Will I be able to expand Synology later without losing data with regular RAID

raid storage software-raid network-attached-storage synology

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Yes, you can both add storage and change the RAID type on a Synology NAS. To change the volume RAID, per the instructions from the official Synology website:

Open Storage Manager.

Go to Storage Pool.

Select the storage pool you wish to change and click Change RAID Type from the Action drop-down menu.

Select the RAID type to which you want to change the storage pool. Click Next.

Select which drive to add to the existing storage pool. Then click Next.

Follow the instructions of the wizard to finish. Please note existing data on the added drive shall be deleted.

Make sure you read the page I linked in detail to ensure that your precise migration path is supported before you set up your initial volume.

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Bhavesh G

Over 10+ years of extensive experience in full-stack web development. Technologies include PHP (5.6, 7, CodeIgniter, Zend Framework, Custom Frameworks), HTML(5), CSS(3), MySQL, SQL, Javascript, web services, SOAP and REST API development jquery, Bootstrap, GIT, LAMP/Apache/NGINX Environment, Linux, MVC methodology, Object-Oriented design, UX and UI responsive design, making functional specs, application design, and architecture, Over 1-4 years of experience in: Amazon AWS / Azure / Heroku cloud, Node.JS, C#, Python, Redis, Memcached, WebRTC, integration, highly adaptive to latest tools and technologies Great at debugging/troubleshooting code, having best practices in coding and software engineering, Agile Development environment

Updated on September 18, 2022

Comments

Bhavesh G almost 2 years

I just got Synology 918+ and bought 2x10 TB Hard drives. Before I set up, I just want to avoid getting into trouble in the future.

I don't want to use SHR (Synology hybrid raid) because of several reasons like migrating HDDs to a non-Synology nas, better speed etc. So I am planning to go with regular RAID (RAID 1 with 2x10TB HDD) configuration for now.

As 918+ has 4 bays and I am currently using 2 bays right now. My question is, will I able to add another one (or even two) 10 TB HDD (Same manufacturer, type size) later and go from RAID 1 (right now) to RAID 5 or RAID 6 in the future without losing the data if I go with non-SHR (regular RAID 1) configuration right now?

Is regular RAID is expandable with Synology?
MrGigu over 4 years

I'm sorry but this is just flat out untrue. I've been using consumer-level NAS's since the word NAS was barely known and it's been about 15 years since I saw one that didn't support online expansion