Home Network Attached Storage

[SeatBackForward]

Hi all, trying to wade through Whirlpool is a drag, and the community here is (somewhat) less argumentative!

I'm interested in getting a NAS to put onto my home network. Doesn't have to be anything top of the line, but I want to be able to have at least two HDDs on it for synching and redudnancy. Basically I have an application on all our phones that whenever they are on the ome wifi and being charged, automatically backs up photos to an externally attached USB drive. But I know this is not a long term solution, and want to get a proper NAS that can remain always on.

It would be good to be able to access all the data on the NAS over the web too, but not sure how practical or safe this is..

Looking for about 2 to 4 TB any suggestions?

 

[DeKa]

I don't know much about NAS's but I can say this - two hard drives in the one unit is NOT a backup - if that unit fails (electrically, lightning strike, corruption) you still lose all the data. All two drives in one unit achieves (if running in RAID mode) is better uptime if one drive fails. There are members here who are involved in enterprise networking and storage and they will be better placed to advise on an actual NAS.

You still need a backup of the NAS though - I'd be looking at a cloud option like Crashplan, Bitcasa or something like that, which backs up from the NAS.

 

[SeatBackForward]

You still need a backup of the NAS though - I'd be looking at a cloud option like Crashplan, Bitcasa or something like that, which backs up from the NAS.

I assume any such backup would be incremental? I'm just concerned that backing up a NAS onto a cloud option would chew through my data limits - I tend to get 50GB plans only as this is sufficient for my current usage.

 

[richie9x]

I have got a Synology DS212j and I have very happy with it. At the time I bought it I just read all the reviews and it seemed to be the best fit for my needs. It is a basic two drive unit, just sits in the corner and does its job. You have to buy the drives separately. They do have a cheaper one drive unit if all you want if you don't need too much storage. I mainly use it for keeping a backup of of data. Also I use it to stream video directly to my TV. It has a ton of add on packages. You can access files remotely and they seems to have sufficient security built into it.

I have also heard good things about QNAP devices.

 

[NM]

It really depends on what level of backup you are seeking. As I read the OP, in this case, the NAS is for a backup for the data on the phone. So the phone is the primary source and the NAS is there as a backup in case the phone is lost, stolen, needs a wipe/reload, fails etc. So if that is the case, there is probably no need to consider backing-up the NAS backup (belt and braces).

But if using it for an archive (i.e. upload from the phone, then delete from the phone so the only source is on the NAS), then you may want to consider how you will backup the backup. The most likely failure is the disk itself. So operating two or more in a RAID configuration protects against that failure. If one drive fails, replace it and the RAID will be recreated and data integrity if maintained. If the NAS head itself fails, then replace/repair it and the data is retained - just may not be available until its repaired.

 

[Fnordish]

I've been running a QNAP with two mirrored drives for about 7 years and I've been extremely happy with it. I had one hiccup in the first instance by using cheap HDDs that weren't up to running all the time, but replaced with 24/7 rated drives and it hasn't gone down since.
Having said that I have a few colleagues running the Western Digital My Book Duo drives which have a pair of drives pre-installed in the unit and preset to mirror each other.
Extremely simple to set up and considerably cheaper than other SOHO NAS units
It's not a unit for a major deployment, but as a simple Networked Attached drive with a redundant disk they're pretty good value.

 

[SeatBackForward]

I have got a Synology DS212j and I have very happy with it. At the time I bought it I just read all the reviews and it seemed to be the best fit for my needs. It is a basic two drive unit, just sits in the corner and does its job. You have to buy the drives separately. They do have a cheaper one drive unit if all you want if you don't need too much storage. I mainly use it for keeping a backup of of data. Also I use it to stream video directly to my TV. It has a ton of add on packages. You can access files remotely and they seems to have sufficient security built into it.

I have also heard good things about QNAP devices.

I'm liking the specs on the Synology, I see on ebay they're available for about $225. Might be the way to go. There is a higher model that is about $100 more with built in Wifi, however I don't see this being any real additional value considering I already have a wifi modem router..

 

[nlagalle]

I have a Synology and love it. i have all my photos etc on one device which can copy them into the cloud or another device. great interface too.

 

[pblackm]

I've had a QNAP T490 for 2.5 years. I'm thrilled with it, and the IT guys who support our system drool over it. It has 4 x 1Tb HDDs in a RAID 5 array, which gives you 2.68Tb available. It is easy to replace drives on the fly (you do one at a time) - but I've not had to do that. Next year I will probably swap out the drives for 3TB units.

 

[markis10]

Just spend the money on enterprise drives if you can, and RAID is not the answer for everything, seen plenty of redundant sets become useless when the controller packed it in an the new one did not recognize the previous controllers work.

 

[Paddy55]

I've been running a QNAP with two mirrored drives for about 7 years and I've been extremely happy with it. I had one hiccup in the first instance by using cheap HDDs that weren't up to running all the time, but replaced with 24/7 rated drives and it hasn't gone down since.
Having said that I have a few colleagues running the Western Digital My Book Duo drives which have a pair of drives pre-installed in the unit and preset to mirror each other.
Extremely simple to set up and considerably cheaper than other SOHO NAS units
It's not a unit for a major deployment, but as a simple Networked Attached drive with a redundant disk they're pretty good value.

I bought a QNAP TS-419P II 3 months ago. Seems so far so good!

 

[SeatBackForward]

I bought a QNAP TS-419P II 3 months ago. Seems so far so good!

Hmm ok looking at the QNAP, the features compared to the Synology look similar, but now I'm being swayed towards the QNAP. the 419 is pricey! the equivalent 219 is about $370 and the 119 is about $270 (which is much closer to the amount I'm looking to spend).

I already have a 1.5TB SATA drive that I can use. The enclosure I have it has packed it in so instead of getting a replacement enclosure I want to get a full NAS.

Given that additional bays are useful for RAID configuration, and the suggestion previously that I should have off-site backup to the cloud anyway, I don't see any issue with having just the single drive, and it being backed up remotely and regularly. Am I way off in this thought?

119/219

 

[Paddy55]

Hmm ok looking at the QNAP, the features compared to the Synology look similar, but now I'm being swayed towards the QNAP. the 419 is pricey! the equivalent 219 is about $370 and the 119 is about $270 (which is much closer to the amount I'm looking to spend).

I already have a 1.5TB SATA drive that I can use. The enclosure I have it has packed it in so instead of getting a replacement enclosure I want to get a full NAS.

Given that additional bays are useful for RAID configuration, and the suggestion previously that I should have off-site backup to the cloud anyway, I don't see any issue with having just the single drive, and it being backed up remotely and regularly. Am I way off in this thought?

119/219

There is a list of compatible drives on QNAPs web site, and if you have any questions/doubts post pre-sales questions on the forum - I wish other companies allowed this to be honest.

 

[SeatBackForward]

There is a list of compatible drives on QNAPs web site, and if you have any questions/doubts post pre-sales questions on the forum - I wish other companies allowed this to be honest.

Oh dear, this is what they say about my HDD:

Note5 (WD Green & Seagate Green)
These hard disk drives have passed QNAP lab's initial verification of compatibility. However, because many users have reported unstable experience with these hard disk drives, we do not recommend using these hard disk drives with QNAP products. WD10EADS-00P8B0 and WD15EADS-00P8B0 are not suggested because of slow performance and stability issues.

I hope its not the HDD thats failed then!

 

[nlagalle]

The green drives aren't good in a situation like a raid setup, as they are designed to power down.

The thing i like about the Synology is using their own hybrid raid. I know someone who swapped enclosures and it automatically detected the existing setup and they were away. The fact you can lose any of the 4 drives (in the 4 bay device) is good as it isn't often you'd get a multiple failure.

 

[Paddy55]

Re WD Drives - I've just taken a WD Thunderbolt Drive back and replaced with a LaCie.
WD Drive wasn't happy from Day 1 and finally after 6 months I'd had enough.
Maybe if I was smart enough to take it back on Day 1 I wouldn't have lost 4 years video I'd stored there (and didn't realise wasn't backed up) :evil::evil:

 

[risky]

Oh dear, this is what they say about my HDD:
I hope its not the HDD thats failed then!

And that is why the Whirlpool forum may be a more appropriate location for IT related technical queries! I have been a whirlpool member pretty much since it started, and even though people can be "argumentative", the pool of knowledge and experience is pretty extensive.

I did the research there for my storage systems. I chose Qnap a few years ago, and subsequently bought a second Qnap (1 local, 1 remote, auto-sync the designated folders - just like my own personal cloud storage!) Synology is right up there too, but maybe more for enthusiasts?