Ports What ports do you actually need on a NAS? At minimum, you will require two USB ports, one for a keyboard/mouse and another for a USB flash drive to install your operating system. Most boards offer a mix of USB 2.0, USB 3.0, and sometimes USB-C. Think about how you intend to use your […]
9. Finishing up the Hardware choices Read More »
Hardware, Research
Storage Let’s look at one of the most fundamental components of any NAS: storage. You need it—but how much do you actually need? The answer depends entirely on your use case. Some builders will tell you to install as many drives as you can afford, while others recommend starting small and expanding later. Both approaches
8. More hardware choices Read More »
Build, Hardware, Research
In the last post, we explored the basics of NAS hardware and yes—it can feel overwhelming, especially if you’ve never built a computer before. But like anything, once you understand the fundamentals, the process becomes much easier. A great way to simplify the build is to start by writing a list of what you want,
7. What hardware to get – CPU – GPU Read More »
Build, Hardware, Research
After reviewing the basics of the software mentioned in my previous post, I set out to determine which option offered the best security for my data. In the end, I chose TrueNAS Scale. Even though I originally wanted something lightweight, I also needed the ability to run additional services. I accepted the trade-off, knowing it’s
5. Software of choice Read More »
Research, Software
When choosing the software for your NAS, there are many factors to consider and several options available. These choices will also influence the hardware you’ll need, but for simplicity, let’s focus on the most common DIY operating system choices used in home-lab and small-scale NAS builds. Here’s a list of popular NAS Operating Systems, in
4. What Software OS to choose? Read More »
Research, Software
A significant choice you are about to make involves evaluating the pros and cons of everything—yes, everything. Let’s examine the benefits and drawbacks. DIY – When you decide to build it yourself, you are in charge of pretty much everything, from hardware to software. By choosing and selecting your hardware, you usually get more powerful
3. DIY or buy a Turn Key Solution Read More »
Research
To get away from all the old computers and stacks of undersized HDDs of different sizes, I decided to dive in and build my own DIY NAS. However, I did not do so without researching what was available and what I thought I needed. My intention was to build something small that didn’t generate much
2. Intention for building! Read More »
Build, Research