My NAS is finally happily running in the basement with OMV. 3x 3TB WD Reds in raid5. Thing is, it's winter, and the basement is chilly. 55-60 deg F chilly. The drives are in a Fractal Define R5 case, right behind the front fan, all stacked together. Even with the fan undervolted and spinning at 300 rpm though, the drives run at around 25 deg C.
I've read in the past that drives dislike being too cold almost as much as being too hot. They will, of course, get warmer if I just unplug the front fan entirely, but then my brain worries about possible hot spots on the drives causing issues.
So which do you think is worse for long term longevity: running cold or running without airflow?
The drives are currently installed right next to each other in the enclosure to keep them behind the fan, I could potentially space them out and install them with an empty tray between each drive if I wanted to unplug the fan.
I realize I'm probably overthinking this whole thing, but I'd appreciate any feedback.
I've read in the past that drives dislike being too cold almost as much as being too hot. They will, of course, get warmer if I just unplug the front fan entirely, but then my brain worries about possible hot spots on the drives causing issues.
So which do you think is worse for long term longevity: running cold or running without airflow?
The drives are currently installed right next to each other in the enclosure to keep them behind the fan, I could potentially space them out and install them with an empty tray between each drive if I wanted to unplug the fan.
I realize I'm probably overthinking this whole thing, but I'd appreciate any feedback.