OWC and Toshiba Collaborate on 20TB HDDs Write-Speeds Improvement to RAID 5

Accessory News

by Jose PradaJanuary 8^th, 2024

OWC, the US company specializing in storage and connectivity solutions, has collaborated with Toshiba to address an issue related to the write speeds of the Toshiba 20TB hard drive in RAID 5 configurations, which were slower than anticipated.

It is always good news when two companies work together to improve products or develop new solutions. In this case, OWC (Other World Computing) contacted Toshiba when they discovered that, although working well on macOS RAID 0 configurations, 20TB Toshiba drives showed lower write speeds than expected with RAID 5 enclosures. 

RAID 5 performance is critical for major studios editing with this system. While performance is the main characteristic in RAID 0 configurations, RAID 5 setups balance performance and data protection.

Boosting RAID 5 performance with Toshiba drives

After their discovery, OWC contacted Toshiba to work together on performance improvement. That led to a back-and-forth process of emails and conference calls where both companies proposed firmware changes and different solutions. The collaboration between OWC’s Mac software team and Toshiba engineers was crucial to finding a solution to the problem.

After six weeks, both teams improved RAID 5 performance by 23%. OWC tests showed a maximum write speed of 1965 MB/s and an average write speed of 1727 MB/s in ThunderBay 8 RAID solutions installed on Apple silicon Macs. These figures ensure effortlessly managing 8K video workflows, for example. 

Due to their reliability and silent operation, OWC recommends Toshiba drives for their storage products. Again, this is an example of companies collaborating to solve issues and develop and improve their technology and products. SoftRAID is OWC’s star product for RAID management since it is easy to set up, features advanced options and protection, and is a cross-platform solution, ideal for sharing volume between Mac and Windows PCs with OWC’s MacDrive technology built-in. The SoftRAID Upgrade and support plan also includes access to new features, updates, tech support, and collaborative exploration for innovation.

Price and availability

SoftRAID for Mac and Windows is available in three versions:

• SoftRAID Lite offers RAID 0/1 management, and it is designed for OWC and third-party enclosures, costing $49.99.
• SoftRAID XT supports RAID 0/1/4/5/1+0 (10)1 and works with OWC enclosures only. Its price is $119.99. 
• SoftRAID Pro works on RAID 0/1/4/5/1+0 (10)1, supporting OWC and third-party enclosures. The price is $249.99.

You can purchase SoftRAID by visiting their website. If you want to test SoftRAID, OWC offers a 14-day free trial here.

What do you think about SoftRAID and Toshiba drives? Have you ever used them in your workflow? Let us know in the comments below!