Time machine compatible LAN based HDD?

[arnabdas]

I have a weird problem so do bear with me.

A few months back I bought an Airport Extreme. I had never really given backing up of OSX much thought prior to that but after a few months of buying the Extreme, post my purchase, I started to have the classic buyer's regret. I felt like I shouldve bought a Time Capsule. I made a temporary solution by adding a 1TB spare external HDD via the USB 2.0 port of the Airport Extreme.

In this current scenario, where I dont want to buy a Time Capsule, can I be recommended a LAN/Gigabit enabled time machine compatible HDD?

Thanks.

 

[maflynn]

From the sounds of your needs you want a NAS.

I'd choose between either Synology (which is highly recommended here) or QNAP.

I don't believe you can go wrong with either model.

 

[arnabdas]

From the sounds of your needs you want a NAS.

I'd choose between either Synology (which is highly recommended here) or QNAP.

I don't believe you can go wrong with either model.

Thanks. The thing is, I already have a NAS (Seagate GoFlex Home 2TB which houses my iTunes library). Now the problem with most NAS drives is that they are relatively expensive, almost always as expensive as a 2TB Time Capsule. Is there a cheaper alternative, say an ethernet enabled HDD without all the processing power inside?

 

[marzer]

Thanks. The thing is, I already have a NAS (Seagate GoFlex Home 2TB which houses my iTunes library). Now the problem with most NAS drives is that they are relatively expensive, almost always as expensive as a 2TB Time Capsule. Is there a cheaper alternative, say an ethernet enabled HDD without all the processing power inside?

This claims to be Time Machine compatible...

http://www.lacie.com/us/products/product.htm?id=10597

 

[ColdCase]

Just a note that most here discover, over time, quirks or corrupted backup images using devices not officially supported by Apple, such as any NAS despite their claims. Many times the quirks are not discovered until you need the backup.

If you want to backup to a NAS, I think its better/more reliable to chose another backup software, Carbon Copy Cloner for example. This software plays well with any drive that can be mounted.. like any NAS.

Any mac can be configured as a time machine backup destination if OSX server is installed. The server app is cheap.

 

[arnabdas]

Ok, finally I got a WD My Book Live 2TB for around $150 which was kind of a steal. Needless to say it works perfectly with Time Capsule (the box mentions that its Time Capsule compatible). I now have a 2TB GoFlex NAS for media files and now this WD My Book Live 2TB for Time Machine backups.

Thanks for the help guys!