RAID setup... Are consumer backplanes reliable?

[FP]

I am setting up a new file/web server for my home LAN and am confused by the options out there. I will likely be using RAID5 or RAID10.

My question is what are my options for hot-swappable enclosures? I find things like http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817995005 which look good but don't appear to be used much (not many ratings).

Then I find things like http://www.pc-pitstop.com/sata_enclosures/scsat44xt.asp which look great but are 5x the price.

I really just need a way to easily swap HDs out of an array. I don't care if the solution is in the server or external...

What do people use these days?

 

[theevilsharpie]

To address your question in the title, when I've attempted to use consumer-grade equipment in applications calling for enterprise-grade reliability, I've almost always been disappointed.

As for the question, you're looking for an internal enclosure. Try to find something from Supermicro, Tyan, or another server vendor.

 

[Cr0nJ0b]

I've got 2 of the SM 5 drive hot swap enclosures and they have worked great for the last year or so. I don't do a lot of swapping, since the drives are pretty reliable, but the backplane is solid and the construction is very good. I disagree with the point about consumer versus enterprise quality products. In some product classes the consumer variant is prefectly adequate for the requirement. This is one such case in my estimation. Hot swap enclosures are passive and don't have a lot of places to fail. The fan can fail, the bays can crack with lots of use, but for the most part there aren't a lot of moving parts. I'm not sure the enterprise version of this would buy you much more.

 

[Keitero]

I'll agree with Cr0nJ0b on this one. I use consumer-grade hotswap bays on my server and workstation and I haven't had any issues. That being said, the enterprise level hardware does feel more solid and usually the warranty is better.

 

[Zensal]

Here is one by Norco. It's a 5-in-3 and reasonably priced.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-030-_-Product