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Choosing a Network-attached Storage System

Thinking about buying a new hard drive for your computer? Perhaps you want an external drive to back up several machines. You might want to consider network-attached storage, putting the drive on your network. For as little as $50 you can achieve a serious increase in functionality over that external USB drive.

Some of us love technology. Blinky lights and humming noises are exciting indications of progress. Living on the bleeding edge is what it’s about …. And then there are those folks who don’t trust the new fangled , since the way they are already doing it works pretty well, and besides who wants to waste time learning a new thing every three or six months. I sit on the fence, a little in both camps. I’ll definitely read about it armchair traveler style, but mostly I wait until the last minute before changing over. Better yet, I’ll move up a generation, but stay a generation behind. That way, the bugs are worked out, and the prices are depressed. I want value, not bling. I bought my Nikon D70 camera when they announced its replacement. I bought windows XP after Vista came out. You get the idea.

Every once in a while there is technology that would really help simplify things, even to the point that I’d venture into newish waters. Network-attached storage (NAS) is one of those technologies. I have three “projects” that need solving in my house.  1. The music files are spread across three computers, and none of them has a hard drive large enough for all the music. 2. A centralized storage area for our work files - photos and drafts of writing projects - will allow more efficient access via any computer on the network, and prevent the scattering of the data across individual machines. (See #1).  3. Having a storage specific “box” can reduce energy usage over running a shared drive on one of the other computers. This article will examine the factors involved in selecting a NAS system, with a focus on getting the best value, lowest hassle solution.

1. What is NAS?
2. Factors and Features
3. Recommendations

Keep in mind that I already have a functioning home network. You will need one too, if you plan on installing one of these systems.

1. What is NAS?

Businesses have been using servers and remote data storage forever, if forever means before the creation of PCs. Modern servers are computers with hardware and software designed to efficiently process requests for information. Servers may query databases, provide email forwarding, or stream media. NAS systems are basically scaled down servers. The consumer versions are designed to be plug and play, and have minimal capabilities outside of storing and serving data files. While a server will probably have a keyboard and screen attached, NAS systems are configurable via the network and a PC. Think of them as an appliance like a router or modem, rather than a full fledged stand alone system. It is just a box that you plug into your network. They are similar to a shared drive on one of your existing PCs, with the following advantages over adding another drive to your system:

Advantages of a NAS system

• Convenience - the unit is always on, and available to any computer or device that needs it. No more going downstairs to boot the other PC so I can have access to the music folder.
• Lower power usage - having a separate storage unit may allow you to turn off a PC, with it’s power hungry processor, memory and accessory cards.
• Data security - NAS systems provide a central place to backup all of your data, so you know where it is. The addition of RAID hard drive mirroring decreases the risk of catastrophic loss.

So here it is: for the purposes of this article, NAS represents a device that allows a person to attach one or more hard drives to their network to be accessed via their network. These boxes will have a little software and hardware so they can efficiently communicate with other machines on the network (including the internet), manage power consumption, and secure the data the are serving.

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This article was written on Saturday, July 5th, 2008 and is filed under Mastering Skills. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.