Spare HDD

[Mat1926]

I thought of ordering a WD Red 10 TB HDD and keep it in its packaging just in case I ever needed one to replace a dying HDD. My HDDs are all new but who knows what might happen. Currently I have plenty of free space. Is storing such HDD any good at all since I don't know when exactly I might need it?

 

Thnx

[pwm]

Depends on your economic situation. Having a spare drive at hand is always a good idea if you want to be able to quickly react in case of a problem. I always keep a couple of spare disks, fans, cables, PSU etc to be able to fix most issues when needed without having to order or visit some store.

[Mat1926]

6 minutes ago, pwm said:

Depends on your economic situation.

 

Money is not an issue, but what about long term storing such HDD? 

[kizer]

For me its a matter of how quickly can I get something.

I have Amazon which delivers within a day or two. Also I have Fry's which I could easily just drive 45 or so minutes and grab another one.

 

I guess the answer you have to ask yourself is how long can you stare at a drive unavailable but simulated error if a drive has an issue. 

[Mat1926]

3 minutes ago, kizer said:

I guess the answer you have to ask yourself is how long can you stare at a drive unavailable but simulated error if a drive has an issue. 

 

Thnx for the response, but it does not answer my inquiry...

[pwm]

4 minutes ago, Mat1926 said:

 

Money is not an issue, but what about long term storing such HDD? 

 

It will survive long term storage - the only disadvantage with storing a brand new drive is that if there is a production error you waste the warranty period without spotting the issue.

 

In reality, you aren't likely to want to store it for many years - because of size progression of drives it will be practical to some day rotate in the drive in the array and get a larger spare drive - no drive may be larger than the parity drives so if you increase size of one or more drives in the RAID then you want to have a larger spare drive so it can replace a parity drive.

[Mat1926]

2 minutes ago, pwm said:

It will survive long term storage - the only disadvantage with storing a brand new drive is that if there is a production error you waste the warranty period without spotting the issue.

 

In reality, you aren't likely to want to store it for many years - because of size progression of drives it will be practical to some day rotate in the drive in the array and get a larger spare drive - no drive may be larger than the parity drives so if you increase size of one or more drives in the RAID then you want to have a larger spare drive so it can replace a parity drive.

 

Thnx. My parity is in fact 10 TB, so I will just order one from Amazon now...I appreciate the help...

[John_M]

I would at least test it before storing it. I don't think there's any point in leaving it unopened.

[kizer]

On 2/21/2018 at 4:33 PM, Mat1926 said:

 

Thnx for the response, but it does not answer my inquiry...

 

If you buy a drive with say a "4 Year" Warranty then technically you have 4 years to let it sit before installing it and finding out it either does or doesn't work. 

So with that in mind you can buy all the Spare drives you want and have them sit or buy them as you need them. Totally up to you. 

 

However what I was getting out with my above answer. I typically don't buy a lot of spares simply because the warranty is "supposed" to start the day you buy it, not the day you install it. Its all a matter of what you can and can't live with. I just installed my last drive and I'm sure I'll pick up another sometime soon as a spare, but it more than likely be called a spare, but in reality it'll be something I swap out  of an older drive that I've had installed for several years.