Which NAS?

Tephnos · 5 Feb 2014 at 18:43

Hey guys,

Been interested in getting a NAS drive for a while, so that I can offload files to it without having to use a separate USB HD to back things up every so often. I really like the whole idea of having it connected through Ethernet and all of that jazz, instead of having it as a USB drive. Only thing is, I'm wondering what brand to go with? I hear Synology a lot, but I dunno if there's anything better? Hoping someone with more experience in this can shed some light for me.

Hyburnate · 5 Feb 2014 at 18:44

Synology are great. Really in truly no point in looking further if they fit your specification

Havana_UK · 5 Feb 2014 at 19:34

I can only speak from the experience I've had with my Synology DS213, but it really is very very good. I would definitely recommend it, and Synology on that basis.

welshdragon · 5 Feb 2014 at 20:35

Asustor/Synology/QNAP all very good. what's your budget and what will you be doing with it?

Tephnos · 5 Feb 2014 at 23:11

Haven't really decided on a budget. I kind of just wanted an 'off computer' storage place for all my files that weren't OS/Steam related, preferably hooked up to my router so that any other computers I had would be able to access them all. Essentially, an in-house sort of dropbox.

AStaley · 6 Feb 2014 at 00:08

I have a Synology DS214, so another vote for Synology. Brilliant device and plenty of support from their KB.

Tephnos · 6 Feb 2014 at 00:40

Hrm, guess Synology is definitely the clear front winner here.

What is all the stuff you can do with your average unit?

Tephnos · 6 Feb 2014 at 04:06

Also, what drives should I be looking for?

I heard WD Red for NAS drives but is that really my best option? Think of looking at a DS214 or DS214Play

zoomee · 6 Feb 2014 at 07:24

Tephnos said:
Hrm, guess Synology is definitely the clear front winner here.

What is all the stuff you can do with your average unit?

The basics: http://www.synology.com/en-uk/dsm/for_home

Slightly more advanced: http://www.synology.com/en-uk/dsm/app_packages

Live demo of the actual interface: http://www.synology.com/en-uk/products/dsm_livedemo

gregorius · 6 Feb 2014 at 07:26

Tephnos said:
Also, what drives should I be looking for?

I heard WD Red for NAS drives but is that really my best option? Think of looking at a DS214 or DS214Play

Well I've got a DS214Play with two WD Red 4Tb drives in and I'm very happy with the setup. Not cheap, mind.

Tephnos · 6 Feb 2014 at 08:02

Nice, nice. Looks like it'd have the features I'm looking for.

Sure, not cheap but worth it in the long run I'd say!

Tephnos · 6 Feb 2014 at 09:37

Wondering if the Play is worth the extra 60 over the original? Apart from the stream encoding, not really seeing much to justify it, considering the lack of HDMI port.

TheVoice · 6 Feb 2014 at 09:56

Tephnos said:
Wondering if the Play is worth the extra 60 over the original? Apart from the stream encoding, not really seeing much to justify it, considering the lack of HDMI port.

It's meant as a media server though, not a media player. If you don't need/want to transcode media on-the-fly then you'll be fine with the lesser model.

Tephnos · 6 Feb 2014 at 10:10

TheVoice said:
It's meant as a media server though, not a media player. If you don't need/want to transcode media on-the-fly then you'll be fine with the lesser model.

Seems a bit crippled if it doesn't have a HDMI port then!

But thanks for the suggestions guys, gonna go with the lesser model, this is kinda exciting lol

I'm such a nerd.

TheVoice · 6 Feb 2014 at 10:25

That's what I mean though; you connect it to your network, not your TV. It's intended as a box that sits in the corner and feeds all your other devices via the network.

I got a Synology NAS earlier this week, it's great. Just a low-end one (DS214se) but compared to my previous WD MyBook World it's ridiculous how much it can do. You'll be impressed.

Tephnos · 6 Feb 2014 at 10:34

Yeah, I purchased a DS214 and 2x3TB drives (heard the WD 4TB reds have some issue so its whatever).

Can't wait. Tell me more?

TheVoice · 6 Feb 2014 at 11:09

I've basically gone from this bare-bones interface:

To having essentially a full desktop interface:

You can do seemingly anything with it. Extra functionality is provided with packages which you install (e.g. media server, anti-virus etc) so you can choose exactly what is and isn't running. I even managed to map my old NAS as a network folder on the Synology so I could copy files directly from one to the other without the transfer having to go via my PC. Genius.

Don't forget the smartphone apps too, they seem rather good.

Tephnos · 6 Feb 2014 at 14:42

Daaaaaamn, man. What do you end up doing with yours?

Neverhood · 6 Feb 2014 at 15:05

+ 1 to the synology camp - although apparently you can pull apart some QNAP boxes, upgrade the RAM and CPU. There is also a possibility of running KVM virtualisation on them in the future (assuming you've upgraded them to give them enough grunt!)

TheVoice · 6 Feb 2014 at 15:52

Tephnos said:
Daaaaaamn, man. What do you end up doing with yours?

It'll be my media server and main back-up location for my PC, but I also want to get my phone synced with it so data on it is backed up to it, and get it set up so I can access it via the internet when I'm away from home. For no other reason than I can.