Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

ranmyaku

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jun 20, 2012
25
0
Been trying to figure out the best option for how to keep all of my files available to me on all my devices.

I currently use dropbox. Pay 9.99 a month for 100Gb. I have Box as well with 50Gb free. This meets my current needs in terms of storage for things that need to be always synced. The pluses to dropbox are 1) it just works/convenience 2) the app is great on iphone.

The current downsides to what I have are: 1) some files are very sensitive and I cannot keep on someone else's server (i.e. dropbox). So for these I am forced to keep them locally on my encrypted drives, 2) price.

I am looking to have 1) backup for laptop computer and home computer, 2) ability to access the files (seamlessly, dropbox-esque) from all devices (iphone, mac pro at work, home mac mini, or my macbook air if i am away).

I've looked into the following:
1) Lacie 5big NAS pro
2) Seagate central
3) ioSafe N2
4) newest apple time capsule + attach a external HD
5) Lacie cloudbox
6) WD mycloud storage
7) Synology NAS

Any thoughts?
 

MTI

macrumors 65816
Feb 17, 2009
1,108
6
Scottsdale, AZ
My personal choice would be Synology. Even their older two bay Diskstation NAS units have all the features and support software for your needs.
 

appleisler

macrumors member
Oct 31, 2010
48
8
Hobart, Australia
You know I'm curious about this too. Initially thought Drobo plus transporter until I saw that Synology appears to be capable of doing it from the one device (and doesn't have Drobo's negative reviews). I found the Synology website a bit overwhelming as there are so many options. Is the Synology easy to use?

As I am considering upgrading my mid-2011 iMac and not having a fusion drive (going from 2tb down to 1tb or even 512gb), I'm wondering where to keep my Photos library - I read that iCloud photo sync doesn't work if the library is on a NAS??
 

grahamperrin

macrumors 601
Jun 8, 2007
4,942
648
1) Lacie 5big NAS pro
2) Seagate central
3) ioSafe N2
4) newest apple time capsule + attach a external HD
5) Lacie cloudbox
6) WD mycloud storage
7) Synology NAS

For any online service, I'll never trust Seagate or LaCie; I associate both orgnisations with the dragging down and ultimate termination of Wuala service.

I recommend not buying a Time Capsule at this time; I don't yet know whether, or how, it will transition to APFS.

I use FreeNAS for backups, including Time Machine service. I have not experimented with plugins but I see that there's one for ownCloud.

Also, be aware of Nextcloud.

Last but not least, Upthere beta. It will be interesting to see how Upthere compares with Apple offerings as things develop during 2017.
 
Last edited:

arggg14

macrumors 6502a
Dec 30, 2014
708
1,830
I'd go with a 2 bay Synology NAS. DSM has been a joy to use. WD Mycloud is super easy to set up, but the features are limited.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.