How To Ship A Hard Drive

Shipping a NAS - leaves drives mounted or remove them?

Posted past lylewaugh 2017-06-14T22:03:03Z

So I'm working on a DR project. I've got 32 sites around the world to ship some 5 bay NAS boxes to. I desire this to be as plug and play as possible. We don't have It staff at virtually locations. I actually desire to leave the drives mounted and in the NAS. But a part of me worries that it would be safer to individually bundle the difficult drives.

Exit them in or take them out for shipping?

13 Replies

They should exist solid within the device. Just make sure to wrap the enclosure well.

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I'm thinking the aforementioned as Zach. Packing would probably have to be a little over the top. Original packaging, inside of a larger box full of peanuts.

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Actually depends on device, do the drives have any movement inside the NAS- most practise. If so y'all would demand to pack in betwixt the gaps of the drives or y'all will damage the HDD backplane. Commercial units tend to be better designed with the drives so can be shipped with lower risk. As well you lot risk the unit of measurement being flipped upside down which no units are designed to handle drives weight

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I would ship 4-bay & 5-bay NAS with the HDD within using the original NAS boxes.

If yous exercise not take the box, do tape round the NAS so that whatever sudden jolts would non dislodge the HDD causing it to vibrate or shake. Then wrap the NAS in bubble wrap and at least ane" thick cream packaging.

One dangers of removing the HDD may exist wrongly labeled HDDs or plugging in HDD wrongly and the RAID drives go haywaire and 100% data loss.

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This is a tough question and experience with the exact NAS you are going to employ is going to tell you what you should practise after a few shipments. It sucks, but it's true. We use an abundance of circumspection when having jobs sent to DriveSavers as the backplane in many units can be broken if in that location is any movement the drive can make inside the unit of measurement when shipped. Therefore, we ever recommend that the client characterization the drives and the box and individually wrapping the drives in bubble wrap. The NAS boxes are usually pretty well built, then it's probably non a trouble. They really aren't built for doing a lot of shipping, and so making sure the proper padding for the NAS is always in the aircraft box will be cardinal. Don't allow those shipping boxes be treated as a "no large deal" type of thing, or else it volition exist rattling around after simply a few shipments. No matter what, yous will want to make sure that yous have backups before shipping if the drives determine to kicking the saucepan afterwards a shipment.

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Mike (DriveSavers) wrote:

This is a tough question and feel with the exact NAS you are going to apply is going to tell you lot what you should do later a few shipments. It sucks, but it's true. We use an abundance of circumspection when having jobs sent to DriveSavers as the backplane in many units can be broken if in that location is any movement the drive tin can brand inside the unit of measurement when shipped. Therefore, we always recommend that the customer label the drives and the box and individually wrapping the drives in bubble wrap. The NAS boxes are normally pretty well congenital, so it'due south probably not a problem. They really aren't built for doing a lot of aircraft, then making sure the proper padding for the NAS is always in the aircraft box will be central. Don't allow those shipping boxes be treated as a "no large deal" type of thing, or else it will be rattling around later only a few shipments. No affair what, you volition want to make sure that you lot have backups before shipping if the drives decide to kick the saucepan after a shipment.

^ Here'south your answer.

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I agree. I've shipped many, many DAS boxes and nosotros used to do it with drives installed. Big mistake. UPS and Fed-ex gorillas throw these boxes and the actress weight of the drives ruins them. accept the time to package and transport drives separate.

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So....I have transported them in the NAS fine before. That was me or someone I knew doing it, so I knew the transport method. Once out of my hands...I TRUST NO ONE. I accept seen some pretty messed up shipments. Shoot, I accept fifty-fifty had shipments where the product parcel (similar 2, 3 layers in) was even open to the world (pretty sure UPS/FEDEX just used it equally a punching purse). So at that rate, even if the drives might be secure enough based on the chassis, I would send/protect them separately (and labeled shelf/bay).

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I would be shipping the NAS without the drives installed in the trophy and as mentioned to a higher place clearly label and deeply package ALL drives individually.

Couriers etc. are rough at the best of times with packages, caring very little for the cargo (they assume the parcel is secured enough for transport). Make the assumption that boxes volition be wildy thrown into and vehicles or shipping containers (air or ocean send).

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Thanks. I guess the drives will have to come out then. I worry about the idea of drives going back into the wrong bay, but I gauge that'southward easier to resolve than a DoA drive.

Maybe I'll include a flash drive with video instructions.

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lylewaugh wrote:
Thanks. I approximate the drives volition accept to come out then. I worry virtually the idea of drives going back into the incorrect bay, merely I guess that'due south easier to resolve than a DoA drive.
Peradventure I'll include a flash drive with video instructions.

If information technology'due south a synology or like device, information technology shouldn't actually affair what order the drives go into the chassis every bit. The style that Linux Doctor works (the underlying technology on all of these NASs) is that it basically reads the drives on bootup, and can effigy out which bulldoze is which, no matter what SATA interface it'due south fastened to. That said, practice information technology every bit a examination before yous send information technology out. Build up the arrangement, shut it down, shuffle the drives, and ability it support again.

Every bit far equally aircraft goes, in the summer of 2015 I was forced to execute our DR/BC plan in anger. Nosotros were facing a 10,000 acre wildfire (which afterwards grew to 65,000 acres). Evacuating involved sending the equipment eleven miles downwardly a gravel road on the back of a truck, along with 350 people, and in the anarchy at the dock, loading information technology all onto a rider ferry and sending it out that style. The two critical pieces of equipment we evacuated was a Synology 8 bay NAS, and an HP server with 4LFF drives. For the Synology, we packed information technology into a large box and wrapped it in blankets and other soft manufactures then information technology was firmly held, then taped upward the box. For the HP, I removed the drives (labeling them Disk 1/ii/3/4 in lodge left-right), and sent them separately, in the aforementioned box every bit the synology.

I was later on evacuated myself by Helicopter, and really flew out with a second NAS with our archives on information technology, sitting in my lap.

Anyway, the cardinal is good padding, and assuming that it volition be dropped off a truck. Pack accordingly.

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millijuna wrote:

If it's a synology or similar device, it shouldn't really matter what order the drives go into the chassis as. The way that Linux MD works (the underlying technology on all of these NASs) is that it basically reads the drives on bootup, and tin can effigy out which drive is which, no matter what SATA interface information technology's attached to. That said, do it as a test earlier y'all send information technology out. Build up the arrangement, shut information technology downward, shuffle the drives, and power it dorsum up again.
As far as shipping goes, in the summer of 2015 I was forced to execute our DR/BC plan in anger. We were facing a ten,000 acre wildfire (which later grew to 65,000 acres). Evacuating involved sending the equipment 11 miles downward a gravel road on the dorsum of a truck, along with 350 people, and in the anarchy at the dock, loading it all onto a rider ferry and sending it out that way. The two critical pieces of equipment we evacuated was a Synology 8 bay NAS, and an HP server with 4LFF drives. For the Synology, we packed it into a large box and wrapped it in blankets and other soft manufactures and so it was firmly held, and then taped upwards the box. For the HP, I removed the drives (labeling them Disk 1/2/3/4 in order left-right), and sent them separately, in the same box every bit the synology.

I was later evacuated myself by Helicopter, and actually flew out with a 2d NAS with our archives on it, sitting in my lap.

Anyway, the cardinal is good padding, and bold that it will be dropped off a truck. Pack appropriately.

They are QNAP. I'll test similar you suggested.

Your story is pretty intense, merely since these are shipping from the US to all over the world - twenty+ locations in Europe, 4 sites in Commonwealth of australia, China, Singapore, South America... I accept no thought how these will be handled in customs (maybe pulled out and inspected?), so I'm really worried.

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package separately and label each drive to go into which bay. basic easy step instructions with the whole setup and you are good to go. if people don't understand the basic instruction's then they shouldn't be handling Information technology Equipment.

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