How much real-world usable storage does 8x 20TB RAID 10 provide?
For Unraid users, this NAS planning scenario estimates 72.00 TB usable after a 10% reserve from 160.00 TB raw.
Should I optimize this 8-drive plan for capacity or resiliency first?
For long-lived NAS pools, resiliency first is usually safer. Capacity can be expanded later, while a risky parity choice can force migration sooner.
Is RAID 10 still viable with 20TB drives?
It can be practical, but larger drives increase rebuild windows. Validate parity choice and backup policy before committing to the final layout.
Why include a 10% reserve when planning NAS available space?
Keeping free space improves filesystem behavior for snapshots, metadata, and write performance. Full arrays often perform worse and rebuild more slowly.