NAS Storage

RVFmal

RVFmal

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Small company needs to back-up files (7 users max).

What is the best option for them in terms of an NAS attached to the router?
 
We've been using the QNAP TS 101 for the past two years. Hasn't given us ANY, and I mean ANY, problems in those two years. It's the best piece of hardware I've ever worked with. I think it may be discontinued though...but worth looking into. ;)
 
Use a spare computer and install Clark Connect. If you are in Cape Town, PM me and I can offer assistance.
 
I would use a Netgear ReadyNAS Duo.

Basically it depends on how much you want to fiddle.
Once this unit is setup you shouldn't have to touch it.
It even has FTP and Bittorrent
 
What is the difference/benefit of FreeNAS over OpenFiler?? I use OpenFiler because it has an iSCSI target, and you can do snapshots.
 
From their web site:

FreeNAS is a free NAS (Network-Attached Storage) server, supporting: CIFS (samba), FTP, NFS, AFP, RSYNC, iSCSI protocols, S.M.A.R.T., local user authentication, Software RAID (0,1,5) with a Full WEB configuration interface. FreeNAS takes less than 32MB once installed on Compact Flash, hard drive or USB key.
 
Thanks for all the replies. FreeNAS looks interesting.

Definitely would prefer a plug-in, basic set-up and leave option :-)

Would something like the WD My Book World New Edition be acceptable or a LaCie Network Space?
 
Conradl said:
What is the difference/benefit of FreeNAS over OpenFiler?? I use OpenFiler because it has an iSCSI target, and you can do snapshots.
Click to expand...

freenas has iscsi target also.

anyway, my liking for freenas is that it can fit and boot from an itty bitty memory stick. there, i said it. i think that is a cool feature.

what i dont like abotu either of them, and this is a bit of a linux problem, so doubt it can be fixed easily, it that once integrated into active directory you cannot handle permission on a per user per file basis on smb shares, because they have to be ntfs which neither do well ro correctly. so you would have to make an iscsi target, mount this on a windows machine, and then create yoru share for permission to work correctly.

the latest freenas nightly has different iscsi backend, much more reliable, but I have had hassles with smb..whereas the stable release has good smb, yet the iscsi targets seem to lose connection after a few days.
 
The D-Link NAS systems are quite nice ... two of my clients have the 4 bay ones. One of them prowls these forums ;)
 
RVFmal said:
Would something like the WD My Book World New Edition be acceptable?
Click to expand...

YES!

For backup one can create a really nice solution using a USB drive and with 2TB now available, they are big enough for most small businesses.

A USB disk drive will work really well and if you use a scheduled robocopy, will stay up to date and not re-copy files which haven't changed.

I use it both for copying backup exec disk files and copying user directories. Robocopy runs each night at 01:00, creates a log as to what has take place and I don't need to get involved! If a user creates a new directory, so does Robocopy. There are also options to automatically remove deleted stuff.

BTW robocopy is a free download from Microsoft and really worth looking into.

Finally, I get my clients to purchase two USB drives, one on site plugged in, one off site, which they swap on a weekly basis. So for the price of a drive they get the basis of a DR solution too.
 
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