Looking to get a NAS but don’t want to spend too much starting out. I have the opportunity to buy a used custom built NAS with much better specs than what I would probably be able to get from something like a synology NAS. It seems like a really good deal but I’m not sure how difficult/time-consuming it will be to configure for my use case or if it will be better to stick to synology software. Also, is the software to use the NAS after configuration not user friendly or well supported?
My use case is to store photos and videos and device backups from time machine for my mac. I’d also like to be able to remotely access the data over the internet.
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Synology and other brand NAS’s are great, very simple to setup and maintain. They come with great support, power efficiency and decent build quality.
If you were to get a custom built one, it can end up costing you less, a Synology 2 bay (without drives) goes for £150 cheapest I saw brand new, plus you get very minimal specs, only usable as a NAS and nothing more if you’re planning on running more stuff like game servers or many containers in the future.
Depending on the OS you use for the custom NAS, it can be incredibly versatile and offer great functionality and expandability, you can 100% achieve the same things you would with a Synology.
Although it’s rarely ever “plug & play” like an OEM NAS is, configuring and troubleshooting can take a while especially without basic understanding of the OS.
It’s fun and interesting to work on but if all you need is a working, reliable machine that you can plug in, put some drives into and have it work, I’d suggest spending the extra bit on a Synology or another brands NAS.
Thanks for the super helpful reply! I guess my main debate is since the custom NAS is built with a decent cpu and includes 16gb RAM, SSD and storage drives its much more value. I’ve worked a little with linux before so I’m not against setting it up myself. But would it be as easy to use as an actual branded NAS for family members backing stuff up that aren’t great with tech?
yes and off-the-shelf unit is great for the family who aren’t that tech literate - it can just sit on the shelf and do it’s thing but you will still need to monitor and update it.
That CPU in the custom nas could also be more powerful than what you get in the off-the-shelf providing you with more flexibility.
It could start off as a nas today and tomorrow you to turn it into a virtualised server with the NAS software running as virtual machine.
Or you could find that you’re shifting very large files around and need 10GBe ethernet and high performace which could start to choke a Synology or QNAP NAS with an ARM processor.
If you’re starting from scratch and have a requirement for other less tech-literate family members to use the device, I’d typically advise to start off with an appliance like a Synology. Myself, I started with QNAP which tend to have better hardware but questionable firmware. Once setup the other users didn’t even need to know what it was or how it worked. Probably go with a mid-range 4-bay device. NASCompares and SpaceRex YouTube channels can provide reviews and comparisons as well as examples of what device in what tier.
Once you have a device up and running you can explore your needs over time as things mature. Do you want to run other services? What’s your rate of storage growth? etc etc.
If you happen to have spare hardware just laying around that could be used in a self-build then by all means have a crack and setup a trial system. If you need to buy disks then that doesn’t matter as you’ll need them for an appliance anyway - just look at compatibility first (WD Red Plus, Seagate IronWolf etc) and make sure they’re CMR not SMR.
If I were starting out now I’d have a play with Xpenology (to see if you’d like what Synology offers), Open Media Vault, Unraid, and TrueNAS Scale. These systems are so much more usable than when I started this journey over 20 years ago. It’ll be all good.
You could also run Xpenology on your custom NAS, which is a bootloader for Synology DSM os. Other alternative is TrueNAS, Unraid or OpenMediaVault (or any other I might not know).
QNAP nas are fine too, but I disliked the backdoor they had pre-2021… Terramaster are terrible chinese knockoff though, hardware is ok but the OS need to be flashed.
I installed this on a Thecus N5810, it worked good, but never put it into production, bought a Synology DS1522+. Anyone remember Thecus? Stable hardware with nice buildin UPS and the most awful software and stability you can get.
I don’t think I ever heard of Thecus… are they still around? Website is online but I couldn’t find any vendor with any model in stock… pretty strange.
Worse NAS goes to Iomega StorCenter ix2… Probably the worst device I ever worked with, Lenovo pulled the plug on the company in 2018, which existed since the 80s.
IoMega…do you all remember the ZIP drives?
I do… We still have users who have them in their office at work and an Addonic raid array from early 2000s… I need to check it next week lol.
I believe the company is dead, no updates since many years, one of the reasons I replaced the Thecus with a current Synology, primary because of active backup for business and for O365.
Do you have he specs of this custom build nas? I couldt for the world of it give you an answer without knowing this first.
I’m running TrueNAS on an i5 11th Gen box, with 32 gig RAM. Its barely being used - I think I’m going to go back to the synology and use the box for something else! The Synology was very much set and forget.
Thanks for the replies! Looks like i’ll probably go with a branded NAS for simple use. Is there anything I should look out for if I’m looking for a used one? Found some used ones but older models, not sure if I should be concerned about compatibility/support for those?