Questions about NAS

[Guest]

I'd like to centralize all of my family's personal data (photos, music and documents) onto one networked storage device. I'd also like that device to use minimal power until 'woken up' by a request for data. A coworker recommended I look into NAS.

Are there any NAS devices that can sleep until accessed by a system on the same network?

Are there any NAS devices that can be accessed remotely from elsewhere on the web, similar to FTP?

Can I simply connect a NAS device to my wireless router via ethernet cable and access it wirelessly from any system on the network?

Thanks for your help.

 

[sminlal]

The NAS itself has to be active in order to watch for requests over the network. Your best bet is probably to use "Green" drives with it - these drives typically spin down after a period of inactivity in order to preserver power. That's a function of the firmware in the drive itself and is completely independent of whatever equipment the drive is installed in.

 

[adampower]

Are there any NAS devices that can be accessed remotely from elsewhere on the web, similar to FTP?

Can I simply connect a NAS device to my wireless router via ethernet cable and access it wirelessly from any system on the network?

Yes, most NAS (I want to say all but somebody will prove me wrong) can be set up to be accessed over the internet.

Yes, you simply connect to your network via ethernet and access the NAS over TCP/IP to set it up.

There are various devices out there, or you can build your own with FreeNas as an OS on an old computer you have (or build a cheap server for FreeNas) It can be difficult finding what you want without getting (and paying for) a bunch of stuff you don't want. That's why i'm building my own and running zfsguru.

The dream is to run relatively small SSD drives on my family's computers and use the NAS for storage.

 

[Rusting In Peace]

Yes, most NAS (I want to say all but somebody will prove me wrong) can be set up to be accessed over the internet.

Yes, you simply connect to your network via ethernet and access the NAS over TCP/IP to set it up.

There are various devices out there, or you can build your own with FreeNas as an OS on an old computer you have (or build a cheap server for FreeNas) It can be difficult finding what you want without getting (and paying for) a bunch of stuff you don't want. That's why i'm building my own and running zfsguru.

The dream is to run relatively small SSD drives on my family's computers and use the NAS for storage.

All good advice.

However I'd add that commercial NAS devices are tested better and will almost certainly be lower powered than DIY NAS implementations.

@imhotep531: You'll be able to connect it to your router but watch out for trying to stream video from it via wireless. I've found that wireless G is rather stuttery so if you are going to stream video and are using wireless make sure you are using wireless N.

 

[adampower]

However I'd add that commercial NAS devices are tested better and will almost certainly be lower powered than DIY NAS implementations.

Agreed. Also, there are numerous reviews etc. I like the hp 495 and some of the qnap devices. Interesting article on (toms?) about the new qnap upgrading to a faster atom d525. There was not much improvement in most applications but I digress...

My NAS build uses an matx board with a 160u processor. I hope to finish it and post some power readings soon but I agree that actual watts of input power are probably going to be greater than most commercial NAS. But, I gain two huge things. ECC ram, and ZFS file system. Neither of which can be found on a NAS for under $1000. And both would be hard pressed to find less than enterprise.

 

[Rusting In Peace]

Agreed. Also, there are numerous reviews etc. I like the hp 495 and some of the qnap devices. Interesting article on (toms?) about the new qnap upgrading to a faster atom d525. There was not much improvement in most applications but I digress...

My NAS build uses an matx board with a 160u processor. I hope to finish it and post some power readings soon but I agree that actual watts of input power are probably going to be greater than most commercial NAS. But, I gain two huge things. ECC ram, and ZFS file system. Neither of which can be found on a NAS for under $1000. And both would be hard pressed to find less than enterprise.

I never gave RAM much thought with my NAS. Do you expect your system to need ECC?

For fear of taking over this thread talking about ZFS I've started a new one. I'd be interested in your comments adampower!