NAS & RAID Calculator

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Region Focus · UK

UK 8x 12TB RAID 6 NAS Calculator

Estimate usable TB, parity, and fault tolerance for UK homelab buyers using 8x 12TB in RAID 6.

Capacity Snapshot

Raw Capacity

96.00 TB

Usable Capacity

64.80 TB

Fault Tolerance

2 drives

Efficiency

75.0%

Safer for larger arrays with dual parity, at the cost of one extra parity disk. This scenario applies a 10% filesystem reserve.

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Alternative Mode Comparison

Mode Usable Tolerance Efficiency
RAID 5 75.60 TB 1 drive 87.5%
RAID 6 64.80 TB 2 drives 75.0%
RAID 10 43.20 TB 1 drive per mirror pair* 50.0%
RAID-Z1 75.60 TB 1 drive 87.5%
RAID-Z2 64.80 TB 2 drives 75.0%

UK Buyer Context

UK homelab planners commonly balance higher per-drive pricing with power and chassis constraints, so efficient but resilient layouts become more valuable.

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Power Budget

Expected always-on energy usage cost factored into NAS layout decisions.

Rebuild Window

Estimated time exposure while replacing a failed drive and restoring parity.

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FAQ

Is RAID 6 still practical with 12TB drives?

It can be practical, but larger drives increase rebuild windows. Validate parity choice and backup policy before committing to the final layout.

How much effective storage does 8x 12TB RAID 6 provide?

For UK homelab buyers, this NAS planning scenario estimates 64.80 TB usable after a 10% reserve from 96.00 TB raw.

Why include a 10% reserve when planning NAS storage headroom?

Keeping free space improves filesystem behavior for snapshots, metadata, and write performance. Full arrays often perform worse and rebuild more slowly.

Can this calculator replace real-world benchmark and rebuild testing?

No. Use this page for pre-purchase sizing, then validate with workload benchmarks, SMART health policy, and a tested restore plan.