NAS Help

[EmeraldKiwi]

Okay. So I want to build a NAS, and I have done a little research. I need a build that is less than 300$. It needs one layer of redundancy. Can anyone help or explain what I'll need?

EDIT:

I will be using the NAS for a backup solution for me and my dad. He runs a laptop all the time, and I run a desktop. His data is WAY more important than mine though. I may be able to raise the budget by asking him to contribute, since it will benefit him as well as me.

[KraftDinner]

Okay. So I want to build a NAS, and I have done a little research. I need a build that is less than 300$. It needs one layer of redundancy. Can anyone help or explain what I'll need?

I can't tell you how much / which kind of storage to get because that's for you to decide (Size of storage and type of storage like SSD or HDD). As for the redundancy, if you're wanting to have a complete backup of your data implement RAID 1 for sure, this will mirror your data onto the other hard drives. If you're looking for something with speed and redundancy then go for RAID 5.

[Streetguru]

Okay. So I want to build a NAS, and I have done a little research. I need a build that is less than 300$. It needs one layer of redundancy. Can anyone help or explain what I'll need?

You aren't getting much of a NAS for 300, what did you want to do with it?

[EmeraldKiwi]

You aren't getting much of a NAS for 300, what did you want to do with it?

Mostly I just want a NAS for data backups. If my PC dies somehow, or there is data loss somewhere, I can grab it off of my NAS and restore it that way. It's mostly a peace of mind thing for me. I honestly don't know much else of what a NAS can do.

[EmeraldKiwi]

I can't tell you how much / which kind of storage to get because that's for you to decide (Size of storage and type of storage like SSD or HDD). As for the redundancy, if you're wanting to have a complete backup of your data implement RAID 1 for sure, this will mirror your data onto the other hard drives. If you're looking for something with speed and redundancy then go for RAID 5.

Can you explain what makes a NAS fast? Like, what does 'speed' of a NAS measure? Because I understand that PCs measure speed in GHz, which is essentially processes per tick per se. More GHz means more calculations done per second. More cores means more lanes for calculations to go through. But a NAS is just storage. So would speed for it be how many MB/second its reading or writing?

[brob]

Can you explain what makes a NAS fast? Like, what does 'speed' of a NAS measure? Because I understand that PCs measure speed in GHz, which is essentially processes per tick per se. More GHz means more calculations done per second. More cores means more lanes for calculations to go through. But a NAS is just storage. So would speed for it be how many MB/second its reading or writing?

 

Rarely is speed a concern when evaluating NAS. If you are using external storage for backup, you do not need to be terribly concerned with how fast it reads and writes data. Much more important are the units capacity and redundancy. Capacity being the amount of storage available. Redundancy being the number of concurrent drive failures that can be tolerated before data loss.

 

I would suggest you check out the NAS offerings of some of the major on-line merchants. If you want redundancy look for units that support RAID 1 and/or 5. Units generally have a maximum capacity but are shipped with less storage. Most NAS can only house particular models of hdd. Check the compatibility list before buying.

[Streetguru]

Mostly I just want a NAS for data backups. If my PC dies somehow, or there is data loss somewhere, I can grab it off of my NAS and restore it that way. It's mostly a peace of mind thing for me. I honestly don't know much else of what a NAS can do.

Just buy an external hard drive, or a hard drive dock and a higher end drive, without ECC memory you're bound to end up with some corrupt data over time if you plan on using it as a back up system

This is the price of an ECC board and decent CPU, around 200

http://i.imgur.com/8ENFFbG.jpg

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822145912&cm_re=HGST_4TB-_-22-145-912-_-Product

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182347&cm_re=Hard_Drive_Dock-_-17-182-347-_-Product

[EmeraldKiwi]

Just buy an external hard drive, or a hard drive dock and a higher end drive, without ECC memory you're bound to end up with some corrupt data over time if you plan on using it as a back up

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822145912&cm_re=HGST_4TB-_-22-145-912-_-Product

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182347&cm_re=Hard_Drive_Dock-_-17-182-347-_-Product

Well then I'll add ECC memory to the list of things I'll need. I don't want just an external disk. I've been reading more about what a NAS can do. It's pretty cool! I can stream videos or music, I can pull up files I backed up, and I can back up all my data. A simple external drive can't do that.

[Streetguru]

Well then I'll add ECC memory to the list of things I'll need. I don't want just an external disk. I've been reading more about what a NAS can do. It's pretty cool! I can stream videos or music, I can pull up files I backed up, and I can back up all my data. A simple external drive can't do that.

but $300 isn't enough for a NAS that's going to have any kind of important data on it, if it were just a media server ECC would be less necessary, also I edited my thing with an ECC supported board and decent CPU that supports it

[EmeraldKiwi]

but $300 isn't enough for a NAS that's going to have any kind of important data on it, if it were just a media server ECC would be less necessary, also I edited my thing with an ECC supported board and decent CPU that supports it

That is really expensive...

Well, I guess 300$ won't go very far. But let's say for now the budget is undetermined, but we will try to keep it as low as possible. I want to see what an entire build might come out to. I'm currently researching the topic of ZFS versus UFS. I'm not really sure what the big deal is. They both work.

[Streetguru]

That is really expensive...

So I'm at $450 no power supply, case, or battery back up, single 4TB hard drive, or you can get 2 2TB WD Red hard drives for the same price if you want a mirrored set up

You'll want to use FreeNAS running off at least an 8gb USB stick, and you can run virtual machines or a plex media plug in for it, not sure if it only uses ZFS

http://i.imgur.com/EeSc5UY.jpg

[EmeraldKiwi]

So I'm at $450 no power supply, case, or battery back up, single 4TB hard drive, or you can get 2 2TB WD Red hard drives for the same price if you want a mirrored set up

You'll want to use FreeNAS running off at least an 8gb USB stick, and you can run virtual machines or a plex media plug in for it

http://i.imgur.com/EeSc5UY.jpg

Do I really need a battery backup though? What does sudden power loss do that a power down doesn't?

[Streetguru]

Do I really need a battery backup though? What does sudden power loss do that a power down doesn't?

Well A it has the very rare chance to cause damage, and B it lets it shut down on it's own finishing any writes it had to do to minimize data loss, probably some other stuff as well like protect from surges better as there's a buffer zone

[EmeraldKiwi]

Well A it has the very rare chance to cause damage, and B it lets it shut down on it's own finishing any writes it had to do to minimize data loss, probably some other stuff as well like protect from surges better as there's a buffer zone

I think I'll be fine without a UPS. My main rig has been on for probably over a year 24/7 and I don't think it has once shut down due to power loss. There hasn't been an outage where I live in a long time. I'm probably fine without it. Case and power supply I'll figure out.

[Streetguru]

I think I'll be fine without a UPS. My main rig has been on for probably over a year 24/7 and I don't think it has once shut down due to power loss. There hasn't been an outage where I live in a long time. I'm probably fine without it. Case and power supply I'll figure out.

Whatever PSU it is it doesn't have to be high wattage, a platinum rated one would be best, something like

https://pcpartpicker.com/part/rosewill-power-supply-quark650

 

though that's like almost 90 bucks

[EmeraldKiwi]

Whatever PSU it is it doesn't have to be high wattage, a platinum rated one would be best, something like

https://pcpartpicker.com/part/rosewill-power-supply-quark650

though that's like almost 90 bucks

Eh I wouldn't mind a platinum power supply. 650 watts seems like wicked overkill, but whatever. I'm looking into cases and motherboards right now. Hot swappable bays seem pretty nice to have. Motherboards seems to be the most important part though. I am unsure what kind of features will be nice to have and which ones are just gimmicks, since I have no experience with a NAS.

[Streetguru]

Eh I wouldn't mind a platinum power supply. 650 watts seems like wicked overkill, but whatever. I'm looking into cases and motherboards right now. Hot swappable bays seem pretty nice to have. Motherboards seems to be the most important part though. I am unsure what kind of features will be nice to have and which ones are just gimmicks, since I have no experience with a NAS.

The pre-built NAS thing probably isn't worth it

 

You can either get a case like the HAF XB with hot swap bays, or I believe there have to be some 5.25" bay adapters that will add hot swap bays

 

really not useful for most people

[brob]

Use FreeNAS, http://www.freenas.org/.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-4170 3.7GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($109.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($67.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: A-Data Premier Pro SP600 32GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($34.43 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Red 2TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($84.00 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Red 2TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($84.00 @ Amazon)
Case: Antec VSK-4350E-N ATX Mid Tower Case w/350W Power Supply  ($49.99 @ Directron)
Total: $460.39
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-12-01 15:04 EST-0500