01
How to Replace a Failed NAS Drive and Survive the Rebuild
Verify the backup, identify the disk by serial, choose the right replacement and get through the rebuild — the heaviest read load your array will ever face.
Topic
Hard Drives & Storage
Best drives for NAS, SSD caching, RAID, ZFS and capacity planning.
02
SMART Attributes That Actually Predict NAS Drive Failure
Only five SMART attributes correlate meaningfully with drive failure. Learn which ones, which are commonly misread, and why a quarter of failed drives warn you about nothing.
03
ZFS Snapshots vs Backups: What Each One Protects
Understand the difference between ZFS snapshots, replication and independent backups, then build retention and restore tests for TrueNAS.
04
NAS SSD Endurance Explained: TBW, DWPD and How Long Your SSD Will Actually Last
TBW and DWPD are the two numbers that decide how long an SSD survives in your NAS. Here is what they mean, the official endurance ratings for WD Red, IronWolf, Samsung and Synology drives, how to estimate your own write load, and when a consumer SSD is fine — and when it absolutely is not.
05
RAID 5 vs RAID 6 vs SHR: Which Should You Choose?
Compare RAID 5, RAID 6, SHR and SHR-2 by usable capacity, drive-failure tolerance, expansion flexibility and rebuild risk.
06
Best SSD for NAS in 2026 (Cache, Pools & All-Flash)
The best SSDs for a NAS in 2026 — for read/write cache, all-flash pools and metadata. What to look for in endurance, DRAM and power-loss protection.
07
CMR vs SMR Hard Drives Explained (and Why It Matters for NAS)
CMR vs SMR hard drives explained simply — what they are, why SMR is risky in a NAS or RAID array, and how to tell which one you're buying.
08
Hard Drive vs SSD for a NAS: Which Should You Use?
HDD vs SSD for your NAS — when to use spinning drives, when flash makes sense, and how to combine both for speed and capacity without overspending.