WD My Cloud Ex4 is the best home NAS with RAID support. Hard drives WD.

The highlight of all WESTERN DIGITAL disks (WD) is free program "Acronis True Image. WD Edition ", which allows you to backup operating system and data. All WD hard drives are divided into the series depending on the destination.

Different series of WD discs have their own characteristics and are calculated under different methods Their use, and for their differences came up with the use of color marking, which is quite convenient. The user remains only to determine the range of tasks for which the disk will be used.

WD Blue

If you are using hDD As a storage of photographs from travel, photo of a wedding album or a collection of favorite TV shows, then WD Blue is exactly what you need. WD Blue drives are designed and tested with user requests and receive a 2-year warranty. Improved data protection is based on contactless reading technology, providing a safe location of the recording head over the surface of the drive. This is the most chassis inexpensive series. hard disks WD with a standard speed of rotation of the spindle 7200 rpm.

WD Green.

A series of quiet and economical hard drives. They also belong to inexpensive solutions as well as WD Blue, but differ in a reduced spindle speed to 5400 rpm. This ensures a reduced level of noise and heating. Also hard drives from the green series periodically turn off to reduce power consumption. In general, they are more suitable for repository files to which the appeal is rare. As a main disk for a system or a second disk with which permanent operation occurs during the day, they are poorly suitable, since frequent launches and stop stops lead to its elevated wear.

WD Black

The WD Black ruler is designed for advanced users and is perfect for photographers, designers and of course gamers. Dynamic caching optimally distributes cache memory to achieve maximum performance Outside the dependence of the disk use scenario, even in such heavy tasks as a video editing and modern filmmatic games. High speed is also achieved due to a 2-nuclear processor. With the WD Black disk, these users will be safe, there is a 5-year warranty. These discs are fast, reliable and well suited for use as the main or second disk of the game and professional PC.

WD RED

For stable operation of the NAS network drive, it is best to use the WD Red line. The scope of their application is very wide - ranging from home storage or a small office to corporate sites. NAS HARD technology reduces power consumption, increases speed hard disk and optimized for NAS storage systems. The carriers in the RED ruler are designed for the load in the format 24/7 and have 3 years warranty. Also, they are used to turn off the power in the absence of activity, which is good for file archives in periodically used NAS, but poorly for use in the PC.

WD Purple.

In working with video surveillance systems, WD Purple is perfect for connecting in some drive models to 64 HD cameras. This type of drive is considered the best in solving video surveillance problems, since it is developed on the basis of a network video recorder and allows you to record a large number of data streams simultaneously. Reduced power consumption is a huge plus for systems operating 365 days a year, and silence and minimum vibrations are provided with the Intel SIK system. The manufacturer guarantees 3 years of continuous drive. High reliability WD PURPLE is provided by resistance to external factors and opportunities to operate at high temperatures.

WD GOLD.

The data center or server is best built on the WD Gold line model. They are carefully tested for compatibility with all popular server storage systems and are perfect for both small companies and corporate giants. A two-way head positioning system provides faster and accurate search Data on disk. These discs are sharpened under great amount Simultaneous appeals from the network.

WD RE.

WD Re (Raid Edition) discs are specially optimized for work in large RAID arrays with the possibility of hot replacement and expansion. With this in mind, they are equipped with a special technology to prevent RAFF vibration and protection against stabletrac vibrations. They are not designed to use as the main server disk and many simultaneous appeals as discs from the Gold series, and more suitable for backup storage data. They have an increased resource overwrite and the time of operation for failure, which is important for large data centers. They can also operate at high temperatures and do not turn off the power.

WD SE

WD SE discs are also designed for collaboration, but in a small array from 6 to 12 disks. They are more oriented on small corporate customers and work in the SMB segment (file access protocol). These discs are not designed for such volumes of overwriting and time resource as discs from the RE series, i.e. They are a simplified and reduced version. Nevertheless, they are equipped with error correction technology in Tler arrays and have a 5-year warranty. The threshold of operating temperatures in them is lower, but they also do not use power outages.

WD4002FYYZ Hard Drive
Hard Drive WD WD20PURX
WD10EZex Hard Drive

Silent work with low power consumption. The budget series of WD Green disks is designed for desktop computers. Disks have sufficient volumes and an attractive price, their speed is within 5400-5900 rpm. Now Western Digital decided to rebranding a green series, combining it with a blue series (WD Blue). WD Green is no longer produced.

Stable performance and reliability for everyday use in a personal computer. Hard drives WD Blue is produced by volumes from 250 GB to 6 TB, with a range of rotational speeds from 5400 to 7200 rpm and cache at 16, 32 and 64 MB. One of the most important innovations of this series of steel 1 TB Magnetic plates that increased the speed of the disk due to higher recording density. Among the WD Blue series disks there is a Blue SSHD model (solid-state hybrid drive), which combines a large amount of hard drives at the speed of the solid-state NAND flash drive. Blue SSHD is available in a 2.5-inch format for laptops and a 3.5-inch format for desktop computers. The first possesses the volume of 1 TB, and the second - 4 TB. The disks are equipped with 8 GB NAND flash memory and use a self-learned algorithm that stores frequently used data on the solid-state part of the disk. Blue HDD and Blue SSHD are connected through sATA interface 6 Gb / s. WD Blue 5400 RPM hard drives WD Blue 7200 RPM hard drives WD Blue Hard Disk Tests

Maximum performance for desktop computers. The Black Series is a High-end family of Western Digital hard drives. Such discs offer volumes from 1 TB to 6 TB. The black series of disks is known for its reliability and is suitable as ordinary usersand gamers or advanced users. Latest version Disc of this family WD Black 6 TB with 128 MB cache shows much better results in comparison with previous version WD Black 4 TB. The speed of rotation of all disks of this product line is 7200 rpm. HDD Black Series Some of the most reliable desktop on the market. In our tests, WD BLACK has demonstrated the data transfer rate of 180 MB / s and an 8.5 ms access time. WD Black Hard Drives WD Black Hard Drive Tests

The purple series is designed for video surveillance systems. Intellipower RPM technology allows the PURPLE series discs to change the speed of its rotation from 5400 to 7200 rpm, thereby reducing the level of power consumption and increasing the rigid disk resource. WD Purple hard drives WD Purple Hard Disk Tests

Performance and increased reliability. WD RED Pro Series is designed for network storage (NAS), but also perfect for your desktop computer. Compared to WD Black, these disks are quieter and reliable, but also much more expensive. According to the test results, WD Red Pro transmits data at a speed of 180 MB / s, and the access time is 8.5 ms - the same results as in the Black Series, but Red Pro work is much quieter thanks to the built-in vibration repayment system.

Several times set by mail the question of which wheels it is better to use for network storage. I search for answering this question and will deal with this article.

All world hard drive production is now concentrated in hand 4 large companies: Western Digital, Seagate, Toshiba and Hitachi.

It remains to sort out their rules of the disks, mapping them with each other and draw conclusions which of them are suitable for use in home network storage and servers, and which are not.

Western Digital is the American company and the world's largest hard drive manufacturer on this moment. In the line of their products there are models for almost all market segments.

For residents of Russia Western Digital is interesting, which provides its own warranty service in the country. If the disk has failed after the end of the store warranty, but it still has an extended manufacturer's warranty, then in service center WD can be freely exchanged it on the same or newer model. This is the only hard drive manufacturer providing such support.

HGST (Hitachi)

HGST - Division of the Japanese Financial and Industrial Group Hitachi, engaged in the production of hard drives.

In fact, HGST has long been bought by Western Digital Corporation, but for some bureaucratic reasons for the full absorption of this company did not happen.

Therefore, HGST to this day continues to produce a ruler of hard drives under its own brand.

Seagate.

Seagate Technology is an American hard drive manufacturer and the main competitor Western Digital in this area.

Like Western Digital, Seagate produces products for all market segments. But with technical support for Russian buyers everything is more modest here: in case of problems with seagate disks We will have to solve all warranty issues through authorized distributors.

Toshiba.

Toshiba is an old and influential Japanese corporation, producing technical solutions in various fields. The production of hard drives is one of the numerous areas of activity of this corporation.

From the whole "Big Four" manufacturers Toshiba pays the least to the marketing movement of their hard drives and does not seek to take the entire market.

Comparative table

I decided not to paint each line separately - it would make an article too long and unreadable. Instead, simply reduced actual series of hard drives of all four manufacturers in one table by sorting them according to the declared scope of application.

What hard drives are more reliable

Interesting Reliability Reliability Statistics provides California BACKBLAZE company. This company provides services cloud storage For business and private individuals, and therefore purchasing hard drives in huge, straight industrial scales. For several years now in the corporate blogbook BACKBLAZE, quarterly reports on the failures of the disks used are published.

Here, for example, their fresh report for the 3rd quarter of 2017:

But statistics over the past 4 years:

What conclusions can be made from this report?

• First, the stackers with a capacity of 4 TB produced by Seagate serious problems with reliability. Moreover, more capacious drives of the same Seagate are already normal, as part of the average market, reliability and they can be taken. But looking for hard drives on 4 TB (and at the moment it is the optimal volume of the disk in terms of price relationship) is better to choose some other manufacturer.
• Secondly, again on the example of Seagate and its 8 TB drives it is clear that the reliability of the hard drives of the corporate class is no different from home models. Despite the fact that the discs for the corporate segment are more expensive, have a longer manufacturer's warranty and are designed for more intensive loads. So I do not overpay for Enterprise disks in the hope of some special quality - it is not.
• Thirdly, if you do not contradicted on the initially problematic model (all the same seagate on 4 TB as an example), then the chances of losing your data due to the failure of the specific hard disk instance of the hard disk even with intensive use for commercial purposes. Even less at home use with relatively low loads. And almost zero, if there are backups from time to time.

What disk choose

My opinion - for use in your home server or NAS, almost any disk is suitable. The main thing is that it is sufficient. And low rusty, which badly affects the response time (but the instant response is not needed, the server is not a workstation and not gamers' PC), but positively on the silence of work.

If you do not want to torment yourself with a choice, then you just take the fact that the manufacturer itself is positioning as disks for NAS.

These are WD RED disk rules, HGST Deskstar NAS, Seagate Ironwolf, Toshiba N300.

3.5 "or 2.5"

Compact discs 2.5 "format, as a rule, work quieter and consume less electricity.

To their advantages include a broader scope: 2.5 "disc can be used both in a full-fledged PC / NAS / server, and with single-board computers, mini-PCs and laptops. But 3.5 "drive except in the stationary PC will not use any more use.

Disadvantages of 2.5 "disks - b abouttheorest price for the same disk volume and less maximum line capacity compared to 3.5 "counterparts.

Risk diversification

It makes sense to buy disks of one container, but different manufacturers. Or one manufacturer, but from different parties. Or at least in different stores and in different days.

This allows you to protect yourself from the risk of simultaneous disk failures due to the fact that:

a) There was a factory marriage in one particular party produced in one shift.
b) The entire batch of discs, delivered to the store, was damaged during transportation or acceptance.

Tested model time

Do not buy discs newest models or the most accessible volume to date.

In addition to the fact that the latest models always stand at the start much more adequate prices for them, they have not yet passed the time check. Almost always, only the products published on the market (not only about discs) have any "childhood diseases" that will be identified and corrected in the following revisions.

So let the running of fresh models produce enthusiasts, and for themselves it is better to choose the time to check the time.

Conclusion

This end the topic of selection of hard drives for home server or NAS.

The following types of cycles will talk about RAID, encryption and other things.

The newest four-seater NAS server WD My Cloud Ex4 has a much larger capacity than the usual WD My Cloud, even if you take four pieces.

In addition, in contrast to the predecessor, the new EX4 server has large quantity Functions, such as supporting various RAID configurations to protect data in case of hard disk failure. The server also has convenient compartments for hard drives, as well as (I saw it for the first time) two power connectors designed to improve reliability.

During testing, WD My Cloud Ex4 was used as advanced home system Data storage and personal cloud server. Although EX4 is not the fastest server, its performance is enough with interest. I especially pleased the speed of reading.

As for the shortcomings, WD My Cloud Ex4 is quite lagging behind the servers with a similar configuration, for example, Synology DiskStation DS412 + or AsUSTOR AS-604T, performance and capabilities. Everything else, MY Cloud mobile software also needs to be refined.

In order to compensate for these shortcomings, My Cloud Ex4 offers simple setup and ease of use, unlike competitors. The recommended price for EX4 - $ 380 (without hard drives), $ 800 for a complete set with 8 TB, $ 950 for 12 TB and $ 1150 for 16 TB. Not bad!

If you need good home NAS with RAID support, cloud access with mobile devices and simple setup, then WD My Cloud Ex4 will be an excellent choice.

Thanks to convenient compartments, you can replace hard drives in seconds!

Design and features

Among all the servers considered by me, WD My Cloud Ex4 has the most convenient hard disk replacement mechanism. It is worth pulping the latch, and the hard disk with ease leaves, and pulling the drive back and pressing the latch, the drive will be installed. No cogs are easy and easy. Thanks to such a design, replace the hard disk for just a couple of seconds.

WD My Cloud Ex4 supports any 3.5-inch hard drives. Western Digital reports that a two-year warranty will be valid even if you use hard drives from other manufacturers. But, as you probably have already guessed, Western Digital, naturally, recommends using WD RED hard drives created specifically to work in NAS.

By purchasing a diskless version of the server, you will have to take care of just the choice of hard drives. In the remaining sets, drives are already installed and configured to work in the RAID 5 configuration, which offers good performance, capacity and high reliability. The server also supports operation in RAID 0, RAID 1 and RAID 10 modes.

According to our calculations, switching from one RAID mode to another takes only a few minutes. Behind the construction of the RAID array, you can watch through a small display on the front panel, which also displays the name and IP address of the server.

On the rear panel of the EX4 server only two: two USB 3.0, two ports Gigabit Ethernet, and the first thing I have ever seen, two power connector. The kit includes only one adapter, and the second can be purchased separately. What is it for? Everything is very simple - if one of the adapters fails or someone accidentally pulls it out of the network, the server will continue to work from the second. If you need to increase the server capacity, then with uSB connectors 3.0 You can connect also external hard drives.

Simple setup

If you have bought a model without hard drives, then you need to install them yourself, as well as configure RAID. Being an experienced userFor you, this will not be any problems. And if you purchased a model with pre-installed hard drives, you don't even need to know what RAID is - the installation process is very reminiscent of the WD My Cloud.

By default, there are three shared folders on the server: Public, Smartware and Time Machine Backup. I think from the titles you can understand that they are stored. Public - various files, such as documents, photos, videos, etc., which are required publicly available; Smartware - backups with computers on Windows; and Time Machine Backup - MAC backup copies.

Once you turn on the server and connect it to home networkAll shared folders will be available for all devices connected to the network. With PC on Windows, you will immediately be able to view files and copy when necessary. Computers MAC. Immediately determine my cloud ex4 as a device that can be used for reserve copy Time Machine. And finally, all DLNA support media players, such as WD TV, will also immediately find a media content stored on the server, and will be able to open it.

One of the interesting features is mobile app My Cloud, downloading which (only for iOS and Android) and being in the home network, you can configure the connection to your WD My Cloud EX4. After these actions, you can connect to your server even through another Wi-Fi Network or 3G. It is also possible to connect a remote device to the server, such as a friend of a friend who lives in another city or country. To do this, it is enough to create a specific unique access code and send it using email.

WD My Cloud EX4 web interface is well structured and very easy to use.

Useful software and web interface

WD My Cloud Ex4 comes with the same software kit as WD My Cloud. Programs do not require views and are available for Mac and Windows, with the exception of WD Smartware, which is available only for Windows. But it is understandable, since the server initially supports the reservation of Time Machine.

To change server settings, for example, enable / disable some features, add new users, etc., you need to use the server web interface. To get into it, you need to connect from the computer by specifying the IP address or by clicking on the Dashboard icon, which creates the WD installation program.

The EX4 interface is very similar to the My Cloud interface: well organized and intuitively understood; Allows you to easily change server settings.

Like the predecessor, WD My Cloud Ex4 supports the function cloud access. This feature Allows you to configure remote access For each account on the server via the online WDMYCLOUD.COM service, as well as create access code for remote device (mentioned above).

Applications of third-party developers are supported.

With the WDMYCloud.com online service, you can configure the pseudo-VPN connection via the Internet. For example, when you travel away from home, yes what is there, in another country, then from a computer connected to the Internet, you can log in through the browser in wdmycloud.com with the help of a predetermined account and just a couple of clicks to create network Diskassociated with the shared folder on the server. This allows you to easily move files from both the server and on it, as if you are in your home local network. This solution resembles a VPN connection, but it is not it. Please note that the data exchange rate depends on both the Internet access to the Internet on the computer and the quality of the server side.

Access code for mobile devices will be useful if you want your friend who lives in another city can exchange with you through My Cloud. Just create for him account On the server and access code. Then you need to give it this data. Ready! Now your friend can use My Cloud without the need to be with him closely physically.

WD My Cloud Ex4 supports all sorts of backup methods

Good mobile application for backup, and not very for streaming

WD My Cloud Ex4 works accurately with the same application as the usual WD My Cloud. Since my WD MY Cloud review, the application received one update, but its functionality remained at the same level.

The application allows you to get remote access to common folders, as well as to personal folders of the current user. You can quickly and easily download files with NAS on mobile device, as well as to back up photos and videos. This feature There will be like that users who like to take pictures and shoot video on their smartphone. With small files such as photos and documents, the backup process happened quickly. But when I wanted to make a backup rather big File, for example, a 30-second video recorded on the iPad, the process was quite lengthy. But it largely depends on the quality of communication between the device and the server. For quite understandable reasons, reservation works better through Wi-Fi than through cell network.

While the backup function was not bad, the playback of the media system from the server came out of the hands of Won. The application supports only manual viewer to folders - no search. Of course, if you want to reproduce the video, there is nothing difficult in this, but it is worth contacting music and photos ... it's just hellish torments! You go down deeper and deeper on the tree directories, and ... the way back, that is, buttons "back", no!

Multimedia streaming also has limitations: you can play only those files that support your mobile device. And only music is really reproduced by "stream"; Another content, be it video or photos, must first completely buffer. All this makes watching even small photos quite prolonged, and playback of video through the cellular network is at all impossible.

The WD My Cloud mobile application has great potential, but he needs a serious refinement.

Many backup options and business functions support

In addition to the functions of the usual WD My Cloud, Ex4 also supports multiple important business functions, including ISCSI and Active Directory. In addition to this, the server has a center of applications from which you can download and install applications that extend functionality.

WD My Cloud EX4 offers many backup ways: You can create a backup copy of the content within the server itself, between the server and the USB drives connected, between the computer and the server, between the two EX4 servers on the local network or via the Internet, and you can also set up reservation in Cloud services, such as Amazon S3 or Elephantdrive.

Testing productivity

WD My Cloud EX4 Testing was performed in RAID 5. The server showed a good performance - 51 MB / s when recording and 90 MB / s when reading (through the Gigabit Ethernet connection). Compared to My Cloud, Ex4 was a little slower when recording, but much faster when reading. If you compare with other similarly configured servers, the EX4 recording speed was lower than the average, and the read speed is higher.

Given the low cost, WD My Cloud Ex4 has shown a good performance that is more than enough for home use. The server can easily perform several resource-intensive tasks at once, for example, to back up multiple computers and in the same time transmit HD via DLNA.

Conclusion

WD My Cloud Ex4 is a big step forward relative to the first WD My Cloud; offers enhanced data protection, support third-party applications, convenient hard disk compartments and several business functions. Productivity, of course, is not so high, but it is compensated by ease of use and a low price. Total $ 380 per version without hard drives is two thirds less than the nearest Synology DS412 + competitor.

pros

• RAID support
• Integration S. Windows Server
• Not bad functionality
• Access from any point of the globe

Minuses

• Low speed recording
• Flame-free mobile app

WD My Cloud Ex4, of course, is not the fastest NAS, but it combines ease of use and cloud technologies that will be quite by the way for a modern home.

1. Built-in hard drives: the reliability and security of data storage is provided by awarded numerous awards of corporate WD drives.
2. RAID: Supports levels 1 and 5 to protect data and increase the speed.
3. Daily backup: Software For automatic backup and data recovery, allows you to save full backups daily for 25 network devices. Set up once and no longer worry about it.

4. During the network connection: Two Gigabit Ethernet ports work in adaptive failover mode (Adaptive Fault Tolerance, Aft): If one of the Ethernet ports fails, the server will automatically switch to another.

5. Additional protection against accident: additional software Data recovery after an accident provide connection to cloud service And allow you to store your data remotely.

WD Sentinel is compatible with various operating systems, including Windows Vista.® and Windows 7. In addition, WD Sentinel supports Mac OS X® LEOPARD® and SNOW Leopard® and allows you to organize file sharing between operating windows systems, Mac and Unix / Linux. This makes it possible to implement the sharing of files when working with clients, consultants and employees working in various offices, regardless of what operating systems they use.

WD GUARDIAN ™ services

1.WD Guardian Express: It offers the service of replacing the failed components the next day after the call and includes the shipping cost.
2.WD Guardian Pro: Includes support agreement for one year, service express replacement components and priority service technical support.
3.Guardian Extended Care: a service that extends the product warranty from the standard three to five years.

IN currently WD Guardian ™ services are not available in all countries, with more detailed information You can find about the possibility of using services on the company's website or from a local representative.

In connection with the start of sales WD Sentinel DX4000, WD also presented an affiliate program for small and medium-sized SELECTWD businesses, which provides support for IT professionals and system integratorsworking with small and medium businesses. The SelectWD program provides its partners in the sales channel for small businesses. Proper tools, training and support for successful promotion and sales of WD Sentinel DX4000 servers and WD Guardian support services.