# Has anyone shucked the WD 8TB BBGB0080HBK-BESN?



## Extreme Gamer (Sep 21, 2020)

These are the cheapest 8TB drives I could find online, and the previous NESN units were helium-filled WD white label drives- basically He10 units.

I've ordered three of these BESNs to shuck and set up a RAID 5 media server. Does anyone know what I'll find inside? As long as they aren't SMR drives I don't care that much, and some reports suggest these are CMR non-helium units.

Do they have any NAS/Enterprise features, such as TLER? Some of the white labels supported it by enabling it in software. For example on Linux you could write udev rules.


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## whitestar_999 (Sep 22, 2020)

I also got tempted by these drives but then I came across this "TLER/3.3v power pin" issue & not sure anymore.


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		https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/hhlhfm


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		https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/9c97e1


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		https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/84e9uo


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		https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/8lxrzj


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		https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/9o3g3r
  links to  3.3v Pin Reset Directions :D


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## Extreme Gamer (Sep 22, 2020)

Oh thanks for the heads up. Two of the drives showed up to my office today morning, and one more will show up by Friday.

I guess first thing I'm going to do tomorrow is to test these drives out, see how much hot water I am in. Of course I'll first nuke the partitions before shucking.

EDIT: Oh and OP seemed to have faulty drives. Mine may or may not be EZAZ. They could be EDAZ for all I know.


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		https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/iwkkak


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## whitestar_999 (Sep 22, 2020)

Run the crystaldiskinfo to see which drive/model it reports.


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## whitestar_999 (Sep 22, 2020)

Also from the above reddit link:



> The WD80EZAZ-11TDBA0 requires a 3.3v pin mod to cover the 3.3v reset pin or it wont work inside a desktop computer. It does NOT require this if you are using it on most server backplanes or if you are using a molex to sata power splitter as it doesn't have the 3.3v (orange) line. Interestingly enough, the drive doesn't have the 3 rows of screws on the belly to facilitate mount to a sled, but does have all the holes for mounts to a drive caddy for a server rack.



AFter nuking the partitions do a quick format to NTFS too before shucking.


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## Extreme Gamer (Sep 22, 2020)

whitestar_999 said:


> Run the crystaldiskinfo to see which drive/model it reports.


Crystaldiskinfo isn't an option. I'll be using smartctl most likely lol. And yes originally I planned to use molex convertors. But the link you posted OP said he couldn't use them to get the drives to work for whatever reason


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## whitestar_999 (Sep 22, 2020)

Extreme Gamer said:


> Crystaldiskinfo isn't an option. I'll be using smartctl most likely lol. And yes originally I planned to use molex convertors. But the link you posted OP said he couldn't use them to get the drives to work for whatever reason


Check the edited post above, from whatever I read in those reddit links I posted it seems nuking the partition & then quick format to NTFS is recommended anyway irrespective of 3.3v power pin issue.


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## Extreme Gamer (Sep 22, 2020)

Yeah that's the plan



> Of course I'll first nuke the partitions before shucking.


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## whitestar_999 (Sep 23, 2020)

Extreme Gamer said:


> Yeah that's the plan


Will be waiting for your results.


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## Extreme Gamer (Sep 25, 2020)

So I haven't received my third drive yet, but I grew impatient.

So I have shucked the two drives that I did receive:


```
$ smartctl -x /dev/sda
...
Model Family: WDC HGST Ultrastar He10
Device Model: WDC WD80EZAZ-11TDBA0
...
SATA Version is:  SATA 3.2, 6.0 Gb/s (current: 6.0 Gb/s)
...
```

The important thing is that these are helium drives, with TLER disabled by default.

Also, based on what you see above, my drives *did not require the 3.3v fix* and booted flawlessly.

Also going to add that if you have a non-standard HDD mounting system, you may run into trouble like I did. I use a Fractal Design Node 304 case, which uses the HDD's bottom screw holes for mounting purposes. The problem is that the screw locations aren't identical to standard desktop drives for the bottom. So you'll be able to screw two of the holes but your other holes may not align with the caddy. This is a huge problem because you may introduce a lot of lateral movement (i.e. parallel to the axis of rotation) with only two screws. I solved this problem by using an eraser as a spacer between the two disks, and some tape to hold the erase in place.

They will likely work just fine if you use enterprise HDD trays (usually on rack-mount), but desktop mounting holes are spaced more closely together.

Standard mounting (with 4-6 screws) on a tower desktop will likely be problem-free. The screw holes for them are identical to ordinary desktop drives.

Also, important to note (and extremely so) that *your mileage may vary*. Nobody has any idea what the hell WD is doing with their manufacturing processes. The reports of SATA 3.3 versioned HDDs date from earlier years. There are also reports where these drives are shipped with desktop internal innards (the EDAZ model).

Hell, I'm not sure which batch my third drive (which is supposed to show up tomorrow) will be from. Amazon shipped it from a different location.


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## whitestar_999 (Sep 25, 2020)

So basically the usual side screws design in ATX tower is fine(like corsair 100R)? Also isn't it problematic to run a hdd without TLER especially for RAID setup.


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## Extreme Gamer (Sep 25, 2020)

whitestar_999 said:


> So basically the usual side screws design in ATX tower is fine(like corsair 100R)? Also isn't it problematic to run a hdd without TLER especially for RAID setup.


TLER can be enabled with SMART commands. You just have to do it with every power cycle. On linux tools like udevd, your init system and cron can automate the process. On windows, I cannot say.


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## whitestar_999 (Sep 26, 2020)

Extreme Gamer said:


> TLER can be enabled with SMART commands. You just have to do it with every power cycle. On linux tools like udevd, your init system and cron can automate the process. On windows, I cannot say.


I think this should work fine on windows:
*www.smartmontools.org/wiki/Download


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## Extreme Gamer (Sep 26, 2020)

Ah, didn't know smartmontools had a windows version.

Update 2: Drive 3 required a molex converter to be detected. Which is strange, because all three are the exact same model from the exact same production batch.


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## whitestar_999 (Sep 27, 2020)

Seems like a bit risky as I don't trust molex convertors for hdd larger than 2TB. I was initially planning on getting 1 of these drives but now I think seagate may be better option(assuming it does not have similar 3.3v/TLER issues). I just need a large drive for storage so smr/cmr doesn't matter much to me anyway.


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## Extreme Gamer (Sep 29, 2020)

If you go with SMR, do make note of your usage pattern. Otherwise you'll end up with insanely slow write performance. While it may not be a concern after you've fully written to the disk, and don't need to add anything else, you'll end up in trouble if you need to change any of the data within.

There will also be increased load on the disk and fewer idle hours, which will increase wear and tear significantly.

Also, I'm curious as to why you don't trust molex? A 5V molex cable is well within spec for a single HDD's load.


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## whitestar_999 (Sep 29, 2020)

I use large capacity hdd only for storage/consolidating data/backup data across smaller size HDDs. Basically I would write around 4-6TB of data just after buying 8TB hdd & then it is transfer of a few dozen GBs of data every week or so. Do you think this will be alright for SMR hdd.

I only used cheap generic molex convertor & never felt comfortable using them with larger than 2TB hdd. Which one you use?


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## Extreme Gamer (Sep 30, 2020)

whitestar_999 said:


> I use large capacity hdd only for storage/consolidating data/backup data across smaller size HDDs. Basically I would write around 4-6TB of data just after buying 8TB hdd & then it is transfer of a few dozen GBs of data every week or so. Do you think this will be alright for SMR hdd.
> 
> I only used cheap generic molex convertor & never felt comfortable using them with larger than 2TB hdd. Which one you use?


I used a molex convertor I have from way back in 2011. I was lucky I still have it . Not sure if it came with my old case or power supply.

As for your query on SMR, if you ever need to modify your data, your speeds will slow to a crawl. There will also be performance hits during writes that happen on overlapping sectors.

Unless the price difference is huge, I strongly suggest spending the extra 2k-3k on a CMR drive.


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## whitestar_999 (Sep 30, 2020)

Let me check then, this time amazon has partnered with hdfc instead of sbi which went to flipkart this year for oct sales so that disrupted the entire calculation. I was planning on 10% sbi off up to 1500+5% sbi yono amazon unlimited off+2.5% sbi simplyclick amazon unlimited off to get stuff from amazon but now I will have to rely on hdfc debit card 10% off up to 1500+5% hdfc smartbuy amazon unlimited off. I always get hdd/pc stuff from amazon only. On flipkart now I will have 10% off up to 1500+5% up to 750 sbi yono flipkart off+1.25% sbi simplyclick non-amazon/non-wallet transaction unlimited off.


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## Extreme Gamer (Oct 1, 2020)

If you can, prefer a local vendor. Amazon is generally more expensive. Also the price of the disk I bought has gone up to 18.6k now, so I'm definitely not buying more any time soon.


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## whitestar_999 (Oct 1, 2020)

How much you paid for each drive?


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## Extreme Gamer (Oct 2, 2020)

14.6k on amazon.


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## whitestar_999 (Oct 2, 2020)

Nice! I was initially planning to get a 4TB portable usb drive for ~6.2k(seen 4TB seagate backup plus for 7200 at some times during the month of Mar/Apr so hoping to see same price in oct sale & with 10% hdfc instant discount & 5% hdfc smartbuy discount) but if I can get this 8TB drive for ~10-11k then I might change my mind.


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## Extreme Gamer (Oct 2, 2020)

The price has gone up to 18.5k so I doubt it will fall that much. Maybe if you have friends or buddies who are also in the market for storage, then you could possibly haggle a decent price with a distributor.


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## Extreme Gamer (Oct 6, 2020)

@whitestar_999 It's back at 14,699.

*www.amazon.in/gp/product/B01MZ6OB44/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1


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## whitestar_999 (Oct 6, 2020)

Extreme Gamer said:


> @whitestar_999 It's back at 14,699.
> 
> *www.amazon.in/gp/product/B01MZ6OB44/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1


Thanks! Yeah I also saw it Yesterday. Comments suggest that it went for 13000 in Oct sale last year so hoping for similar price this time too & at this price it will cost me 11115k(1300 hdfc instant discount & 585 hdfc smartbuy discount). Now I will have to compare 4TB seagate portable & WD portable prices on flipkart & amazon in the sale to see which one to get considering there is a good chance to get 4TB portable one for ~6.2k.


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## Extreme Gamer (Oct 7, 2020)

whitestar_999 said:


> Thanks! Yeah I also saw it Yesterday. Comments suggest that it went for 13000 in Oct sale last year so hoping for similar price this time too & at this price it will cost me 11115k(1300 hdfc instant discount & 585 hdfc smartbuy discount). Now I will have to compare 4TB seagate portable & WD portable prices on flipkart & amazon in the sale to see which one to get considering there is a good chance to get 4TB portable one for ~6.2k.


I wouldn't get WD portables 6TB and lower. Those are always SMR drives.

For seagate, look at this: CMR and SMR Hard Drives | Seagate India and find out what is inside the external drive you choose.

Of course if you get 2.5" drives then all models from both WD and Seagate are SMR and you don't have much of a choice.


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## whitestar_999 (Oct 7, 2020)

Extreme Gamer said:


> I wouldn't get WD portables 6TB and lower. Those are always SMR drives.
> 
> For seagate, look at this: CMR and SMR Hard Drives | Seagate India and find out what is inside the external drive you choose.
> 
> Of course if you get 2.5" drives then all models from both WD and Seagate are SMR and you don't have much of a choice.


Thanks! Never knew skyhawk series was all CMR(avoided it in favour of Barracuda as skyhawk is marketed as surveillance drives so thought maybe firmware not optimized for typical operations).

Yes the plan was always to get 2.5" 4TB portable which I got for 5.5k in previous 2 years oct sales but more flexible now to consider shucking the drive.


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## Extreme Gamer (Oct 7, 2020)

Skyhawk series is CMR but don't discount the firmware or other parts of the disk. The skyhawk will be optimised for continuous write operations with infrequent/rare reads.


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## whitestar_999 (Oct 7, 2020)

Extreme Gamer said:


> Skyhawk series is CMR but don't discount the firmware or other parts of the disk. The skyhawk will be optimised for continuous write operations with infrequent/rare reads.


You mean skyhawk is fine for continuous write operations but also alright as a typical storage device?


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## whitestar_999 (Oct 7, 2020)

Found this official answer:

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		https://www.reddit.com/r/pcmasterrace/comments/8fqxfy



> Thank you for your interest in Seagate HDDs. We wouldn't recommend that one for a general use/gaming rig because the way the SkyHawk (built for CCTV, DVR, & NVR) works is that its read/write prioritization is heavily skewed to the write side, this helps it manage massive blocks of highly-detailed video data as it comes in to prevent against degraded image quality & dropped frames.
> 
> When used in a more general-use, desktop environment, these drives can be slow, particularly when reading data.




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		https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/gohtmv



> One thing to keep in mind with the SkyHawk is that as a drive designed to be used in surveillance systems, its' ImagePerfect firmware is best utilized in high write, low read scenarios you might see in surveillance systems, and for this reason, can be a bit on the slower side at reading data.





> I've already installed it and it seems to work just fine.


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## Extreme Gamer (Oct 9, 2020)

whitestar_999 said:


> You mean skyhawk is fine for continuous write operations but also alright as a typical storage device?


What this means is that the firmware may throttle reads to prevent write throttle. A minimum guaranteed write speed is required after all.


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## whitestar_999 (Oct 10, 2020)

Extreme Gamer said:


> What this means is that the firmware may throttle reads to prevent write throttle. A minimum guaranteed write speed is required after all.


I guess this doesn't matter much for a storage drive then because once the data is there it will be used only for watching videos or torrent upload & at those times there will be no writing going on.


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## Extreme Gamer (Oct 10, 2020)

whitestar_999 said:


> I guess this doesn't matter much for a storage drive then because once the data is there it will be used only for watching videos or torrent upload & at those times there will be no writing going on.


Actually, it does matter. Reading a video is likely a sequential read operation, which may, in the worst case, be as slow as random reads, which as you know are abysmal (i.e. ~100 iops) in all spinning rust.


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## ico (Oct 10, 2020)

I am using a shucked one in my NAS since ~2 years, but have forgotten the specifics.

Had to put tape on those SATA pins to avoid reset.


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## whitestar_999 (Oct 10, 2020)

Extreme Gamer said:


> Actually, it does matter. Reading a video is likely a sequential read operation, which may, in the worst case, be as slow as random reads, which as you know are abysmal (i.e. ~100 iops) in all spinning rust.


I have yet to see a healthy hdd which can display sequential read speeds of 1MB/s order similar to random read speeds. IPOS only matters for specific tasks & not sequential operations I believe.


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## Extreme Gamer (Oct 10, 2020)

whitestar_999 said:


> I have yet to see a healthy hdd which can display sequential read speeds of 1MB/s order similar to random read speeds. IPOS only matters for specific tasks & not sequential operations I believe.



I have absolutely seen laptop HDDs do awfully slow reads, but that may be because SMR.

For surveillance drives this is why firmware becomes important:

Suppose you have a write operation ongoing, say transferring 1TB of data at ~100MB/s and suddenly there's a read demand for a 500MB file. Note that this file will be in a different sector from your read file.

Suppose the drive is an ordinary desktop drive. Then as the disk spins, it will read, skip or write to a sector depending on what requests are pending with it. Depending on the firmware the head may move around to reduce the time spent on skipped sectors, as well as any other on-drive optimisations.

However if it's a surveillance drive then it may skip ongoing reads to prioritize writing, and come back to the read later, effectively turning your sequential read into a random read.

Surveillance drive firmware also allows the drive to write erroneous data to disk in order to meet certain read/write time guarantees.

More likely than not you'll be fine, but in the off chance you get bad data, you have no way of fixing it.


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## whitestar_999 (Oct 10, 2020)

I was planning on not doing any read operation while writing data to disk & vice versa to avoid the situation you mentioned.



Extreme Gamer said:


> Surveillance drive firmware also allows the drive to write erroneous data to disk in order to meet certain read/write time guarantees.
> 
> More likely than not you'll be fine, but in the off chance you get bad data, you have no way of fixing it.


This is the reason I haven't yet bought skyhawk model even when it was available at similar price as barracuda but with 1 year additional warranty(3 vs 2). In any case I buy internal hdd only offline though this time I may get a wd laptop internal hdd online from mdcomputers(I also never buy internal hdd online from amazon/flipkart) as it is not available offline in Delhi last time I checked.


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