NAS

[starsarethebest9]

I am looking to get either a 5 bay or 8 bay nas that i can continue to add to.  I know synology is a great brand but i just can't afford them.  So i am looking for a nas that is something similar to a synology nas but does not coast as much.  I would like some recommendations on which brands ya'll recommend.  Any help would be greatly appreciated.  

[MrBucket101]

Linus literally released a video about this topic 2d ago on vessel. Watch the video if you have access, or wait 5 days and watch it on youtube. It's very informative

 

it goes over part buying and OS of choice. The works.

[starsarethebest9]

I saw that.  I am thinking about that but i want to see what other nas are out there? and what people recommend?

[alpenwasser]

You could try to look for a used server on eBay, some of them can be had for pretty cheap. Downside is that they're usually loud, bulky, power-hungrier than current-gen parts and expensive to ship. But in the end, you get what you pay for, for the most part, so if you want to go low-cost, some sacrifices will need to be made. 

[starsarethebest9]

Has anyone one heard of a company called drobo for a nas before?  I am looking for something that i don't have to build just because i would like it to be done for me at this point in time.  I don't have the time i want to dedicate to building a proper nas.  I want a synology nas but they are just to expensive but i don't want something to cheap.  I would like something in the middle.  

[alpenwasser]

1 hour ago, starsarethebest9 said:

Has anyone one heard of a company called drobo for a nas before?  I am looking for something that i don't have to build just because i would like it to be done for me at this point in time.  I don't have the time i want to dedicate to building a proper nas.  I want a synology nas but they are just to expensive but i don't want something to cheap.  I would like something in the middle.  

@MoonSpot has a Drobo (or at least used to). See this post: 

 

[starsarethebest9]

Just now, alpenwasser said:

@MoonSpot has a Drobo (or at least used to). See this post: 

 

It won't let me see the post.

[alpenwasser]

1 hour ago, starsarethebest9 said:

It won't let me see the post.

You mean you can't click it and view the other topic? I don't think it's supposed to expand the post in this thread, as far as I know.

[starsarethebest9]

2 minutes ago, alpenwasser said:

You mean you can't click it and view the other topic? I don't think it's supposed to expand the post in this thread, as far as I know.

Thank you.  Do you recommend any other brands then?

[alpenwasser]

1 hour ago, starsarethebest9 said:

Thank you.  Do you recommend any other brands then?

I can't say I know any 5-8 bay prebuilt units which fit your criteria to be honest. WD, Seagate and Netgear all make 4-bay units, maybe you can check out those (I'm not really familiar with their lineups). But I think if you're going for 5-8 bay prebuilts, you'll be spending quite a bit of money, as those units aren't usually intended for the lower market segment.

[starsarethebest9]

Okay thank you.  

[MoonSpot]

For what its worth:

 

I think the Drobo's look better than synology units, they're certainly a "hands-off" solution and are made out of the kind of steel you dent cinder block walls with.  But I wouldn't put them on the same level as synology for multimedia functionality.  Pretty bulletproof for small business and folder jockeys though.   The best and worst way I can describe a drobo is that there kind of the apple of NAS'.  Simple, but ultimately tie the hands of more liberal users.

Not something I'd consider inexpensive though if synology has turned you off.

 

Mines fairly slow and under powered; the newer ones are apparently beefier, but I don't think they're as fast as typical synology boxes.

[starsarethebest9]

2 minutes ago, MoonSpot said:

For what its worth:

 

I think the Drobo's look better than synology units, they're certainly a "hands-off" solution and are made out of the kind of steel you dent cinder block walls with.  But I wouldn't put them on the same level as synology for multimedia functionality.  Pretty bulletproof for small business and folder jockeys though.   The best and worst way I can describe a drobo is that there kind of the apple of NAS'.  Simple, but ultimately tie the hands of more liberal users.

Not something I'd consider inexpensive though if synology has turned you off.

 

Mines fairly slow and under powered; the newer ones are apparently beefier, but I don't think they're as fast as typical synology boxes.

Thank you for the info.  Do you have any other brands that you recommend?  

[MoonSpot]

I've only got experience with the Drobo and pseudo-NAS from a PC/server, so can't provide an alternative recommendation.  Though the only significantly less costly avenue I can think of is building ones own.

[starsarethebest9]

Just now, MoonSpot said:

I've only got experience with the Drobo and sudo NAS from a PC/server, so can't provide an alternative recommendation.  Though the only significantly less costly avenue I can think of is building ones own.

I just don't have the time right now to build a nas for my self.  That is why i am looking for something prebuilt.  

[MoonSpot]

Oh I understand.  It's why I bought a drobo in the first place,  Need+No time.

I've definitely have never seen anything 8-bay that was prebuilt which was worth the money, ever.

If you have a router that supports adding an eternal drive to it, it might do something for you in the meantime as a basic network share till you can build one.  However I'd assume that it wouldn't cut it for whatever you want/need.

[Cvdasfg]

Whats your budget OP?

 

* bay prebuilts are either unheard of, or extremely expensive. Not really a common thing most people would want.

 

You do realize how expensive 8 hard drives are going to be right?

[starsarethebest9]

Just now, Cvdasfg said:

Whats your budget OP?

 

* bay prebuilts are either unheard of, or extremely expensive. Not really a common thing most people would want.

 

You do realize how expensive 8 hard drives are going to be right?

Yes i know that is the most i want but i am looking more at a 4 or 5 bay unit.  I don't want to spend more then $500 for everything but that is probably not going to happen.

[Cvdasfg]

Just now, starsarethebest9 said:

Yes i know that is the most i want but i am looking more at a 4 or 5 bay unit.  I don't want to spend more then $500 for everything but that is probably not going to happen.

Not going to happen. The hard drives could easily pass the $500. 

[MoonSpot]

Well there are used drobos on amazon for...(checks) $350.

http://www.amazon.com/Drobo-Beyond-Gigabit-Ethernet-Storage/dp/B003GZ828I/ref=sr_1_6?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1454688457&sr=1-6&keywords=drobo

 

5-bays and it's the one I have(so not great but solid IMO).  If you're looking for backup and raid, it's good.  But if for multimedia and having multiple users hitting it is what your gunning for it would be quite frustrating.

 

Since Drobo can easily mix and match drives of different capacities, you could get it all under $500 if you have 2 or 3 spare HDDs kicking around that you can integrate into it.

[starsarethebest9]

Just now, MoonSpot said:

Well there are used drobos on amazon for...(checks) $350.

http://www.amazon.com/Drobo-Beyond-Gigabit-Ethernet-Storage/dp/B003GZ828I/ref=sr_1_6?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1454688457&sr=1-6&keywords=drobo

 

5-bays and it's the one I have(so not great but solid IMO).  If you're looking for backup and raid, it's good.  But if for multimedia and having multiple users hitting it is what your gunning for it would be quite frustrating.

It is just going to be me using it and i will be putting videos on it from a pc and then accessing the nas from my mac so i can edit the videos where every i am.  Like on a airplane or from work.  Will i be able to do that with the drobo?

 

[MoonSpot]

Drobo APPs

http://www.drobo.com/drobo-solutions/drobo-apps/

 

In particular

OpenSSH

 

Though personally in that kind of a use case, I'd be going for a direct attached option cause they're faster for when I'm at HQ and then SSH into desktop when out and about.

 

That said I've zero experience editing video on the go and can't even conceive of having that kind of bandwidth at my disposal. (I'm pretty cheap yo)

[starsarethebest9]

2 minutes ago, MoonSpot said:

Drobo APPs

http://www.drobo.com/drobo-solutions/drobo-apps/

 

In particular

OpenSSH

 

Though personally in that kind of a use case, I'd be going for a direct attached option cause they're faster for when I'm at HQ and then SSH into desktop when out and about.

 

That said I've zero experience editing video on the go and can't even conceive of having that kind of bandwidth at my disposal. (I'm pretty cheap yo)

So if i do build my own nas do i go with a raid card, hba or a scsi card?  Keep in mind i will need to be able to access this from anywhere.  

[MoonSpot]

I probably shouldn't have been thinking SSH when I meant remote access.  Anyways.

 

scsi isn't going to happen cheaply(I haven't even thought about scsi drives in ages), and being able to access your raid/NAS/Storage is more about your network permissions/solution in place to allow for remote access.

Do you want data redundancy in case of drive failure?  If so Raid.

 

When I said a direct attached solution I was specifically thinking about a direct attached drobo which still has their beyondRAID, and then access the desktop PC remotely.  Timbuktu or PCAnywhere(I'm probably showing my age here) might be good, but again video editing OTG isn't something I do so I wouldn't feel comfortable making a solid recommendation there. 

[starsarethebest9]

Just now, MoonSpot said:

I probably shouldn't have said SSH when I meant remote access.  Anyways.

 

scsi isn't going to happen cheaply(I haven't even thought about scsi drives in ages), and being able to access your raid/NAS/Storage is more about your network permissions/solution in place to allow for remote access.

Do you want data redundancy in case of drive failure?  If so Raid.

 

When I said a direct attached solution I was specifically thinking about a direct attached drobo which still has their beyondRAID, and then access the desktop PC remotely.  Timbuktu or PCAnywhere(I'm probably showing my age here) might be good, but again video editing OTG isn't something I do so I wouldn't feel comfortable making a solid recommendation there. 

Okay thanks.