QNAP NAS storage space expansion

[Enquiries]

Hi

I currently have a QNAP TS-453D (model number TS-453D-8G-UK) populated with 2x6TB WD Red HDDs (model number WD60ERFX-68MYMN1 build date 12 Dec 2014), in RAID 1 (mirrored). (The HDDs used to live in a TS-251 until I upgraded to my current NAS in 2022.)

The capacity of my NAS has recently triggered the 80% warning, so it's time for me to think about expanding my space before it fills up too much more.

I'd like to stay mirrored so thinking about buying two more drives for my NAS to have something like RAID 5. Wondering whether to just get another pair of 6TBs, or whether to go for something like 2x12TB drives (restricting them to 6TB each for now), with the future option of replacing the 2x6TB ones at a later date.

My use case is mostly storage (photos and videos) with limited streaming.

What would your view by on my two suggestions? Which would you go for, or are there other options I should consider? Are WD HDDs still the best trade-off for value against reliability?

Thanks.

[ed]

Since your primary use is photo and video storage with light streaming, you don’t need extreme performance. You only need capacity and redundancy that won’t force another rebuild too soon.

Sticking with two more six terabyte drives is the cheapest option, but it locks you into a limit of twelve terabytes usable once you switch to RAID5 or RAID5 equivalent. Given that your current drives are from 2014, mixing old and new six terabyte disks works, but you’ll still end up planning another upgrade fairly soon.

Your second idea of adding two twelve terabyte drives is the smarter long term move. In a RAID5 pool the array will shrink all disks to the smallest size, so yes, the twelve terabyte drives will behave as six terabyte drives for now. But you gain a clear path forward because when your old six terabyte drives eventually get replaced, the pool will expand automatically to the larger size. It also means you are already halfway through a full capacity refresh without spending it all at once.

As for brands, WD Red Plus and Toshiba N300 remain the best balance of price, reliability and low noise for home environments. Just avoid WD Red drives that use SMR. Red Plus are CMR and the right choice.

If your total budget is around five hundred pounds, then two twelve terabyte WD Red Plus drives will fit nicely and give you the future expansion you’re after. It keeps you on mirrored style redundancy once you convert the pool, gives you more headroom and avoids having to redo everything again in a year.