Overview
PlayStation
Desktop & Laptop
Xbox
Nintendo Switch
Handheld
Streaming

Gaming Drives, NAS Drives, and NAS Enclosures for Streaming

Save gameplay streams right to your Direct Attached Storage (DAS) drive. Or export them to a Network Attached Storage (NAS) system to save, edit, and share content anywhere you have an internet connection.

Gameplay Streaming & Data Storage 101

Stream your gameplay.

Video capture tools like OBS (Open Broadcasting Software) let you capture content from different sources so you can stream them on other streaming platforms.

Record your streams.

Using OBS, select your connected hard drive or SSD as Output under Settings so you can save your streams directly to your device for archiving, backup, and export.

Share your recordings.

From your storage device, you can cut, edit, and prep clips from your streams for sharing on social media or posting to other video platforms.

DAS vs. NAS for Gameplay Streaming Storage

Ready to start streaming and want to know which data storage device is right for you? First off, you’ll need to know how DAS drives and NAS systems fit into your streaming workflow.

Direct Attached Storage (DAS)

  • Storage devices like hard drives or SSDs that connect directly to your computer.
  • Internal drives attach to your motherboard via interfaces like PCIe® or SATA.
  • External drives attach to the outside of your device via cables, connectors, and ports like USB-C™.
  • Capable of recording streams directly from video capture tools like OBS.

Network Attached Storage (NAS)

  • Storage devices that house hard drives and/or SSDs in enclosures with an internet connection.
  • Allows you to access content saved to the system anywhere you have internet access and with multiple users.
  • Capable of housing multiple drives for immense capacity — ideal for heavy-duty streamers.
  • Can’t record directly from OBS but can ingest exports from your DAS drive(s) for editing and sharing.
Learn more about NAS solutions

Get Started with Streaming Storage for Gamers

If you’re new to streaming or just stream casually, DAS drives are a great way to record your streams from OBS, back them up for future use, and keep them on hand for editing and sharing to your favorite platforms.

  • Try solid state drives (SSDs) for their ultra-fast speeds so you can record streams in high quality without tearing.
  • Try hard disk drives (HDDs) for massive capacities and lower cost per terabyte of storage.

WD_BLACK D10 Game Drive

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High-performance game drive with active cooling.

  • Up to 8TB1 of extra storage
  • Speeds up to 250MB/s2

WD_BLACK D10 GAME DRIVE

WD_BLACK SN850X NVMe™ SSD

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The ultimate X factor.

  • Internal NVMe drive for laptops or desktops
  • Insane speeds up to 7300 MB/s2
  • Optional heatsink with RGB lightning3

 

WD_BLACK SN850X NVMe SSD

Build Your Multimedia Streaming Workstation

Frequent streamers and professionals need serious power and capacity behind their workflow.

NAS systems are an ideal way to save recordings for the kind of content clipping, editing, and sharing that your audience expects. And, so long as you have an internet connection, you can access your recordings anywhere your work takes you, so the workflow never has to stop.

Just remember: video capture tools like OBS can’t save directly to NAS in real time, so you’ll need to export your recordings from your DAS drive to your NAS system to begin editing.

My Cloud Pro Series PR4100

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Pro-grade, centralized backup with access from anywhere.

  • Four hard drive bays so you can build a NAS system with serious storage capacity
  • Quad core Intel Pentium N3710 processor and 4GB of RAM — seamlessly stream HD videos or share content with multiple users
  • Acronis True Image for Western Digital software delivers easy, efficient, secure cyber protection for your content

WD Red Pro Hard Drive

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Engineered to handle high-intensity workloads4 in 24x7 environments.

  • CMR (conventional magnetic recording) enhances transfer rates and disk speeds
  • Supports workload up to 550TB1 per year
  • Multi-axis shock sensor and dynamic fly height technology for increased hard drive reliability

Streaming Storage for Gamers FAQs

When you’re streaming content with tools like OBS (Open Broadcaster Software), the type of storage you use can have an impact on your streaming quality and workflow. However, it’s important to note that other factors like your CPU, GPU, RAM, and internet connection are major factors for streamers.

However, SSDs do offer several advantages:

  • Faster Load Times: If you’re streaming a game or using software that’s installed on your storage drive, an SSD can reduce load times. This can result in a smoother and more efficient streaming experience.
  • Simultaneous Tasks: If you’re streaming, recording, and perhaps running a game all from the same device, an SSD can handle these tasks more effectively. The faster data access speed of SSDs allows for smoother multitasking, which is beneficial when running multiple heavy applications simultaneously.
  • Reliability and Durability: SSDs are generally more durable and reliable. They have no moving parts and are less likely to fail over time, which is essential for consistent, high-quality streaming.
  • Noise Levels: SSDs operate silently, while HDDs can sometimes produce a small amount of noise due to their moving parts. While this noise is usually minor, in a streaming environment where audio clarity is crucial, the silent operation of SSDs can be beneficial.

Disclosures
1. 1GB = 1 billion bytes and 1TB = 1 trillion bytes. Actual user capacity may be less depending on operating environment.
2. Based on read speed. 1 MB/s = 1 million bytes per second. Based on internal testing; performance may vary depending upon host device, usage conditions, drive capacity, and other factors.
3. Requires the WD_BLACK Dashboard (Windows® only)
4. Workload Rate is defined as the amount of user data transferred to or from the hard drive. Workload Rate is annualized (TB transferred ✕ (8760 / recorded power-on hours)). Workload Rate will vary depending on your hardware and software components and configurations.