WD My Cloud Mirror: Change hard drive - so it works without data loss
If you want to change the hard drive of your WD My Cloud Mirror, only a few steps are necessary. In this practical tip, we will show you how to switch without losing data.
Hard drive replacement at WD My Cloud Mirror - how it works
In contrast to the normal My Cloud, the My Cloud Mirror is designed to be opened. Therefore, a hard drive replacement is not a big deal.
- Before you get started, you should keep your data safe. The easiest way is to copy everything from the My Cloud to your computer. Make sure that your computer is connected to the network via LAN. This way the data is copied faster.
- Now prepare the new hard drives. There is not really much to consider, except that (for Raid1) they should have the same storage capacity. If you have important data on the new hard drives, you should also back them up - the My Cloud will format the hard drives.
- Now switch off your My Cloud. When all the LEDs have gone out, you can open the device. To do this, press the cover on the top of the NAS. The cover can be opened easily and reveals the hard drives. Now you have to unscrew the black metal bracket.
- Carefully pull the old hard drives out of the My Cloud. Unscrew the tabs from the old disks and mount them on the new HDDs. This will make it easier to get the hard drives out of the case later.
- Now push the new hard drives carefully into the NAS. Make sure that the orientation of your hard drives matches the SATA port in the My Cloud.
Set up WD My Cloud Mirror
Call up the web interface of your My Cloud and log in.
- Now you will automatically be guided through a simple and understandable setup. Here you have to specify, for example, which RAID mode you want to use.
- After the setup you have to set up your shares again. To do this, simply click on "Shares" in the horizontal menu bar and set it up according to your wishes.
- Now you can copy your files back to the My Cloud and, as usual, have full access to your data from anywhere.
Note on normal WD My Cloud
If you own a 1-Bay My Cloud, this process works a little differently.
- The normal My Cloud is not designed to be opened - thus the guarantee is void.
- In addition, with the 1-Bay NAS from WD, the operating system is on the hard disk, so you must also upload an image to the disk.
Find out in the next practical tip how you can activate SSH at WD My Cloud.