Btrfs RAID 5/6: Still Don't
The kernel docs still warn about it. The Btrfs wiki still warns about it. People still build it and lose data. Here's the write hole, why RAID 1/10 are fine, and what to use instead.
Tag: raid
All the articles with the tag "raid".
SnapRAID: Parity Without Real-Time RAID
Your media library doesn't write often enough to justify mdadm or ZFS overhead. SnapRAID calculates parity on a schedule, mixes drive sizes, and pairs with MergerFS for a unified pool. Here's the setup.
mdadm Day-2: Grow, Replace, Scrub
Creating a RAID array is the easy part. The drama starts six months later when one drive starts dying. Here's the survival guide for everything that happens after mdadm --create.
Hardware RAID vs Software RAID in 2026
Hardware RAID controllers used to be necessary. Now they're often a liability. Here's when to flash that LSI card to IT mode, when to keep it, and why ZFS specifically refuses to share.
RAID-Z and dRAID: ZFS Parity Explained
RAID-Z isn't just RAID 5 with a new name. Variable stripe widths, no write hole, and dRAID's distributed spares change the rebuild math entirely.
RAID 50/60: Nested Parity Done Right
RAID 5 and 6 don't scale gracefully past 8 drives. RAID 50 and RAID 60 stripe across multiple parity sub-arrays so rebuilds only stress one group. Here's when nesting actually pays off.
RAID Is Not Backup: Rebuild Math
Your RAID 5 rebuild on a modern multi-TB drive has a 40-50% chance of hitting a URE before it finishes. Here's the 2026 math and what to do about it.
RAID 6 vs RAID 10: Two Dead Disks
RAID 6 and RAID 10 both survive two dead disks and both need four drives. But they get there completely differently — and that difference matters.
RAID 0, 1, and 5: Pick One
RAID 0 is fast and terrifying, RAID 1 is boring and beautiful, RAID 5 is the NAS compromise. How to pick the right one for your home lab drives.