Home server needed...

bloodiedathame · 14 Jun 2018 at 13:37

My internet connection is terrible so offsite backups are off the cards so I'm not sure what to get. My needs:

- Backup 2x Macs automatically (perhaps via Time Machine?)
- Plex server for home photo and video streaming on TV, phones etc
- Ability to copy files from USB drives (lots of old work)
- If there was some sort of automatic photo/video backup functionality for iOS and Android over wifi that'd be amazing. Currently using Google Photos but uploading is too slow at home.

I've heard good things about synology... Going to probably need something 4 bay for redundancy...

BigT · 14 Jun 2018 at 21:35

Microserver running Unraid would be lovely for this.

I have an Unraid server that runs dockers for Plex and I use Photosync app on my iPhone to auto backup my photos to an Unraid Samba share whenever I get within 50m of my router. I think I’ve read about Timemachine solutions but I use a Syncthing Docker on Unraid to auto sync continuously between computers and Unraid shares a bit like a local dropbox. There’s a plug-in to mount and use USB drives so that’s no problem either.

crinkleshoes · 14 Jun 2018 at 21:51

BigT said:
Microserver running Unraid would be lovely for this.

I have an Unraid server that runs dockers for Plex and I use Photosync app on my iPhone to auto backup my photos to an Unraid Samba share whenever I get within 50m of my router. I think I’ve read about Timemachine solutions but I use a Syncthing Docker on Unraid to auto sync continuously between computers and Unraid shares a bit like a local dropbox. There’s a plug-in to mount and use USB drives so that’s no problem either.

Given OP doesn't know the difference between a server and a NAS... I think the manual setup involved in that solution might be a bit tricky.

Best is to get something that does it out of the box and manages itself... in my experience, Synology is the best... although QNAP are pretty good too... I ended up with QNAP this time because it was the best means to 10GbE.

BigT · 14 Jun 2018 at 22:06

Bit harsh to say the OP doesn’t know the difference between a server and a NAS. The lines between fully featured NASs like Synology and what one might consider a home ‘server’ are quite blurred these days.

Also I’d offer the opinion that if you’re on a computer enthusiast forum you could configure Unraid on a microserver. Slot some disks in, download some software onto a USB stick and follow some YouTube videos isn’t rocket science.

Having said that if there is any reluctance to do something a bit in depth them a Synology solution is excellent no doubt. Lots of plugins, nice ecosystem & very fit for purpose with lots of help online.

crinkleshoes · 14 Jun 2018 at 22:20

Depends on OP budget... money vs time

bloodiedathame · 14 Jun 2018 at 22:47

I don't confess to know everything, but I'm prepared to learn. I used to run freenas in an n54l which was ok but it didn't run Plex server well and didn't have any way of backing up photos and videos from our phones automatically (that I could see).

mikedigitales · 14 Jun 2018 at 22:55

I think you were halfway there with FreeNAS previously - I like FreeNAS so would advise going down that route if you liked setting it up/using it previously. Use PhotoSync on you mobiles to backup automatically to the NAS. Setup the Plex plugin (this time build something and make sure it has a beefy enough processor for Plex to be happy).