SoftRAID Upgrade + Support Plan

It’s Like Life Insurance for Your RAID

With the release of SoftRAID 7 for Mac, we are introducing a new Upgrade + Support Plan.

Our Mac and Windows engineers spend countless hours every year improving and updating SoftRAID, making it the most robust RAID management software available. It is also backed by OWC’s award-winning global support team that is there to solve a problem or answer any questions you have using SoftRAID.

In order to provide incredible software that keeps evolving with new technologies and having support there for the long haul, we are launching the Upgrade + Support plan to enable OWC to offer you new features economically at a faster rate.

You are always in control of your data

With SoftRAID you can ALWAYS access your data – even without a valid SoftRAID license. With SoftRAID installed, you will always be able to mount SoftRAID volumes and have read and write access to files. In order to use SoftRAID’s advanced features like management, health monitoring, fast rebuilds, and protection tools, you will need a valid SoftRAID license.

DO I NEED TO UPGRADE MY SOFTWARE?

SoftRAID is sold as a perpetual license, meaning you can use the license you purchase within its supported OS version for as long as you like. For example, if you are using SoftRAID 6 and do not plan to upgrade to macOS 13, you do not need to upgrade SoftRAID – you can continue to use it with macOS 10.12 through macOS 12.

If you are going to move to macOS 13 Ventura, an upgrade to SoftRAID 7 is required. SoftRAID 7 has added compatibility for the new OS as well underlying architecture changes.

WHAT DOES THE UPGRADE + SUPPORT PLAN DO FOR ME?

The Upgrade + Support Plan ensures you always have access to the latest version of SoftRAID, award-winning support, and price protects you against future upgrade costs.

Upgrade + Support Plan Features

Free major and minor upgrades and updates with an active subscription

Access to award-winning OWC support via forums, email, chat and phone

We encourage you to take advantage of the Upgrade + Support plan so you always are up-to-date with the latest changes and compatibility SoftRAID offers as well as saving money on future upgrade costs by locking in your upgrade price.

HOW DO I KNOW IF I NEED THE UPGRADE + SUPPORT PLAN?

You may already be covered by the plan depending on the type of SoftRAID license you own.

SoftRAID included with an OWC solution
If you are using SoftRAID that came with an OWC solution, your software is covered by your enclosure warranty for one to three years. To check your license status please visit: https://go.owc.com/license and click on the upgrade tab to see your options.

OWC SoftRAID (standalone)
If you purchased SoftRAID from the OWC Software Store or from a third party, there are multiple upgrade options available. You view your available upgrade options here: https://go.owc.com/softraid/purchase by clicking the upgrade tab.

Extend Your RAID Life

OWC was founded on sustainability and extending the life of technology. The majority of OWC RAID solutions come with our SoftRAID RAID management software. Software RAID offers several advantages to hardware RAID including the ability to update and add new features or even fix issues that might arise later – all without having to replace costly hardware.

For example, SoftRAID 6 was launched in March of 2021 and since that date, we have released seven free updates that have fixed various issues and added new capabilities to extend the power SoftRAID. Providing software updates makes it possible to keep using the same hardware with the latest RAID enhancements.

Save more, get more
OWC hardware paired with SoftRAID and the Upgrade + Support Plan give users years of technology compatibility at a faction of the costs of hardware RAID.

Take a look at example software vs. hardware RAID Storage costs and see how how much more value software RAID gives you.

	Software RAID	Hardware RAID
Size	24TB	24TB
RAID Levels	RAID 0/1/4/5/1+0 (10)	RAID 0/1/5/1+0 (10)
Drive Health Monitoring	Yes	No
Fast Rebuilds	Yes	No
Move Drives to a Diffrent Enclosure	Yes	No
Costs	$1,599	$2,099

In this example, both enclosures give you three years of warranty protection. With OWC, after your warranty expires, you can upgrade SoftRAID and keep using your enclosure with new features and compatibility.

You could add an additional fives years of protection, that is almost 10-years of updates and upgrades, and it would still cost less than a hardware RAID system!

Upgrade + Support Plan FAQs

What is the Upgrade + Support Plan?

The Upgrade + Support Plan ensures you always have access to the latest version of SoftRAID, award-winning support and price protects you against future upgrade costs.

Upgrade + Support Plan Features

Free major and minor upgrades and updates with and active subscription

Access to award-winning OWC support via forums, email, chat and phone

Do I need the Upgrade + Support Plan?

SoftRAID is sold as a perpetual license, so you can use the license you purchase within its supported OS version as long as you like.

For example, if you are using SoftRAID 6 for Mac and do not plan to upgrade to macOS 13, you do not need to upgrade your SoftRAID software right now.

If you are going to upgrade to macOS 13 you will need to upgrade to SoftRAID 7. The new version adds support for the new OS as well as new underlying architecture changes to better support future development.

Remember, with SoftRAID you can always access your data – even without a valid SoftRAID license. With SoftRAID installed you will always be able to mount SoftRAID volumes, and have read and write access to files. To use SoftRAID’s advanced features like management, health monitoring, and protection tools you do need a valid license.

What does the Upgrade + Support Plan cost?

Depending on the type of SoftRAID license you own, included with an OWC enclosure or if you purchased it by itself for use with a third party enclosure, there are several upgrade options available.

You can view your upgrade options here: https://software.owc.com/softraid/

When you purchase or upgrade to SoftRAID 7 you automatically receive one year of the SoftRAID Upgrade + Support Plan. If you purchased an OWC enclosure, your software is covered by the length of your warranty, up to three years.

Soon you will be able to add additional years to you Upgrade + Support plan. By enrolling in the plan and keeping an active subscription you can save over 55% off future upgrades. Below is pricing for additional years of the Upgrade + Support plan:

SoftRAID Pro – $99.99
SoftRAID Lite – $29.99
SoftRAID XT – $79.99

* Note: SoftRAID users that received a free upgrade to SoftRAID 7 already have an active Upgrade + Support plan through their SoftRAID 6 activation and/or their hardware warranty.

Do I need to upgrade my software?

Are You Upgrading to macOS 13?
If you are going to upgrade to macOS 13 Ventura, SoftRAID 7 is required. SoftRAID 7 brings full support of the new OS with powerful management and monitoring features and well as the new Upgrade + Support Plan.

If you are not upgrading to macOS 13 Ventura, you can continue to use SoftRAID 6 for Mac with your current OS.

You Can Always Access Your Data
With OWC SoftRAID, you are always in control of your data–you can always access files with full read-and-write capability. Whether your license is activated or deactivated on a system, you always use your RAID anytime, anywhere.

For full management and monitoring you do need an active SoftRAID license and now that is even easier with our new pricing + support and license management options. Deploying and using SoftRAID has never been easier.

What Updates are included?

An active Upgrade + Support Plan gives you access to all minor and major updates and upgrades.

For example, with a purchase of SoftRAID 7 and an active plan you would receive minor updates, such as 7.1, 7.2, and 7.3 as well as major upgrades like 8.0.

Can I cancel my Upgrade + Support Plan?

The Upgrade + Support Plan is billed yearly, but you can cancel it at anytime and not be charged future fees. You can enjoy the benefits of the subscription plan until your original term expires.

What if my OWC enclosure is still under warranty?

If your OWC enclosure is still under warranty, you are grandfathered into the Upgrade + Support plan for the life of your warranty, for up to three years.