diff --git a/weed/shell/command_ec_balance.go b/weed/shell/command_ec_balance.go
index 4f1069bbb..681cf317b 100644
--- a/weed/shell/command_ec_balance.go
+++ b/weed/shell/command_ec_balance.go
@@ -22,7 +22,10 @@ func (c *commandEcBalance) Name() string {
 func (c *commandEcBalance) Help() string {
 	return `balance all ec shards among all racks and volume servers
 
-	ec.balance [-c EACH_COLLECTION|<collection_name>] [-apply] [-dataCenter <data_center>] [-shardReplicaPlacement <replica_placement>]
+	ec.balance [-c EACH_COLLECTION|<collection_name>] [-apply] [-dataCenter <data_center>] [-shardReplicaPlacement <replica_placement>] [-diskType <disk_type>]
+
+	Options:
+	  -diskType: the disk type for EC shards (hdd, ssd, or empty for default hdd)
 
 	Algorithm:
 	` + ecBalanceAlgorithmDescription
@@ -37,6 +40,7 @@ func (c *commandEcBalance) Do(args []string, commandEnv *CommandEnv, writer io.W
 	collection := balanceCommand.String("collection", "EACH_COLLECTION", "collection name, or \"EACH_COLLECTION\" for each collection")
 	dc := balanceCommand.String("dataCenter", "", "only apply the balancing for this dataCenter")
 	shardReplicaPlacement := balanceCommand.String("shardReplicaPlacement", "", "replica placement for EC shards, or master default if empty")
+	diskTypeStr := balanceCommand.String("diskType", "", "the disk type for EC shards (hdd, ssd, or empty for default hdd)")
 	maxParallelization := balanceCommand.Int("maxParallelization", DefaultMaxParallelization, "run up to X tasks in parallel, whenever possible")
 	applyBalancing := balanceCommand.Bool("apply", false, "apply the balancing plan")
 	// TODO: remove this alias
@@ -69,5 +73,7 @@ func (c *commandEcBalance) Do(args []string, commandEnv *CommandEnv, writer io.W
 		return err
 	}
 
-	return EcBalance(commandEnv, collections, *dc, rp, types.HardDriveType, *maxParallelization, *applyBalancing)
+	diskType := types.ToDiskType(*diskTypeStr)
+
+	return EcBalance(commandEnv, collections, *dc, rp, diskType, *maxParallelization, *applyBalancing)
 }
diff --git a/weed/shell/command_ec_encode.go b/weed/shell/command_ec_encode.go
index 7d9536af6..a2761201e 100644
--- a/weed/shell/command_ec_encode.go
+++ b/weed/shell/command_ec_encode.go
@@ -37,8 +37,8 @@ func (c *commandEcEncode) Name() string {
 func (c *commandEcEncode) Help() string {
 	return `apply erasure coding to a volume
 
-	ec.encode [-collection=""] [-fullPercent=95 -quietFor=1h] [-verbose]
-	ec.encode [-collection=""] [-volumeId=<volume_id>] [-verbose]
+	ec.encode [-collection=""] [-fullPercent=95 -quietFor=1h] [-verbose] [-diskType=<disk_type>]
+	ec.encode [-collection=""] [-volumeId=<volume_id>] [-verbose] [-diskType=<disk_type>]
 
 	This command will:
 	1. freeze one volume
@@ -61,6 +61,7 @@ func (c *commandEcEncode) Help() string {
 
 	Options:
 	  -verbose: show detailed reasons why volumes are not selected for encoding
+	  -diskType: the disk type for EC shards (hdd, ssd, or empty for default hdd)
 
 	Re-balancing algorithm:
 	` + ecBalanceAlgorithmDescription
@@ -80,6 +81,7 @@ func (c *commandEcEncode) Do(args []string, commandEnv *CommandEnv, writer io.Wr
 	maxParallelization := encodeCommand.Int("maxParallelization", DefaultMaxParallelization, "run up to X tasks in parallel, whenever possible")
 	forceChanges := encodeCommand.Bool("force", false, "force the encoding even if the cluster has less than recommended 4 nodes")
 	shardReplicaPlacement := encodeCommand.String("shardReplicaPlacement", "", "replica placement for EC shards, or master default if empty")
+	diskTypeStr := encodeCommand.String("diskType", "", "the disk type for EC shards (hdd, ssd, or empty for default hdd)")
 	applyBalancing := encodeCommand.Bool("rebalance", false, "re-balance EC shards after creation")
 	verbose := encodeCommand.Bool("verbose", false, "show detailed reasons why volumes are not selected for encoding")
 
@@ -94,6 +96,8 @@ func (c *commandEcEncode) Do(args []string, commandEnv *CommandEnv, writer io.Wr
 		return err
 	}
 
+	diskType := types.ToDiskType(*diskTypeStr)
+
 	// collect topology information
 	topologyInfo, _, err := collectTopologyInfo(commandEnv, 0)
 	if err != nil {
@@ -138,7 +142,7 @@ func (c *commandEcEncode) Do(args []string, commandEnv *CommandEnv, writer io.Wr
 		return fmt.Errorf("ec encode for volumes %v: %w", volumeIds, err)
 	}
 	// ...re-balance ec shards...
-	if err := EcBalance(commandEnv, balanceCollections, "", rp, types.HardDriveType, *maxParallelization, *applyBalancing); err != nil {
+	if err := EcBalance(commandEnv, balanceCollections, "", rp, diskType, *maxParallelization, *applyBalancing); err != nil {
 		return fmt.Errorf("re-balance ec shards for collection(s) %v: %w", balanceCollections, err)
 	}
 	// ...then delete original volumes using pre-collected locations.