Which NAS Solution should I choose?

[lumencreative]

I am constantly having to RDP to my home computer from work, etc, to access files that I've been working on at home, either that or I have multiple Pen drives or simply just email files to myself and then end up with numerous versions of the same file.

I want to replace my current, frustrating method with a better solution that's more robust and easily accessible so I started off looking at cloud solutions such as Dropbox. I use Macs at home and a mixture of Macs and Windows at work so whichever solution I use needs to work with both Mac and PC.

Since looking at Dropbox, I have also been looking at NAS drives. I particularly like the software of the Synology solutions but also like the look of the Western Digital MyCloud standalone enclosures. I have a static IP address from my ISP so that's not an issue.

I have experimented with OSX Server but it's not really for me. I may maintain it as an email server but as it stands, I don't think I need that kind of system for what I am trying to achieve.

So....my options are as follows:

1) Dropbox 1TB Plan - £79 per year
2) HP N54L Microserver running OwnCloud -£130 (ish)
3) Synology DS414J - £270
4) Western Digital MyCloud Empty 4 bay Enclosure - £277


What would you guys do?

 

[Slarti.BartFast]

I did all that looking into a NAS system and in the end went for Tresorit.

If you go for Tresorit, the length and complexity of your password increases the strength of the encryption.

All these are encrypted, have mac, windows, iOs and android apps.

https://tresorit.com

http://www.wuala.com

https://www.free-hidrive.com

As another Brit, you might be glad of the fact that Tresorit and Hidrive are fully European companies and understand what privacy means, whereas Lacie / Wuala is owned by Seagate.

Slarti

 

[lumencreative]

I did all that looking into a NAS system and in the end went for Tresorit.

If you go for Tresorit, the length and complexity of your password increases the strength of the encryption.

All these are encrypted, have mac, windows, iOs and android apps.

https://tresorit.com

http://www.wuala.com

https://www.free-hidrive.com

As another Brit, you might be glad of the fact that Tresorit and Hidrive are fully European companies and understand what privacy means, whereas Lacie / Wuala is owned by Seagate.

Slarti

Thanks for your post but goodness knows why you chose Tresorit at those prices. Dropbox are doing 1TB for £79 per year whereas Tresorit is an eye watering £824.90 per year.

My preference would be a physical box I can stick on my network and access remotely. At least then, if I ever stop using it, I can recoup some money by selling it.

 

[Slarti.BartFast]

Thanks for your post but goodness knows why you chose Tresorit at those prices. Dropbox are doing 1TB for £79 per year whereas Tresorit is an eye watering £824.90 per year.

My preference would be a physical box I can stick on my network and access remotely. At least then, if I ever stop using it, I can recoup some money by selling it.

Sorry, looks like I misunderstood your problem.

"I am constantly having to RDP to my home computer from work, etc, to access files that I've been working on at home, either that or I have multiple Pen drives or simply just email files to myself and then end up with numerous versions of the same file."

I took this to mean that you were in a similar position to me, that although you had a lot of files to work on, they were excel/word type stuff, actually quite small individual files, if you really do need access to 1TB of files I'd just get portable hard drive.

Slarti

As for reselling a hard drive after you have used it - rather you than me, I smash them up and bend the platters, the data on the drive is worth more than the second hand drive, for me at least.

 

[lumencreative]

Sorry, looks like I misunderstood your problem.

"I am constantly having to RDP to my home computer from work, etc, to access files that I've been working on at home, either that or I have multiple Pen drives or simply just email files to myself and then end up with numerous versions of the same file."

I took this to mean that you were in a similar position to me, that although you had a lot of files to work on, they were excel/word type stuff, actually quite small individual files, if you really do need access to 1TB of files I'd just get portable hard drive.

Slarti

As for reselling a hard drive after you have used it - rather you than me, I smash them up and bend the platters, the data on the drive is worth more than the second hand drive, for me at least.

Regardless of the size or quantity of my files, why would I choose something that offers much less value for money than something like Dropbox that's been around for years? Even a 100GB plan on Tresorit is more expensive than the 1TB plan on Dropbox.

You've still mis-understood my problem.

A portable hard drive is not an option and is not the solution I'm looking for. Portable hard drives have a fairly high failure rate due to the nature of them being moved all the time, and I would be no better than using pen drives (apart from everything being on one drive), but if I need a file and I don't have the hard drive with me, I'm screwed.

As for reselling a hard drive, if you actually read my original post, I am referring to empty NAS enclosures, therefore my comment about reselling was in reference to selling the empty enclosure, not the drives themselves.

 

[Fuchal]

I've had a great experience with my Synology NAS. It's years old and still kick ass. The apps it comes with and that are available are fantastic.

 

[noodle654]

If you want the power to control your NAS, and is more powerful than any consumer NAS system you mentioned above, you should just build your own FreeNAS box. Super easy to do, and is so unbelievably powerful. All you need is some hardware, either something old or get some really low power hardware and build your own!

I made an awesome NAS box that is about half the size as a cMP with storage for 8 3.5" drives. Low power too, look at the Intel Celeron 847 or 1037u combo mini-itx motherboards. Not only are they more powerful than any consumer NAS box (handles encoding flawlessly), but they are low power. It might be overkill for what you are looking for, but it gives you the ability to expand in the future. Create your own cloud platform with ownCloud, your own Netflix with Plex, music server with Subsonic, just to name a few.

 

[phrehdd]

I too sit in the camp of build your own or use a Mac Mini with additional drives. I own two NAS units (QNAP) and still find for WAN type activity that both DYI custom built systems or a Mac Mini to be a better fit for immediate response to requests. The above is a combo of experience and subjective call. I should be fair and say I have friends with both QNAP and Synology set ups that they love and find great success in use similar to what you want to accomplish.

 

[blueroom]

Synology has an excellent Dropbox like CloudStation.

 

[Cakeove]

Go for synology

i use sinology. I start with a DS-410 4 years ago.

Now i have a DS-412+ with 4 x 4TB HDD and ether channel with cisco switch.

The performance is increible, and the reliability is 100%. already replace 7 hard drives without loosing any data. 4 hdd capacity upgrade and 3 hdd that start to show failures with smart readings.

highly recommended.

 

[kaltsasa]

If you can afford it I think the Synology boxes are the best. I have a DS1513+ works great. I've heard good things about the QNAP boxes, and I know a couple people who really like theirs.

I don't know about the QNAP but I was able to install Crashplan right on the Box.

 

[thejadedmonkey]

I have a Synology 213J, and it's the bees knees. I mostly use it as a NAS, but I also have it setup as a VPN server to remote into my PC at home.

 

[Larry-K]

As for reselling a hard drive after you have used it - rather you than me, I smash them up and bend the platters, the data on the drive is worth more than the second hand drive, for me at least.

I just drill a hole through them, only takes a few minutes.

 

[lumencreative]

Thanks for all the comments. It seems it's either a custom NAS or Synology.

If you want the power to control your NAS, and is more powerful than any consumer NAS system you mentioned above, you should just build your own FreeNAS box. Super easy to do, and is so unbelievably powerful. All you need is some hardware, either something old or get some really low power hardware and build your own!

I made an awesome NAS box that is about half the size as a cMP with storage for 8 3.5" drives. Low power too, look at the Intel Celeron 847 or 1037u combo mini-itx motherboards. Not only are they more powerful than any consumer NAS box (handles encoding flawlessly), but they are low power. It might be overkill for what you are looking for, but it gives you the ability to expand in the future. Create your own cloud platform with ownCloud, your own Netflix with Plex, music server with Subsonic, just to name a few.

Thanks noodle, now my question is, is there much point in building a custom built NAS when I can buy a HP Microserver with a 250GB hard drive and 4GB Ram for £130? Can I run Own Cloud alongside Freenas or is Own Cloud it's own OS?

I too sit in the camp of build your own or use a Mac Mini with additional drives. I own two NAS units (QNAP) and still find for WAN type activity that both DYI custom built systems or a Mac Mini to be a better fit for immediate response to requests. The above is a combo of experience and subjective call. I should be fair and say I have friends with both QNAP and Synology set ups that they love and find great success in use similar to what you want to accomplish.

I've read that the Synology 414 is super quick, reaching almost maximum gigabit speeds. The review I read suggested that it's the first NAS where the gigabit ethernet has proven to be its bottleneck. Question is, can I build better?

 

[phositadc]

Thanks for all the comments. It seems it's either a custom NAS or Synology.







Thanks noodle, now my question is, is there much point in building a custom built NAS when I can buy a HP Microserver with a 250GB hard drive and 4GB Ram for £130? Can I run Own Cloud alongside Freenas or is Own Cloud it's own OS?







I've read that the Synology 414 is super quick, reaching almost maximum gigabit speeds. The review I read suggested that it's the first NAS where the gigabit ethernet has proven to be its bottleneck. Question is, can I build better?

I have a synology 214 and have gotten 110 MBps transfer speeds on it.