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Thread: Hard drive setup questions...

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    Hard drive setup questions...

    Hi guys,

    My 500GB Spinpoint is currently on it's way out ($Bitmap errors, or something) so I think I need to replace it, I'm not sure what with though?

    I've seen a 1.5TB Samsung EcoGreen for £70, but obviously it won't be that fast, so I'm thinking of having that to store data, and then something else to store my OS/Games on?

    The 1.5 will be used for data (Films, Pics, Data, large files that aren't used all the time, etc) so I imagine I'd only need about 160GB max to hold the O/S and applications?

    Is it better to get 2 discs and RAID them?

    I can't afford an SSD, so that's out the question

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    Overclocking Since 1988 nightkhaos's Avatar
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    Re: Hard drive setup questions...

    I am in the same boat as you are. I recommend you get the following:

    2 x WD Caviar Black 1TB @ £68.99 each and then put them in RAID 0.

    Will give you about half the performance of an SSD for about half the price, but with between 8 and 32 times the storage.

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    Re: Hard drive setup questions...

    So just keep everything on that disk? Problem being is that when one of the drives fail, that'll be a TB of data lost rather than a OS and a few games..

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    Overclocking Since 1988 nightkhaos's Avatar
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    Re: Hard drive setup questions...

    Quote Originally Posted by th0r0n View Post
    So just keep everything on that disk? Problem being is that when one of the drives fail, that'll be a TB of data lost rather than a OS and a few games..
    The likelyhood of those drives failing before their usable life is up is approximately 1 in a googol. If you have NOT replaced them with the fancy 4GB WD Cavier Reds that will be coming out in 2014 then you kinda DESERVE to lose all your data. But if the risk is too great, you don't have to RAID them, they still give decent performance.

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    Re: Hard drive setup questions...

    Are WD the best at the moment then? My Samsung is crap, crapped out in less than a year!

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    mush-mushroom b0redom's Avatar
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    Re: Hard drive setup questions...

    Quote Originally Posted by nightkhaos View Post
    The likelyhood of those drives failing before their usable life is up is approximately 1 in a googol.
    Not strictly true. I've had problems with RAID-0 before. In the end I gave up as the (very modest) speed increase wasn't worth the hassle of reinstalling. YMMV.

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    Overclocking Since 1988 nightkhaos's Avatar
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    Re: Hard drive setup questions...

    Quote Originally Posted by th0r0n View Post
    Are WD the best at the moment then? My Samsung is crap, crapped out in less than a year!
    I will not say they are... but I will say that:

    All my personal friends purchase WDs over any other drive at the moment.

    And none of us have had a drive fail on us yet.

    This group is apporximately 5 real and 30-40 virtual (i.e. I don't know personally but converse with on the web on a regular basis).

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    Overclocking Since 1988 nightkhaos's Avatar
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    Re: Hard drive setup questions...

    Quote Originally Posted by b0redom View Post
    Not strictly true. I've had problems with RAID-0 before. In the end I gave up as the (very modest) speed increase wasn't worth the hassle of reinstalling. YMMV.
    Do you feel the precise statistics are warrented given the nature of the advise we are giving the OP?

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    Re: Hard drive setup questions...

    Just get a single-platter Caviar Black (250/320GB) for OS and programs and then get a 1/1.5TB Caviar Blue/Green for storage.

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    The late but legendary peterb - Onward and Upward peterb's Avatar
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    Re: Hard drive setup questions...

    Well, as a mechanical devices, the drives will fail at some point - the only unknown is when. However that won't matter as you will be able to restore from your backups... won't you?
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    Re: Hard drive setup questions...

    Quote Originally Posted by peterb View Post
    Well, as a mechanical devices, the drives will fail at some point - the only unknown is when. However that won't matter as you will be able to restore from your backups... won't you?
    ^^^ this. If you dont backup or have some sort of redundency like RAID-1 or 5 then you deserve to lose all your data

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    Formerly known as Andehh Andeh13's Avatar
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    Re: Hard drive setup questions...

    Might be able to help here, Im selling a Western Digital 250GB hard drive (new). It is as reliable as they come and I (as many Hexites) swear by Western Digital, this proved by the 5 of them i have running in my computer as we speak (check my specs). Iv also installed one in my girlfriend's PC & one on my parent's PC and iv never had one die on me during normal usage (i killed 2 by running 12v through them ). Iv got one 250gb for OS & programs than the rest for films, music etc.

    This would leave you with more funds for a good 1/1.5tb HDD as a tank drive.

    http://forums.hexus.net/classifieds-...250gb-hdd.html

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    The late but legendary peterb - Onward and Upward peterb's Avatar
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    Re: Hard drive setup questions...

    Quote Originally Posted by Bitemarks666 View Post
    ^^^ this. If you dont backup or have some sort of redundency like RAID-1 or 5 then you deserve to lose all your data
    Delete all after backup! RAID 1 or 5 is not a backup substitute - it doesn't protect against controller failure or a system failure corrupting the array. An array is one logical entity (which may be subdivided into other logical entities)
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    Re: Hard drive setup questions...

    To be fair I don't have that much data I would be crying over if I didn't back up, I use it mainly as a media server and a gaming rig, I don't tend to do much document editing/work on the machine

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    Overclocking Since 1988 nightkhaos's Avatar
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    Re: Hard drive setup questions...

    Quote Originally Posted by peterb View Post
    Delete all after backup! RAID 1 or 5 is not a backup substitute - it doesn't protect against controller failure or a system failure corrupting the array. An array is one logical entity (which may be subdivided into other logical entities)
    Finally! Someone who understands. I don't know how many times I have had to repeat REDUDANCY IS NOT A BACKUP ALTERNATIVE.

    My father once bought a computer for the soul reason that it has a RAID 5 array for backup. I tried to explain that he still need to backup his data.

    Of course, with Murphy's law, the RAID controler failed. Yes. The single most important chip in a RAID setup FAILED, exlcusive of everything else. 2TB of confidental work lost to the abyss.

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    Re: Hard drive setup questions...

    Looking at the 640 Caviar Black (I think that's the smallest you can get) for O/S and Games

    Then move that over to a data drive and get an SSD when they get better/cheaper?

    Good plan?

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