RAID 0 vs RAID 1: What are the main differences?
In the domain of data storage and management, selecting an appropriate RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) setup is crucial for enhancing your data system's performance, dependability, and efficiency. As 2024 unfolds, IT experts, system administrators, and technology aficionados face the pivotal choice between RAID 1 and RAID 0 configurations to refine their storage infrastructures.
RAID 0 is celebrated for its striping method, which boosts performance by spreading data over several disks, thereby accelerating read and write operations. This setup is most suited for scenarios where speed is crucial, and the lack of data duplication is acceptable. Conversely, RAID 1 emphasizes data mirroring across multiple disks, ensuring robust data redundancy and stability. While it may not deliver the speed gains associated with RAID 0, its data protection benefits are critical for certain uses.
This article is designed to elucidate the differences and benefits of RAID 1 versus RAID 0, aiding your comprehension of their unique features, constraints, and suitable applications. Whether you're assembling an advanced gaming system, configuring a server for a burgeoning enterprise, or safeguarding vital data, discerning the right RAID choice in 2024 is vital. We will explore the technical details, practical implications, and concrete examples of each configuration, providing you with the insights needed to make a well-informed selection that aligns with your specific requirements and objectives.
Article content:
- RAID 0 vs RAID 1 comparison
- RAID 0 and RAID 1 differences
- Which one to choose?
- How DiskInternals RAID Recovery may be useful?
- How to recover lost RAID data
What is RAID 0
RAID 0, also known as striping, is a RAID configuration that divides and stores data evenly across two or more disks without parity information, redundancy, or fault tolerance. This setup aims to increase the system's overall performance, especially in terms of read and write speeds, by utilizing multiple disks in parallel. When data is written to a RAID 0 array, it is split into blocks, and each block is written to a separate disk. This allows the computer to read and write files much faster than it could with a single disk, as multiple blocks can be read or written simultaneously.
The primary advantage of RAID 0 is its ability to maximize both the storage capacity and speed of the disk array. Since there's no redundancy, the entire capacity of all disks in the array is available for storage, and the speed can theoretically be multiplied by the number of disks in the RAID 0 configuration. This makes RAID 0 an attractive option for applications that require high data throughput, such as video editing, gaming, and other performance-intensive tasks.
However, the major downside of RAID 0 is its lack of data redundancy. If any disk in a RAID 0 array fails, all data on the array is lost, as there's no backup or recovery mechanism within the configuration. This vulnerability makes RAID 0 unsuitable for critical data storage or any scenario where data integrity is a priority.
Advantages of RAID 0 system
- Improved Performance: RAID 0 arrays enhance both read and write speeds by distributing data across multiple disks, allowing simultaneous access to multiple parts of the data. This can significantly reduce data access times, making RAID 0 ideal for performance-intensive applications.
- Maximized Storage Utilization: With RAID 0, the total storage capacity is the sum of all disks in the array. Unlike other RAID levels that require part of the storage for redundancy, RAID 0 utilizes 100% of the disk space for data storage, making it efficient in terms of storage capacity.
- Cost-Effective Speed Boost: For environments where speed is critical and redundancy is not a concern, RAID 0 provides a relatively inexpensive way to enhance system performance. Since it doesn't require additional disks for data redundancy, you can achieve higher speeds without significantly increasing costs.
- Easy to Implement: Setting up a RAID 0 array is relatively straightforward, with many motherboards and storage controllers offering built-in support. This ease of setup makes it accessible for users looking to improve their system's performance without complex configurations.
- Ideal for Non-Critical Applications: For applications where data can be easily backed up or recreated, such as scratch disks for video editing, temporary data storage, or gaming, RAID 0 offers an excellent balance between performance and storage capacity.
- Scalability: Adding more disks to a RAID 0 array can further increase performance and capacity. This scalability allows users to tailor their storage solution to meet their specific needs, whether it's for a home PC or a high-demand server environment.
Disadvantages of RAID 0
- No Data Redundancy: The most significant disadvantage of RAID 0 is its lack of redundancy. If any disk in the RAID 0 array fails, all data stored across the array is lost. This makes RAID 0 unsuitable for storing critical data or for use in systems where data integrity is a priority.
- High Risk of Data Loss: Because data is striped across all disks in the array, the failure of just one disk renders the entire array and all its data inaccessible. The risk of data loss is directly proportional to the number of disks in the array; more disks increase the likelihood of a disk failure.
- No Fault Tolerance: RAID 0 does not provide any mechanism to recover lost data in the event of a disk failure. Unlike other RAID levels that can tolerate the failure of one or more disks without data loss, RAID 0 offers no protection against hardware failure.
- Not Suitable for Critical Applications: Due to its vulnerability to disk failures, RAID 0 is not recommended for environments where data availability and integrity are critical, such as file servers, databases, or any system storing irreplaceable data.
- Requires Regular Backups: To mitigate the risk of data loss, users of RAID 0 systems must implement a robust and regular backup strategy. This adds to the overall maintenance overhead and can negate some of the performance benefits if data needs to be frequently backed up.
- Performance Benefit Limited by Use Case: While RAID 0 can significantly improve read and write speeds, the actual performance gain depends on the system's usage pattern. Some applications may not fully utilize the potential speed improvements, especially if they are not designed to leverage parallel disk operations.
What Is RAID 1?
RAID 1, commonly referred to as mirroring, is a storage configuration designed to ensure data redundancy and fault tolerance by duplicating the same data across two or more hard drives. This setup is aimed at providing a high level of data protection and availability, making it an excellent choice for critical data storage needs. Below, we delve into the details of RAID 1, covering its operational mechanism, benefits, limitations, and typical use cases.
How RAID 1 Works
- Data Mirroring: In a RAID 1 setup, every piece of data written to the array is simultaneously written to two or more drives. This means each drive in the array holds an identical copy of all the data.
- Read/Write Operations: During read operations, the RAID controller can choose to read from any of the mirrored drives, which can potentially improve read performance due to load balancing or simultaneous reading. However, write operations must occur on all drives, which might slightly impact write performance due to the need to duplicate the data.
- Failure and Recovery: RAID 1 can sustain the failure of one drive without data loss, as all data remains available on the remaining drive(s). When a failed drive is replaced, the RAID controller automatically rebuilds the mirror by copying data from the surviving disk to the new one, restoring the array to its fully redundant state.
Advantages of RAID 1
- Data Redundancy and Fault Tolerance: The primary advantage of RAID 1 is its high level of data redundancy. By mirroring data across multiple disks, RAID 1 ensures that an exact copy of all data is available on at least one other drive. This redundancy allows the system to continue operating without data loss even if one of the drives fails, providing fault tolerance and high data availability.
- High Data Reliability: With each disk in the array holding a complete copy of all data, RAID 1 significantly reduces the risk of data loss due to hardware failure. This is particularly important for critical systems where data integrity is paramount.
- Simple and Fast Recovery: In the event of a disk failure, RAID 1 allows for straightforward and quick data recovery. Once a failed disk is replaced, the RAID controller automatically rebuilds the mirror using the data from the surviving disk, minimizing downtime and simplifying the recovery process.
- Improved Read Performance: RAID 1 can offer improved read performance over single-disk systems. Since identical data is stored on multiple disks, the RAID controller can balance read requests across the disks, potentially doubling read speeds (or more, depending on the number of disks in the array). This can be particularly beneficial in read-intensive applications.
- Ease of Implementation: RAID 1 setups are relatively simple to implement and manage, with many hardware RAID controllers and software RAID solutions providing straightforward ways to create and maintain RAID 1 arrays. This ease of use makes RAID 1 accessible even to users with limited technical expertise.
- Compatibility and Accessibility: RAID 1 does not require any special file systems or software, making it compatible with virtually all operating systems and hardware. Additionally, in emergency situations, data can be accessed directly from any of the mirrored drives, enhancing data accessibility.
Disadvantages of RAID 1
- Reduced Storage Efficiency: One of the most significant disadvantages of RAID 1 is its inefficient use of storage. Because data is mirrored across all disks in the array, the effective storage capacity is only half of the total available disk space. If you use two 1TB drives in a RAID 1 configuration, you'll only have 1TB of usable storage space, not 2TB.
- Higher Cost per Gigabyte: Due to the reduced storage efficiency, the cost per gigabyte of usable storage in a RAID 1 setup is effectively double that of non-RAID or RAID 0 configurations. This can make RAID 1 a more expensive option, especially for applications requiring a large amount of storage.
- Write Performance Overhead: While RAID 1 can improve read performance by allowing simultaneous reads from multiple disks, write performance can suffer because data must be written to all disks in the array. This redundancy ensures data integrity but can introduce a performance overhead for write operations.
- Limited Scaling: RAID 1 is not scalable in the same way as some other RAID levels. Adding more disks to a RAID 1 array increases redundancy but does not enhance performance or storage capacity significantly. To expand storage, you would need to replace the existing disks with larger ones, which can be a more complex and costly process.
- Underutilization in Low-Risk Environments: For environments where data is not critical or can be easily regenerated, the high level of redundancy offered by RAID 1 may be unnecessary. In such cases, the additional cost and reduced storage efficiency might not justify the benefits of increased data reliability.
- Not a Substitute for Backup: While RAID 1 provides redundancy and can protect against disk failure, it is not a substitute for a comprehensive backup strategy. RAID 1 does not protect against data corruption, accidental deletion, or site-wide disasters. Therefore, it's crucial to have separate backups, even with RAID 1 in place.
How to Choose Between RAID 0 Vs. RAID 1
| Feature | RAID 0 | RAID 1 |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Redundant Array of Independent Disks level 0. | Redundant Array of Independent Disks level 1. |
| Technology Used | Disk striping, which divides data into blocks spread across multiple disks. | Disk mirroring, duplicating data across two or more disks. |
| Cost | Generally lower cost due to no redundancy requirement. | Higher cost due to the need for additional disks for mirroring. |
| Write Penalty | No write penalty; data is written directly to multiple disks. | Write penalty exists due to data being written to all disks in the mirror. |
| Storage Efficiency | 100% of disk capacity is used for storage. | 50% of disk capacity is used for storage, as data is mirrored. |
| Write Performance | Superior, as data blocks are written in parallel. | Slower, because of the mirroring process. |
| Emphasis | Prioritizes speed of data access. | Prioritizes availability and integrity of data. |
| Read Performance | Excellent, benefiting from parallel data access. | Moderate, with potential for slight improvement due to read balancing. |
| Data Protection | No inherent protection; data is lost if one disk fails. | Mirror protection; data remains available even if one disk fails. |
| Operational Detail | Utilizes disk striping to enhance read/write operations by distributing data across several disks without redundancy, increasing risk of total data loss on a single disk failure. | Employs disk mirroring to ensure data redundancy, safeguarding against disk failures by maintaining copies on two or more disks, allowing continued operation despite a disk failure. |
Choosing between RAID 0 and RAID 1 involves assessing your priorities in terms of performance, data redundancy, and storage capacity. Here’s a guide to help you decide which RAID configuration best suits your needs:
When to Choose RAID 0
- Performance is a Priority: If your primary requirement is high performance, especially in terms of read and write speeds, RAID 0 is the better choice. It's ideal for tasks that benefit from fast data access and processing, such as video editing, gaming, or other applications where speed enhances the user experience.
- Maximum Storage Capacity Required: RAID 0 uses the full capacity of all the disks in the array, making it suitable when you need to utilize the entire storage space available from your disks without redundancy overhead.
- Data Redundancy Not Required: Choose RAID 0 when the data stored on the array is not critical, easily replaceable, or backed up regularly to a separate location. RAID 0 does not offer any protection against disk failure, so it's not suitable for irreplaceable data.
- Cost-Effectiveness: If you're looking for a cost-effective way to increase your system's storage and performance without concern for data redundancy, RAID 0 provides a good balance.
When to Choose RAID 1
- Data Redundancy and Reliability: RAID 1 is the go-to option when data integrity and reliability are paramount. It's suited for storing critical data that cannot be easily replaced or recreated, such as personal documents, business records, or any sensitive information.
- Fault Tolerance is Necessary: If it's essential that your system remains operational even in the event of a disk failure, RAID 1 offers the fault tolerance needed to ensure continuous data availability. This makes it ideal for servers and workstations where downtime can have significant repercussions.
- Simplified Data Recovery: In scenarios where ease of recovery from disk failures is important, RAID 1 provides a straightforward mechanism for rebuilding the array without losing data, minimizing downtime.
- Read Performance Matters: While RAID 1 may not boost write performance, it can improve read speeds, which is beneficial for read-intensive applications. If your workload involves frequent reading of data, RAID 1 might offer performance benefits.
General Considerations
- Backup Strategy: Remember, neither RAID 0 nor RAID 1 is a substitute for a comprehensive backup strategy. Regular backups to an external system or cloud storage are crucial, regardless of RAID configuration, to protect against data loss from accidental deletion, corruption, or physical disasters.
- Budget and Space Constraints: Consider your budget and available physical space for additional drives. RAID 1 requires double the number of drives to store the same amount of data as RAID 0 or a non-RAID setup, which can be a limiting factor in terms of cost and space.
Choosing between RAID 0 and RAID 1 depends on your specific needs and priorities. Let's break down the factors that might influence your decision:
1. Data Protection vs. Performance:
- RAID 0: Prioritizes performance. If you need faster data access and increased throughput, and you are confident in your backup system or the data isn't critical, RAID 0 might be the choice.
- RAID 1: Prioritizes data protection. If the integrity and safety of your data are paramount, and you want protection against a single drive failure, RAID 1 is the better option.
2. Storage Capacity:
- RAID 0: Offers combined storage capacity. For example, two 1TB drives would provide 2TB of usable storage. If maximizing available space is important and you want a performance boost, RAID 0 is the way to go.
- RAID 1: Offers storage capacity equal to one drive (in a two-drive setup) because of mirroring. If you're okay sacrificing some storage space for redundancy, choose RAID 1.
3. Reliability Concerns:
- RAID 0: Has no redundancy. The failure of a single drive results in the loss of all data in the array. If you're using RAID 0, it's crucial to have a reliable backup system in place.
- RAID 1: Offers redundancy by mirroring data. The system can withstand the failure of one drive (or more, depending on the number of mirrored pairs) without any data loss.
4. Use Cases:
- RAID 0: Ideal for tasks that need high-speed data access such as video editing, gaming, or large-scale scientific computations where data is backed up elsewhere.
- RAID 1: Suited for critical data storage like financial records, important databases, or any other data that must not be lost.
5. Cost Considerations:
- RAID 0: More cost-effective in terms of price-per-usable-storage because all added storage contributes to usable space.
- RAID 1: Might be considered more expensive because you're essentially buying double the storage you can actually use, to gain the benefit of redundancy.
Data Organization in RAID 0 and RAID 1
The way data is organized and managed in RAID 0 and RAID 1 configurations significantly impacts their performance, efficiency, and fault tolerance. Understanding the data organization strategies employed by each RAID level can help clarify their best use cases and limitations.
RAID 0: Data Striping
- Mechanism: RAID 0 divides data into smaller, more manageable blocks, known as stripes, and then spreads these stripes across all disks in the array. The striping process does not involve any form of redundancy or mirroring; instead, it focuses on distributing data evenly to optimize speed and performance.
- Performance Enhancement: By utilizing multiple disks simultaneously, RAID 0 can significantly increase read and write speeds. This is because multiple parts of a file can be read from or written to different disks at the same time, reducing the overall data access and transfer times.
- Storage Efficiency: RAID 0 offers 100% storage efficiency as all available disk space is used for data storage without any overhead for redundancy. The total storage capacity of a RAID 0 array is the sum of the capacities of all the disks in the array.
- Fault Tolerance: There is no fault tolerance in RAID 0. If any disk in the array fails, the entire array fails, and all data on the RAID 0 array is lost. This is because each piece of data is distributed across all disks, making any disk indispensable.
RAID 1: Data Mirroring
- Mechanism: RAID 1 duplicates (or mirrors) data across all disks in the array. Each disk in a RAID 1 array holds an identical copy of all the data. This mirroring ensures that even if one disk fails, an exact copy of the data is available on another disk, which can be used to recover and rebuild the failed disk without data loss.
- Performance Impact: While RAID 1 can improve read speeds by allowing data to be read from multiple disks simultaneously, its write speeds are generally slower than RAID 0. This is because the same data must be written to each disk in the array, effectively doubling the write operation's workload.
- Storage Efficiency: RAID 1 has a 50% storage efficiency because only half of the total disk space is used for data storage, with the other half used for the mirrored copy. The effective storage capacity of a RAID 1 array is equal to the capacity of one of its disks, regardless of the number of disks in the array.
- Fault Tolerance: RAID 1 offers excellent fault tolerance. The array can continue to operate as long as at least one disk is functioning. This makes RAID 1 suitable for applications where data availability and integrity are critical.
RAID 1 vs. RAID 0: Which level is best for data protection?
When comparing RAID 1 and RAID 0 specifically for data protection, RAID 1 is the clear winner. Let's delve into the reasons why:
RAID 1 (Mirroring):
- Redundancy: RAID 1 maintains an exact mirror of the data. If one drive fails, the other retains all the data, ensuring no data loss due to a single drive failure.
- Recovery: In the event of a drive failure, data recovery is straightforward. The data remains accessible on the mirrored drive. Once the failed drive is replaced, data from the surviving drive is copied to the new one, restoring the RAID 1 pair.
RAID 0 (Striping):
- No Redundancy: RAID 0 does not offer any form of data redundancy. It splits or "stripes" data across multiple drives. If any drive in a RAID 0 setup fails, all data on the array is lost because fragments of every file are distributed among all the disks.
- Data Loss: Given the lack of redundancy, the risk of data loss in RAID 0 is significantly higher compared to RAID 1. A single disk failure results in the loss of all data in the array.
For the specific purpose of data protection, RAID 1 is the superior choice. RAID 0 is designed for performance and not for data safety. If data protection is your primary concern, you should opt for RAID 1 or consider other RAID levels that offer redundancy, like RAID 5, RAID 6, or RAID 10.
Combining RAID 0 and RAID 1
Combining RAID 0 and RAID 1 results in RAID 10 (also known as RAID 1+0). It integrates the striping of RAID 0 with the mirroring of RAID 1, seeking to offer both improved performance and redundancy.
How RAID 10 Works:
- 1. Mirroring First: Data is first mirrored, as in RAID 1. This means for every piece of data you store, a copy is made onto another drive.
- 2. Striping Next: These mirrored sets of drives are then striped, like in RAID 0.
For a clearer picture, imagine you have four drives (A, B, C, D). Drives A and B could be a mirrored pair, as could drives C and D. When data is written, it is striped across the mirrored pairs. So, if you write a piece of data, one stripe is written to A (and mirrored to B) and the next stripe is written to C (and mirrored to D).
Advantages of RAID 10:
- 1. Performance: Offers the high read and write speeds of RAID 0 due to striping.
- 2. Redundancy: Provides the redundancy of RAID 1. Even if one drive fails, its mirror still retains the data.
- 3. Fault Tolerance: Can endure the failure of one drive in each mirrored set without data loss. Using the above example, even if drives A and C failed simultaneously, the data would still be intact on drives B and D.
Disadvantages of RAID 10:
- 1. Cost: Requires a minimum of four drives, and the effective storage capacity is 50% of the total drive space due to mirroring. If you have 4 x 1TB drives, only 2TB is usable.
- 2. Scalability: To expand storage, you need to add drives in pairs.
When to Use RAID 10:
RAID 10 is often chosen when both performance and data redundancy are crucial. It's popular in databases that require high-speed writes, or in environments where maximum uptime and data protection are paramount. Learn how to recover RAID 10 data here!
How to Recover Lost RAID 1 or RAID 0 Data?
Simply, you need a RAID Recovery software program to help out - that's where DiskInternals RAID Recovery comes in. DiskInternals RAID Recovery can retrieve data from RAID 0 to RAID 6 arrays. It is a comprehensive solution for recovering data from advanced file systems and virtual disk volumes.
This software can recover both hardware and software RAID and goes on to integrate all features of Partition Recovery. Furthermore, DiskInternals RAID Recovery can get back lost files from MegaRAID, Silicon RAID Controllers, and DDF-compatible devices.
Recovering data with this program is quite easy; either you do it manually or follow the step-by-step guide provided by the built-in Recovery Wizard.
Steps to Use DiskInternals RAID Recovery
The process is straightforward and fast; even a non-IT professional can use this recovery program without needing 3rd-party assistance.
First Step:
Download and install RAID Recovery on the Windows OS system. This software is compatible with Windows 7/8/8.0/10/-11 and Windows Server 2003-2019.
Second Step:
Launch the app after installation and select the affected target array. Next, choose a recovery mode:
- Fast recovery mode
- Full recovery mode
The Fast Recovery Mode scans very fast and saves time, but it doesn’t get deeper to discover all the lost files. Full Recovery Mode takes time and retrieves all lost files.
Third Step:
DiskInternals RAID Recovery would automatically check the status of the selected RAID array, controller, file system, or disk to recover lost files. You can preview the recovered files before proceeding to save them back to your local storage. To save the recovered files, you need to purchase a license.
Is the damage too deep/severe for you to restore? You can request guided assistance from RAID Recovery experts.
Recovery tips:
- Follow the recovery steps diligently - wait until each step executes successfully before proceeding to the next; don’t hurry!
- Make sure you select the right drive for the scan; else, the program won't find the file(s) you want to recover.
- Preview the files before attempting final recovery.
- Don't re-save the recovered data on the same drive where it was deleted/lost.
Video Guide On RAID Data Recovery Process
Here’s a video guide to clarify the entire steps explained above; watch to understand better:
FAQ
What is the primary difference between RAID 0 and RAID 1?
RAID 0 employs "striping" where data is divided and stored across multiple disks to enhance performance. However, it provides no redundancy. RAID 1 uses "mirroring" where data is duplicated and stored on two or more drives, offering redundancy at the cost of halved storage capacity.
If I'm seeking the fastest performance, which RAID level should I choose?
If raw performance is your primary concern and you are not worried about redundancy, RAID 0 would be the choice. It boosts both read and write speeds by striping data across multiple drives, allowing simultaneous disk operations. However, keep in mind that if a single drive fails in RAID 0, all data is lost.
How does RAID 1 protect my data?
RAID 1 mirrors data across two or more drives. This means that even if one drive fails, an exact copy of the data remains available on the other drive(s). It provides a real-time backup, ensuring protection against single drive failures.
Is RAID 0 or RAID 1 more cost-effective in terms of storage space?
RAID 0 is more cost-effective in terms of raw storage space since all the space on the drives is usable. For instance, if you use two 1TB drives in RAID 0, you'll have 2TB of usable space. In contrast, RAID 1 mirrors data, so with two 1TB drives, you'd only have 1TB of usable space due to redundancy.
Can I achieve both high performance and data redundancy with either RAID 0 or RAID 1?
Individually, RAID 0 focuses on performance while RAID 1 focuses on redundancy. If you wish to achieve both high performance and redundancy, you'd need to look into a hybrid RAID level like RAID 10 (or RAID 1+0), which combines the features of both RAID 0 and RAID 1.
Why is RAID 1 better?
RAID 1, commonly known as "mirroring," offers several advantages that can make it a preferable choice for certain use cases. Here's why RAID 1 might be considered better:
- Data Redundancy: RAID 1 mirrors data across two or more drives. This means if one drive fails, there's an exact copy available on the other drive, ensuring data protection against single drive failures.
- Read Performance: RAID 1 can enhance read performance since data can be read simultaneously from multiple drives. This is especially advantageous if multiple read requests are made at the same time.
- Simple Recovery: In the event of a drive failure, data recovery is straightforward. The system can continue to operate on the remaining good drive(s), and when the failed drive is replaced, data from a working drive is copied to the new one, restoring the mirrored set.
- Data Integrity: Since all drives in a RAID 1 setup have the same data, it's possible to compare drives and identify any discrepancies, providing a form of data verification.
- Safety Over Storage: While RAID 1 does halve storage capacity due to mirroring, for many users and businesses, the security and peace of mind offered by data redundancy outweigh the loss of storage space.
When should you use RAID 1?
- Critical Data Storage: For storing crucial data such as financial records, client information, or any data that is irreplaceable and must not be lost.
- Server Environments: In situations where server uptime and data availability are critical, such as for email servers or database servers where data integrity is paramount.
- Read-Intensive Tasks: RAID 1 can enhance read performance due to its ability to read data simultaneously from multiple mirrored drives. This is beneficial for applications or databases with high read operations.
- Easy Recovery: For environments where a quick recovery from drive failures is essential. Since the data is mirrored, if one drive fails, operations can continue using the other drive, minimizing downtime.
- Data Verification: If there's a need for regular data verification, RAID 1 allows for cross-checking between mirrored drives to ensure consistency.
- Small Setups: For setups that don't require a large number of drives or complex RAID configurations. RAID 1 can be implemented with just two drives, making it a simple solution for smaller storage needs.