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JOSHSKORN

Limp Gawd
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May 29, 2007
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I'm looking to try something new. I'm hooked on the idea of Cloud computing, and well, it's not quite here yet, but I at least want to create my own cloud (more or less) within my home network.

I have FiOS internet at home, which, I know really makes no difference in my goals here. But, I have that FiOS Actiontec router, which might make a difference. What I want to do, is basically plug some sort of storage device into my router. In this storage device, I'd like to be able to have full backups of all 3 of my computers in my house (all run Windows 7), and also store all of my music files on it so I can listen to them from any computer in the house.

Also, I'd like to have some form of software that deploys OS images onto my various computers. I won't have a dumb terminal for this, so I'll have this software on more than one computer. I'd like it to be free.

Having all that said, a few questions. What kind of storage device am I looking for? Would it be to the USB on my router or are there Ethernet storage devices? I'm guessing something around 2TB is needed.

Also, what would be good freeware to use for OS deployment?
 
Well, Josh, cheap network storage has been my mission for the last couple months. Compared to some of the incredible storage solutions some of the other posters here in the [H]ardForum, mine is very ghetto.

Ghetto sounds really bad, but consider other users here are spending thousands ($3,000 in one I just read, to $16,000 in another) on network storage. I'm more interested in the couple-hundred-dollar solutions.

Anyway, you've got a couple ways you could approach this inexpensively.
1) Buy a entry-level NAS appliance and stick a hard drive or two into it.
Such as: a Qnap TS-110 ($160) plus a single 2TB hard drive ($100) = $260
Or: Qnap TS-210 ($300) and two 2TB hard drives ($200) = $500
(Synology also makes good entry level NAS appliances that perform well)
Pros: easy install, easy config, the device has a web interface that just about anyone can config
Cons: not very expandable, and it is entry level performance (which is more than adequate for basic music/video streaming and network backups in a small home environment)

2) Build your own with free software
Such as: FreeNAS, OpenFiler, TurnKey FileServer, etc.
This assumes that you're comfortable with configuring linux/unix operating systems, and that you're OK with the idea that there is not a number you can call for support (like there is with the NAS appliances). The OS's I mentioned above have install routines and web interfaces for config. So it's not as involved as building a linux/unix box from scratch, but more complex than plugging in a NAS appliance.
Costs: this depends on what hardware you have lying around that you can recycle into this project. FreeNAS' requirements are very low, so old hardware functions well when retasked like this. (My FreeNAS box is a 1Ghz Cyrix Nehemiah CPU - slow! - with 1Gb of RAM and a 10/100Mb NIC)
Pros: could be very cheap. It's very configurable. Its expandability depends entirely on what hardware you put in it, so it's all based on what you want to spend.
Cons: it's got a learning curve for you to learn some linux and do the install/config of the boxes. FreeNAS is very easy with only a couple small snags for me, and I'm no linux guru.

3) Build a NAS server with brand new hardware and the OS of your choice.
Costs: depends on what you want to do, but you could easily build a FreeNAS box with new hardware for about the same price as you would pay for one of those entry level NAS appliances.
This can be as inexpensive or as expensive as you want. It all depends on your choice of hardware and software.

I keep mentioning FreeNAS. Don't get me wrong. It's neither the best or worst solution. It just happens to be the one that is compatible with my old hardware. So that's what I used. I hear OpenFiler is better. I don't know. Check out ZFSguru too. (by sub.mesa right here in the hardforums) I tried TurnKey's FileServer but couldn't get it to install because of my ancient graphics adapter.

So, really the big questions here are:
How much storage do you need? (you said about 2TB, so plan on buying two 2TB drives - one for storage, and one to back it up)
I would stay away from the Western Digital WD20EARS drives. There have been a lot of problems reported with them. Newegg.com has Samsung Spinpoint F4 drives (2TB) on sale for $80 right now - just be sure to update the firmware as soon as you get them.

How much money can you spend?

Are you comfortable with Linux/Unix? Are you comfortable spec-ing out your own hardware setup? _ _ _ OR _ _ _ Would you prefer the Plug-n-Play approach of an appliance?

Windows Home Server is another fine option. I just personally don't care for sending Microsoft any more money. Plus you'll spend a little more on hardware for WHS because it's needier. ;)
 
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I'm not comfortable with Linux/UNIX, but I've taken a class in Linux about 6 years ago. I just haven't used it since.

One thing I did find was the D-Link DIR-685. Apparently, you can install 2.5" SATA hard drive in it very easily in the slot. After looking on Newegg, apparently they go up to 1TB for now and I'm looking for 2 TB. I guess that's a matter of time.

From what this device does (from what I gather), is:
  • Serves as an 802.11n Router. I'm currently on FiOS and am not impressed with my wireless speeds from the Verizon FiOS Actiontec router.
  • Allows you to install a hard drive to use as network storage.
I've been impressed with D-Link's products before so I'm very intrigued by this. I had a 802.11b router that lasted for 4-5 years (I think) and then had an 802.11n router (DIR-655) for a while and eventually gave it away because I had no "N" devices in my house at the time. My only concern, is that I've seen a blog where someone details trying to find a router with great wireless performance, and notices that a NETGEAR one that runs at 600Mbps has the best, whereas the D-LINK DIR-685 is at 300 Mbps. I should note that I'm unimpressed by the FiOS Actiontec's wireless performance, so I'd been seeking a 3rd party solution for my wireless devices, as well. Anyway, my download speed (in comparison) is only 43 Mbps, so one would think there still shouldn't be a problem, but I'm thinking it's more of a hardware issue on the router's part. Maybe THAT router just has a faster processor and has nothing to do with the fact that it's 600 Mbps vs 300Mbps, or the antenna signaling is better.

I'm not in an absolute HUGE hurry to get this set up, but I'm thinking I should wait until someone makes an equivalent of the DIR-685 that can handle 600Mbps wireless transfer speeds. One thing I don't know about the DIR-685, is if it has the capability to image a computer via another computer. I don't see why not.
 
I would stay away from router-based NAS devices. I have a Linksys WRT-610N, which is a gigabit ethernet and 802.11n/g/b router. It's fine as a router but terrible as a NAS. It's functional, but it is so slow you couldn't stream videos from it.

Of course, the D-Link could be a different animal all together, but I kinda doubt it. I would definitely read some reviews of the product first, making sure folks are happy with the NAS features.
 
WHS is a great solution (there are cheaper single drive units out there)... but a couple of things have been announced recently that makes me think that WHS is dying:

1) HP is no longer a vendor
2) Microsoft decided to drop the drive extender feature in the next version

HP dropping out as a vendor is not that big of a deal... but Microsoft deciding to drop the drive extender feature is.

But regardless of the next version of WHS... the current version is still pretty awesome. It'll let you connect up to 10 computers. It'll backup the computers every night and keep as many backups as you choose.

I would definitely stay away from any router with NAS capabilities... it might be cheaper, but does not give you nearly as many features as WHS.
 
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