nas

[pegasis]

I have a qnap nas, just bought

is there a way to use it as just networked file storage, no raid

initilization of drives for raid will wipe data

 

[ch33zw1z]

Sounds like you have existing drives you want to put in the QNAP and access as standalone.

Short answer, Yes.

Longer answer, any data I deem as critical will get a good backup before making a change like this. You just trust the QNAP to not wipe out your data, but plan for the worse.

I would buy a drive of equal size that's on the QNAP enclosure approved list, put it in the QNAP and configure the way you want, then copy the data to the new QNAP device.

 

[VirtualLarry]

I would buy a drive of equal size that's on the QNAP enclosure approved list, put it in the QNAP and configure the way you want, then copy the data to the new QNAP device.

This. You normally CANNOT just install a drive into a NAS, WITH EXISTING DATA ON IT, and expect it to work.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

This. You normally CANNOT just install a drive into a NAS, WITH EXISTING DATA ON IT, and expect it to work.

I had a NAS that would let you do that. It was a linux based appliance, so if you already had an MBR/ext3-formatted drive, it'd just recognize it and go on its merry way.

Exact requirements will vary depending on the unit - in all likelihood, OP's existing drives are not the specific format for this to work, so they would need to be reformatted anyway. But this is a good time to read the manual thoroughly.