The original post: /r/datahoarder by /u/Robin_14561456 on 2024-07-21 22:23:36.
hello, we (i hope) have 500-600gb of data on memory cards sitting on a shelf, and 2 months ago it dawned on me that i really really need to back these up on a 2TB WD drive. but i am unsure of which WD drives to use for backing them up.
so the external drives, passport and elements there all SMR, now that should be compleatly fine, because i have no intention of deleting ANYTHING on those drives, and SMR (from what i have read, please correct me if i am wrong) doesn't start becoming a problem unless you start deleting files and reusing the same pace. theres also the fact that (from what i have read) external drives get hotter than an internal drive inside an enclosure. and externals dont have a sata connection, so i the usb goes, im going to have another problem. they are a bit cheaper to buy
internals, they seem like a better bet, more expensive though, but at least i could buy a CMR drive, sata, and a ventilated case, or a docking station.
it would be cheaper to buy a docking station for 2-3 drives, since i could buy one station instead of 3 enclosures, but im a bit concerned by the static discharge risk when handling these bare drives, or are internal drives protected from anti static? or maybe i should just spend more money and buy 3 anti static cases for the drives. what enclosures/docking stations would you recommend for a 3.5" drives.
now the 2 drives, wd blue 3.5" CMR 2tb (WD20EARZ) or the wd gold 3.5" 2tb (WD2005FBYZ) should work fine,
the blue seems pretty clear on the data sheet provided, its cmr, and meant for pc's, seems fine. not sure if its a helium drive or not, if anyone knows.......
the gold on the other hand, has a 5 year warranty, 2 million MTBF. but there are a few things im not sure about.
1: is the gold CMR? the data sheet doesnt seems to specify if it is or isnt. it briefly mentions that the 24tb version is cmr, but it seems very vague. so i guess it must mean the rest are smr?
2: is it a good idea to be using an enterprise drive as a home back up. do i need a special type of software to use this drive, and if so where do i download this. and since its an enterprise drive doesnt that mean its meant to be running 24/7 in a climate controlled environment, will sitting on a shelf in a normal home environment be ok?
i kind of rambled on a bit there, sorry.
thanks in advance.