RAID Configurations for 4K Redundancy & Performance guide illustration
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RAID Configurations for 4K Redundancy & Performance

Table of Contents

As your CaptureGem library grows, especially if you are recording in 4K/60FPS, you will quickly move beyond the capacity of a single SSD. When building a mass storage server or NAS for cam archival, choosing the right RAID level is critical for balancing performance and data safety.

Why RAID Matters for 4K Archival

A single 4K stream can generate 5-10GB per hour. If you are recording 10 models simultaneously, you are looking at nearly 100GB of data every hour. If the drive containing those recordings fails, you lose months or years of archival work. RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) protects you from these hardware failures.

RAID 0 stripes data across two or more disks.

  • Pros: Massive speed boost.
  • Cons: Zero redundancy. If one disk fails, 100% of your data is lost.
  • Use Case: Only for temporary “scratch” space where you move files off immediately.

RAID 1: Simple Mirroring

Data is written identically to two disks.

  • Pros: 100% safety. If one disk dies, you keep everything.
  • Cons: You only get the capacity of one disk. Very expensive for mass storage.
  • Use Case: Small, high-priority libraries (e.g., your “Favorites” folder).

RAID 5/6: The “Goldilocks” Zone

RAID 5 requires 3+ disks and can survive 1 failure. RAID 6 requires 4+ disks and can survive 2 simultaneous failures.

  • Pros: High storage efficiency. You only “lose” the capacity of 1 (RAID 5) or 2 (RAID 6) disks for parity.
  • Cons: Slow write speeds during rebuilds.
  • Use Case: Mass archival of finished recordings on high-capacity NAS HDDs.

RAID 10: Performance + Redundancy

A “stripe of mirrors.” It combines the speed of RAID 0 with the safety of RAID 1.

  • Pros: Best performance and safety. Fast rebuild times.
  • Cons: You lose 50% of your total storage capacity to mirroring.
  • Use Case: Professional recording rigs that record 20+ concurrent streams directly to a mechanical HDD array.

Hardware RAID vs. Software RAID (ZFS)

For most CaptureGem users, Software RAID is the better choice:

  • ZFS (TrueNAS/Linux): The gold standard. It prevents “Bit Rot” (silent data corruption) and offers the best data integrity.
  • Windows Storage Spaces: Easy to set up on a standard PC, though performance is generally lower than ZFS.
  • Hardware RAID Controllers: Generally not recommended unless you are using specific enterprise hardware, as they can become a single point of failure.

Drive Recommendations

  • Active Recording: Always use an NVMe SSD for the initial write.
  • Archive Storage: Use NAS-grade HDDs like Seagate IronWolf or WD Red Pro in a RAID 5 or 6 configuration for long-term storage.

By choosing the right RAID configuration, you ensure your high-fidelity 4K library remains safe and accessible for years to come.

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