Hello,

I know nothing about NAS and would like to get one to back up data at home (so a single disk is enough).

I read the main brands are Synology, WD, Seagate, QNAP, and Buffalo.

Which brand + model would you recommend, ideally one that runs on Linux or whose proprietary firmware can be replaced with Linux.

Thank you.

I wont recommend you anything (because I do not really know your needs).
Here is my setup: I have a HDD built into the main desktop PC and there is another one connected to the router by an usb port (as an external disk). Also some important data saved outside. I have no NAS.

Why do you care ?. My minimum requirement would be a (root) ssh login capability. Then just leverage all the years of experience they have put in to make the kit work. I'm sure all the major players cover this these days.

Years ago I got a crappy Seagate GoFlex Home so-called NAS. Had a Windoze client that I used to setup targets for my Linux systems. Very limited but I eventually managed to get a SMB/CIFS mount to work on each for a backup script. Didn't use it for years then found a hack that allowed me to install Arch Linux on it so I had a decent backup target for the household. Put a decent low power disk in it and am still using it. You shouldn't really have to bother these days.

I use a USB disk connected to an always-on Odroid (Korean ARM-based nanocomputer). The Odroid runs Ubuntu. A small program named hd-idle puts the disk to sleep after a few minutes of inactivity to minimize noise and power consumption.

Thanks for the tips.

https://www.amazon.com/ODROID-C1-Pro.../dp/B018WDR45A

I use a BURP backup server, and an old desktop machine loaded with FREENAS for network storage. I never mix the two functions of backup and NAS. (of course, YMMV)

That's mine, yes
I currently try it out as a video server. Just enough power for transcoding.
Depending on your location, you may be better off getting it from the source, a company named hardkernel.

I've got a Qnap which has been running non-stop for over 12 years. Great unit.

Synology 718+ here with 2x4TB WD reds. Been running for a couple of years now with zero issues. Not cheap but I didn't want to build my own and the Web UI Synology provides is awesome.

I rolled my own. Currently have 3tb pre format space, can move up to 10tb total via hot swap. Running Ubuntu headless. Get a modest case, add a few hot swap cages and go nuts. If you run either FreeNas or OpenMediaVault you have the web gui. I'm not sure how capable those are for other services, docker and such though.

1 members found this post helpful.

The major NAS makers all use some version of linux that I know of. You can't easily replace your own version but enough information and support exists online to do it if you insist.

The arm based nas devices tend to use the least amount of energy but also suffer things like transcoding. The intel based nas's usually offer a bit more support for media and virtual machines.

1 members found this post helpful.

I have worked with two that used Windows with special drivers. I considered them a pain, but they were what the VP of IT provided and better than nothing. They worked.

The windows nas must have been some high end enterprise level?? Guess I was thinking SOHO stuff.

I've had two QNAP NAS'ses and I was quite happy with them UNTIL they spontaneously attracted malware that made my ISP disconnect my Internet access (they're very strict and I am happy with it).

QNAP had malware/ransomware attack problems in 2019 and in 2020, they returned:

1. https://www.zdnet.com/article/thousa...natch-malware/
2. https://borncity.com/win/2020/06/12/...ix-ransomware/

This malware got on my two QNAP NAS boxes while I always try to stay up-to-date with the updates. I had no data encryption problem, so I have stayed away from that. However I found QNAP to react slowly to the problem.

Now I build my custom NAS using standard Ubuntu server software. Because this is used in a LOT of servers I rely on it to suit my needs. (and I keep BACKUPS on a secondary backup server as well). It suits me very well and while the QNAP was suitable for storing data, they were not powerful enough to act as a real server.

BTW I have had a Synology NAS, a DROBO box, an OpenMediaVault server box and a Freenas server box as well - all had their advantages and disadvantages. After having been through all these specialized solutions, I found Ubuntu server to be the best as it is standard, you can extend it with about anything you want and it is reliable.

So my recommendations are:

1. Build yourself a standard Linux server using commodity hardware.
2. Use a standard Linux distribution like Ubuntu, Debian or CentOS so you can rely on online support
3. When selecting a motherboard, take a look at the more expensive ones, they can come with a lot more SATA ports than the standard 4.
4. Use a processor that supports virtualization.
5. Buy a lot of RAM (16 or 32 GB).
6. Use a SSD as a boot/system drive.
7. Build ANOTHER server as a 1:1 backup server to the main one (currently I use a Raspberry Pi 4B with a USB 8x hard drive enclosure)
8. Never rely on RAID: it is not a backup solution.
9. Take a look at using ZFS for your data volumes as this file system will actively keep your data integrity up, supports snapshots and has multiple other handy options (supposedly over a billion US$ went into the development..)

1 members found this post helpful.

And never connect your NAS to the Internet...mine has no inbound capability, only outbound. What was the malware attack vector, via a Windows machine?