this post was submitted on 24 Nov 2023
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We are digital librarians. Among us are represented the various reasons to keep data -- legal requirements, competitive requirements, uncertainty of permanence of cloud services, distaste for transmitting your data externally (e.g. government or corporate espionage), cultural and familial archivists, internet collapse preppers, and people who do it themselves so they're sure it's done right. Everyone has their reasons for curating the data they have decided to keep (either forever or For A Damn Long Time (tm) ). Along the way we have sought out like-minded individuals to exchange strategies, war stories, and cautionary tales of failures.
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If you have backups it doesn't matter much what you buy. It's not like there's much choice anyway. :)
Do you want to buy a small 2.5" one? Or a larger 3.5" one?
All the small ones are SMR these days, so that's something you should consider. Depending on exact use cases this may become very slow, and in case of error, like a sudden drop of power source which easily happens with externals, they also corrupt more easily (in other places, not just necessarily in the data you just wrote to them).
If you go for a bigger 3.5" drive go for a larger size and CMR. 4 TB is laughable and ultimately more expensive (EUR/$ per TB). I would recommend to look for 12TB and upwards with helium filled. The 18TB disks are the current price sweet spot it seems.
Thanks! It's 3.5. Where does it say whether a disc is CMR/SMR/Helium?
Typically in the specs sheet of the manufacturer. You have to read/ look closely. Best is to ask about a specific drive ID then we can tell more (out of experience).
Thanks! So I’m finally going with the wd blue 6tb cmr:
https://www.westerndigital.com/products/internal-drives/wd-blue-desktop-sata-hdd?sku=WD5000AZLX
Is it helium?
Unlikely. There used to be 8TB heliums at some point, but then WD replaced that line with air-filled ones. A process that at least went to the 10TB line too already, I believe. Your safe bet for helium is 14TB and up, I would say.
When you buy that 6TB drive make sure to get the WD60EZAX (aka CMR) and not the WD60EZAZ (aka SMR). It's one letter difference… if you buy from a random dealer they may send you the SMR.
I'm having trouble finding the blue where I live, so I think I'll go with the Red Plus 8TB, WD80EFZZ...is it helium or air?
It's a 20% chance, I guess. Dunno. :) If it has a flat top surface and no air holes then it's Helium, else it's air.
That's a helium one: https://pcper.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/d177-dsc00234-1280x640.jpg
That's an air one: https://cdn.eteknix.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Western-Digital-WD-RED-8TB-Photo-view-angle-1-880x850.jpg