NasDrives.ca

How do I tell if my hard drive is SMR or CMR?

In short · as of July 22, 2026

Check the exact model number against the manufacturer's documentation — Western Digital, Seagate and Toshiba each publish the recording technology per model. Do not guess from the product name (a "WD Red" can be either). As a shortcut, NAS lines marketed as Plus/Pro (WD Red Plus/Pro, IronWolf) and enterprise drives are CMR.

Last verified July 22, 2026 · 3 official sources checked Updated

As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases on Amazon.ca.

The only reliable method is the exact model number and the manufacturer's own documentation — not the marketing name, which can cover both SMR and CMR variants.

The correct way

  1. Find the model number on the drive label or in your NAS's drive info (e.g. WD40EFAX, ST8000VN004, HDWG480).
  2. Look it up on the manufacturer's support pages: Western Digital, Seagate and Toshiba each publish CMR/SMR by model.
  3. Trust that, not a forum post or the product name.

Useful shortcuts (but verify)

Can software tell me?

Not directly — SMART data does not report recording type, and tools that "detect" SMR infer it from write-behaviour tests, which are indirect. The model-number lookup is definitive. The table below lists drives that are confirmed CMR from manufacturer documentation.

Drives that solve this

Live Amazon.ca prices in CAD, ranked by price per terabyte. The Recording column is verified against manufacturer documentation.

ModelCapacityRecordingPricePrice per TB
HGST, a Western Digital Company Ultrastar HE8 8000GB 128MB 7200RPM SATA Ultra 512E ISE 128MB Cache 3.5-Inch Internal Bare or OEM Drives 0F23267best price per TB8 TBCMR ✓CA$177CA$22.19/TBOn Amazon.ca
HGST Ultrastar He8 HUH728080AL5204 8 TB 3.5" Internal Hard Drive8 TBCMR ✓CA$207CA$25.93/TBOn Amazon.ca
Seagate Exos ST28000NM001C 28TB 7200 RPM SATA 6Gb/s 512e 3.5in Enterprise Hard Drive (Renewed)28 TBCMR ✓CA$1,120CA$40.00/TBOn Amazon.ca
Seagate Exos 26TB Internal Hard Drive HDD - 3.5 in CMR SATA 6Gb/s, 7200 RPM, 512MB Cache, 2.5M MTBF (ST26000NM000C) (Renewed)26 TBCMR ✓CA$1,102CA$42.40/TBOn Amazon.ca
Seagate IronWolf Pro 3.5-inch 16TB Internal Hard Disk HDD CMR 3.5-inch Data Recovery ST16000NT001 PC 6Gb/s 256MB 7200rpm 24-Hour Operation16 TBCMR ✓CA$740CA$46.24/TBOn Amazon.ca
Seagate IronWolf Pro 16TB Enterprise NAS Internal HDD Hard Drive – CMR 3.5 Inch SATA 6Gb/s 7200 RPM 256MB Cache for RAID Network Attached Storage, Rescue Services (ST16000NTZ01/ST16000NT001)16 TBCMR ✓CA$750CA$46.87/TBOn Amazon.ca
Seagate Exos 22TB SATA HDD 6Gb/s 7200RPM 3.5-inch Enterprise Hard Drive (ST22000NM000C) (Renewed)22 TBCMR ✓CA$1,061CA$48.22/TBOn Amazon.ca
Seagate IronWolf Pro 24TB Enterprise NAS Internal HDD Hard Drive – CMR 3.5 Inch SATA 6Gb/s 7200 RPM 512MB Cache for RAID Network Attached Storage, Rescue Services (ST24000NT002)24 TBCMR ✓CA$1,190CA$49.58/TBOn Amazon.ca
Seagate IronWolf Pro 20TB Enterprise NAS Internal HDD Hard Drive – CMR 3.5 Inch SATA 6Gb/s 7200 RPM 256MB Cache for RAID Network Attached Storage, Rescue Services (ST20000NTZ01/ST20000NT001)20 TBCMR ✓CA$995CA$49.75/TBOn Amazon.ca
Seagate IronWolf Pro 32TB Enterprise NAS Internal HDD Hard Drive – CMR 3.5 Inch SATA 6Gb/s 7200 RPM 512MB Cache for RAID Network Attached Storage, Rescue Services - (ST32000NTZ00)32 TBCMR ✓CA$1,605CA$50.16/TBOn Amazon.ca

Related questions

Sources

Every technical claim on this page is checked against manufacturer and standards documentation. Dates are when each source was last reviewed.