I’m looking for non-shingled spinning 2.5" SATA drives

  • due to data storage policies, it must NOT be a SSD but a spinning drive
  • due to the use of ZFS, it can’t be a SMR
  • 1Tb or more (2Tb would be nice)
  • ideally 9.5 mm or thinner (7mm would be preferred for a better airflow, 15 mm would require a 3d-printed cover)
  • ideally new (new-old stock and used drives would require a few days of testing to validate the SMART info and the absence of bad sectors)

I’ve heard the WD Blue 2.5" and the Seagate Exos might be valid options:

If you know about other options, could you please list them?

  • csdvrx@alien.topOPBEnglish
    1·
    11 months ago

    they contained Seagate ST2000LM003 drives

    I thought I hit the jackpot as I have a few, but I’ve just read in a reply below they ARE SMR as I suspected

    HGST Travelstar 7K1000

    I will look for them immediately

    Personally, my opinion is that whatever policy is mandating 2.5" hard drives which are no longer being made is simply outdated and uninformed. Find some reputable 4TB/8TB 2.5" SATA SSDs with high endurance ratings and implement a backup requirement.

    Some of these systems are left powered off for years, so requiring HDD next to NAND seems reasonable to mitigate the risks of data loss.