Looking for a laptop featuring four hard drive bays with RAID support?
Looking for a laptop featuring four hard drive bays with RAID support?
Hi everyone, I'm looking for notebooks with at least four 2.5" disk slots that include raid support. I've seen some models with two slots plus mSATA, like the Dell Inspiron 7720, but those don't meet my needs. I also need a notebook that truly supports raid without any additional external solutions or management interfaces, and I want to be able to manage files directly without relying on a link to a management page.
I believe this item won't be available for a long time. The four hard drive bays require significant space, which is why the rugged models are thick. It's such an unusual product that it's exclusive, making it likely to be very expensive—possibly in the thousands of dollars. Even if it exists, it probably won't support more than two bays, let alone three.
Looking for a specialized laptop tailored to a unique purpose is the only way to find something useful, but it will almost certainly be too costly for most buyers.
Well, the Getac X500 Server features 5 bays for 2.5" 7mm HDD/SSD units (https://mms.businesswire.com/media/20130...Server.jpg). There are 3 slots in the front and 2 at the back (possibly up to 6 if the optical unit is swapped with a 2.5" rack adapter).
The price seems reasonable compared to a car, but I’m curious about the savings if it lacks the tough protection and military certification I don’t require.
Unfortunately, I’m aware of that. However, I didn’t expect there to be no other options besides these two models.
An old Dell Inspiron 7720 includes:
1x mSATA
2x 2.5" HDD bays
1x optical unit
It almost matches what I’m looking for since the optical unit could be replaced with a rack adapter for an additional HDD, though the mSATA might not fit well.
It could offer extra space for another HDD bay (and remove the unused mSATA), but it lacks RAID support.
Also, it stopped working about four months ago (motherboard reported "farewell"), so I’m now looking for something similar.
Don’t mind the thickness if it means getting a laptop with four HDD slots.
Most items created for this purpose will follow that style. If it needs to be a portable server, it should be built to withstand some stress. The only way to save money is by choosing a multi NVME setup. There are laptops in the 4K-7K range that offer this. You'll need to pay back the cost on the drives, of course. Options like the Getac linked are probably the only real choice. The Dell model wasn't close to that. Using a drive in the mSATA and an optical drive caddy will be very problematic. It's usually better to just use a standard small NAS in that case.
The Dell setup includes two 2,5" HDD bay + optic units (replaced with an adapter for another 2,5" HDD) and a sad mSATA. It was close. With an SSD it wouldn't be necessary, as they're costly and if I'm unlucky I might end up with another one that overheats, causing data corruption and system crashes. Also, I don't require high speed. It's a shame.
It might be wiser to construct or acquire a LAN party PC case tailored for you. This option would offer portability, sufficient drive bays, and avoid the limitations of a laptop. Alternatively, it would result in a custom build, which would naturally affect the cost.
Consider trying a Clevo P775tm1-G. It includes two NVME slots at PCI-E x 4 with 3.0 and two 2.5 SATA slots. There are also several Dell models like the 7730, 7740, 7750, 7760 and 7770, each offering up to four slots. Other gaming laptops with four slots exist but require further investigation and research. Good luck with your search.
2 years later...
I hope the OP isn't still searching for a laptop.
Please don't bring up old discussions.