. This increase in capacity reflects the growing data storage demands in both personal and professional settings. However, the abundance of options, with more than fifteen top-tier NAS and Data Center class drives available, can make the selection process overwhelming. In this guide, I aim to simplify this process. Below, you’ll find a breakdown of eight different NAS/Server architectures along with the most suitable hard drive options for each, updated to reflect the latest advancements in technology and market trends as of 2023/2024.

Note – Use our Best Price Per TB Calculator tool HERE in order to get the best value storage for your needs. It includes filters for NAS size, redundancy, budget and capacity needs too!

Recommended NAS Hard Drives Best All Round = Seagate Ironwolf HDDs  $50-229  – Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H Best for Synology 2023/2024 Series = Synology HAT3300 HDDs $109-189  Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H Best for QNAP Business = Seagate Ironwolf Pro HDDs $79-399  Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H Best for Enterprise Rackmount = WD UltraStar HDDs $70-550 Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H Best for Synology Enterprise NAS = Synology HAT5300 HDDs $199-599  Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H Best for Budget NAS Builds = Toshiba H300 HDDs $250-450   Buy Here on Amazon – Buy HERE on B&H

Key Considerations in Buying Hard Drives for Your NAS

Before selecting the right NAS hard drive, it’s essential to grasp some key terms in the data storage industry. This knowledge ensures that the drive you choose meets your requirements to the highest standard. Here are some crucial terms you need to know, updated for 2023/2024, to decode the marketing jargon and understand the strengths and weaknesses of each drive:

RAID – Standing for Redundant Array of Independent Disks, RAID is a method of using multiple NAS HDDs simultaneously to enhance capacity, speed, and, most importantly, data safety. Unlike backups, RAID 0 combines total storage for high performance but lacks a safety net if a drive fails. RAID 1 cuts your total storage in half but provides a one-drive safety net. RAID 5 and RAID 6 offer one or two disk safety nets, respectively, and support much larger storage arrays. Other RAID levels exist, but these are the most widely used.

SATA – Despite it’s age, SATA still remains the most popular connection of HDDs in 2023/2024 (despite the rise of M.2 NVMe SSD use in NAS). SATA allows up to 6 Gigabits per second throughput. However, mechanical HDDs rarely exceeded 280MB/s. By 2023/2024, while SATA remains prevalent, advancements in connections like SAS, NVMe, and U.2, particularly in SSDs, have become more significant in enterprise settings.

Saturation – This term refers to the amount of data flowing through an interface/bandwidth. For instance, a SATA HDD might allow up to 600MB/s, but most NAS HDDs achieve around 180-280MB/s due to their mechanical design. Therefore, the saturation for a single drive is lower, at 180/280MB/s.

Platters – These are the disks inside the HDD that store data. Higher capacity drives feature more platters. Although compression techniques can increase space, there’s a limit to their effectiveness.

Rotation Speed – This indicates how fast the platters spin, enabling the arm/actuator to locate and write data magnetically.

Cache – This memory area on the NAS hard drive compiles and distributes data being processed by the disk. Larger capacity NAS hard drives typically have a larger cache, as do drives using Shingled Magnetic Recording (SMR), which requires more handling space due to its unique writing style.

Terabytes Written (TBW), AKA ‘Workload Rating’– A metric often given annually, TBW indicates the amount of data a NAS Hard Drive can handle in a year while maintaining performance. This figure considers the potential for repeatedly filling and emptying the drive, common in data centers or tiered backups. Standard NAS hard drives usually have a TBW of around 180TBW, Pro series around 300TBW, and Enterprise-class HDDs 550TBW or more. This is often referred to as the workload rating.

Magnetic Recording – This refers to how data is stored on the platters. As of 2023/2024, there are several prevalent types: SMR (Shingled Magnetic Recording), PMR/CMR (Perpendicular/Conventional Magnetic Recording), EAMR (Energy Assisted Magnetic Recording), and HAMR (Heat Assisted Magnetic Recording). Each type has its pros and cons, but PMR/CMR remains the most popular for NAS hard drives.

Warranty Length – This is the period during which the manufacturer will repair or replace a NAS hard drive if it fails due to manufacturing issues. Warranties typically range from 3 to 5 years.

These terms are essential for choosing the best NAS hard drive for your system in the context of 2023/2024. Next, we’ll examine different NAS hardware environments and recommend the best NAS hard drive for each.

Best Hard Drives for an Affordable RAID 6 Desktop 6/8-Bay NAS – Seagate Ironwolf (non-Pro)

1-12TB, 5900-7200RPM, 64-256MB Cache, 180TBW, 3yr Warranty, Rescue Data Recovery Services Included $50-229 

For those who are looking at a NAS server for business, or are home users who have made the enterprising move into the Prosumer bracket, then a 6-Bay or 8-Bay desktop NAS solution will become incredibly attractive. At this storage tier, we find a number of very cool and incredibly useful features become more widely available. For a start, we find the utility of RAID 6 (the 2 disk safety net configuration) much more palatable, as it makes less of a dent on our total available storage. Additionally, at this storage size, we start to see much more powerful processors, such as the Intel Core (i3, i5, etc) series arrive, AMD Ryzen and even Xeons. This combined with huge expandability of both memory internally and storage externally and generally with 10Gbe included as standard or available as an upgrade. So, at this scale of NAS storage, the hard drive choice becomes more important, as you do not want to create an internal bottleneck. For this tier of storage, I recommend the Seagate Ironwolf range of NAS drives. They arrive with a large number of 7200RM drives (with 5400RPM in the smaller capacities), a 180 terabytes per year guaranteed workload and the Seagate Rescue service. For those that are not aware, the Seagate Rescue+ package is a data recovery service that is included with your Ironwolf and Ironwolf Pro drives that, alongside your 3 year warranty, includes an additional 3 years of data recovery services.

What that means is that if your drive fails through no fault of your own within reason (so, no, not smashing it with a hammer), you can send the drive off to the Seagate recovery labs and they will try to get that data back. From accidental deletion, all the way through to mechanical and forensic level recovery, this is an impressive inclusion! You should still factor other safety nets in your architecture (backups, UPS, RAID, etc) but given the cost of data recovery services (costing anything from hundreds to thousands of pounds), this is a very, VERY useful inclusion when you need it. Additionally, Seagate Ironwolf hard drives sill manage to be the most affordable NAS drives on the market compared with their competitors, even when including the Rescue recovery included. They are also the only 3rd party NAS hard drive brand that has a tool to monitor drive health available on practically ALL the NAS software GUIs in the market, in Seagate Ironwolf Health Management.

+ Excellent Price Point

+ Rescue Data Recovery Services

+ Seagate Ironwolf Health Management

+ ONLY CMR/PMR Drives in their NAS Range

– Max Drive Capacity is 12TB (Pro Series go up to 22TB)

– Noisier General Operation than WD Red Drives

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? Seagate Ironwolf (non-Pro) 8TB NAS HDD (BF) Amazon USA $149.99 (17% OFF, was $179.99) [LINK] QNAP 1 Bay Home NAS with 4TB Storage Capacity, Preconfigured Seagate IronWolf Dr Amazon USA 13.19 OFF (WAS 155) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for a Small NAS Drive – WD Red & WD Red Plus

1-14TB, 5400/7200RPM (higher Caps = 7200RPM), 64-256MB Cache, 180TBW, 3yr Warranty, WD Red 1-6TB (SMR), WD Red Plus 1-14TB (CMR) $69-379

If you are looking to populate a compact, modestly powered, desktop NAS system (so a 1-Bay or 2-Bay NAS drive), then you have quite a large range of Hard Drives on offer. It is worth highlighting though that larger and more enterprise drives (i.e faster and longer warranty) will be noticeably noisier. Additionally, you will need to factor in that your maximum storage is going to be capped at either a single drive OR (in a 2-Bay NAS with RAID 1)  your storage halved to maintain redundancy. Finally, you will need to factor in that most 2-Bay NAS devices will either have a smaller external network connection (1/2.5Gbe) or are not really capable of saturating a full connection externally. So, baring these factors in mind, I would recommend the WD Red series of NAS hard drives for small NAS systems. They do not typically have more aggressive hardware internally, so the ambient noise when these drives are running will be remarkably low.

The performance, due to the lower rotations per minute (RPM) and cache might not seem spectacularly high, but in a 1-Bay or 2-Bay NAS, you likely could not push much performance externally anyway, so why spend much more on something that in most cases you will not be able to take advantage of. Be warned though, as you reach the much higher capacities above 8TB, the general background noise of the drives will increase incrementally.

+ Affordable Price Tag

+ Low Noise and Power Consumption in 24×7 Use

+ Good base level of Capacities Available

– Some Drive feature Shingled Magnetic Recording (SMR)

– Performance is fairly average in the smaller capacities

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? WD Red Plus Internal NAS HDD 3.5\" - 12TB WesternDigital USA 2 HDD for $399 [LINK] WD 8TB WD RED PLUS HDD B&H USA £159.99 ($49 off) [LINK] WD Red Plus 4TB NAS Hard Drive (BF) Amazon USA 29% OFF, Now $84.99 (was $119.99) [LINK] Western Digital 6TB WD Red Plus HDD (BF) Amazon USA $99.99 (33% OFF) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

Affordable Hard Drives for a RAID 5 Desktop 4-Bay NAS – Toshiba N300

4-18TB, 7200RPM, 128-512MB Cache, 180 TBW, 3yr Warranty, 1-1.2M MTBF Rating $250-450  

A 4-Bay NAS drive is generally when home and small/medium business users start to take their storage seriously. There are such a wide variety of hardware options that arrive at this storage tier, ranging from powerful Intel/AMD processors and DDR4 memory, to 10Gbe and PCIe upgrades. This arrives with the utility if RAID 5, that allows users to have a much larger potential capacity and performance, but still have a single drive of redundancy to fall back on in the event of drive failure. At this degree of NAS storage, you have a much greater potential to not only largely saturate a 10Gbe connection, but alternatively, you can also look into installing 2.5Gbe and 5Gbe upgrades and fill multiple plus gigabit connections directly or via a switch.  In order to maximize this connection, but to also not max out your budget, I recommend the Toshiba N300 range of Hard Drives. Although they are a brand that is generally held commercially in the 3rd place when it comes to NAS media drives, their N300 range arrives at a similar/lower price point than Seagate Ironwolf and WD Red, but also arrives with 7200RPM on all capacities, with the lowest capacity arriving with 128MB caching and scaling up to 256MB quickly in the series. The increase in RPM will increase the background clicks, hums and whirs of the drive, but at 4-Bays, this is something that the NAS enclosure itself will begin to generate too. A high performing and often overlooked drive that, at the top capacity, can hit performance of up to 274MB/s.

+ Well Priced for a 7200RPM and 128/256/512 Cache Drive

+ Available in up to 18TB, even in non-Pro N300 Series

+ Error Recovery Control

– Will Generate More Noise at 7200RPM

– Not As Widely Available

– Not as well regarded as Seagate or WD

The 3.5-inch N300 NAS Hard Drive offers unprecedented reliability for NAS and other high-performance storage systems. It is optimized to meet the reliability, endurance, performance and scalability requirements of 24-hour x 7-day high-capacity storage for personal, home office and small business use. The N300 is available in capacities of up to 18 TB.

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for a Small Rackmount NAS – WD Red Pro

2-22TB, 7200RPM, 128-512MB Cache, 300TBW, 5yr Warranty $85-429 

Now we move onto the Rackmount NAS compatible hard drives, we have to start looking squarely at two main factors – Performance and Durability. If you are a business or established Prosumer user, then chances are that your NAS system is going to be used for a much larger % per day than most average users. Whether it is for surveillance, virtual machines, business file-sharing or just a combination of all of them every day, you want drives that are going to give you a good level of performance internally AND externally. Likewise, as the hard drives in even a modest rackmount NAS will be on for extended periods, you need to know that the drive can maintain the promising performance indefinitely AND without braking. This is where we start to look at specifications such as TBW (Terabytes Written), Mean time between failure, workload cycles and the warranty in more detail. For those looking at 10Gbe equipped or at least ’10Gbe Ready’ modest rackmount systems, I would recommend the WD Red Pro series of compatible NAS hard drives. Generally, one of the first Pro series NAS hard drives to arrive on the market, the WD Red Pro series is designed for NAS systems up to 24Bays and is available up to 18TB currently.

What did we say about the WD Red Pro 22TB highest tier model? We reviewed it back on September ’22 and whichever way you look at it, the WD Red Pro 22TB Hard drive is a stone-cold WINNER of a drive – both in terms of what it brings to the end user AND what this new 10-platter/OptiNAND drive design means for the future of the WD drive line up. WD does not over promise with this drive (with performance exceeding the brands reported benchmarks in almost every one of my tests, even using mid-range equipment) and they even nailed the price point in line with previous drives in the portfolio (though there is simply no avoiding that you are going to need deep pockets to fully populate any system with these 22TB drives). That said, much like any other WD Red Pro drive, the more industrial architecture still leads to a slightly higher running temp, noisier operation and slight increased power use. This is to be expected, but with no non-Pro alternative available at this capacity, the feasibility of fully populating a smaller scale system with the WD Red Pro 22TB is going to be both expensive AND noisy. I definitely recommend this drive to larger-scale NAS and SAN environments that need sustained RAID performance, high capacity and storage reliability – just maybe buy some earplugs if you plan on working in the same room as them.

Certainly one of the most expensive NAS HDDs out there, but provides a very good level of storage, performance, durability and overall is a very dependable drive for SMB users (Small/Medium Business) that want a drive they can rely on.

+ Top Tier NAS Drive Performance

+ 300TB/Y Workload

+ Build for up to 24-Bay Servers

– Certainly Noiser than non-Pro equivalents

– More Expensive than the Seagate Pro Option

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for an SMB Rackmount NAS 12-Bay – Seagate Ironwolf Pro

4-22TB, 7200RPM, 256MB Cache, 300 TBW (Newer NT version rates at 550TBW), 5yr Warranty, Rescue Data Recovery Services Included $79-399 

When it comes to the move into Rackmount storage for businesses (novices stop here) then not only do you have to only consider Pro/Enterprise-class drives only, but you can also start to look at drives that include certain business level advantages in terms of coverage and service. Much like the non-PRO series of hard drives mentioned earlier, the Seagate Ironwolf Pro series of HDDs include the Rescue+ data recovery services but also includes an impressive 5 years of the manufacturers warranty. However, it is in terms of performance, capacity and durability that the difference between these two ranges become apparent. For a start, the Ironwolf Pro HDD range arrives in capacities of up to 18TB (20TB promised for later in 2021 thanks to Energy Assisted Magnetic Recording), with ALL drives in the PRO range arriving with 7200RPM and 256/512MB of cache. The result is that these drives will hit up to an impressive 260MB/s, which even in smaller RAID 5 groups will easily saturate a 10Gb connection with just 4-5 drives.I performed te sts on 64MB, 256MB, 1GB and 4GB test files, as well as mixed 70/30% R/W. The results were consistent and largely lived up to Seagate’s claims here.

What did we think of the Seagate Ironwolf Pro larger capacities? We reviewed the new NT series (higher durability at 550TBW over 300TBW in the previous revisions) 20TB version and Straight out the gate, the Seagate Ironwolf Pro 20TB HDD comfortably delivers on it’s promises of performance. This alongside full tested and confirmed compatibility with Synology and QNAP NAS devices means that you have a drive here that can turn any 4-Bay NAS into a 60TB RAID5 Storage colossus – let alone once you start thinking about rackmounts and hyperscale. The pricing at the time of writing is a little muddled (the result of having two SKUs/Model IDs floating around in the market and eTailers having to play catch up) but that should hopefully iron out over time. I particularly appreciate that the workload discussion surrounding ‘Pro’ Class drives at 300TB/yr vs rapid HDD capacity growth is being addressed here with a 550TB/yr version to rival that of ‘Ent’ class drives – whatever the reason/motivation. The value of the Ironwolf Health Management tool is going to be something of debate and the inclusion of 3yrs data recovery services is a nice extra that (with any luck) few will need to use – but having them included in a 20TB HDD that still manages to maintain a similar level of Price per TB vs the bulk of NAS HDDs in the Pro tier increases the value notably. As HDDs continue to increase in scale and Seagate (among other brands) continues to outline their plans to hit 50TB by the end of the decade, the Seagate Ironwolf Pro ST2000NT001 is another good example of an HDD that finds a sweet spot between price, durability and value. Just be aware that this is a drive designed for large-scale use and that means high operational noise and higher than typical power use than non-Pro and smaller cap drives!

In recent years we have seen Seagate reshuffle their range of available capacities to align the capacities from 1-12TB to arrive in the standard Ironwolf range and Capacities of up to 18TB and 22TB to arrive on the PRO series (likely due to those larger capacity options requiring the more enterprise hardware as standard and making a non-PRO version impossible without purposely nerf’ing the lesser drives intentionally. There is crossover in 4-12TB models in between, however, the distinction in RPM, cache, build design and TBW rating is wide enough to justify this. The noise level of the Ironwolf HDD series in PRO is noticeable higher, but given these are designed for larger arrays, this noise increase will be less noticeable over the ambient noise of the whole system generally.

+ Excellent Price Point vs Ironwolf NON-Pro in the Portfolio

+ Rescue Data Recovery Services

+ New NT Version Available with 550 TB Annual Workload

+ Seagate Ironwolf Health Management

+ ONLY CMR/PMR Drives in their NAS Range

– Smallest Drive Capacity is 4TB

– Noticeable Boot Up Noise

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? Seagate 24TB Ironwolf Pro $439 B&H USA $439.99 ($210 off) [LINK] Seagate 24TB Ironwolf PRO HDD (BF) Amazon USA 38% OFF - Now $399 [LINK] Seagate Ironwolf (non-Pro) 8TB NAS HDD (BF) Amazon USA $149.99 (17% OFF, was $179.99) [LINK] QNAP 1 Bay Home NAS with 4TB Storage Capacity, Preconfigured Seagate IronWolf Dr Amazon USA 13.19 OFF (WAS 155) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for an Enterprise Rackmount NAS Server – Seagate EXOS

1-24TB, 72000RPM, 256-512MB Cache, SAS & SATA Options, 550 TBW, 5yr Warranty, $99-519   

Now we finally move into the class of hard drive that is more classically defined at ‘Data Center’ and/or Hyperscale environments. Often choosing between a PRO class and Enterprise-class drive can be ticky at a glance. However, Pro class drives generally arrive with a much longer terabytes written rating per year (ie the amount of data that can be written to the drive throughout its lifespan per annum), arrive in numerous interfaces (so both SAS and SATA generally) and typically arrive with numerous format and encryption standard versions available. These are available because some industries and organizations insist on drive media that features in-built protection and secure erase on the drive itself. Of all the enterprise and data centre-class media in the market, I generally recommend the Seagate EXOS series for any hyper scale system environment. They are very, VERY closely followed by the Western Digital UltraStar class of drives, but the Seagate EXOS series is a little clearer to understand, has larger capacity options available earlier, will hopefully release Mach2 version drives in 2021 (dual actuator/arm SATA drives at 400MB/s+) and generally arrive a pinch lower in price too in like-for-like comparisons against the Ultrastar.

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Recent changes by Synology in their newest 2021 series of rackmounts systems to ONLY support their own range of HDD media has led to their own drives featuring on their own respective hardware, so make sure to check that your intended NAS rackmount system supports Seagate EXOS drives before you head to checkout!

+ Huge Range of Architecture Options (FIPS, Military Encryp, 4KN, SED, SAS and more)

+ Constantly Evolving (Mach 2 versions, x14, x16 & x18 etc)

+ Comparatively Lower in Price vs Ultrastar

+ New 24TB Model (X24) Version Available in 2024

– Range Can Be Confusing

– Availability Can Be Difficult + Some Models Are ‘Bulk Purchase’ Only

– Noisy!

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? Seagate EXOS Enterprise Server 24TB Hard Drive (BF) Amazon USA 20% off – $479.99 (was $599.99) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for a Business Synology NAS – Synology HAT5300

8-18TB, 7200RPM, 256/512MB Cache, 550TBW, 5yr Warranty, Synology System ONLY, Firmware Control on Synology DSM $199-599 

Arriving on the scene in Jan 2021, the Synology branded range of Hard drives for enterprise server use took ALOT of people by surprise! Synology has always had a long-standing reputation with the production of network-attached storage, so in efforts to produce a complete first-party storage system that includes the software, the network hardware AND the media inside is very what their brand has been all about. In their defence too, these are not just cash-grab drives and are in-fact enterprise-class drives that are being priced at PRO series drives (so an Ultrastar/EXOS drive that is at the price tag of a WD Red or Ironwolf Pro). The drives themselves arrive (at launch anyway) with just three capacities available (8TB, 12TB and 16TB) and the architecture of them is quite eye-catching. A 550TBW per year rating, a 2.5Million MTTF, 256/512MB cache and performance ranging across the capacities from 230MB/s to a reported 270MB/s+. The drives are originally Toshiba M06/07/08 Enterprise drives that have a tweaked Synology NAS firmware onboard, so they are geared specifically towards utilization inside the Synology ecosystem. You can even check and upgrade the individual drive firmware directly from with the Synology DSM graphical user interface too, which is quite a unique and convenient feature for those larger arrays with differing drive versions being installed throughout your server’s lifespan.

You cannot really question the quality of the hardware architecture featured on the Synology HAT5300 range of hard drives. We clearly find here a range of drives that have been designed by Toshiba (an HDD vendor with decades of experience and Synology are not being coy about highlighting the partnership on this media), combined with one of the biggest providers of modern NAS in Synology, with media that is tweaked for use within their NAS systems and despite arriving at a Pro series price tag, arrive with hardware far more comparable to that of Seagate EXOS and Western digital Ultrastar hard drives. With a terrifically impressive annual workload, an approach to drive firmware and upgrades relatively unseen from any other drive for NAS’ and remarkable transparency from Synology in the marketing of these drives on day one certainly needs to be acknowledged. Moreover, Synology is not the first brand to champion the use of locked hard drive media in their service systems and they certainly won’t be the last. Overall, I am happy with the new Synology hard drives and despite possible reservations about where the logic of locked drives and exclusivity on this product and range will be extended to in the future (standard class versions?), I still happily recommend the Synology HAT5300 media series alongside other champions of NAS hard drive in 2021.

The move towards hard drive locking by Synology is something that has impressed some and disappointed others – but if you were going to be installing drive media inside a NAS system for business anyway, then ultimately these are still a very solid and well-performing product for you.

+ Enterprise Drives at a PRO class Price

+ 550TBW on ALL Capacities

+ Drive Firmware can be Updated from within the Synology DSM GUI

– Using them in not Synology NAS Hardware is not Supported

– More Expensive than other Enterprise Class HDDs from Seagate & WD

– Noisy Operation

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? Synology DS1821+/128TB HAT5300 8 Bay Amazon UK 15.47 OFF (WAS 6657) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for a Business QNAP NAS – WD Ultrastar

1-18TB, 7200RPM, 256-512MB Cache, 550TBW, 5yr Warranty, FIPS and SED Options, SATA, SAS and U.2 NVMe SSD Options $70-550  

Finally, we move onto possibly the most well known of the enterprise-class of Hard Drives on the market. When it comes to data center and hyper-scale storage environments, Western Digital’s UltraStar range has the same reputation and long-running recognition as IBM has in the computer industry. They have been the go-to drive media of choice in the huge storage environment’s for years, thanks in large part to the fact they have been designed, developed and improved at the same time as the systems they were going into. In recent years, competitors have taken chunks of the market from them (as they are a larger and slightly slower behemoth to suddenly change tactic) and feature larger product runs that have to last extensive lengths of time to facilitate data center replacement media as needed. Nevertheless, in recent years the Ultrastar brand under WD has diversified hugely and alongside the popular WD Gold label has branched into a vast array of interface types, form factors, media variants and scales. Typically the first drive series to crack into a new capacity tier (the first to crack 20TB too).

Sound Test Video Live Soon (Below)

The Ultrastar series of hard drives will often be compared against the WD Red Pro range of NAS hard drives when considering populating a server. It is worth remembering that the Ultrastar series is designed for both a higher performance AND a much more enduring performance – i.e it can maintain that level, as well as switch between processes, for much longer. Indeed in testing, the Ultrastar even features a much higher Read and Write performance than pretty much any other drive that peaks as high as 280MB/s in our ATTO DiskBenchmark testing below with just a single HDD. Even the IOs (IOPS_ went as high as 19,000, which although low when compared with modern high-end SSDs, for a single HDD is really impressive).

The drives themselves are fantastically dull in appearance of course, as one might expect from the enterprise tier and also feature quite an aggressive spin up noise. However, in much larger scale environments, you will almost certainly not hear the drive media over the ambient system fan noise. Overall still an oldie but a goodie!

+ Consistently High Performance

+ Well-established HDD Drive and Brand

+ Numerous Interfaces, in-Drive Encryption Systems and Choices

– DEFINITELY one of the most confusing product ranges

– Noticeably Noisy at boot

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? These Offers are Checked Daily

Best Hard Drives for a Home or Small Business 2023/2024 Gen Synology NAS – Synology HAT3300 Plus Series

4/6/8/12TB, 5900-7200RPM, 64-256MB Cache, 180TBW, 3yr Warranty, Synology NAS Designed, Firmware Update in DSM $109-189 

There is most certainly a clear design choice here to mirror that of the existing regular-class server drives on the market right now. The Synology HAT 3300+ series has been reported several times, not just here on the blog, to be built using Seagate Iron Wolf drive media with specific Synology firmware on board. Arriving with 180-terabyte annual workloads, 5400rpm, 256-megabyte cache, arriving in a CMR architecture and air-sealed – the specifications we see here are all quite standard. The 12TB benefits from an increased RPM and helium sealing, as per most 12 TB drives in the market, but apart from that the Synology Plus hard drive series are going to run quieter than most pro or enterprise-class drives, as well as have a slightly lower power consumption, but are also going to have a slight performance decrease than that of the HAT5300 and HAT3300. But that is only going to be of significance in larger RAID configurations realistically.

The differences between the Synology HAT3300, HAT5300/HAS5300 are pretty much exactly as you would find if you compared WD Red and Seagate IronWolf versus that of Seagate Exos and WD Ultrastar. Indeed, I am a little surprised that Synology has not introduced a middle ground in the form of a pro series drive, but perhaps this is something that will roll out later down the line. Nevertheless, this results in quite a void of performance, durability, and scale between these two ranges when compared to long-term established server hard drive ranges from these other companies filling the gaps of capacity and pro middle ground choices. It should be immediately highlighted that regardless of which Synology hard drive you opt for, you still benefit from firmware updates being actionable from within the Synology DSM software, easier and more streamlined warranty support, and firmware optimization that is specifically tailored towards Synology hardware deployment. We have discussed this at length previously when discussing the Synology enterprise hard drives and SSDs, and although you pay a premium for Synology’s own branded drives when compared to third-party alternatives that people have been using for decades, there are nonetheless merits in using drives specifically geared towards your NAS system rather than requiring a slightly broader design that suits more diverse servers. Here is how the Synology enterprise SATA, enterprise SAS, and mid-range plus hard drives differ in their specifications:

Classification	Enterprise SATA	Enterprise SAS	Domestic SATA
Series Name	Enterprise/XS	Enterprise/XS	PLUS
Model	HAT5300	HAS5300	HAT3300
Interface	SATA 6Gb	SAS 12Gb	SATA 6Gb
Recording	CMR/PMR	CMR/PMR	CMR/PMR
Capacity (5/23)	4/8/12/16/18TB	8/12/16/18TB	4/6/8/12TB
RPM	7200RPM	7200RPM	5400RPM (7200 on 12TB)
Cache	256/512MB	256/512MB	256MB
Sector Size	512e	512e	512e
Max Transfer Speed (Capacity Dependant)	254/260/253/274/281MB/s	241/253/274MB/s	202/240MB/s
Drive Sealing	AIR/AIR/Helium/Helium/Helium	AIR/Helium/Helium/Helium	AIR/AIR/AIR/Helium
Power Use (Idle)	4.07/5.61/4.25/4.00/4.16W	6.62/4.36/4.46W	3.96/3.4/3.4/5.07W
Power Use (Active)	7.76/9.29/7.83/7.63/8.35W	9.87/7.80/8.12W	4.85/5.3/5.3/8.33W
Load/Unload Cycles	600K	600K	600K
Workload Rating	550TB (Annual)	550TB (Annual)	180TB (Annual)
MTBF (Hrs)	2.0/2.5Million	2.5Million	1Million
Warranty	5 Years	5 Years	3 Years

+ Much more affordable than the HAT5300 Series

+ Better range off smaller capacities than HAT5300

+ Drive Firmware can be Updated from within the Synology DSM GUI

– Not Supported on Bigger Synology NAS Systems (eg XS or SA Series)

– Lacks Data Recovery Service of Seagate Ironwolf HDDs

– 12TB Maximum Capacity (at time of writing)

DEAL WATCH – Is It On Offer Right Now? Synology DS224+ 8TB 2 Bay NAS Solution installed with 2 x 4TB HAT3300 Drives Amazon UK 113.7 OFF (WAS 747) [LINK] Synology DS224+ 32TB 2 Bay NAS Solution installed with 2 x 16 HAT3300 Drives Amazon UK 318.35 OFF (WAS 1224) [LINK] Synology DS1621+ 24TB 6 Bay Desktop NAS Solution installed with 6 x 4TB HAT3300 Amazon UK 63.02 OFF (WAS 1662) [LINK] These Offers are Checked Daily

IMPORTANT! Compatibility of Hard Drives with Synology NAS Systems

An increasingly important factor when selecting NAS hard drives is their compatibility with specific NAS systems. Over the last 18-24 months, there has been a noticeable trend, especially with Synology, towards reducing the range of compatible, supported, or verified HDDs. Synology has shown a preference for their own HAT3300 and HAT5300 drives, somewhat limiting the choice for users of their systems. This shift marks a departure from the traditionally open approach where most NAS brands, including Synology, supported a wide range of third-party drives.

This change in policy is significant for users needing specific storage solutions or those accustomed to a broader choice of drives. It contrasts with other NAS brands, which continue to support a variety of third-party drives, including the latest high-capacity models. When choosing a NAS hard drive in 2023/2024, it’s crucial to consider not just the drive’s specifications but also its compatibility with your NAS system. This ensures that you can take full advantage of the NAS’s features and avoid potential compatibility issues.

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SanDisk, long established SSD brand and partner of Western Digital, in the last few months has come under scrutiny following a flurry of user complaints about their Extreme and Extreme Pro Portable External Solid State Drives (SSDs) in the first half of 2023. These popular storage devices, which are regularly on special offer and typically applauded for their speed and durability – I have personally recommended them till now!), have faced a surge of issues involving random disconnections, catastrophic data loss, and in some cases, the complete collapse of the file system. Although the bulk of these concerns has focused on the 4TB models, users of the 2TB drives appear not are not immune either. So, what is going on? What have WD/Sandisk doing about this, and how concerned should you be? Let’s discuss.

Note – This article was updated 13/11/23 with recent allegations by a data recovery expert that failures of Sandisk Extreme Pro SSDs are being attributed to poor design and construction standards

Recent investigations and reports, including insights from Markus Häfele, managing director of Attingo Data Recovery in Austria, have highlighted ongoing issues with external SanDisk SSD hard drives from Western Digital. This information, brought to light by FUTUREZONE.AT, reveals significant hardware flaws causing frequent failures and data loss.

Persistent Hardware Issues in SanDisk SSD Highlighted

Attingo Data Recovery, a company specializing in data recovery for over 25 years, reports seeing at least one failed external SanDisk SSD weekly. The primary issue, as explained by Häfele, lies in the hardware design and construction of these drives. Specifically, the soldering process used in assembling the SSDs is flawed. The solder often forms bubbles, leading to weaker connections and eventual breakdown. Additionally, the components used in these SSDs are disproportionately large for the intended board layout. This size mismatch results in components sitting higher than the board, weakening their contact with the intended pads. Even a minor disturbance can cause the solder joints to break, rendering the SSD non-functional. Users might initially notice intermittent functionality, suggesting a loose connection within the SSD. This stage is critical for data backup, as complete failure often follows. Häfele notes that environmental conditions like humidity and temperature, or simply poor solder quality, could contribute to these solder bubbles. Western Digital’s response to these design flaws has been to release a firmware update, which they claim resolves the issue. However, Häfele and other experts are skeptical, questioning how a software update can address what appears to be a hardware problem.

(Image from Attingo Data Recovery)

Attempts at a Technical Fix

In some newer models, Western Digital has attempted to reinforce the oversized components with epoxy resin in addition to solder. This indicates a recognition of the problem and an attempt to enhance durability. However, according to Häfele, even these updated models are still prone to failure, and users have reported that the firmware update did not resolve their issues. The experiences of Attingo Data Recovery and the insights from Häfele urge users to be vigilant and back up data regularly, especially if they notice any signs of malfunction in their SSDs. The effectiveness of Western Digital’s firmware update remains under scrutiny, as does their overall response to these widespread hardware issues.

When was the SanDisk Extreme Pro Portable SSD Issue First Seen?

The initial wave of failures primarily involved the SanDisk 4TB Extreme Pro SSDs, as reported by various digital imaging technicians, loaders, and assistant camera operators from both coasts. Probably one of the most oft-referenced sources for this so far has been HERE on reddit. related to users experiencing the same issue and seeking to share firmware/model IDs that have been affected 5 months ago and has since continued to reach 221 comments with a substantial number of them related to users sharing their own drive-loss horror stories! Typically, the issue resulted in the drive, after a prolonged write operation, unexpectedly losing its file system. This issue rendered the drive incapable of mounting, and recovery became a matter of chance rather than certainty.

The symptom, not tied to any particular file operating system type, left the users in a conundrum. Even attempts to restore the drive using sophisticated software tools like DiskDrill’s filesystem rebuild yielded inconsistent results. Despite the increasing number of reports about these failures, SanDisk’s initial response was muted, failing to officially recognize the problem as anything more than an isolated incident or a mere fluke. However, even a brief bit of digging showed this was just the tip of the iceberg, as more users in the same thread raised their own stories of drive failure:

Now, given that this is an issue that has already been discussed in storage communities AND with Sandisk themselves over the course of 5-6 months, it is still kinda odd that we have only heard about a firmware update being rolled out a little over a month ago (31/05/23) that they state will resolve this issue, but the drives apparently remained on sale at multiple retailers. Given the extent to which users were impacted long before this firmware rollout, this might have been perhaps too little, too late for some.

Official Sandisk Responses to the Issue

SanDisk’s problems started to attract a broader audience when Ars Technica published an article citing similar issues with their staff’s 2TB drives HERE. Online forums, especially on Reddit, teemed with frustrated and disappointed users sharing their experiences with their relatively recently purchased Extreme V2 and Extreme Pro V2 portable SSDs. The complaints indicated that the problem was not confined to the 4TB Pro model but extended to the non-Pro 4TB and the 2TB Pro versions. Later it would be confirmed that some 2TB and even a 1TB version had been impacted, but more on that in a bit. When contacted by Ars Technica, WD responded:

Western Digital is aware of reports indicating some customers have experienced an issue with 4TB SanDisk Extreme and/or Extreme Pro portable SSDs (SDSSDE61-4T00 and SDSSDE81-4T00 respectively). We have resolved the issue and will publish a firmware update to our website soon. Customers with questions or who are experiencing issues should contact our Customer Support team for assistance. – Statement by Western Digital to Ars Technica

Fast forward to now and it appears that said firmware update was rolled out, seemingly arriving on 31/05/23, as observed over on the ComputerBase forum. This went on to confirm which SSDs were fully impacted:

• SanDisk Extreme Portable 4TB (SDSSDE61-4T00)

• SanDisk Extreme Pro Portable 4TB (SDSSDE81-4T00)

• SanDisk Extreme Pro 2TB (SDSSDE81-2T00)

• SanDisk Extreme Pro 1TB (SDSSDE81-1T00)

• WD My Passport 4TB (WDBAGF0040BGY)

Sandisk has still remained tight-lipped on the extent of the issue, but you can use the serial number checker on their firmware update page to see if you are/could be impacted by this. Alongside the rollout of the firmware update, they offered the following FAQ:

A Tepid Response: SanDisk’s Minimal Acknowledgment

The public response from SanDisk to this escalating issue remained woefully insufficient, considering the severity of the problems being reported. Their early strategy mostly involved guiding affected customers to open a support ticket with the company’s technical support team. When Ars Technica reached out for more information, SanDisk offered a slightly more concrete response. It should NOT have taken the larger online editorial site to encourage them to be more public with this issue, especially when you are talking about storage devices that were already in very wide circulation and being used for many users’ primary backups! Additionally, they acknowledged the issue with their 4TB SanDisk Extreme and Extreme Pro portable SSDs, assuring users that they had resolved the problem and were planning to release a firmware update soon, but they failed to address that this issue affected the WD My Passort 4TB drive, or the 1TB and 2TB Extreme Pro drives that would eventually be highlighted in their firmware update. Just highlighting the issue on the 4TB SDSSDE61-4T00 and SDSSDE81-4T00 is now, with hindsight, actually pretty poor!

Do not buy these SanDisk drives. They’ve been faulty for months and they’re trying to clear inventory with steep discounts https://t.co/Rax0FNOhod

— V (@vjeranpavic) April 12, 2023

Sandisk Extreme Pro SSD Product Recall?

Adding another layer to this already complex situation, reports started surfacing of SanDisk’s customer support agents informing some users about a recall of the 4TB model. However, this seemed to contradict the reality as the 4TB model continued to be available for sale. Moreover, when contacted by The Verge in March 2023, SanDisk’s parent company Western Digital seemed to downplay the issue, stating it was “actively investigating” a “small number of reports,” hardly the reaction expected for a product recall. In a more official capacity, Western Digital later admitted a firmware issue causing certain SSD products, including the SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD V2 and SanDisk Extreme Pro Portable SSD V2, to unexpectedly disconnect from computers.

The Implications to Sandisk Long-term: Lost Data, Lost Trust

SanDisk’s current woes extend beyond the mechanical or firmware issues of their SSDs. Their delayed and seemingly half-hearted response to the reported failures has ignited a wave of disappointment among their long-time content creator user base. In cases where the retailer has agreed to a refund, customers are often offered a replacement with the same model. However, considering the scale of the problem, this solution offers little comfort to those who have already lost valuable data and trust in the brand. What remains to be seen is whether SanDisk’s recently released firmware fix will truly resolve the issue at hand and whether it will apply to all affected drives, or we might see the range of affected drive rise? Low %s of course, but not impossible.

Detailed Update on Sandisk Extreme Pro External USB SSD Drives

1) In-Depth Recap Back in July, we shared an article and video detailing a concerning problem faced by users of the Sandisk Extreme Pro external SSDs. They were grappling with a fatal firmware error that led to significant file system issues. Despite the rising number of complaints, Sandisk’s communication about the problem was rather subdued. Users were left with many questions, especially regarding other related products like the WD My Passport SSD, which shared characteristics with the troubled drives. Alarmingly, even amidst these issues, there seemed to be no pause in the selling or any significant recalls of these drives. In fact, they were noticeably present during major sales events, raising eyebrows about their reliability. By May, in response to the growing outcry, a firmware update was released. Notable platforms such as Ars Technica and The Verge were particularly vocal about this issue. Western Digital acknowledged the following drives as affected:

• SanDisk Extreme Portable 4TB (SDSSDE61-4T00)
• SanDisk Extreme Pro Portable 4TB (SDSSDE81-4T00)
• SanDisk Extreme Pro Portable 2TB (SDSSDE81-2T00)
• SanDisk Extreme Pro Portable 1TB (SDSSDE81-1T00)
• Western Digital My Passport 4TB (WDBAGF0040BGY).

Immediate Action for Users:
For those who are concerned that they might have one of these affected drives, please visit the dedicated support page. Here, you can input your drive’s serial number and your operating system to get clarity on the matter.

Developments Post-Firmware-Update for Sandisk Users

Regrettably, the firmware update doesn’t seem to have fully addressed the problem. Some users, even after updating their firmware, have continued to face issues like unmounting and file system errors that only a total format could resolve. Highlighting the gravity of the problem, The Verge reported a significant incident where a staggering 3TB of marketing video was lost on a 4TB Sandisk Extreme Pro SSD, which was even more surprising since the drive was provided by WD as a replacement for a previously troubled one. Additionally, legal advisory platforms, like Legalscoops.com, are now advocating for users to consider legal avenues against Western Digital, given the company’s perceived inadequacies in handling the situation.

Recommendation for Users:
Given the gravity of the situation, if you believe your drive might be affected or even if you’re simply unsure, don’t take chances. Head over to the Western Digital support page and check the status of your drive immediately.

Legal Developments Surrounding the Sandisk Extreme Pro External USB SSD Drives

The repercussions of the firmware issue in the Sandisk Extreme Pro external SSDs have not only perturbed many users but have also paved the way for legal action. There are currently three significant lawsuits filed against Western Digital, the parent company of Sandisk. Here’s a detailed examination of each:

1) Lawsuit by Nathan Krum

Link: View lawsuit details

Overview:
This lawsuit was filed in a federal court in San Jose, California, by Nathan Krum. The key contention was the failure of the Western Digital SanDisk 2TB Extreme Pro SSD that Krum purchased in May for $180.

Key Allegations:

• The SSD failure was due to an undisclosed flaw affecting multiple models since January 2023.
• Beyond mere connection issues, the lawsuit emphasizes significant data loss occurrences without any prior warning.
• Class members have been reporting an inability to access and retrieve data saved on their devices.

Potential Scope:
Krum’s legal team believes that the class could represent “tens, if not hundreds of thousands” of affected users in the U.S. This projection is based on reported device failures or data losses.

2) Lawsuit led by Matthew Perrin and Brian Bayerl

Link: View lawsuit details

Overview:
This lawsuit represents two individuals who faced issues with the Sandisk Extreme SSDs.

Key Allegations:

• Brian Bayerl’s two Extreme SSDs reportedly had broken firmware.
• Bayerl faced the failure of two drives almost simultaneously.
• Due to the critical nature of his work data stored on these devices, Bayerl reportedly spent nearly $8,000 on only partially successful data recovery attempts. These third-party data recovery attempts also attributed the issue to faulty internal firmware on the drives.

Legal Standpoint:
Ian Sloss, one of the lawyers representing the plaintiffs, stated, “We believe the case is strong, that Western Digital’s response to the issue has been delayed, inadequate, and incomplete.”

3) Class Action Lawsuit Led by Plaintiff Saif Jafri

Link: View lawsuit details

Overview:
Plaintiff Saif Jafri, on behalf of himself and those similarly affected, has initiated this class action lawsuit against both SanDisk LLC and Western Digital Corporation. The crux of the lawsuit centers around the allegation that the SSDs manufactured and distributed by the defendants have a design and manufacturing defect that renders them prone to failure.

Key Allegations:

1. Defective Product Design: The lawsuit purports that the SanDisk and Western Digital SSDs face an exceptionally high risk of malfunctioning within an astonishingly short period post-purchase, attributing this to an inherent design and manufacturing flaw.
2. Consequences of Drive Failure: When these drives malfunction, the implication isn’t just a minor glitch; it leads to total data loss. The internal file system of these SSDs gets destroyed, making data retrieval impossible. What exacerbates this situation is that even if users try to reformat the drive, they can’t add new data. Essentially, the drive becomes a non-functional piece of hardware.
3. Spontaneity of Drive Failures: The drives can fail without any discernible provocation from the user side. This spontaneous nature of drive failures means that consumers and professionals who’ve relied on SanDisk for their data storage are left in the lurch, losing invaluable data with no remedy in sight.
4. Value Proposition and Consumer Expectation: The lawsuit emphasizes the sheer incongruity between what consumers anticipate when purchasing a storage device and the reliability of these particular SSDs. The fundamental premise is that no logical consumer would spend substantial amounts on a storage device notorious for its high failure rate. Similarly, no prudent consumer would willingly risk their data by saving it on a notoriously unreliable device.

Scope and Implications:
Given the gravity of the allegations, this lawsuit underscores the massive trust breach consumers face. The apparent unreliability of a product from a reputed company like SanDisk jeopardizes not just consumer trust but also the tangible and intangible assets they hold dear. The case encapsulates the sentiments of possibly tens to hundreds of thousands of affected individuals, many of whom are grappling with the loss of critical data and the consequential professional and personal implications.

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In recent weeks, we have been discussing an on going story surrounding a Western Digital drive health monitoring tool called WDDA (Western Digital Device Analytics). You can find out much more about it in our video here, our original article here or over on channel friend Spacerex’ video here (he broke the story). In brief, the issue surrounds a health monitoring component of WDDA that presents a NAS user with a warning when a drive is 3 years old that suggests they buy a new drive, despite the drive still working perfectly. However, up until now, the main brand that people have been discussing in conjunction with WDDA has been synology. However, they are not the only brand in town! What about arguably their biggest rival in the home/prosumer market, QNAP? Are they impacted by WDDA? And how are they approaching the matter of how warning from WDDA is interpreted by their QTS NAS Software? Let’s discuss.

Quick Recap – Why is everyone angry about WDDA on WD Red HDDs?

WDDA operates similarly to Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology (S.M.A.R.T.). Recently, there was a situation involving WD Red NAS Hard drives equipped with WDDA running on Synology’s DSM 7.0 systems. After three years (counted in powered-on hours), WDDA issued a warning suggesting the drives should be replaced, despite the drives still being in perfectly good health. This led to a heated debate online. Although Synology’s response to this issue was to cease supporting WDDA in their DSM 7.1 and 7.2 updates, they have not confirmed the reasons for this decision. While this has stirred up discussion, the approach of another significant player, QNAP, has been different. Until 2023, QNAP had not supported or integrated WDDA into their QTS or QuTS NAS operating system (though SMART, Seagate Ironwolf and their own QNAP DA Drive Analyzer have been in either software for a while now). This changed in the reveal of the beta and eventual release candidates (RC’s) of QTS 5.1. WDDA has been included in the system storage manager and is accessible via the individual disk monitoring areas an in their new Drive Failure Prediction feature, which uses the multitude of drive health monitoring tools to predict a drive’s potential failure, then cloning the contents of a suspected drive to a healthy one in order to avoid the lost time/performance impact of traditional drive RAID rebuilds when a drive fails.

So, in order to find out a little more about QTS/QuTS 5.1 handles WDDA integration and notifications, Eddie (aka EddieTheWebGuy) took to Putty and used SSH to dig into the backend of the software and identifying what WDDA tests are included in the service and how they are acknowledged/used by the system. So, here are the 18 different WDDA tests and suggested actions:

Then Ed was able to find the interpretations that QNAP have of these tests. It looks like QNAP did not modify these messages in their own internal actions, however, there was no indication of whether these warnings would be actioned. To be more specific, he was not able to ascertain what QTS 5.1 would do if the WDDA drive inside the QNAP QTS 5.1 system would action the WDDA drive 3yrs hours warning in the QTS GUI to the end user. They could be seen, but there was also every possibility that they would only be presented in the WDDA section of the storage manager or in QuLogs, but in an non-direct fashion. There is not enough information here to identify this. Plus, it is not easy to fake the # of hours on an HDD for the system to action the WDDA warning, so we cannot artificially replicate it.

Lastly, WDDA’s support in the new QTS 5.1 Drive Failure Prediction (Predicted Migration) feature is not enabled by default AND is customizable in the extent to which the information it feeds to the calculations of a drive’s failure. This can be adapted to the user’s specifications from within the Storage manager.

Now, QNAP adding support of WDDA on WD Red/Purple drives is not necessarily a bad thing. Indeed, the WDDA test comprises 18 individual tests (not just the power-on-hours test that people are taking issue with) that are made up of unique test types/metrics and/or tests that are comprised of existing SMART values, but presented in a much more human-friendly way. However, there are still question marks around the following utility of WD Red/Purple Drives that support WDDA and QNAP QTS 5.1. Namely, the following:

• Are WDDA services in QTS 5.1 on by default?
• Is there an easy option to disable them?
• What happens when a WDDA warning is pushed to the QNAP QTS system and how/if it is presented to the end user?

These are things that I was not able to completely ascertain in my testing (see the video below), so I reached out to QNAP to ask them.

QNAP and WDDA in QTS 5.1 – Questions and Answers

Although the questions that I put to QNAP regarding their position and support of WDDA in QTS 5.1 are covered in the video above, I include them below:

Question: “What is the default status of WDDA in the QNAP QTS 5.1 Storage Manager? Is it on or off by default?”

 “In the current release candidate of QTS 5.1, the Western Digital Device Analytics service is enabled by default. This was to allow the benefits of the additional layer of on drive monitoring analysis to be available immediately to the end user.”

Question: “I was not able to find any means to disable the WDDA service from within QTS 5.1, aside from via an SSH command level action. Is there an option I missed or by design?”

“QTS 5.1 (rc2) does not currently feature the option to disable WDDA, not dissimilar to it not having the facility to disable S.M.A.R.T services. Users can choose to access and download the WDDA test results, but they also have the option to disregard it’s findings. We have also incorporated Western Digital Device Analytics into our predicted drive failure service in QTS 5.1, alongside Seagate Ironwolf Health Management, S.M.A.R.T and our own Drive Analyzer partner service. This is disabled by default and, when enabled, users can tailor the extent to which this information will be utilized in drive failure prediction to greatly minimize time traditionally lost to RAID rebuilding in the event of a drive failure. We will continue to listen to our user base and if the need for a change on WDDA support and its default functionality is clearly requested, we will of course oblige.”

Question: “How are WDDA notifications and alerts handled by QNAP QTS 5.1? More specifically, if the WDDA service sends a warning notification that a drive has exceeded 3 years in hours, how is that message interpreted and delivered to the user in QTS?”

“Suggested actions are supplied to us by Western Digital and in the majority of cases, we have not changed this message in our notifications center. We do not display this as a ‘Warning’ message, instead classifying it as an ‘Advisory’. Our Notifications Center and QuLog Center both allot users to tailor their alerts and actions into ‘Information’, ‘Warning’ and ‘Error’. If a user does not change the default targeting of these groups, a power on hours warning will be treated as Information. This is reflected in the current version of QTS 5.1 rc2 and subject to change.”

Question: “In light of current concerns over the handling of ‘power on hours suggested replacement’ by WDDA services, will QNAP be continuing to include this component in the full release of QTS 5.1?”

“WDDA is included in QTS 5.1 rc2 and we believe it to be a useful addition to the existing range of drive health and analysis tools at the users disposal. We will of course listen to our customers and if a need for how drive health information is delivered is requested, we will oblige.”

Conclusion

As mentioned earlier, it is not necessarily bad that QNAP is integrating WDDA into QTS 5.1. As long as users have the ability to scale it’s notifications and use OR those notifications are not aggressively delivered, then WDDA does deliver a user-friendly alternative to SMART for some of the HDD analytics. However, the use of the 3 years drive warning on some systems that suggest purchasing a new WD drive (especially in the case of HDDs that are Pro class with 5 Year warranty inclusive) has certainly rubbed a lot of users up the wrong way!  As we have detailed online in our WDDA videos, if the notification was tweaked, perhaps to kick in when a drive is one month away from the expiry of it’s warranty and served just as a reminder that the drive will no longer be in warranty from X date (again, not a warning, just as ‘information’), that might be a great deal more popular. For now, QNAP sounds like they are willing to listen to their user base on how they roll out in QTS 5.1 from Release Candidate to Full release. We will continue to keep an eye on this in future.

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In recent months, Synology NAS users have been receiving a warning known as WDDA (Western Digital Device Analytics) on their WD drives after approximately three years of use. This warning message advises users to replace their drives as they have reached their expected lifetime. However, some users have performed SMART tests on their drives, and the results came back normal. This has led to confusion and uncertainty among users, prompting the question of whether it is necessary to replace the drives or if the warning can be ignored. In this article, we will explore the meaning of WDDA, its warning levels in DSM 7, how to interpret and respond to each situation, which drives are affected, and the role of WD and Synology in handling this issue. We will also discuss the comparison with Seagate Health Management and how QNAP approaches similar warnings differently. Additionally, we will address whether it is advisable to disable the WDDA feature and provide instructions on how to do so if desired.

Update (07:17 GMT  13/6/23)

Synology has been in touch regarding this video and was keen to make the following statement regarding WDDA Drive support and use on their DSM software platform.

“We disagree with the statement that is it not possible to disable usage of WDDA services on supported WD Red hard drives. We would like to confirm the following:

• You can enable/disable WDDA from Storage Manager at any time from the UI. This will remove any warnings (assuming the drive is healthy otherwise).
• Storage Manager has always allowed administrators to “suppress” non-severe drive warnings. This option is also available for this particular warning.

Additionally, regarding the support of WD Red Drives with WDDA on-board services, in DSM:

• WDDA was only introduced into DSM 7.0 (July 2021).
• WDDA is not enabled by default.
• Synology has already deprecated WDDA, and it is not included on any -22 series or newer system (e.g. DS1522+)

WDDA, and its triggers and warnings, are not developed or controllable by Synology. So while DSM can ignore warnings thrown by WDDA, this defeats the purpose of the health monitoring tool that the administrator knowingly enabled. “ – An Official Synology Source, 9th June 2023

Back to the Original Article:

What’s happening? When did this all start?

In recent times, an interesting phenomenon has caught the attention of users in various online forums. People have begun questioning why DSM 7, the operating system used in Synology NAS devices, displays warnings on drives that are merely three years old. This puzzling situation has left many scratching their heads since SMART checks, a commonly used diagnostic tool for assessing drive health, indicate that these drives are functioning perfectly fine. The source of this seemingly contradictory warning lies in WDDA (Western Digital Device Analytics). It has become apparent that WDDA plays a significant role in triggering the warnings, even when SMART checks report no issues. The discrepancy between SMART test results and the persistent warning has sparked confusion and prompted users to seek answers and solutions to this perplexing dilemma.

WDDA: WARNING:

The drive has accumulated a large number of power on hours through the entire life of the drive.

Please consider to replace the drive soon.

What is WD’s WDDA Service? 

WDDA, which stands for Western Digital Device Analytics, is a feature and framework developed by Western Digital, a prominent manufacturer of hard disk drives (HDDs) and solid-state drives (SSDs). WDDA aims to provide valuable insights into the health, performance, and overall condition of WD drives. It encompasses various metrics and parameters derived from HDD specifications, including load/unload cycles, MTBF (mean time between failures), TBW (terabytes written per year), and power-on hours per year. By analyzing these factors, WDDA helps to assess the drive’s usage patterns, potential wear and tear, and expected lifespan. It provides a holistic view of the drive’s health, allowing users to make informed decisions regarding maintenance, replacement, or further diagnostics. With WDDA, Western Digital aims to empower users with proactive drive management capabilities and ensure the optimal performance and reliability of their WD drives.

Reading HDD spec sheets can be daunting if you’re not familiar with the terminology and metrics used. However, understanding key specifications can provide valuable insights into the performance and longevity of a hard disk drive (HDD). One important metric is MTBF (mean time between failures), which indicates the average expected time between drive failures. A higher MTBF generally implies greater reliability. Unload cycles refer to the number of times the read/write heads are parked and unparked, which can affect the mechanical wear of the drive. Lower unload cycle values are generally desirable as they indicate reduced stress on the drive mechanism. Power-on hours per year provides an estimate of how long the drive has been operational. It gives an indication of the usage intensity and can be useful in assessing the wear and tear on the drive. Workload per year refers to the amount of data written to the drive within a specific period. This metric is particularly important for drives subjected to heavy workloads, such as in NAS or server environments. When evaluating an HDD, it’s crucial to consider these specifications in relation to your specific use case. For example, a drive with a high MTBF, low unload cycles, and a workload rating suitable for your intended usage will likely offer better longevity and performance. It’s also important to note that different manufacturers may use slightly different terminologies or methods of calculating these metrics, so it’s advisable to consult the official documentation or reach out to the manufacturer for clarification if needed. By familiarizing yourself with these metrics and understanding their significance, you can make more informed decisions when selecting and managing HDDs for your storage needs.

What exactly the warning says?  It is a Warning not ERROR. Is it similar to Synology ONLY drive warning?

When it comes to the warning message displayed in DSM (DiskStation Manager), it’s important to note that it is a “Warning” and not an “Error.” This distinction implies that the situation is not critical or immediate, but it does warrant attention and consideration. The warning message typically indicates that the drive has accumulated a significant number of power-on hours throughout its lifespan, suggesting potential wear and usage. The purpose of the warning is to inform users that based on Western Digital’s device analytics (WDDA), it may be prudent to consider replacing the drive soon.

It’s worth noting that this warning is not exclusive to Synology drives. While Synology does have its own drive compatibility list and may provide warnings specific to incompatible or uncertified drives, the WDDA warning is separate. The WDDA warning is a result of Western Digital’s analytics system and is applicable to WD drives across different NAS platforms, not limited to Synology. Therefore, it’s essential to differentiate between the warnings specific to Synology drives and the broader WDDA warning that applies to WD drives universally. Understanding the nature of the warning and its context can help users assess the health and reliability of their drives, determine the appropriate course of action, and decide whether replacing the drive is necessary or if further diagnostic tests are required.

What does Warning mean in DSM ? What action is expected? Is it the same as non-Synology HDD warning?

What to do if I get this warning? What can I do if a drive is in “Warning,” “Critical,” or other abnormal statuses? What other Statuses are there in DSM?

In DSM (DiskStation Manager), the “Warning” status indicates that the system has detected certain issues or an increase in bad sectors on the drive. While the drive may still be functioning adequately, it is essential to monitor its health and the count of bad sectors. The warning serves as an alert to potential problems and prompts users to take action to ensure data integrity and prevent potential drive failure. If you receive a warning status for a drive, it is recommended to closely monitor the drive’s performance and conduct further diagnostics. This can include running SMART tests, examining the drive’s S.M.A.R.T. attributes, and checking for any signs of deteriorating performance or unusual behavior. In some cases, it may be necessary to back up important data from the drive as a precautionary measure. In addition to the “Warning” status, DSM includes other statuses to indicate drive health and conditions. These statuses include:

What drives are affected? Its not just NAS drives  / What drives support WDDA

The impact of WDDA is not limited to just NAS drives; it extends to various hard disk drive (HDD) models. Some of the drives affected by WDDA and its associated warnings include the Red Pro 12TB (WD121KFBX – 68EF5N0), Red Plus 12TB (formerly known as Red) (WD120EFAX – 68UNTN0), and Purple 8TB (WD82PURZ – 85TEUY0). These drives have been identified as triggering the WDDA warning in Synology NAS devices running DSM 7. For instance, users have reported receiving WDDA warnings on their Synology DS218 (with DSM 7.1.1-42962 Update 4) when using the WD60EFAX-68SHWN0 drive. Additionally, users on forums have mentioned that WDDA works with their DS218+ model and their 12TB WD Red drives (specifically the WD120EFAX model) from 2019. Another user reported receiving notifications on their DiskStation 416Play regarding two of their 6TB WD Red NAS drives in the SHR-array.

It’s important to note that WDDA is specific to Western Digital drives, and not all WD drives are affected. The exact list of drives supporting WDDA may vary, so it’s recommended to refer to official documentation or contact Western Digital for the most up-to-date information. Additionally, it’s worth mentioning that other drive manufacturers, such as Seagate, have their own drive health management systems, which may operate differently from WDDA. Therefore, it’s essential to consider the specific drive models and their associated features when evaluating drive health and compatibility with different NAS systems.

Red Pro 12 TB   WD121KFBX – 68EF5N0

Red Plus (formerly known as Red)   12 TB   WD120EFAX – 68UNTN0

Purple   8 TB    WD82PURZ – 85TEUY0

https://kb.synology.com/en-my/DSM/tutorial/Which_Synology_NAS_supports_WDDA

DS218 DSM 7.1.1-42962 Update 4  –  WD60EFAX-68SHWN0

WDDA works in my DS218+ with my 12TB WD Red drives from 2019 (WD120EFAX)…

DiskStation 416Play sent notifications that two of its 6TB WD Red NAS drives (SHR-array)

https://www.reddit.com/r/synology/comments/nhphn0/wdda_and_dsm7/

Seagate and Ironwolf Health Management:

Who is to Blame? WD or Synology?

How is Synology handling this WDDA Lifespan warning?

When it comes to the issue of WDDA warnings and the responsibility for addressing them, it is important to understand the roles of both Western Digital (WD) and Synology. WD is the manufacturer of the hard disk drives (HDDs) and is responsible for implementing the WDDA feature that generates the warnings based on drive analytics. Synology, on the other hand, is the provider of the NAS (Network-Attached Storage) systems that utilize these drives and integrate the WDDA functionality into their DSM software. In terms of handling the issue, Synology typically advises users to contact WD for further assistance. This approach is understandable as WD is the manufacturer and has a deeper understanding of their drives and the WDDA feature. WD may request users to run SMART tests to assess the drive’s health, and if the drive passes the test, it can create a discrepancy between the WDDA warning and the drive’s actual condition.

However, some users have expressed frustration with Synology’s response, as they believe that Synology should take more responsibility in handling the issue. Users argue that while WD provides the information through WDDA, it is up to Synology’s DSM software to determine how to act on this information. The inability to disable the WDDA warning in DSM 7, even if the drive passes SMART tests, has raised concerns among users who feel that the warning may cause unnecessary alarm or prompt premature drive replacements. It is important to note that both WD and Synology continuously update their software and firmware to address such issues and provide better user experiences. However, the resolution of the WDDA warning situation would require collaboration and coordination between both parties to ensure that the warnings are accurate, properly interpreted, and provide actionable guidance for users.

Is QNAP and other NAS affected?

When it comes to the impact of WDDA warnings, it’s worth noting that different NAS (Network-Attached Storage) manufacturers may handle them differently. QNAP, for example, takes a slightly different approach compared to Synology. QTS, the operating system of QNAP NAS devices, prioritizes SMART checks over the WDDA information. This means that QNAP systems do not constantly display warning messages based solely on WDDA data unless there is a significant issue detected. In contrast to the approach taken by Synology, where WDDA warnings are shown even if the SMART tests come back okay, QNAP systems do not inundate users with warning messages unless there is a more serious concern. QTS OS focuses more on SMART test results to determine the health status of the drives, which can help alleviate unnecessary panic or fear among users.

While QNAP and other NAS manufacturers may still utilize WDDA information for certain critical issues, they generally prioritize SMART tests and rely on more immediate indicators of drive health. This approach aims to provide a clearer and more actionable assessment of drive conditions, ensuring that users are alerted only when there is a genuine cause for concern.

Should I disable WDDA?   How to disable WDDA? Should I stick with DSM 6?

Whether or not to disable WDDA (Western Digital Device Analytics) is a decision that depends on individual preferences and considerations. Disabling WDDA means that the warnings generated by this feature will no longer be displayed in the DSM (DiskStation Manager) interface. However, it’s important to note that WDDA provides additional information about the drive’s usage and lifespan, which some users may find valuable. To disable WDDA in DSM, you can use SSH (Secure Shell) access and run the following command:

sudo synosetkeyvalue /etc.defaults/synoinfo.conf support_wdda no

This command modifies the configuration file to set the “support_wdda” value to “no,” effectively disabling the WDDA feature. Keep in mind that SSH access and running commands require technical knowledge and should be done carefully. As for sticking with DSM 6 or upgrading to DSM 7, it ultimately depends on your specific needs and priorities. DSM 7 may offer new features, improvements, and security enhancements compared to its predecessor. However, it’s recommended to thoroughly research the changes and potential compatibility considerations before making the decision to upgrade. It’s important to note that disabling WDDA or deciding on the DSM version should be done after careful evaluation of the potential impact and considering the specific requirements and preferences of your NAS setup. If uncertain, consulting official documentation, seeking guidance from manufacturer support, or engaging in community discussions can provide valuable insights to make an informed decision.

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If you like this service, please consider supporting us. We use affiliate links on the blog allowing NAScompares information and advice service to be free of charge to you.Anything you purchase on the day you click on our links will generate a small commission which isused to run the website. Here is a link for Amazon and B&H.You can also get me a Ko-fi or old school Paypal. Thanks!To find out more about how to support this advice service check HEREIf you need to fix or configure a NAS, check Fiver Have you thought about helping others with your knowledge? Find Instructions Here  

Or support us by using our affiliate links on Amazon UK and Amazon US

    

 

WE LOVE COFFEE

In recent months, Synology NAS users have been receiving a warning known as WDDA (Western Digital Device Analytics) on their WD drives after approximately three years of use. This warning message advises users to replace their drives as they have reached their expected lifetime. However, some users have performed SMART tests on their drives, and the results came back normal. This has led to confusion and uncertainty among users, prompting the question of whether it is necessary to replace the drives or if the warning can be ignored. In this article, we will explore the meaning of WDDA, its warning levels in DSM 7, how to interpret and respond to each situation, which drives are affected, and the role of WD and Synology in handling this issue. We will also discuss the comparison with Seagate Health Management and how QNAP approaches similar warnings differently. Additionally, we will address whether it is advisable to disable the WDDA feature and provide instructions on how to do so if desired.

Update (07:17 GMT  13/6/23)

Synology has been in touch regarding this video and was keen to make the following statement regarding WDDA Drive support and use on their DSM software platform.

“We disagree with the statement that is it not possible to disable usage of WDDA services on supported WD Red hard drives. We would like to confirm the following:

• You can enable/disable WDDA from Storage Manager at any time from the UI. This will remove any warnings (assuming the drive is healthy otherwise).
• Storage Manager has always allowed administrators to “suppress” non-severe drive warnings. This option is also available for this particular warning.

Additionally, regarding the support of WD Red Drives with WDDA on-board services, in DSM:

• WDDA was only introduced into DSM 7.0 (July 2021).
• WDDA is not enabled by default.
• Synology has already deprecated WDDA, and it is not included on any -22 series or newer system (e.g. DS1522+)

WDDA, and its triggers and warnings, are not developed or controllable by Synology. So while DSM can ignore warnings thrown by WDDA, this defeats the purpose of the health monitoring tool that the administrator knowingly enabled. “ – An Official Synology Source, 9th June 2023

Back to the Original Article:

What’s happening? When did this all start?

In recent times, an interesting phenomenon has caught the attention of users in various online forums. People have begun questioning why DSM 7, the operating system used in Synology NAS devices, displays warnings on drives that are merely three years old. This puzzling situation has left many scratching their heads since SMART checks, a commonly used diagnostic tool for assessing drive health, indicate that these drives are functioning perfectly fine. The source of this seemingly contradictory warning lies in WDDA (Western Digital Device Analytics). It has become apparent that WDDA plays a significant role in triggering the warnings, even when SMART checks report no issues. The discrepancy between SMART test results and the persistent warning has sparked confusion and prompted users to seek answers and solutions to this perplexing dilemma.

https://www.synoforum.com/threads/western-digital-device-analytics-power-on-hours-warnings-on-wd-reds-after-just-three-years-of-nas-use.10734/

WDDA: WARNING:

The drive has accumulated a large number of power on hours through the entire life of the drive.

Please consider to replace the drive soon.

https://community.synology.com/enu/forum/1/post/159537

What is WDDA? 

WDDA, which stands for Western Digital Device Analytics, is a feature and framework developed by Western Digital, a prominent manufacturer of hard disk drives (HDDs) and solid-state drives (SSDs). WDDA aims to provide valuable insights into the health, performance, and overall condition of WD drives. It encompasses various metrics and parameters derived from HDD specifications, including load/unload cycles, MTBF (mean time between failures), TBW (terabytes written per year), and power-on hours per year. By analyzing these factors, WDDA helps to assess the drive’s usage patterns, potential wear and tear, and expected lifespan. It provides a holistic view of the drive’s health, allowing users to make informed decisions regarding maintenance, replacement, or further diagnostics. With WDDA, Western Digital aims to empower users with proactive drive management capabilities and ensure the optimal performance and reliability of their WD drives.

https://www.westerndigital.com/solutions/device-analytics

Reading HDD spec sheets can be daunting if you’re not familiar with the terminology and metrics used. However, understanding key specifications can provide valuable insights into the performance and longevity of a hard disk drive (HDD).

One important metric is MTBF (mean time between failures), which indicates the average expected time between drive failures. A higher MTBF generally implies greater reliability. Unload cycles refer to the number of times the read/write heads are parked and unparked, which can affect the mechanical wear of the drive. Lower unload cycle values are generally desirable as they indicate reduced stress on the drive mechanism.

Power-on hours per year provides an estimate of how long the drive has been operational. It gives an indication of the usage intensity and can be useful in assessing the wear and tear on the drive. Workload per year refers to the amount of data written to the drive within a specific period. This metric is particularly important for drives subjected to heavy workloads, such as in NAS or server environments.

When evaluating an HDD, it’s crucial to consider these specifications in relation to your specific use case. For example, a drive with a high MTBF, low unload cycles, and a workload rating suitable for your intended usage will likely offer better longevity and performance. It’s also important to note that different manufacturers may use slightly different terminologies or methods of calculating these metrics, so it’s advisable to consult the official documentation or reach out to the manufacturer for clarification if needed.

By familiarizing yourself with these metrics and understanding their significance, you can make more informed decisions when selecting and managing HDDs for your storage needs.

What exactly the warning says?  It is a Warning not ERROR. Is it similar to Synology ONLY drive warning?

When it comes to the warning message displayed in DSM (DiskStation Manager), it’s important to note that it is a “Warning” and not an “Error.” This distinction implies that the situation is not critical or immediate, but it does warrant attention and consideration. The warning message typically indicates that the drive has accumulated a significant number of power-on hours throughout its lifespan, suggesting potential wear and usage. The purpose of the warning is to inform users that based on Western Digital’s device analytics (WDDA), it may be prudent to consider replacing the drive soon.

It’s worth noting that this warning is not exclusive to Synology drives. While Synology does have its own drive compatibility list and may provide warnings specific to incompatible or uncertified drives, the WDDA warning is separate. The WDDA warning is a result of Western Digital’s analytics system and is applicable to WD drives across different NAS platforms, not limited to Synology. Therefore, it’s essential to differentiate between the warnings specific to Synology drives and the broader WDDA warning that applies to WD drives universally.

Understanding the nature of the warning and its context can help users assess the health and reliability of their drives, determine the appropriate course of action, and decide whether replacing the drive is necessary or if further diagnostic tests are required.

What does Warning mean in DSM ? What action is expected? Is it the same as non Synology HDD warning?

What to do if I get this warning? What can I do if a drive is in “Warning,” “Critical,” or other abnormal statuses?

What other Statuses are there in DSM?

https://kb.synology.com/en-au/DSM/tutorial/Drive_in_abnormal_statuses

https://kb.synology.com/en-au/DSM/tutorial/Drive_health_report_what_to_check_for

What drives are affected? Its not just NAS drives  / What drives support WDDA

The impact of WDDA is not limited to just NAS drives; it extends to various hard disk drive (HDD) models. Some of the drives affected by WDDA and its associated warnings include the Red Pro 12TB (WD121KFBX – 68EF5N0), Red Plus 12TB (formerly known as Red) (WD120EFAX – 68UNTN0), and Purple 8TB (WD82PURZ – 85TEUY0). These drives have been identified as triggering the WDDA warning in Synology NAS devices running DSM 7.

For instance, users have reported receiving WDDA warnings on their Synology DS218 (with DSM 7.1.1-42962 Update 4) when using the WD60EFAX-68SHWN0 drive. Additionally, users on forums have mentioned that WDDA works with their DS218+ model and their 12TB WD Red drives (specifically the WD120EFAX model) from 2019. Another user reported receiving notifications on their DiskStation 416Play regarding two of their 6TB WD Red NAS drives in the SHR-array.

It’s important to note that WDDA is specific to Western Digital drives, and not all WD drives are affected. The exact list of drives supporting WDDA may vary, so it’s recommended to refer to official documentation or contact Western Digital for the most up-to-date information.

Additionally, it’s worth mentioning that other drive manufacturers, such as Seagate, have their own drive health management systems, which may operate differently from WDDA. Therefore, it’s essential to consider the specific drive models and their associated features when evaluating drive health and compatibility with different NAS systems.

Red Pro 12 TB   WD121KFBX – 68EF5N0

Red Plus (formerly known as Red)   12 TB   WD120EFAX – 68UNTN0

Purple   8 TB    WD82PURZ – 85TEUY0

https://kb.synology.com/en-my/DSM/tutorial/Which_Synology_NAS_supports_WDDA

DS218 DSM 7.1.1-42962 Update 4  –  WD60EFAX-68SHWN0

WDDA works in my DS218+ with my 12TB WD Red drives from 2019 (WD120EFAX)…

DiskStation 416Play sent notifications that two of its 6TB WD Red NAS drives (SHR-array)

https://www.reddit.com/r/synology/comments/nhphn0/wdda_and_dsm7/

Seagate

https://kb.synology.com/en-ro/DSM/tutorial/Which_Synology_DiskStation_RackStation_supports_Seagate_IronWolf_Health_Management

Who is to Blame? WD or Synology?

How  Synology are handling this issue?

When it comes to the issue of WDDA warnings and the responsibility for addressing them, it is important to understand the roles of both Western Digital (WD) and Synology. WD is the manufacturer of the hard disk drives (HDDs) and is responsible for implementing the WDDA feature that generates the warnings based on drive analytics. Synology, on the other hand, is the provider of the NAS (Network-Attached Storage) systems that utilize these drives and integrate the WDDA functionality into their DSM software.

In terms of handling the issue, Synology typically advises users to contact WD for further assistance. This approach is understandable as WD is the manufacturer and has a deeper understanding of their drives and the WDDA feature. WD may request users to run SMART tests to assess the drive’s health, and if the drive passes the test, it can create a discrepancy between the WDDA warning and the drive’s actual condition.

However, some users have expressed frustration with Synology’s response, as they believe that Synology should take more responsibility in handling the issue. Users argue that while WD provides the information through WDDA, it is up to Synology’s DSM software to determine how to act on this information. The inability to disable the WDDA warning in DSM 7, even if the drive passes SMART tests, has raised concerns among users who feel that the warning may cause unnecessary alarm or prompt premature drive replacements.

It is important to note that both WD and Synology continuously update their software and firmware to address such issues and provide better user experiences. However, the resolution of the WDDA warning situation would require collaboration and coordination between both parties to ensure that the warnings are accurate, properly interpreted, and provide actionable guidance for users.

Is QNAP and other NAS affected?

When it comes to the impact of WDDA warnings, it’s worth noting that different NAS (Network-Attached Storage) manufacturers may handle them differently. QNAP, for example, takes a slightly different approach compared to Synology. QTS, the operating system of QNAP NAS devices, prioritizes SMART checks over the WDDA information. This means that QNAP systems do not constantly display warning messages based solely on WDDA data unless there is a significant issue detected.

In contrast to the approach taken by Synology, where WDDA warnings are shown even if the SMART tests come back okay, QNAP systems do not inundate users with warning messages unless there is a more serious concern. QTS OS focuses more on SMART test results to determine the health status of the drives, which can help alleviate unnecessary panic or fear among users.

While QNAP and other NAS manufacturers may still utilize WDDA information for certain critical issues, they generally prioritize SMART tests and rely on more immediate indicators of drive health. This approach aims to provide a clearer and more actionable assessment of drive conditions, ensuring that users are alerted only when there is a genuine cause for concern.

https://www.qnap.com/en/release-notes/quts_hero/overview/h5.1.0

Should I disable WDDA?   How to disable WDDA?     Should we stick with DSM 6?

Whether or not to disable WDDA (Western Digital Device Analytics) is a decision that depends on individual preferences and considerations. Disabling WDDA means that the warnings generated by this feature will no longer be displayed in the DSM (DiskStation Manager) interface. However, it’s important to note that WDDA provides additional information about the drive’s usage and lifespan, which some users may find valuable.

To disable WDDA in DSM, you can use SSH (Secure Shell) access and run the following command:

sudo synosetkeyvalue /etc.defaults/synoinfo.conf support_wdda no

This command modifies the configuration file to set the “support_wdda” value to “no,” effectively disabling the WDDA feature. Keep in mind that SSH access and running commands require technical knowledge and should be done carefully.

As for sticking with DSM 6 or upgrading to DSM 7, it ultimately depends on your specific needs and priorities. DSM 7 may offer new features, improvements, and security enhancements compared to its predecessor. However, it’s recommended to thoroughly research the changes and potential compatibility considerations before making the decision to upgrade.

It’s important to note that disabling WDDA or deciding on the DSM version should be done after careful evaluation of the potential impact and considering the specific requirements and preferences of your NAS setup. If uncertain, consulting official documentation, seeking guidance from manufacturer support, or engaging in community discussions can provide valuable insights to make an informed decision.

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Although 45 days have passed since Western Digital was successfully targeted in a cyber attack, the brand has only recently opened up a little further on the nature and impact. Although we covered this in alot of detail back in the middle of April (see link below), WD has only recently publicly shared a little of the data was accessed, as well as contacting potentially affected users. Also, in that time, several other prominent online security sources have added to the discussion, wither independently or after being contacted by the attackers to verify the legitimacy of their claims. For many, the 10-day suspension of the WD My Cloud services might have been the last they have heard about these events, assuming that this had been fully resolved. Sadly that is not the case and whether you are a WD NAS user or not, it might be worth taking a moment to get updated on the ongoing security issues surrounding a big name in NAS and one of the biggest names in storage!

Previous News Port on this HERE – Western Digital Cyber Incident Update- WHAT HAPPENED?

Continued Taunting and Claims By the Hacker Group, BlackCat via ALPHV

Towards the end of April (first on the 18/04 and then later on the 28/04) Dominic Alvieri, a Cybersecurity analyst and security researcher (find his twitter HERE), detailed online information/posts shared by Blackcat on the site Alphv with regard to the data obtained, claims of the WD’s response, lack of security care, information surrounding their intentions and details of the data obtained. While the perpetrators claim not to be part of the ALPHV ransomware group, the posts were shared via their data leak site to highlight the current status quo with Western Digital.

You have to read this final warning.@westerndigital @BleepinComputer https://t.co/P625juLWo1 pic.twitter.com/ohvc2QRP7g

— Dominic Alvieri (@AlvieriD) April 18, 2023

The text in the posted pages is as follows:

Western Intelligence or Western Digital: The Fine Line Between Selling Drives and Espionage 4/18/2023, 12:36:47 AM

Oh Western Digital, The chances we give you, but the continuous egotistical behavior shown indicates you don’t even care about the well being of your company in the slightest. Even the largest companies would want to know every detail they can about what was taken, but Western Digital didn’t even bother to contact us. I am confused by this because we offered to give them file trees of everything, as all groups do when extorting their victims. But as stated they did not even contact. How sad, but I cannot say I’m surprised. At the helm of this company you have a corrupt former Cisco Executive. We thought after our interview with TechCrunch maybe they’d come to do some exploring to find out what data was taken, though. If you are investing in this company– I would advise encouraging the leadership to at least find out what was taken.

Please do not feel sorry for these hounds. I can assure you that they are far more corrupt than you realize, and we have evidence to support our assertions. It’s approaching fast. But, we are not superior to them. We apologize but we won’t divulge if they pay.

Important documents will be released while priceless artifacts will be sold. At this moment, nothing has been sold or leaked. Despite our attempts over the past two weeks, Western Digital has not responded to any of our contact attempts. Even the most naive organizations would want to know precisely what was taken, this situation demonstrates the lack of corporate governance. Have a look at how far we were able to travel through their network, for example. They are corrupt and disregarded everything, thinking nothing would happen. News flash: When they filed Form 8-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission, they misrepresented several details regarding our intrusion, purposefully.

It appears there is additional speculation. No worries everyone we will clean it up. We have their firmware too.

We will fuck you until you cannot stand anymore Western Digital Consider this our final warning.

This was followed up by Dominic by further shared posts by Blackcat:

BlackCat on Western Digital part 2.

“We’ve seen speculation when it comes to customer data. To clarify we obtained a full backup to their SAP back office.”@westerndigital pic.twitter.com/Sm7eg2zmKz

— Dominic Alvieri (@AlvieriD) April 28, 2023

The text in the posted pages is as follows:

Western Digital Chronicles II: The Weekly Descent into Oblivion

4/28/2023, 10:10:40 PM

The last I recall we said something along the lines of “I will fuck you until you cannot stand anymore” I guess they thought we were surely joking.

He didn’t get in touch or glance at the webpage. Don’t be concerned, David. I’ll dismantle your wealth now. You appear so immense and influential.

Beginning next week on an unspecified day, we will share leaks every week until we lose interest. Once that happens, we will put their intellectual property up for sale, including code signing certificates, firmware, personally identifiable information of customers, and more.

We’ve seen speculation surrounding customer data. To clarify, we obtained a full backup of their SAP Back Office, which dates back to the last week of March. The backup contains everything (cont)

The page also contains an additional screenshot of a template that presumably was intended for WD users/customers that was to be tailored to impacted users that Blackcat claims to have obtained alongside a plethora of other internal data:

Dear Customer

wanted to notify you that Western Digital recently learned of a network security incident affecting some of our systems. When we become aware of the issue, we quickly launched on investigation with the assistance of leading outside security experts and proactively took some of our systems offline. We are investigating this situation and taking steps to secure our systems. We also are coordinating with law enforcement. Our relationship with you is very important to us and we appreciate your patience while we work through our investigation

SPECIFIC IMPACT TO INDIVIDUAL CUSTOMER IF APPROPRIATE

As a precaution, we have temporarily removed access to our engineering labs and you will not have access to (YOUR SHARED/ lob. We regret any inconvenience to you and your teams and would i ensure you that restoring network access is a top priority (include species of engineering lab acces impact to timeline/deliverables we con

We will keep you informed of our progress as appropriate, and please let me know if you have any questions

Thank you for your ongoing support

Finally, there as details of a shared morning video call with WD Security Threat specialists. All of this in efforts to draw a line through speculation when it comes to customer data and clarify their claims that they have obtained a full backup to WD’s SAP back office

This is a black eye for Western Digital.

BlackCat even posted an early morning video conference “with the finest threat hunters Western Digital has to offer.” https://t.co/QURl2NCScW pic.twitter.com/Y0ElQXHET0

— Dominic Alvieri (@AlvieriD) April 29, 2023

Alongside this, BleepingComputer reports that Western Digital had screenshots of internal emails, files, and video conferences pertaining to its response efforts to a cyberattack in the previously covered March leaked by BlackCat (via Alphv) after the group threatened significant damage to the firm should it refuse to pay the ransom (also first detailed over on TechCrunch).

WD Response and Alerting Its Customers

On the 5th May, Western Digital provided several new updates to the ongoing data security attack, though all of which were a little late out the gate compared with the continued deluge by the attackers themselves and communication with editor platforms (and security experts online up to this point). First, there was an official press release HERE that (focusing on the network security incident) stated the following:

05-05-23 Western Digital Corp. (NASDAQ: WDC) today provided an update on a network security incident involving the Company’s systems.

“On March 26, 2023, we identified a network security incident where an unauthorized third party gained access to a number of the Company’s systems.

On April 2, 2023, we disclosed that upon discovery of this incident, we implemented incident response efforts and initiated an investigation with the assistance of leading security industry experts. This investigation is underway and includes analysis to understand the nature and scope of data obtained by the unauthorized party.

As a precautionary measure to secure our business operations, the Company proactively disconnected our systems and services from the public Internet. We are progressing through our restoration process and the majority of our impacted systems and services are now operational. Our factories are and have been operational throughout this incident and we are shipping products to meet our customers’ needs. While initially impacted by our proactive measures, as of April 13, 2023, My Cloud service was restored. Account access to Western Digital’s online store also was impacted and is expected to be restored the week of May 15, 2023.

In collaboration with outside forensic experts, we confirmed that an unauthorized party obtained a copy of a Western Digital database used for our online store that contained some personal information of our online store customers. This information included customer names, billing and shipping addresses, email addresses and telephone numbers. In addition, the database contained, in encrypted format, hashed and salted passwords and partial credit card numbers. We will communicate directly with impacted customers.

We are aware that other alleged Western Digital information has been made public. We are investigating the validity of this data and will continue reporting our findings as appropriate.

Regarding reports of the potential to fraudulently use digital signing technology allegedly attributed to Western Digital in consumer products, we can confirm that we have control over our digital certificate infrastructure. In the event we need to take precautionary measures to protect customers, we are equipped to revoke certificates as needed. We’d like to remind consumers to always use caution when downloading applications from non-reputable sources on the Internet.”

This was also joined by a message that was sent out to WD customers. Detailing a little more on the data that has been obtained. Though it does not detail the extent of the volume of impacted users or if the vulnerability in question that the attackers used has been fully neutralized:

Original text:

Dear Customer,

We are writing to notify you about a network security incident involving your Western Digital online store account. After learning of the incident, we quickly launched an investigation to understand its nature and scope. We are working with leading outside forensic and security experts to assist with our investigation and are coordinating with law enforcement.

Based on the investigation, we recently learned that, on or around March 26, 2023, an unauthorized party obtained a copy of a Western Digital database that contained limited personal information of our online store customers. The information included customer names, billing and shipping addresses, email addresses, and telephone numbers. As a security measure, the relevant database stored, in encrypted format, hashed passwords (which were salted) and partial credit card numbers.

We have temporarily suspended online store account access and the ability to make online purchases. We expect to restore access the week of May 15, 2023. As a precautionary measure, you can take the following steps to help protect your

personal information from potential misuse:

Be cautious of any unsolicited communications that ask for your personal information or refer you to a web page asking for personal information. Avoid clicking on links or downloading attachments from suspicious emails. Check whether your email account has spam settings to help you detect or block suspicious emails.

We hope this information is useful to you. If you have any questions regarding this incident, please call 855-493-7867, Monday-Friday, 8am-5pm PST.

As good as it is that WD are finally sharing more information on the impact of this, since the relative lack of noise they were making on the initial security attack (which led to the WD shop being taken offline and them suspending their WD My Cloud remote services), this is still quite a vague detail on how/if/who has been impacted here. I appreciate that they need to remain guarded (both from a continued security stance and perhaps legally), but given the scale of users that still use their relatively low barrier and affordable NAS solutions, this does seem something of a lacklustre response! Add to that the question marks of if customer data stored in the WD Store and/or the extent of confidential information that is potentially going to be sold to the highest bidder – I think WD needs to be more proactive on this!

The WD Shop is Still Open – Sort of…

The WD Shop has not really been back to 100% since the initial impact of the security attack. Intermittently, we saw the store display this message:

When the store was accessible, the header of the site continues to display the following message:

That said, products and series catalogues can now be accessed. However, you are still not able to make purchases, instead being redirected to resellers in your area:

The concern here of course, is whether the vulnerability in question has been blocked and how much of the WD Shop infrastructure is/was/could have been involved in the cyber incident. WD states that they expect to reinstate access to the WD Shop by May 15th, 2023.

If I Use a WD NAS or Have a WD Shop Account – What Should I Do?

If you are an existing (or even former) WD NAS user, alternatively, you are someone who has shopped at the WD Shop before, then I would certainly recommend that you follow the following guidelines:

• As mentioned in WD’s own messaging, be very mindful and careful with any communication that pertains to be from WD/Western Digital regarding your account. Do NOT provide any further information or account details if prompted (as this might likely allow assisted brute force access hacking). Additionally, check all mail domains of any communication you receive and check any URLs you are directed towards in advance (i.e copy link and paste to view before using) in order to check the destination domain
• If you have not already, change your WD NAS admin/general-user admin login credentials and instate 2-Step Authentication were possible. There is still no confirmation that complete and unencrypted information of user account credentials has been leaked – but why take that chance?
• Ensure your off-site/off-system backups are in order. If an attacker is able to fully access or even partially access your WD NAS system via even moderately powerful user credentials, they are far, FAR more likely to push for ransomware (encrypting your data without leaving a local key) than deletion/destruction, as there is no means of exploiting this for payment. So GET YOUR BACKUPS IN ORDER. Do not rely on a USB backup unless it is only connected during periodic backups and automatically ejected afterwards.

Thinking of leaving WD NAS? Use my Comparison Guide video below to find out which of the other big names in NAS hardware and/or software best suits your needs:

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If you like this service, please consider supporting us. We use affiliate links on the blog allowing NAScompares information and advice service to be free of charge to you.Anything you purchase on the day you click on our links will generate a small commission which isused to run the website. Here is a link for Amazon and B&H.You can also get me a Ko-fi or old school Paypal. Thanks!To find out more about how to support this advice service check HEREIf you need to fix or configure a NAS, check Fiver Have you thought about helping others with your knowledge? Find Instructions Here  

Or support us by using our affiliate links on Amazon UK and Amazon US

    

 

WE LOVE COFFEE

Where to Buy a Product
			VISIT RETAILER ➤
			VISIT RETAILER ➤
			VISIT RETAILER ➤
			VISIT RETAILER ➤
			VISIT RETAILER ➤

If you like this service, please consider supporting us.
We use affiliate links on the blog allowing NAScompares information and advice service to be free of charge to you. Anything you purchase on the day you click on our links will generate a small commission which is used to run the website. Here is a link for Amazon and B&H. You can also get me a Ko-fi or old school Paypal. Thanks! To find out more about how to support this advice service check HERE   If you need to fix or configure a NAS, check Fiver   Have you thought about helping others with your knowledge? Find Instructions Here  

WE LOVE COFFEE

Or support us by using our affiliate links on Amazon UK and Amazon US

     

Although 45 days have passed since Western Digital was successfully targeted in a cyber attack, the brand has only recently opened up a little further on the nature and impact. Although we covered this in alot of detail back in the middle of April (see link below), WD has only recently publicly shared a little of the data was accessed, as well as contacting potentially affected users. Also, in that time, several other prominent online security sources have added to the discussion, wither independently or after being contacted by the attackers to verify the legitimacy of their claims. For many, the 10-day suspension of the WD My Cloud services might have been the last they have heard about these events, assuming that this had been fully resolved. Sadly that is not the case and whether you are a WD NAS user or not, it might be worth taking a moment to get updated on the ongoing security issues surrounding a big name in NAS and one of the biggest names in storage!

Previous News Port on this HERE – Western Digital Cyber Incident Update- WHAT HAPPENED?

Continued Taunting and Claims By the Hacker Group, BlackCat via ALPHV

Towards the end of April (first on the 18/04 and then later on the 28/04) Dominic Alvieri, a Cybersecurity analyst and security researcher (find his twitter HERE), detailed online information/posts shared by Blackcat on the site Alphv with regard to the data obtained, claims of the WD’s response, lack of security care, information surrounding their intentions and details of the data obtained. While the perpetrators claim not to be part of the ALPHV ransomware group, the posts were shared via their data leak site to highlight the current status quo with Western Digital.

You have to read this final warning.@westerndigital @BleepinComputer https://t.co/P625juLWo1 pic.twitter.com/ohvc2QRP7g

— Dominic Alvieri (@AlvieriD) April 18, 2023

The text in the posted pages is as follows:

Western Intelligence or Western Digital: The Fine Line Between Selling Drives and Espionage 4/18/2023, 12:36:47 AM

Oh Western Digital, The chances we give you, but the continuous egotistical behavior shown indicates you don’t even care about the well being of your company in the slightest. Even the largest companies would want to know every detail they can about what was taken, but Western Digital didn’t even bother to contact us. I am confused by this because we offered to give them file trees of everything, as all groups do when extorting their victims. But as stated they did not even contact. How sad, but I cannot say I’m surprised. At the helm of this company you have a corrupt former Cisco Executive. We thought after our interview with TechCrunch maybe they’d come to do some exploring to find out what data was taken, though. If you are investing in this company– I would advise encouraging the leadership to at least find out what was taken.

Please do not feel sorry for these hounds. I can assure you that they are far more corrupt than you realize, and we have evidence to support our assertions. It’s approaching fast. But, we are not superior to them. We apologize but we won’t divulge if they pay.

Important documents will be released while priceless artifacts will be sold. At this moment, nothing has been sold or leaked. Despite our attempts over the past two weeks, Western Digital has not responded to any of our contact attempts. Even the most naive organizations would want to know precisely what was taken, this situation demonstrates the lack of corporate governance. Have a look at how far we were able to travel through their network, for example. They are corrupt and disregarded everything, thinking nothing would happen. News flash: When they filed Form 8-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission, they misrepresented several details regarding our intrusion, purposefully.

It appears there is additional speculation. No worries everyone we will clean it up. We have their firmware too.

We will fuck you until you cannot stand anymore Western Digital Consider this our final warning.

This was followed up by Dominic by further shared posts by Blackcat:

BlackCat on Western Digital part 2.

“We’ve seen speculation when it comes to customer data. To clarify we obtained a full backup to their SAP back office.”@westerndigital pic.twitter.com/Sm7eg2zmKz

— Dominic Alvieri (@AlvieriD) April 28, 2023

The text in the posted pages is as follows:

Western Digital Chronicles II: The Weekly Descent into Oblivion

4/28/2023, 10:10:40 PM

The last I recall we said something along the lines of “I will fuck you until you cannot stand anymore” I guess they thought we were surely joking.

He didn’t get in touch or glance at the webpage. Don’t be concerned, David. I’ll dismantle your wealth now. You appear so immense and influential.

Beginning next week on an unspecified day, we will share leaks every week until we lose interest. Once that happens, we will put their intellectual property up for sale, including code signing certificates, firmware, personally identifiable information of customers, and more.

We’ve seen speculation surrounding customer data. To clarify, we obtained a full backup of their SAP Back Office, which dates back to the last week of March. The backup contains everything (cont)

The page also contains an additional screenshot of a template that presumably was intended for WD users/customers that was to be tailored to impacted users that Blackcat claims to have obtained alongside a plethora of other internal data:

Dear Customer

wanted to notify you that Western Digital recently learned of a network security incident affecting some of our systems. When we become aware of the issue, we quickly launched on investigation with the assistance of leading outside security experts and proactively took some of our systems offline. We are investigating this situation and taking steps to secure our systems. We also are coordinating with law enforcement. Our relationship with you is very important to us and we appreciate your patience while we work through our investigation

SPECIFIC IMPACT TO INDIVIDUAL CUSTOMER IF APPROPRIATE

As a precaution, we have temporarily removed access to our engineering labs and you will not have access to (YOUR SHARED/ lob. We regret any inconvenience to you and your teams and would i ensure you that restoring network access is a top priority (include species of engineering lab acces impact to timeline/deliverables we con

We will keep you informed of our progress as appropriate, and please let me know if you have any questions

Thank you for your ongoing support

Finally, there as details of a shared morning video call with WD Security Threat specialists. All of this in efforts to draw a line through speculation when it comes to customer data and clarify their claims that they have obtained a full backup to WD’s SAP back office

This is a black eye for Western Digital.

BlackCat even posted an early morning video conference “with the finest threat hunters Western Digital has to offer.” https://t.co/QURl2NCScW pic.twitter.com/Y0ElQXHET0

— Dominic Alvieri (@AlvieriD) April 29, 2023

Alongside this, BleepingComputer reports that Western Digital had screenshots of internal emails, files, and video conferences pertaining to its response efforts to a cyberattack in the previously covered March leaked by BlackCat (via Alphv) after the group threatened significant damage to the firm should it refuse to pay the ransom (also first detailed over on TechCrunch).

WD Response and Alerting Its Customers

On the 5th May, Western Digital provided several new updates to the ongoing data security attack, though all of which were a little late out the gate compared with the continued deluge by the attackers themselves and communication with editor platforms (and security experts online up to this point). First, there was an official press release HERE that (focusing on the network security incident) stated the following:

05-05-23 Western Digital Corp. (NASDAQ: WDC) today provided an update on a network security incident involving the Company’s systems.

“On March 26, 2023, we identified a network security incident where an unauthorized third party gained access to a number of the Company’s systems.

On April 2, 2023, we disclosed that upon discovery of this incident, we implemented incident response efforts and initiated an investigation with the assistance of leading security industry experts. This investigation is underway and includes analysis to understand the nature and scope of data obtained by the unauthorized party.

As a precautionary measure to secure our business operations, the Company proactively disconnected our systems and services from the public Internet. We are progressing through our restoration process and the majority of our impacted systems and services are now operational. Our factories are and have been operational throughout this incident and we are shipping products to meet our customers’ needs. While initially impacted by our proactive measures, as of April 13, 2023, My Cloud service was restored. Account access to Western Digital’s online store also was impacted and is expected to be restored the week of May 15, 2023.

In collaboration with outside forensic experts, we confirmed that an unauthorized party obtained a copy of a Western Digital database used for our online store that contained some personal information of our online store customers. This information included customer names, billing and shipping addresses, email addresses and telephone numbers. In addition, the database contained, in encrypted format, hashed and salted passwords and partial credit card numbers. We will communicate directly with impacted customers.

We are aware that other alleged Western Digital information has been made public. We are investigating the validity of this data and will continue reporting our findings as appropriate.

Regarding reports of the potential to fraudulently use digital signing technology allegedly attributed to Western Digital in consumer products, we can confirm that we have control over our digital certificate infrastructure. In the event we need to take precautionary measures to protect customers, we are equipped to revoke certificates as needed. We’d like to remind consumers to always use caution when downloading applications from non-reputable sources on the Internet.”

This was also joined by a message that was sent out to WD customers. Detailing a little more on the data that has been obtained. Though it does not detail the extent of the volume of impacted users or if the vulnerability in question that the attackers used has been fully neutralized:

Original text:

Dear Customer,

We are writing to notify you about a network security incident involving your Western Digital online store account. After learning of the incident, we quickly launched an investigation to understand its nature and scope. We are working with leading outside forensic and security experts to assist with our investigation and are coordinating with law enforcement.

Based on the investigation, we recently learned that, on or around March 26, 2023, an unauthorized party obtained a copy of a Western Digital database that contained limited personal information of our online store customers. The information included customer names, billing and shipping addresses, email addresses, and telephone numbers. As a security measure, the relevant database stored, in encrypted format, hashed passwords (which were salted) and partial credit card numbers.

We have temporarily suspended online store account access and the ability to make online purchases. We expect to restore access the week of May 15, 2023. As a precautionary measure, you can take the following steps to help protect your

personal information from potential misuse:

Be cautious of any unsolicited communications that ask for your personal information or refer you to a web page asking for personal information. Avoid clicking on links or downloading attachments from suspicious emails. Check whether your email account has spam settings to help you detect or block suspicious emails.

We hope this information is useful to you. If you have any questions regarding this incident, please call 855-493-7867, Monday-Friday, 8am-5pm PST.

As good as it is that WD are finally sharing more information on the impact of this, since the relative lack of noise they were making on the initial security attack (which led to the WD shop being taken offline and them suspending their WD My Cloud remote services), this is still quite a vague detail on how/if/who has been impacted here. I appreciate that they need to remain guarded (both from a continued security stance and perhaps legally), but given the scale of users that still use their relatively low barrier and affordable NAS solutions, this does seem something of a lacklustre response! Add to that the question marks of if customer data stored in the WD Store and/or the extent of confidential information that is potentially going to be sold to the highest bidder – I think WD needs to be more proactive on this!

The WD Shop is Still Open – Sort of…

The WD Shop has not really been back to 100% since the initial impact of the security attack. Intermittently, we saw the store display this message:

When the store was accessible, the header of the site continues to display the following message:

That said, products and series catalogues can now be accessed. However, you are still not able to make purchases, instead being redirected to resellers in your area:

The concern here of course, is whether the vulnerability in question has been blocked and how much of the WD Shop infrastructure is/was/could have been involved in the cyber incident. WD states that they expect to reinstate access to the WD Shop by May 15th, 2023.

If I Use a WD NAS or Have a WD Shop Account – What Should I Do?

If you are an existing (or even former) WD NAS user, alternatively, you are someone who has shopped at the WD Shop before, then I would certainly recommend that you follow the following guidelines:

• As mentioned in WD’s own messaging, be very mindful and careful with any communication that pertains to be from WD/Western Digital regarding your account. Do NOT provide any further information or account details if prompted (as this might likely allow assisted brute force access hacking). Additionally, check all mail domains of any communication you receive and check any URLs you are directed towards in advance (i.e copy link and paste to view before using) in order to check the destination domain
• If you have not already, change your WD NAS admin/general-user admin login credentials and instate 2-Step Authentication were possible. There is still no confirmation that complete and unencrypted information of user account credentials has been leaked – but why take that chance?
• Ensure your off-site/off-system backups are in order. If an attacker is able to fully access or even partially access your WD NAS system via even moderately powerful user credentials, they are far, FAR more likely to push for ransomware (encrypting your data without leaving a local key) than deletion/destruction, as there is no means of exploiting this for payment. So GET YOUR BACKUPS IN ORDER. Do not rely on a USB backup unless it is only connected during periodic backups and automatically ejected afterwards.

Thinking of leaving WD NAS? Use my Comparison Guide video below to find out which of the other big names in NAS hardware and/or software best suits your needs:

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This description contains links to Amazon. These links will take you to some of the products mentioned in today's content. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Visit the NASCompares Deal Finder to find the best place to buy this device in your region, based on Service, Support and Reputation - Just Search for your NAS Drive in the Box Below

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If you like this service, please consider supporting us. We use affiliate links on the blog allowing NAScompares information and advice service to be free of charge to you.Anything you purchase on the day you click on our links will generate a small commission which isused to run the website. Here is a link for Amazon and B&H.You can also get me a Ko-fi or old school Paypal. Thanks!To find out more about how to support this advice service check HEREIf you need to fix or configure a NAS, check Fiver Have you thought about helping others with your knowledge? Find Instructions Here  

Or support us by using our affiliate links on Amazon UK and Amazon US

    

 

WE LOVE COFFEE

If you are looking at making a significant saving on larger capacity HDDs or picking up much faster NVMe SSDs for a bargain price, then shucking will likely be one of the first methods that you have considered. For the uninitiated, shucking drives is the process of purchasing an external drive (eg a USB or Thunderbolt external storage drive in a sealed enclosure), then opening it up in efforts to get the drive inside – which can often work out cheaper than buying the bare internal drive on it’s own. As mentioned in THIS ARTICLE earlier this month, the reasons an external drive can often be cheaper can range from the drive inside being white labelled versions of a consumer drive, or the drive being allocated in bulk at production therefore removing it from the buy/sell/currency variables of bare drives or even simply that your USB 3.2 external drive is bottlenecking the real performance of the drive inside. For whatever the reason, HDD and SSD Shucking still continues to be a desirable practice with cost-aware buyers online. But there is one little problem – that the brands VERY RARELY say which HDD or SSD they choose to use in their external drives. Therefore choosing the right external drive for shucking can have an element of luck and/or risk involved. So, in today’s article, I want to talk you through a bunch of ways to identify the HDD/SSD inside an external drive without opening it, as well as highlight the risks you need to be aware of and finally shock my research after searching the internet for information to consolidate the drives inside many, many external drive enclosures from Seagate, WD and Toshiba. This is an ongoing process and one that is never going to be foolproof – but better something than nothing, right? Let’s begin.

Shucking HDDs and SSDs – Buyer Beware!

It is INCREDIBLY important that you know the risks when considering external drive shucking! Despite the savings that are possible compared with purchasing bare internal HDDs and SSDs, the catch is that it has never really been a 100% foolproof system of buying cheap drives. So, before you open a single browser tab and visit your local eShop, make sure you remember the following:

• Some External Drives use Partially/Fully attached Bridging boards on the internal HDD/SSD media inside, which (at best) will require additional removal or (at worst) make the internal drive completely unusual via a traditional SATA connection (See example HERE – will open in new tab)
• The HDD or SSD inside an external drive is always subject to change by the manufacturer at any time. So, there is no real guarantee that a HDD/SSD used in an enclosure today will be the same drive in use in a later revision
• Shucking an HDD/SSD from a store-bought external drive case will, in most cases, completely invalidate your warranty. Even if you are able to reintroduce the drive back into the casing without harm, there might still be unhidden seals that you have void’ed, or its connection via an internal interface such as SATA being registered on the drive’s internal logs.

If you are in any further doubt, I strongly recommend that you watch my video on the three reasons that Shucking hard drives is a GOOD thing (and three reasons it is NOT), as it will ensure you have the full factors and hurdles that you may encounter at your disposal before you spend a single penny! If you are still happy to proceed, let’s go!

A List of Which HDD/SSD is inside Which External Drive from WD and Seagate

Below is a list of external Drives and the hard drive or SSD that have been recognized online inside them. This list comprises a tonne of research from April 2023 and includes lots of current-gen and old-gen external drives from WD, Seagate and Toshiba online. Do keep in mind that even the older drives are still available to buy on the likes of eBay and in Amazon’s seller directories. In some case (especially in the case off 2.5″ drives, 3TB and 5TB drives) the drive inside is impossible to by conventionally as a bare drive in 2023 onwards. Additionally, it is worth keeping in mind that although the HDD in many of these external drives have the same model ID as their bare drive equivalent, they may arrive as ‘white label’ drives – which is when the brand does not place the usual colourful/consumer friendly livery on the drive casing. This also massively identifies the drive as a ‘shucked drive’ and reduces the likely chances of a warranty even closer to 0%. 

IMPORTANT – The following list is the result of hours or online research and cross-referencing on 14-4-23. I will continue to update this list periodically as further information and identifiers arise(as well as edit/amend as needed when contacted about errors). If I am unaware of an HDD/SSD inside an enclosure but it is in an existing range, I will either leave the field blank or add ‘N/A’. Last thing, please, PLEASE remember that just because an HDD/SSD is in the list below, it might well still feature a bridging board in place between the on-drive interface and the external interface (again, see here). So, I recommend that you scroll down further in this article to the four ways to identify the HDD/SSD inside an external drive enclosure without opening the drive up!

Seagate USB External HDDs and SSDs and the Drive Inside:

Seagate Technology Holdings plc is an American data storage company. It was incorporated in 1978 as Shugart Technology and commenced business in 1979.[2] Since 2010, the company has been incorporated in Dublin, Ireland, with operational headquarters in Fremont, California, United States. Seagate developed the first 5.25-inch hard disk drive (HDD), the 5-megabyte ST-506, in 1980. They were a major supplier in the microcomputer market during the 1980s, especially after the introduction of the IBM XT in 1983. Much of their growth has come through their acquisition of competitors. In 1989, Seagate acquired Control Data Corporation’s Imprimis division, the makers of CDC’s HDD products. Seagate acquired Conner Peripherals in 1996, Maxtor in 2006, and Samsung’s HDD business in 2011. Today, Seagate, along with its competitor Western Digital, dominates the HDD market.

WD/Western Digital USB External HDDs and SSDs and the Drive Inside:

Western Digital Corporation (WDC, commonly known as Western Digital or WD) is an American computer drive manufacturer and data storage company, headquartered in San Jose, California. It designs, manufactures and sells data technology products, including data storage devices, data center systems and cloud storage services. Western Digital has a long history in the electronics industry as an integrated circuit maker and a storage products company. It is one of the largest computer hard disk drive manufacturers, along with producing solid state drives and flash memory devices. Its competitors include the data management and storage companies Seagate Technology and Micron Technology.

Toshiba USB External HDDs and SSDs and the Drive Inside:

Toshiba‘s early history has two strands: One is Tanaka Seizo-sho (Tanaka Engineering Works), established in 1882, and based on a factory started by Hisashige Tanaka (1799-1881) in 1875. Tanaka was well known from his youth for creations that included mechanical dolls and a perpetual clock. Eventually, under the name Shibaura Seisaku-sho (Shibaura Engineering Works), his company became one of Japan‘s largest manufacturers of heavy electrical apparatus. The other is Hakunetsu-sha & Co., Ltd. established as Japan’s first manufacturer of incandescent lamps. Subsequent diversification saw the company evolve as a manufacturer of consumer products. In 1899, it became Tokyo Denki (Tokyo Electric Co.). In 1939, these two companies, leaders in their respective fields, merged to form an integrated electric equipment manufacturer, Tokyo Shibaura Denki (Tokyo Shibaura Electric Co., Ltd.). The company was soon well known as ‘Toshiba,’ which became its official name in 1978.

Four Ways to Find Out the HDD or SSD Inside a USB Enclosure without Opening One Up!

Let’s be honest, if you are reading this article, it is because you want to shuck one or more drives, but you are MASSIVELY on the fence about it and were looking for proof and/or confirmation that the drive inside a certain enclosure is worth shucking! However, between the brands choosing to refresh their external drives and their contents periodically, the possibility of a drive using a modified USB bridge internally and/or wanting to check for yourself but send it back if it’s useless – there is ALOT that can threaten your chances of a good shucked drive! So, below is four ways your can choose to find out the drive that is inside an external drive without invalidating your warranty AND still allow you to have your 14-day return policy honoured! There is arguably something of a moral grey area when it comes to the third choice in the case of buying from a small business, so if you must pursue that one – do not do this to a small eShop or business that lives/dies on it’s smaller profit margins. Saving you money by shucking is one this – screwing over a small business is a different story! These are the four methods I used to check and identify the drives mentioned in the lists above, but DO REMEMBER that in most cases the information you might retrieve might be dated and/or subject to change at that very moment outside of that specifically sourced example! Sorry to be such a gloomy guss – but it’s important to stay relative and realistic! Let’s go. 

Shucking Discover Method #1 – Check the Amazon Review Images or Text

This is one that is often overlooked (but also does require a little bit more work and verification than it might seem at first glance), but if you look at the bulk of external drives on Amazon, you will find there are literally thousands of reviews! This is because external drives are still (even in 2023) one fo the most purchased forms of consumer storage in the market. Now, these reviews can help you identify which HDD/SSD is inside an external drive in a couple of ways. The first way is to head to the ‘Review Images’ section and from there you can scroll through the images that have been included with good/bad reviews that show you a tonne of stuff! This will obviously include images of the external drive and/or shipping boxes (pretty useless to our purpose) BUT they very often include pictures of the drive casing being opened for more thorough reviews and also people show images of benchmark/test software that will show the drive that is inside the case (see example below):

Alternatively, you can also use the text-based search areas of Amazon’s review pages to search either the reviews themselves OR the questions area for terms such as ‘drive inside‘, ‘shuck‘, ‘internal‘, ‘model‘ or even a partial model ID. For example, most WD drives that are used in external drives start with the model ID ‘WD4‘ for a 4TB or ‘WD10‘ for a 20TB. The same applies to Seagate, with them using the likes of ‘ST4000‘ or ‘ST6000‘ for 4TB or 6TB, respectively. (Example below):

It is worth keeping in mind, however that Amazon groups it’s reviews together by ‘similarity’ in terms of a product. This is something that, frankly, NO ONE LIKES! So, just because a review image/text has been found on a specific Amazon product page, it is not necessarily for that product. So, make a point of checking the review in full by clicking on the date review title and this will take you to the review in the context of the product it was made on. This means you can doube/triple check that it is still relevant to the external drive you are looking at.

Shucking Discover Method #2 – Check Reddit!

If you think drive shucking is relatively new – think again! It has been going on pretty much since ready-made USB drives from Seagate and WD have been available commercially! And in that time, numerous data storage reddits have sprung up that are full of people kindy sharing drives that are worth shucking. The results can differ wildly in terms of their publication dates and the model IDs of the drives involved, but if you are willing to take a little bit of time searching from a specific external Drive ID and whether it has been shucked, you will often find the answer there! Enormous SHOUT OUT to the /DataHoarder reddit HERE!

Alongside lots of examples of specific external drives that have been shucked, you will also find a while bunch of general discussions (such as this one) that will generally discuss the merits of shucking and examples of drives you might consider!

Shucking Discover Method #3 – Use CrystalDiskInfo to Check the External USB Drive FIRST!

Now, this one is not something I would generally recommend, as it is bending the rules the tiniest bit in terms of consumer rights! However, if you are happy to deal with a near-immediate return on an item you buy online as per your consumer rights (and more likely than not happy to pay the return shipping), you can use software to see the contents of an external drive without lifting so much as a single screwdriver! If you connect any external drive to your computer and use the free CrystalDiskInfo software (found HERE) to check the health of your connected drives, it will see the model ID of the drive inside the enclosure and display it via the application (see below):

CrystalDiskInfo has been around for well over a decade now (as well as diversifying into popular benchmark tools) as largely freeware (with optional donations here). You WILL need to connect the external drive physically over USB to your system, but you will not need to initialize/format the drive, nor assign it a drive letter. Just ensure that the drive is fully connected and powered on, then run the software. It is also worth highlighting that SOME drives are hard labelled with the model ID of the external drive (more common with SSDs), but the bulk of external drives that run with HDDs internally will show the drive inside.

Shucking Discover Method #4 – Use Review Sites and/or YouTube Reviews

This method is one that is probably the most time-consuming of all methods to check the internal drive that is included with your external WD or Seagate drive, but PLENTY of YouTube Reviewers (myself included) will make a point of highlighting the drive that is encased inside. This is because it helps to identify whether the drive is good value and/or high quality. So, if you are considering a USB drive for shucking, make a point of looking for a review on YouTube first. There is a decent chance they will either crack it open at one point in the vid OR they will use tools such as CrystalDiskMark or CrystalDiskInfo to test the drive’s temperature in operation and performance. Either way, this will end up being a very good way to find out which specific HDD is inside an enclosure, or at the very least which HDD/SSD series is used in a given external HDD range. Fair warning though, once HDDs cross around 10-12TB, many brands (through necessity) will switch from a standard class drive towards a Pro or even Enterprise class drive. So this can make tracking an HDD in a broad capacity-supported range a little trickier!

Alternatively, if the external drive is particularly popular and/or has been in the market for at least a year – there is a pretty high chance that you will come across specific shucking videos online that will not only tell you the drive model inside, but also some useful specifics about what the drive is capable of! A good example is below:

Finally, it’s worth highlighting that the same logic I highlighted for finding out the internal drive using YouTube Reviews still massively works with written review sites too! If anything , if you visit the right sites (StorageReview, TechRadar, theSSDReview, NASCompares cough), they will quickly detail the drive found inside most systems. A fantastic example highlighted below, which I mentioned in a recent video, is this review of the Sandisk Extreme Pro 1TB USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10Gb/s) drive over on theSSDReview.com. This USB drive can be opened up in less than a minute and contains a PCIe Gen 3×4 M.2 NVMe 2280 SSD – the WD Black SN750. This is a big deal, because although the external enclosure can only maximum transfer 1,000MB/s, the drive inside can comfortably hit 3,100MB/s if shucked and put in an available Gne3 M.2 NVMe SSD slot. A massive performance improvement for your storage AND the Sandisk external costs less than buying the WD Black SN750 on it’s own! Score!

Is External Drive Shucking Still Worth It in 2023/2024?

As long as there have been ready-made USB external hard drives, there has been shucking. Hard Drive Shucking (and in recent years, even SSD shucking) is the process of purchasing an external HDD/SSD enclosure, such as WD My Book or Seagate Backup Plus drive, and then cracking open the casing to get the drive inside. Now, on the face of it, this might seem a bit daft. After all, you can definitely still buy bare/internal HDDs on there own. Why would you go the ‘scenic route’ and purchase a lovely well designed external drive, only to crack the casing open, possibly undermining your warranty, when you can just simply buy the bare drive online and not have to get your hands dirty? Well, the reality of shucking is actually a great deal more nuanced and there are actually several more advantages to HDD/SSD shucking above and beyond the price point! So, today I want to discuss the three reasons why you might want to consider shucking a hard drive or SSD (as well as three reasons why you might want to give it a miss and buy an internal drive at retail). 

How To Choose The BEST Value Hard Drive And Best Price Per TB – Get It Right, FIRST TIME!

Below you will find our automatic hard drive price per TB/GB tool, designed to crawl many, MANY different eShops and divide their cost between the available storage. This allows us to rank/list these drives by the largest amount of terabytes youwill get for your money. This list includes popular hard drive manufacturers, such as Seagate, WD and Toshiba, allowing you to ensure that you are getting excellent value for money on your storage, as well as only choosing the most reputable HDD makers in the world. Before you head down there though, take a moment to quick familiarize yourself with a few key factors that will aid you in understanding how to understand what separates one HDD from another.

Click Below to Use the Best Price per TB Chart (Updated Daily)

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This description contains links to Amazon. These links will take you to some of the products mentioned in today's content. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Visit the NASCompares Deal Finder to find the best place to buy this device in your region, based on Service, Support and Reputation - Just Search for your NAS Drive in the Box Below

Need Advice on Data Storage from an Expert?

TRY CHAT

If you like this service, please consider supporting us. We use affiliate links on the blog allowing NAScompares information and advice service to be free of charge to you.Anything you purchase on the day you click on our links will generate a small commission which isused to run the website. Here is a link for Amazon and B&H.You can also get me a Ko-fi or old school Paypal. Thanks!To find out more about how to support this advice service check HEREIf you need to fix or configure a NAS, check Fiver Have you thought about helping others with your knowledge? Find Instructions Here  

Or support us by using our affiliate links on Amazon UK and Amazon US

    

 

WE LOVE COFFEE

If you are looking at making a significant saving on larger capacity HDDs or picking up much faster NVMe SSDs for a bargain price, then shucking will likely be one of the first methods that you have considered. For the uninitiated, shucking drives is the process of purchasing an external drive (eg a USB or Thunderbolt external storage drive in a sealed enclosure), then opening it up in efforts to get the drive inside – which can often work out cheaper than buying the bare internal drive on it’s own. As mentioned in THIS ARTICLE earlier this month, the reasons an external drive can often be cheaper can range from the drive inside being white labelled versions of a consumer drive, or the drive being allocated in bulk at production therefore removing it from the buy/sell/currency variables of bare drives or even simply that your USB 3.2 external drive is bottlenecking the real performance of the drive inside. For whatever the reason, HDD and SSD Shucking still continues to be a desirable practice with cost-aware buyers online. But there is one little problem – that the brands VERY RARELY say which HDD or SSD they choose to use in their external drives. Therefore choosing the right external drive for shucking can have an element of luck and/or risk involved. So, in today’s article, I want to talk you through a bunch of ways to identify the HDD/SSD inside an external drive without opening it, as well as highlight the risks you need to be aware of and finally shock my research after searching the internet for information to consolidate the drives inside many, many external drive enclosures from Seagate, WD and Toshiba. This is an ongoing process and one that is never going to be foolproof – but better something than nothing, right? Let’s begin.

Shucking HDDs and SSDs – Buyer Beware!

It is INCREDIBLY important that you know the risks when considering external drive shucking! Despite the savings that are possible compared with purchasing bare internal HDDs and SSDs, the catch is that it has never really been a 100% foolproof system of buying cheap drives. So, before you open a single browser tab and visit your local eShop, make sure you remember the following:

• Some External Drives use Partially/Fully attached Bridging boards on the internal HDD/SSD media inside, which (at best) will require additional removal or (at worst) make the internal drive completely unusual via a traditional SATA connection (See example HERE – will open in new tab)
• The HDD or SSD inside an external drive is always subject to change by the manufacturer at any time. So, there is no real guarantee that a HDD/SSD used in an enclosure today will be the same drive in use in a later revision
• Shucking an HDD/SSD from a store-bought external drive case will, in most cases, completely invalidate your warranty. Even if you are able to reintroduce the drive back into the casing without harm, there might still be unhidden seals that you have void’ed, or its connection via an internal interface such as SATA being registered on the drive’s internal logs.

If you are in any further doubt, I strongly recommend that you watch my video on the three reasons that Shucking hard drives is a GOOD thing (and three reasons it is NOT), as it will ensure you have the full factors and hurdles that you may encounter at your disposal before you spend a single penny! If you are still happy to proceed, let’s go!

A List of Which HDD/SSD is inside Which External Drive from WD and Seagate

Below is a list of external Drives and the hard drive or SSD that have been recognized online inside them. This list comprises a tonne of research from April 2023 and includes lots of current-gen and old-gen external drives from WD, Seagate and Toshiba online. Do keep in mind that even the older drives are still available to buy on the likes of eBay and in Amazon’s seller directories. In some case (especially in the case off 2.5″ drives, 3TB and 5TB drives) the drive inside is impossible to by conventionally as a bare drive in 2023 onwards. Additionally, it is worth keeping in mind that although the HDD in many of these external drives have the same model ID as their bare drive equivalent, they may arrive as ‘white label’ drives – which is when the brand does not place the usual colourful/consumer friendly livery on the drive casing. This also massively identifies the drive as a ‘shucked drive’ and reduces the likely chances of a warranty even closer to 0%. 

IMPORTANT – The following list is the result of hours or online research and cross-referencing on 14-4-23. I will continue to update this list periodically as further information and identifiers arise(as well as edit/amend as needed when contacted about errors). If I am unaware of an HDD/SSD inside an enclosure but it is in an existing range, I will either leave the field blank or add ‘N/A’. Last thing, please, PLEASE remember that just because an HDD/SSD is in the list below, it might well still feature a bridging board in place between the on-drive interface and the external interface (again, see here). So, I recommend that you scroll down further in this article to the four ways to identify the HDD/SSD inside an external drive enclosure without opening the drive up!

Seagate USB External HDDs and SSDs and the Drive Inside:

Seagate Technology Holdings plc is an American data storage company. It was incorporated in 1978 as Shugart Technology and commenced business in 1979.[2] Since 2010, the company has been incorporated in Dublin, Ireland, with operational headquarters in Fremont, California, United States. Seagate developed the first 5.25-inch hard disk drive (HDD), the 5-megabyte ST-506, in 1980. They were a major supplier in the microcomputer market during the 1980s, especially after the introduction of the IBM XT in 1983. Much of their growth has come through their acquisition of competitors. In 1989, Seagate acquired Control Data Corporation’s Imprimis division, the makers of CDC’s HDD products. Seagate acquired Conner Peripherals in 1996, Maxtor in 2006, and Samsung’s HDD business in 2011. Today, Seagate, along with its competitor Western Digital, dominates the HDD market.