NAS buying advice

Zangetsu

I am the master of my Fate.
Hi Guys,

Looking for NAS Setup for Home.

Usage:
1. Backup device for all Multimedia content
2. Plex server media station for Streaming 1080p/4K videos on Smart 4K TV
3. Other nifty features which I don't know ;)

Budget is not yet decided but will decide based on features.

Since, there are many Brands. Which one you suggest ?
 
Not an expert, but some use boards like Rasberry pi & make a makeshift NAS for cheap.

Otherwise use something like Synology DS220j with HDDs.
 

Cool Buddy

Wise Old Owl
There has to be some kind of indication as to your budget, otherwise it's very difficult to recommend.

Here are the questions you need to ask/answer:
  1. Will your NAS be used by just you or multiple people?
    • If multiple, how important is it to isolate their files?
  2. Will you use it over local network only or want to access it from anywhere in the world
  3. How much storage do you need? Do you see it growing consistently such that you keep adding more every year, or do you think you can get 16 TB now and make it last for 5-6 years?
  4. Is it absolutely critical that you don't lose any of your data? Or you'll keep important documents on the cloud as a backup and some possibility of data loss from the NAS is acceptable?
  5. How much time/effort are you willing to spend on setting things up?
  6. Do you see yourself running other services on it, like a database, bot scripts, etc.?
The options you have are
  • Build your own using a Raspberry Pi or any other SFF build or old PC which you can get for cheap (like a Dell Optiplex from OLX)
  • Buy a proper NAS solution from brands like Synology, Asustor, WD, QNAP, etc.
If you are comfortable with Linux and are ok spending some time learning and building a NAS, go for the first option, it will be cheaper. It will also you the greatest flexibility in terms of hardware/software you want to run. However, in case you go for NUC or Raspberry Pi, you might need additional hardware like Disk bays, Powered USB switches, etc.

If you see your data needs growing continuously, or your data is critical to you and loss is not acceptable, then go for a 4-bay NAS, which you'll be able to setup in RAID to guard against accidental data loss.

If you have multiple users and you need isolation, something like Synology will offer you those features out of the box. You will also be able to assign quotas to each user.

If you need internet access, Synology provides a tunnel based access out of the box. For own setup, you'll either need a dedicated public IP (not necessarily static IP, but dedicated IP, i.e., you're not behind ISP NAT), or will have to fiddle with an ngrok like setup. Keep in mind though, that Synology does not give you the option to use your own domain, just a subdomain on quickconnect.to.

If your needs are limited, and you just want something quick and easy to setup, something like Synology DS220j will offer the greatest value for money.

So here's my recommendation:
  • Need complete control over setup, don't mind spending time, and want the possibility of expanding it into a home lab later: Go for a Raspberry Pi 4 or SFF build
  • Need lots of storage but don't have a huge budget/don't need to run lots of services: Asustor AS4004T - 4 Bay NAS
  • Need lots of storage and want to run services, but don't have a huge budget right now: Synology DiskStation DS720+
  • Don't need lots of storage and want something not too expensive and easy to setup: Synology DiskStation DS220j
  • Need lots of storage, possibility of running more services, easy to setup, and budget not an issue: Synology 4 bay NAS DiskStation DS920+
 

RumbaMon19

Feel Pain.
Hi Guys,

Looking for NAS Setup for Home.

Usage:
1. Backup device for all Multimedia content
2. Plex server media station for Streaming 1080p/4K videos on Smart 4K TV
3. Other nifty features which I don't know ;)

Budget is not yet decided but will decide based on features.

Since, there are many Brands. Which one you suggest ?

How many users will you have? In case of 4k content playing, you should for for ds220+ because it has a better processor. ds120j is only good for data storage, backup and share. Also DS120j has only one HDD slot so if that HDD is gone, data is also gone.
 
OP
Zangetsu

Zangetsu

I am the master of my Fate.
Thinking of 4Bay and 4 users at home.
Main use will be file backup & 4K streaming. A quad core cpu should suffice ?

Starting with 8 + 8 TB HDD + rest 2 in future

which one is good WD Red plus or Seagate Iron Wolf ?
 
OP
Zangetsu

Zangetsu

I am the master of my Fate.
Do I need a Quad Core CPU (DS920+) ? or a Dual Core will suffice if streaming 4K content from Plex ?

I want to stream 4K in TV from plex server.
 

Vyom

The Power of x480
Staff member
Admin
Never heard of it, and as per reviews not much great either. Haven't dig deeper, but it's hard to recommend any NAS apart from Synology, now that I have used it for a few months. If you just want to setup and forget it, Synology's NAS is proven, popular and comes with huge support in terms of apps and features.

Disclaimer: I did won a Synology NAS in digit's contest a while back, but my views are not based on my own experience in using it.

Having said that there are options where you can turn a low powered system as a 24x7 to act as NAS (like Cool Buddy mentioned), advantage being you have full control of it's OS, but that of course requires more of your time and effort.
 

TheSloth

The Slowest One
Never heard of it, and as per reviews not much great either. Haven't dig deeper, but it's hard to recommend any NAS apart from Synology, now that I have used it for a few months. If you just want to setup and forget it, Synology's NAS is proven, popular and comes with huge support in terms of apps and features.

Disclaimer: I did won a Synology NAS in digit's contest a while back, but my views are not based on my own experience in using it.

Having said that there are options where you can turn a low powered system as a 24x7 to act as NAS (like Cool Buddy mentioned), advantage being you have full control of it's OS, but that of course requires more of your time and effort.
Do you run your Synology NAS 24x7? Did you notice any increase in electricity consumption? I wanted to know if it consumes more electricity or how much consumes.
 
OP
Zangetsu

Zangetsu

I am the master of my Fate.
I think it depends upon usage. If you use it daily just like your TV or PC.
Some people switch it off when not in use, like consoles.
idle mode it will be way less.
 

chetansha

In the zone
Hi Guys,

Looking for NAS Setup for Home.

Usage:
1. Backup device for all Multimedia content
2. Plex server media station for Streaming 1080p/4K videos on Smart 4K TV
3. Other nifty features which I don't know ;)

Budget is not yet decided but will decide based on features.

Since, there are many Brands. Which one you suggest ?
Hey, checkout amazon, wd 24tb nas available for 63k after discount *amzn.eu/d/7ROVCBs
Screenshot_20220921-231638_Chrome.jpg


Sent from my SM-A528B using Tapatalk
 

Vyom

The Power of x480
Staff member
Admin
Do you run your Synology NAS 24x7? Did you notice any increase in electricity consumption? I wanted to know if it consumes more electricity or how much consumes.
I use to turn it off occasionally on weekdays when I didn't use to watch anything, but now I keep it on 24x7. I can't comment on electricity consumption, since bill in my area depends on usage, and upto 200 units it's free. Hence it's difficult to observe any pattern. :p
 

TheSloth

The Slowest One
Synology has several machines from 15k to 85k. How does one decide what configuration would be good?
Say the usage is something like
1. backup of images and accessing them later on Smartphone/PC/TV through WIFI
2. Installing Plex and streaming videos on TV/Smartphone again through WIFI.
How much RAM may require for this kind of usage? What kind of usage requires 4GB RAM in NAS setup?
 
Last edited:
OP
Zangetsu

Zangetsu

I am the master of my Fate.
Synology has several machines from 15k to 85k. How does one decide what configuration would be good?
Say the usage is something like
1. backup of images and accessing them later on Smartphone/PC/TV through WIFI
2. Installing Plex and streaming videos on TV/Smartphone again through WIFI.
How much RAM may require for this kind of usage? What kind of usage requires 4GB RAM in NAS setup?
Simple rule to follow is the number of active user(s) using the NAS the more RAM & CPU speed you need.
So, if you want to transcode 4K movies on the fly then Dual Core is not good.

For normal backup and 1080p streaming Dual Core is sufficient.
 

TheSloth

The Slowest One
^Thanks! I will stream 4k movies but that would be done only for single device.

Also, can Synology like NAS systems other application like adguard ? That is one of the main use case, to run some application and use NAS device as server. What kind of config would be needed if I need to run less than 5 applications using docker?
 

TheSloth

The Slowest One
How this kind of mini PC setup with external storage would be over buying a NAS?
*mdcomputers.in/asus-barebone-pn51-e1-b-b5092md.html
 
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