Hi everyone,
The 16TB (4 x 4TB blue HDDs) storage on my “My cloud ex4100” is nearly full, so I’m planning to change them with new disks. I already have 2 4TB blue HDDs and 2 4TB red HDDs, my question is: Is it possible to mix two colors in one Mycloud (blue and red in my case)? and if so, can I set it RAID ?
Thanks.
Note, there are specific subforums for the EX4100.
OS3 v2.x Firmware My Cloud EX Series
https://community.wd.com/c/network-attached-storage/my-cloud-expert-series/153
OS5 v5.x Firmware My Cloud EX Series (supported devices)
https://community.wd.com/c/os5/my-cloud-ex-series/255
While one can use different types and brands of hard drives in their multi bay enclosures one should try to keep to using the same type and capacity of drive to avoid potential issues, particularly if using RAID of any type. It is best to use drives designed and intended for use in Network Attached Storage (NAS) enclosures. While one could use WD Blue drives in an NAS enclosure, one may see a faster failure rate with that drive since the WD Blue drive(s) may not be designed (heavy read/write/transfer speeds/powered on 24/7) for use in NAS enclosures. One also has to consider the hardware used by non NAS specific hard drives. This includes drives like the WD Blue possibly having less cache for storing temporary data before writing to the hard drive, or possibly being SMR drives which are known to be an issue in certain NAS enclosures.
Generally WD Blue drives are for desktop use not for NAS use. Mixing a WD Blue with a WD Red may potentially cause (slower) transfer speed issues between drives if using RAID. Mixing them together in a RAID setup is likely asking for trouble.
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Thank you Bennor for your reply, it made it clear to me that mixing between HDD types or brands can be done but may cause many problems later on. I’ve been using Blue disks for a while now and I’ve never faced any serious problem with my NAS system, maybe I was lucky.
As I understand switching to Red is better since it is made for NAS use.
Thanks again.
WD has a page that details in very general terms the intended use of their Blue, Black, Green, Purple, Gold and Red drives.
