I have an 11th gen Framework mainboard which I would like to repurpose as a server. Unfortunately, (unless I do some super janky stuff) I can only connect 1 drive to it over M.2 and any additional ones must be over USB.

I am thinking of just using some portable hard drives and plugging them in over USB. I plan to RAID1 them and use them as boot drives and data storage, and use the M.2 slot for something unrelated.

In your experiences, is USB reliable enough nowadays to run a RAID array for a server like this? If it is, does it depend on the specific drive used?

  • ShimitarEnglish
    4•1 month ago

    Been running raid1 on USB for over a decade. Avoid chaeap USB stuff, get foot brand USB boxes and preferably a JBOD multi-disk enclosure, since they tend to be the best quality.

    Never had a disconnect.

    Beware to properly label your driver tough, as Linux software raid (I use that) tend to hiccup on boot if the kernel reassign USB devices after a reboot.