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Author Topic: Thunderbay vs Drobo  (Read 10357 times)

rdonson

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Re: Thunderbay vs Drobo
« Reply #20 on: April 25, 2017, 04:13:37 pm »

You are referring to hardware RAID. There are also software RAID solutions that are not dependent upon hardware.

Hi David,  which software RAID solutions do you recommend?
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Joe Towner

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Re: Thunderbay vs Drobo
« Reply #21 on: April 25, 2017, 09:06:00 pm »

Hi David,  which software RAID solutions do you recommend?

Depends on the platform, RAID level and general technology comforts.

On the Mac, you can use https://www.softraid.com/
On a Windows 10 PC, you can do https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/12438/windows-10-storage-spaces
On Linux there are projects like NAS4Free and FREENAS, plus roll your own with mdadm and LVM, but again, it's all part of the fun.

Most OS'es do a good job of doing a mirrored (aka RAID1) set.
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BobShaw

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Re: Thunderbay vs Drobo
« Reply #22 on: April 26, 2017, 02:14:02 am »

You are referring to hardware RAID. There are also software RAID solutions that are not dependent upon hardware.
Actually all software is dependant on hardware. It needs a CPU. Whether that is in a separate box or using the computer processor matters little.
The point is that you are not using the Drobo for the RAID, you are using it for the expansion capability the t single disk or standard RAID does not offer.
RAID provides no real benefit for a photographer. A mirrored drive is 100% more expensive than a non mirrored one and provides no more storage and absolutely no backup.

You are much better off having one live disk and one backup disk than two disks in a mirror.
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Schewe

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Re: Thunderbay vs Drobo
« Reply #23 on: April 26, 2017, 02:41:39 am »

You are much better off having one live disk and one backup disk than two disks in a mirror.

I concur...I tried using a mirrored drive array and guess what...when I got a corrupted directory on the primary drive, the mirrored array unhelpfully copied that corrupted directory to the secondary drive–as it was corrupting!!!!

I use arrays (0, 5 & 6) for size and speed and always have online and offline backups (clones).

I use Carbon Copy Cloner to do updated backups each nite...and the things that are getting backed up are simple files that are either new or updated since last backup. Admittedly, that leaves a single days period that is at risk in an emergency but if I do some serious work that wants to get backed up immediately, I just do a manual clone backup.

I have both hardware and software based arrays...the hardware versions are generally faster since the array system is built in. I had Drobos for a while but got burned and will not go back...

Sorry, no simple easy answers but in the US one source I use is macgurus.com. They've always been helpful over the phone and support the products they sell.
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Joe Towner

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Re: Thunderbay vs Drobo
« Reply #24 on: April 26, 2017, 11:39:44 am »

David was referring to 'Hardware dependent' setups, where the RAID card or motherboard based RAID will only be recognized by the same line of hardware - not able to cross between manufacturers.  Software RAID runs in the OS, so it requires hardware, but it doesn't care who made the SATA port it's plugged into.  The screwey stuff is the software RAID implemented in hardware - think most BIOS setups, or the old Promise 0/1/10 controllers.  It's software, but it's implemented in the hardware, not in the OS.

RAID1 or mirrors have specific uses - as in I need to keep working in the event a drive takes a poop on me.  Like all storage setups, RAID is not backup, so file corruption can still happen, and it's going to effect both drives the same.  Cloning/syncing is a great backup method, but make sure it allows for versioning, otherwise you'll need a whole separate backup process.
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