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Silver 3.5 inch hard drive with green circuit board visible

Seagate

Seagate Exos X20z ST20000NM001J 20TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" internal hard drive

SKU CH-1E9M-BA87P

20 TB SATA 6.0 Gb/s 7200 RPM 3.5" host-managed SMR drive with 256 MB cache for sequential write-intensive workloads

  • Total capacity20 TB
  • Interface typeSATA 6.0Gb/s
  • Form factor3.5 in (8.89 cm)
  • Rotational speed7,200 RPM
  • Cache memory256 MB
  • Recording methodSMR
  • Massive 20TB capacity stores vast bulk data
  • 7200 RPM spindle enables fast data access
  • SATA 6.0Gb/s interface provides high-speed connectivity
  • Host-managed SMR maximises storage efficiency
  • 256MB cache enhances data handling reliability

20 TB host-managed SMR drive

The Seagate Exos X20z ST20000NM001J is a 20 TB 3.5-inch internal hard drive spinning at 7200 RPM on a SATA 6.0 Gb/s interface. It uses host-managed shingled magnetic recording with a 256 MB cache and is built for continuous 24/7 operation in enterprise environments.

Suited for sequential write workloads

This drive fits data centres and bulk-storage arrays that can manage SMR zones directly in software. It is not for general desktop use, boot drives or random-access databases that need conventional magnetic recording. Builders without host-aware file systems or object-store layers should look elsewhere.

Standard 3.5-inch SATA installation

The drive mounts in any 3.5-inch bay with standard SATA data and power cables. No special drivers are required, but the host must implement zone management for the SMR layout; treating it as a regular block device will cause severe write stalls and premature wear. Zone-aware software is the only common pitfall.

How it compares

Measured against everything we stock in 3.5-Inch Internal Desktop HDDs, at today’s prices. Recalculated every night.

Price $436.99
Pricier than about 90% of the 4,938 comparable items (median $107.99).
Total capacity 20 TB
Higher than about 94% of the 2,372 comparable items (median 2 TB).
Price per TB $21.85 per TB
Cheaper than about 91% of the 2,365 comparable items (median $62.21 per TB).

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Specifications

Product
Brand nameSeagate
Product lineExos X20z
Model nameST20000NM001J
Part number2U6101-114
Total capacity20 TB
Performance
Rotational speed7,200 RPM
Storage
Cache memory256 MB
Recording methodSMR
Ports & slots
Interface typeSATA 6.0Gb/s
Size & build
Form factor3.5 in (8.89 cm)

Questions about this item

What host software or controller is required to manage the SMR zones on this Exos X20z drive?

The ST20000NM001J uses Host-Managed SMR technology, so the operating system or application must implement the ZBC/ZAC command set to control the sequential write zones.

Will this 20TB SMR drive work in a standard RAID controller that expects conventional drives?

Most hardware RAID controllers treat the drive as a normal block device and cannot issue the zone commands that Host-Managed SMR requires, so performance will degrade or the array may fail.

How can I verify the drive is correctly handling sequential write zones after installation?

Use a zone-aware tool such as libzbc or smartctl to report the zone type and write-pointer position; sequential zones should show an advancing write pointer after each write.

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