New to NAS, need some help

[Vasti]

I have two Western Digital External Harddrives and 1 of them is getting full. Instead of getting another I wanted to get a NAS.
I'm new to NAS so I am not exactly sure what to pay attention to.
The requirements from my side are:
-Should be able to run a Plex server so I can stream my movies/series
-Should have 2 disks at least for backup purposes in case 1 disk fails and preferably each disk at 4TB+
-Preferably have some folders on it password protected so everyone can keep their own personal documents on there without anyone else snooping through them as I would like to use it for backing up some of my parent's stuff as well without them accessing my personal files

Not sure about other cool things NAS can do, so if you have other suggestions on what might be handy to use them for, please let me know.

So, what would be a good NAS to get for me?
I normally like to tinker a bit, but lately I'm getting a bit too busy to reconfigure everything so something that (mostly) works out of the box would be great.
Or just tell me what I should be looking for and I will look for one myself.
Either way, all advice appreciated

[Doxe]

I'm no expert in this area, but i know a thing ot two..
If you want 2 backup drives you're looking at a Raid 6 configuration with at least 5 drives in total for it to make sense.
If you want something that just works out of the box, you can't go wrong with Synology https://www.synology.com/en-us/products/series/home
The Synology DiskStation DS1520+ has space for 5 drives and can be scaled up to 15 drives https://www.synology.com/en-us/products/DS1520+
This is all quite expensive tho. You're looking at atleast $1200 for the unit + five 4TB drives
As for other things to use a NAS for... well, it's storage that's accessable via your network, that's really all it is.. afaik anyway

[WowIsDead64]

Yeah, Synology is great choice. I have old one with 2x1Tb disks in raid 1. Funniest thing about Synology NAS - is that it doesn't have firmware. It has Linux-like OS installed directly on disks. So it's extremely flexible. You can install any features as packages. Most of them are free. I would call it mini-server, not just NAS.

You know. If you have one, it would be easier to turn some old computer into NAS via installing Linux on it.

[Unlimited Power]

I'm no expert in this area, but i know a thing ot two..
If you want 2 backup drives you're looking at a Raid 6 configuration with at least 5 drives in total for it to make sense.
If you want something that just works out of the box, you can't go wrong with Synology https://www.synology.com/en-us/products/series/home
The Synology DiskStation DS1520+ has space for 5 drives and can be scaled up to 15 drives https://www.synology.com/en-us/products/DS1520+
This is all quite expensive tho. You're looking at atleast $1200 for the unit + five 4TB drives
As for other things to use a NAS for... well, it's storage that's accessable via your network, that's really all it is.. afaik anyway

I think OP meant he wants 2 disks total so 1 can serve as backup. Raid 1 in other words. In that case a 4 Terabyte disk might be small for a Plex server.

@OP It's frankly been ages since I personally tinkered with a Plex NAS, but you can give this article a try. It explains what sort of hardware your NAS needs for different workloads and has some suggestions for NAS purchases of varying budgets.

[Vasti]

I think OP meant he wants 2 disks total so 1 can serve as backup. Raid 1 in other words. In that case a 4 Terabyte disk might be small for a Plex server.

@OP It's frankly been ages since I personally tinkered with a Plex NAS, but you can give this article a try. It explains what sort of hardware your NAS needs for different workloads and has some suggestions for NAS purchases of varying budgets.

That is what I meant exactly. And will definitely check out that article. But if Synology runs linux then I can install plex on it and change folder permissions, right?

[Shakadam]

A Synology NAS is going to be quite expensive if you want to run Plex (especially if transcoding is required) on it as their hardware specifications are quite weak until you get to the more expensive variants.


My recommendation is to build a PC (or some premade server/microserver of some kind) and run Unraid or FreeNAS on it. It's a cheap option especially if you have some older computer parts lying around and ofc you have full control over the specifications of the server.

I personally run Unraid on my server/NAS and I can absolutely recommend it. Very easy to setup and has a massive amount of plugins and docker containers you can install to make it do pretty much anything. There's also an active community and tons of great guides for how to setup various applications, highly recommend this youtube channel for lots of easy to follow guides: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZD...N0WeAPvMqTOrtA

[chazus]

A Synology NAS is going to be quite expensive if you want to run Plex (especially if transcoding is required) on it as their hardware specifications are quite weak until you get to the more expensive variants.


My recommendation is to build a PC

A 2U Synology is going to be significantly cheaper than a computer and probably a lot less work, too. I think they run like $130, plus the cost of drives (which need to be acquired regardless of setup)

[Shakadam]

A 2U Synology is going to be significantly cheaper than a computer and probably a lot less work, too. I think they run like $130, plus the cost of drives (which need to be acquired regardless of setup)

A 2U Rackstation for $130? Is that a joke or did you forget a 0 somewhere? Or did you mean something else?

I mean, a 2U Synology Rackstation is 1000€+ even for an old one with no disks and crap specs.

[chazus]

A 2U Rackstation for $130? Is that a joke or did you forget a 0 somewhere? Or did you mean something else?

I mean, a 2U Synology Rackstation is 1000€+ even for an old one with no disks and crap specs.

I dunno why they'd be looking for a rackstation

https://www.amazon.com/Synology-Disk.../dp/B0855LMP81

A bit more but still under $200 easily. It should also support a pair of 4TB+ drives and Plex.

[Temp name]

I dunno why they'd be looking for a rackstation

https://www.amazon.com/Synology-Disk.../dp/B0855LMP81

A bit more but still under $200 easily. It should also support a pair of 4TB+ drives and Plex.

I'm not going to comment on NAS's, but I think this is what Shaka is referring to:

-Should be able to run a Plex server so I can stream my movies/series

A poor CPU/GPU will not make running a Plex server feasible

[chazus]

A poor CPU/GPU will not make running a Plex server feasible

Looking into it further, it looks like there are slightly better Synology options for Plex, that still would be a better option in the 250-400 range (DS720 or DS218 Play).

I still feel like building a completely new computer just for that purpose is just not necessary. It will certainly work but there are other options as well for NAS drives, as people mentioned above with Free/Open NAS support

[Shakadam]

I dunno why they'd be looking for a rackstation

https://www.amazon.com/Synology-Disk.../dp/B0855LMP81

A bit more but still under $200 easily. It should also support a pair of 4TB+ drives and Plex.

I assumed that was what you meant but I don't know why you'd refer to it as a "2U Synology" as 1U, 2U etc specifically refers to a rack unit, in other words something like this: https://www.synology.com/en-global/products/RS3617RPxs

The problem with these cheaper Synology Diskstations is that they have very weak technical specs. When talking about a Plex server, I assume some kind of transcoding is probably needed or requested, as that's usually the case, and those weak Diskstations just can't handle that (or does it very poorly).
If you want to handle transcoding decently, you're looking at a Diskstation (or similar QNAP device etc) starting from around 500€

Looking into it further, it looks like there are slightly better Synology options for Plex, that still would be a better option in the 250-400 range (DS720 or DS218 Play).

I still feel like building a completely new computer just for that purpose is just not necessary. It will certainly work but there are other options as well for NAS drives, as people mentioned above with Free/Open NAS support

Doesn't have to be a completely new PC, I was mainly mentioning it as an option and it could be the cheapest option if OP has older parts lying around.

Otherwise, there are plenty of options in the ~300-500€ range. Dell Poweredge T40, HP Microservers etc. As well as plenty of 2nd hand options. In my opinion, any of these are better options than the Synology devices available in that price range as you get much better technical specs as well as the freedom to upgrade components if needed, and you get to choose whichever OS you like (Unraid and FreeNAS both being better options than Synology DSM imo).

[WowIsDead64]

That is what I meant exactly. And will definitely check out that article. But if Synology runs linux then I can install plex on it and change folder permissions, right?

It's not plain Linux. It's more like Android with web-interface - lesser freedom, but much easier setup. So no full control over it. You'll have to rely on packages in their repository.

[Vasti]

I think I'll go the synology route. Less tinkering (which I normaly like, but will have less time for in the future) and smaller form factor which is needed since I live in a tiny studio. Also don't have older pc parts lying around (going to build my first desktop soon, worked on laptops before)
Would turn my old laptop into my NAS, but the reason for the desktop is that my laptop is dying and I don't think it's very doable to convert a laptop into a NAS or is it? (if it is then it might be a stopgap option while I save a bit more)

[Kagthul]

There is also QNAP, which makes good NAS systems as well. And they Have a Plex server plugin you can just download right from their app center.

I have a 4 bay QNAP and their software updates have taken it from maxing out at 4 TB drives to 16TB drives (i currently have 4x 8TB WD “white” (Reds shelled from WD Easystore drives) in Raid 5 (so, 24 TB of storage). Works great.

Their prices are usually a little better than Synology, but not by a huge amount.

[nocturnus]

I don't know about Plex (or why you would even want that), but I have tons of videos on my DS214Play and I can stream those without any issues on multiple devices; iPads, TV using Kodi, etc.

I also tried a DS218Play, works just as well.

[Kagthul]

I don't know about Plex (or why you would even want that), but I have tons of videos on my DS214Play and I can stream those without any issues on multiple devices; iPads, TV using Kodi, etc.

I also tried a DS218Play, works just as well.

Because Plex will transcode on the fly to save bandwidth if youre streaming off-network (like, while youre on the go).

[Moozart]

I made this a long time ago but felt this was the perfect thread to finally be able to use it.