RAID vs Single Disk: Which Should You Choose?
When building a workstation or a storage server, the choice between a RAID array and a single high‑capacity disk can dramatically affect performance, reliability, and cost.
Performance
RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) can combine multiple drives to increase read/write throughput. For example, RAID 0 stripes data across two drives, roughly doubling sequential performance. RAID 5 offers redundancy with a modest performance penalty, while RAID 10 provides both speed and fault tolerance.
Reliability
Single disks are simple, but a failure means total data loss. RAID configurations like RAID 1 (mirroring) or RAID 5 (parity) can survive the loss of one drive without data loss, though rebuild times can be lengthy.
Cost
While a high‑capacity SSD can be expensive, the price per GB of SATA HDDs is still lower than premium SSDs. RAID adds cost via extra drives and possibly a hardware controller.
Use Cases
- Gaming PCs: Single NVMe SSD for fastest load times.
- Video Editing Workstations: RAID 0 for raw throughput.
- File Servers / NAS: RAID 5 or RAID 10 for data safety.
Ultimately, the decision hinges on your priority: speed, safety, or budget.
Comments (3)
Great overview! For my video editing rig I actually went with a RAID 0 SSD setup and saw a 30% reduction in render times.
Remember that RAID 0 offers no redundancy. I’d recommend a small backup SSD even if you choose RAID for performance.
My NAS uses RAID 6 for double parity. It’s slower than RAID 5 but peace of mind is worth it.