Turn old PC into a NAS server
 

I was wanting to use an old P4 machine to act as a NAS server on my local network. I was thinking of installing Xubuntu on it because I want to host Nexuiz and Minecraft games on it as well. What software would I need to use it as a NAS as well I need help on setting up a static IP for this machine on my local network.

Thanks!

Hi there,

can't you think of a more efficient way to heat your place?
Well, honestly: If I planned to build a NAS based on standard hardware, I'd go for something with low power consumption, like an Intel Atom, a VIA C3 or C7, or a Geode NX CPU. Those CPUs allow for a total power requirement of less than 30W for the entire system, so that you don't even need a fan. Another benefit: No noise.
Especially the P4 has a bad reputation for its indecent power consumption, IIRC.

No idea what the gaming issue requires; but to use a system as a NAS, you only need plenty of disk space, a stripped-down OS (Gentoo is fine for that, and you don't even need an X), a Samba server, and maybe a lightweight HTTP server for a web-based configuration. Network setup is not different in any way from a standard desktop system.

My private server:
Intel Atom N270 @ 1.6GHz, 1GB RAM, 160GB HDD internal, 2 x 1TB external (USB2.0), powered down when not in use
Runs on Gentoo Linux with

• dnsmasq as a local DHCP and relaying DNS server
• Samba Server
• Apache, PHP and mySQL
• Dovecot mail server (mail collected from external POP3 accounts with fetchmail+procmail)

Power consumtion: about 20W with the external HDDs in standby.

[X] Doc CPU

here is some basic information about setting linux as NAS.

Butter with your P4 popcorn? Thanks for the replys, I'll look a bit into the software. But for the hardware will those CPUs be able to handle a Minecraft server? Its pretty intensive. And how well has Java been ported to Gentoo?? As that is what Minecraft and it's servers run on