Looking for a good NAS. At least 2-bay, but 4 would be nice.

[ned4spd8874]

Anyone have any suggestions for a nice NAS that's not too expensive. I have a couple SATA drives and would like to have the option to add more later on for added space.

 

[imported_wired247]

used pentium III/4 ftw?

 

[ned4spd8874]

Does processor matter for a NAS? I have an i7 btw.

 

[HardcoreRobot]

i love my ns4300n

 

[MichaelD]

Originally posted by: ned4spd8874
Does processor matter for a NAS? I have an i7 btw.

The processor in what? Your computer or in the NAS? Any NAS appliance will have it's own dedicated processor inside. The processor in your computer doesn't matter. Your network transfer speeds DO matter, though. But for the typical home user, your typical 4-port 100MB switch/cable modem will do fine.

If you want to start with 2 drives (I'm assuming they are the same make/model/size) and work your way up, that's fine. But you'll need to purchase a 4-bay (drive) NAS.

What's your budget? 4-bay NAS appliances aren't cheap. Expect to pay $300+ for a decent one, and that's without any drives.

I've had my D-Link DNS-343 for about two months now with 3, 500GB drives in a RAID5 array. I like it...so far, so good.

You can turn an old PC into a "NAS" with minimal effort. The main issues for me were an old tower taking up space and the electricity it was using. Used to be in Ye Olden Days if you wanted "a file server" you had to keep an entire computer running 24/7 just to do that. Motherboard/videocard/fans/etc running 24/7. All modern NAS appliances can be set to go to sleep after x-minutes of inactivity. In that state they draw minimal juice.

It all depends on your needs and wallet. If you don't want to spend that kind of dough and have have an old PC lying around (even a Pentium 3 makes a fine file server) that may be the way to go.

 

[JackMDS]

When people use the term NAS they usually mean an External Drive (Or bigger enclosure) that can be put on the Network for storage.

These NAS' + large Drive start at about $200.

The NAS' usually do only simple storage (and may be having ftp server too).

Even if they are rated Giga their Network traffic is Slow, they might have compatibility problems since they all run on None Windows firmware and thus cannot be format with NTFS.

As a result exuviates resort to old computers that are sitting around (or build a new inexpensive computer) and use whatever type of spare windows lic. that they have.

If the NAS computer is based on VIA C-7, or Intel ATOM Motherboards they do not take much more electricity than a Drive only NAS.

Many currently resort to Windows Home Server.

It can run well on any computer from Pentium 3 1GHz and above and a New OS cost only $94.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16832116550

A little more here, http://www.ezlan.net/WHS.html

 

[imported_wired247]

The elite guys in here nailed what I was getting at... you could get a prepackaged NAS system, BUT with a little effort you can build your own, for cheap...