NAS maintenance/cleaning & UPS.

[Vectraat]

Just wondering on average how often people here de-dust the inside of their NAS and how many of you use a UPS for your NAS? My NAS is in the same room as my PC and I tend to clean my PC once every 2-3 months. Also, every time I power off my NAS I need to set up certain things again which is time consuming, so I'd prefer to avoid shutting it down, removing the HDD's and blowing it out with compressed air. 

Anyone using this method to keep theirs clean? 
https://mariushosting.com/how-to-keep-your-synology-nas-dust-free/

[BondiBlue]

My NAS is an old Dell OptiPlex, not a specialized device, but I clean it every few months. I'm running FreeNAS on my system, and it just comes right back up when turned back on. I've only had one incident when it lost the network configuration after a shutdown, but other than that it's fine. It is connected to a UPS, but it can't stay on for more than a couple minutes without mains power. 

[Vectraat]

20 minutes ago, BondiBlue said:

-I clean it every few months.
-It is connected to a UPS.

So you shut it down, take the HDD's out, use some compressed air to clean off the HDD's and the internals of the NAS every few months? 

What gets messed up on mine: I lose the network share under "This PC" and I need to map it again to access the files on my NAS from my desktop computer, which isn't a big deal I suppose. But I also lose my Kodi library share and I need to re-map and re-scrape all of the metadata again and that takes a long time because I have a very large library. Having to do that every few months would irritate me. What UPS are you using for the NAS? 

I'm using a CyberPower CP1500PFCLCD for my desktop PC
https://www.cyberpowersystems.com/product/ups/pfc-sinewave/cp1500pfclcd/
But I think It's limited to powering down only one device when the power is cut. So I'm contemplating getting a second UPS for my NAS. I assume you have one for your NAS so a power outage doesn't brick your NAS OS? 

[BondiBlue]

1 hour ago, Vectraat said:

So you shut it down, take the HDD's out, use some compressed air to clean off the HDD's and the internals of the NAS every few months? 

What gets messed up on mine: I lose the network share under "This PC" and I need to map it again to access the files on my NAS from my desktop computer, which isn't a big deal I suppose. But I also lose my Kodi library share and I need to re-map and re-scrape all of the metadata again and that takes a long time because I have a very large library. Having to do that every few months would irritate me. What UPS are you using for the NAS? 

I'm using a CyberPower CP1500PFCLCD for my desktop PC
https://www.cyberpowersystems.com/product/ups/pfc-sinewave/cp1500pfclcd/
But I think It's limited to powering down only one device when the power is cut. So I'm contemplating getting a second UPS for my NAS. I assume you have one for your NAS so a power outage doesn't brick your NAS OS? 

Yes, I take the machine apart and clean it. It's just a desktop computer, so it takes no time at all. I don't strip it completely apart, but I do clean it pretty thoroughly.

 

It sounds like your NAS might not have a static IP address on your network - is that true?

[Vectraat]

28 minutes ago, BondiBlue said:

It sounds like your NAS might not have a static IP address on your network - is that true?

I'm not sure. I just recently started messing around with the NAS after having not touched it for over two years and I don't know anything about networking. Where do I look to find out if it has a static IP address on my network? And if it doesn't, is it difficult to set that up? 

When I try to set up a new Kodi NFS path, I can see that the very last digit of the path changed from a 4 to a 0, so I guess this will continue to happen every time I reboot my NAS unless I get a static IP.

[BondiBlue]

1 hour ago, Vectraat said:

I'm not sure. I just recently started messing around with the NAS after having not touched it for over two years and I don't know anything about networking. Where do I look to find out if it has a static IP address on my network? And if it doesn't, is it difficult to set that up? 

When I try to set up a new Kodi NFS path, I can see that the very last digit of the path changed from a 4 to a 0, so I guess this will continue to happen every time I reboot my NAS unless I get a static IP.

You would have had to manually configure a static IP. By default basically any network these days uses DHCP in order to dynamically assign IP addresses. These aren't tied to any single device, so if a devices disconnects and reconnects it's likely to get a new IP. That can be a problem for a home server because your clients (your desktop, Kodi, etc.) will still be trying to connect to the old IP address. 

 

For example: my NAS is connected to my network with a static IP address of 192.168.1.2. It won't change even if I disconnect it and reconnect it. That way I can specify that IP for my clients and I don't have to reconfigure anything after a power or network outage. They're very easy to set up, and it should only take a few steps. 

1 hour ago, Vectraat said:

When I try to set up a new Kodi NFS path, I can see that the very last digit of the path changed from a 4 to a 0, so I guess this will continue to happen every time I reboot my NAS unless I get a static IP.

Yes, that sounds exactly like a dynamic (changing) IP. It could be something like 192.168.1.234, and then it changes to 192.168.1.230 when it reconnects. 

 

I don't know if this is still up to date or not, and unfortunately I can't verify it because I don't own any Synology equipment, but this guide should help you: https://www.spacerex.co/set-static-ip-synology/

 

If it doesn't then you can choose to set a static IP through your router. 

3 hours ago, Vectraat said:

What UPS are you using for the NAS? 

I'm using a CyberPower CP1500PFCLCD for my desktop PC
https://www.cyberpowersystems.com/product/ups/pfc-sinewave/cp1500pfclcd/
But I think It's limited to powering down only one device when the power is cut. So I'm contemplating getting a second UPS for my NAS. I assume you have one for your NAS so a power outage doesn't brick your NAS OS? 

I forgot to answer that. I don't remember right off, but it's a much smaller unit than yours. Looking at the specs of your UPS it appears that it has 12 outlets, and 6 of them are backed up by the battery. If your main desktop isn't too power hungry you should be able to put the NAS alongside it. You'll want to figure out a way to communicate between the UPS and the NAS. This will allow the NAS to know when the UPS has lost mains power and is running on battery power, and it can trigger a safe shutdown. Typically this is done through a USB cable between the NAS and the UPS, but I don't know how Synology equipment is configured with an external UPS. Their support site should be able to help you. 

[Vectraat]

26 minutes ago, BondiBlue said:

You would have had to manually configure a static IP. By default basically any network these days uses DHCP in order to dynamically assign IP addresses. These aren't tied to any single device, so if a devices disconnects and reconnects it's likely to get a new IP. That can be a problem for a home server because your clients (your desktop, Kodi, etc.) will still be trying to connect to the old IP address. 

 

For example: my NAS is connected to my network with a static IP address of 192.168.1.2. It won't change even if I disconnect it and reconnect it. That way I can specify that IP for my clients and I don't have to reconfigure anything after a power or network outage. They're very easy to set up, and it should only take a few steps. 

Yes, that sounds exactly like a dynamic (changing) IP. It could be something like 192.168.1.234, and then it changes to 192.168.1.230 when it reconnects. 

 

I don't know if this is still up to date or not, and unfortunately I can't verify it because I don't own any Synology equipment, but this guide should help you: https://www.spacerex.co/set-static-ip-synology/

 

If it doesn't then you can choose to set a static IP through your router. 

I forgot to answer that. I don't remember right off, but it's a much smaller unit than yours. Looking at the specs of your UPS it appears that it has 12 outlets, and 6 of them are backed up by the battery. If your main desktop isn't too power hungry you should be able to put the NAS alongside it. You'll want to figure out a way to communicate between the UPS and the NAS. This will allow the NAS to know when the UPS has lost mains power and is running on battery power, and it can trigger a safe shutdown. Typically this is done through a USB cable between the NAS and the UPS, but I don't know how Synology equipment is configured with an external UPS. Their support site should be able to help you. 

Wouldn't you also need a static IP to use Plex remotely? 

I use a modem/router combo provided to me via my ISP. Not sure if I'm able to set up a static IP through it. 

As for the UPS....yeah, It only has one USB connect so I'd have to pick either my NAS or PC to be safely shut down. What would you pick? Someone mentioned using the Synology NAS as a UPS server and then have it talk to many devices via the network. Using WinNUT to shut down both the PC and NAS.