NAS recommendations

PaulButler

PaulButler

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I'm looking at getting a NAS but am horribly out of date with what is now available. Ideally I'd like to be able to use it to stream music as well as act as storage. Being able to backup to the cloud from it would be great too. I've been looking at devices from Synology, Netgear and Asustor. I think I'm looking for something with 4 bays and would probably configure it in a RAID config, probably RAID 5 if using 4 disks.

I've not set a budget yet as I'd rather get the right device than be constrained by money, obviously though I don't want to spend more than necessary. The models I've looked at the most are the Synology DS414j, Netgear ReadyNAS 104 and the Asustor AS5004T devices. I'm not committed to these so other suggestions are appreciated.

I don't want to build a server, I'd rather have something that works out of the box if possible.

I notice there are a series of HDDs from a number of suppliers marked as NAS HDDs, is this a marketing gimmick or are they really the best option to go for? Any recommendations as to which HDDs are best would also be appreciated.

TIA.
 
The best thing about the Synology DS414j is the actual software. For a lot of people DSM (https://www.synology.com/en-us/dsm/5.1/) is worth the spend alone as it is well maintained and supported. It is well polished and allows for plenty of uses such music streaming and backing up your data to the cloud.
 
Is the Synology DSM software better than Netgears ReadyCloud and Asustors ADM software?
 
Synology would come with high praise from me simply for DSM as mentioned above – it’s excellent.

I don’t currently use a Synology NAS in the strictest sense; I have an ioSafe 214 (which is basically a Synology DS214 in a fireproof/waterproof enclosure). I use it as part of a backup contingency for my main server for which it’s been great.

As far as hard drives for NAS use, WD Reds are very solid I’ve found (touch wood). Seagate I haven’t had so much luck with - but everyone’s experience will differ on this. Whatever you get it’s best practice to stress test them when you first install them, usually if there’s going to be a problem with them it’ll show up fairly quickly – better then than once they are in use.
 
I've just had a WD disk fail on me, admittedly it was quite old. When I used to spec servers and such Seagate were one of the go to HDDs. It is beginning to look like the Synology is the choice then ...
 
I know you don't want a server but I use a HP Proliant with openmediavault installed. Fairly easy to set up, but helps to have confidence to tinker. Once set up this gives you maximum flexibility for expansion etc.
 
Thanks for responding, I've built enough servers to last me so not really interested in building more. My tinkering days are long gone. Really all I want is to plug something in and start using it.
 
I recently coughed up for an Asustor AS-5104T. Slight overkill really but I got a 10% discount on Scan's normal price. :)
It's a good piece of kit and I like that the RAM is easily upgradeable.
 
Snapsh0t said:
I recently coughed up for an Asustor AS-5104T. Slight overkill really but I got a 10% discount on Scan's normal price. :)
It's a good piece of kit and I like that the RAM is easily upgradeable.
Click to expand...
How do you find the software that comes with it?
 
I think it's good. It was distinctly ropey when Asustor first launched but they're now on v2.3 with 2.4 in beta and I find it easy to navigate. There are reviews of the 5104T and 5004T on wegotserved.com where the reviewer says ADM is his favourite NAS software. There's also the usual range of downloadable packages but I haven't investigated those yet.
 
QNAP are another option to consider - the software is pretty versatile and easy to use. They have a wide variety of models to choose from. As for drives, I use WD Reds - there are a bunch of different surveys from data centres listing average mean time to failure, and they come out well in most. Avoid Seagate!
 
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Can I suggest that as your NAS is going to be used for approx 5 years (maybe more) before its upgraded replaced, that you get one with fast transfer times (& maybe a USB 3 slot) otherwise you will be waiting a lot - maybe not now - but certainly later in its life....
 
Oh & as a quick point...
for a 4 bay system.
Get 5 drives = £500 (not all the same model / make - not keen on this in home systems as the same issue may then affect more than 1 drive at the same time..)
3 or 4Tb's - cost per Tb isnt that far apart its its - its about £30 per TB

4 x 3Tb on a Raid 5 gives you a usable 8.5+ TB
4 x 4TB on a Raid 5 gives you a usable 11+ TB
(due to manufacturers lying about the size of their TB's - lol no-one seems to count the 1024 any more...

The last drive is for BACKUP only & all data should be copied to this drive on a periodic basis - you decide - when / how often...

Once thats full - buy another...
 
julianhj said:
QNAP are another option to consider - the software is pretty versatile and easy to use. They have a wide variety of models to choose from. As for drives, I use WD Reds - there are a bunch of different surveys from data centres listing average mean time to failure, and they come out well in most. Avoid Seagate!
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Thanks, will take a look as I've not pulled the trigger yet :)
 
Diving Pete said:
Oh & as a quick point...
for a 4 bay system.
Get 5 drives = £500 (not all the same model / make - not keen on this in home systems as the same issue may then affect more than 1 drive at the same time..)
3 or 4Tb's - cost per Tb isnt that far apart its its - its about £30 per TB

4 x 3Tb on a Raid 5 gives you a usable 8.5+ TB
4 x 4TB on a Raid 5 gives you a usable 11+ TB
(due to manufacturers lying about the size of their TB's - lol no-one seems to count the 1024 any more...

The last drive is for BACKUP only & all data should be copied to this drive on a periodic basis - you decide - when / how often...

Once thats full - buy another...
Click to expand...
The intention is to back up to removable disks once a week and store these at work in the data safe there, probably use acronis for that as I own it and it is good software. :)
 
I have a 4 bay synology running in the house and a HP microserver in the log cabin that backs it up every night.

You can't go wrong with Synology boxes
 
I've tried Netgear twice over the years.... disappointing and hard work. Did have a disk fail once under RAID 5 (or Netgear's equivalent) and was easily fixed (hot-swapped) but, BUT... I've now got a Synology NAS. That is something I will recommend. Brilliant interface and 'serves' all sorts of options and functions ... oh yes, works well as a RAIDed NAS too!

The only thing that comes close is Thecus but I definitely recommend the Synology units.
 
chuckles said:
I've tried Netgear twice over the years.... disappointing and hard work. Did have a disk fail once under RAID 5 (or Netgear's equivalent) and was easily fixed (hot-swapped) but, BUT... I've now got a Synology NAS. That is something I will recommend. Brilliant interface and 'serves' all sorts of options and functions ... oh yes, works well as a RAIDed NAS too!

The only thing that comes close is Thecus but I definitely recommend the Synology units.
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Thanks Barry, I'm guessing the Synology is looking favourite :)
 
Diving Pete said:
The last drive is for BACKUP only & all data should be copied to this drive on a periodic basis - you decide - when / how often...

Once thats full - buy another...
Click to expand...

I have a 4 bay NAS and its backed up to Crashplan constantly. Its a much cheaper option than more drives plus its fully automated. The downside is it takes a long time to do the initial upload ( took 3 months for me to upload 2TB)
 
So what was your backup for those 3 months then >?

& also what happens if you upload (to the NAS) another 1Tb over a weekend - how long does that take before its backed up?
 
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Another thumbs up for Synology NAS, Easy to configure and navigate, the surveillance works well as does Video playback, ours is always doing something!
 
Diving Pete said:
So what was your backup for those 3 months then >?
Click to expand...
2 x 1TB external HDD's. My workflow is a little complicated.

I have a 1TB external HDD that includes all my work from 2014 and 2015 at present. I use this as my day to day drive. I travel a lot and stay in hotels while away from home so I use a laptop when on the road and the desktop when at home so this necessitates that I use an external HDD as my main drive so I can easily switch from each. I use Cloudstation (Synology's version of Dropbox) as my main storage of work related files and personal stuff (no photo's) so it's sync'd between the laptop and desktop plus it's all backed up to Crashplan as well!!

The external HDD drive is backed up to my NAS every night when I go to bed using synctoy on my laptop or desktop depending on where I am. I can use the hotels broadband to do it when away and my own obviously when at home. Crashplan is constantly running on my NAS server so as soon as it detects new data then it uploads it to the cloud so it's constantly backing up.
So at any one time I have two copies of 2013 and previous work and I have three copies of 2014 & 2015 work. When the HDD gets full I will delete the first 6 months of 2014 from it to make more room and continue on again. It might sound complicated but in reality it's very simple and works well for me.

I'm still dreading the day though when one of the HDD's in the NAS dies and I have to download everything from Crashplan again as I have no idea how long it will take!!

Diving Pete said:
& also what happens if you upload (to the NAS) another 1Tb over a weekend - how long does that take before its backed up?
Click to expand...
How in gods creation would I manage to collect 1TB of data in a weekend? My entirety of data was 2.3TB and it's all backed up to the cloud now. An average wedding is about 30GB and it takes a few days for it to backup fully. See above for my full backup workflow.
 
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Ballyman said:
2 x 1TB external HDD's. My workflow is a little complicated.

I have a 1TB external HDD that includes all my work from 2014 and 2015 at present. I use this as my day to day drive. I travel a lot and stay in hotels while away from home so I use a laptop when on the road and the desktop when at home so this necessitates that I use an external HDD as my main drive so I can easily switch from each. I use Cloudstation (Synology's version of Dropbox) as my main storage of work related files and personal stuff (no photo's) so it's sync'd between the laptop and desktop plus it's all backed up to Crashplan as well!!

The external HDD drive is backed up to my NAS every night when I go to bed using synctoy on my laptop or desktop depending on where I am. I can use the hotels broadband to do it when away and my own obviously when at home. Crashplan is constantly running on my NAS server so as soon as it detects new data then it uploads it to the cloud so it's constantly backing up.
So at any one time I have two copies of 2013 and previous work and I have three copies of 2014 & 2015 work. When the HDD gets full I will delete the first 6 months of 2014 from it to make more room and continue on again. It might sound complicated but in reality it's very simple and works well for me.

I'm still dreading the day though when one of the HDD's in the NAS dies and I have to download everything from Crashplan again as I have no idea how long it will take!!
Click to expand...

That fairly interesting but NOT what you have recommended to the OP....

I REALLY, REALLY suggest that you test, say 500Mb as a recovery exercise...

& recovering TB's across the net is not something I'd recommend yet - especially as we dont know the area the OP lives in ( & his bandwidth)
 
Diving Pete said:
That fairly interesting but NOT what you have recommended to the OP....

I REALLY, REALLY suggest that you test, say 500Mb as a recovery exercise...

& recovering TB's across the net is not something I'd recommend yet - especially as we dont know the area the OP lives in ( & his bandwidth)
Click to expand...
Pete, my bandwidth is err, adequate ;) -


Appreciate the time folk have taken to respond, some good info here :)
 
My download speed is 200Mb/s and 20 up so mine is adequate as well! Although I believe that it doesn really matter how fast it is becuase Crashplan will throttle it to spread the load between all their users.
 
According to their blurb (Crashplan that is) they don't throttle bandwidth ... from their site
Only CrashPlan gives you all the storage you'll ever need. No storage size limits, bandwidth caps or file-type restrictions.
Click to expand...
 
They dont throttle it but its shared among the users so the more that are online at any one time then the slower it gets. You will notice peaks and troughs throughout the day when uploading.
 
I have two N54L microservers and use WD reds. Both run xpenology software.

Been fantastic and one backs up the other. Remember, a nas is not a backup, it is online storage. You always need a backup too. One disk redundancy does not help if the unit dies or you suffer another failure during the unprotected period.

It's a bit of work, but has been a cheap option. I had Netgear before and lost data, so never again. I'd definitely go Synology if you have the cash.
 
I use a hp microserver with DSM software installed. I'd definitely recommend synology
 
WD Red drives are not necessary. The longer warranty may give piece of mind but even obtaining a replacement drive isn't going to replace your data.
I would rather buy cheaper drives and spend the spare cash on extra drives for a local backup solution.

Most consumer grade NAS devices use software RAID so there's no need for the TLER (Time limited error recovery) which is the major distinction between the WD Red drives and their brethren. That said, I did have repeated problems in a RAID1 set-up using WD Green disks in a Netgear ReadyNas Duo.

Seagate drives have a bad rep due to the results some of their (now) older drives gave in Backblaze's slightly floored analysis of HDD longevity. I figure if you are adequately backing up your data and using RAID6 instead of RAID5, there's no reason not to consider them.
For my latest build I used HGST Desktop drives. No problems thus far.
 
I've been using a budget Synology NAS for many years, never had a problem apart from it being seriously slow!
Almost certainly due to using software RAID 5 with a cheap CPU.
It's been fine for archiving images, but browsing my library is a painful experience.
The other problem is that I filled it ages ago and as a short term measure installed a couple of big drives in my desktop with a manual backup procedure; this is now full too.
Since then I've been filling up my primary drive(s) with no backup - not a good situation.

Yesterday I did my research and took the plunge on a completely OTT solution.
I've ordered a decent spec 6 bay QNAP with 24Tb of storage (WD Red). Depending on which RAID setup I go for, this will give me somewhere between 12 and 20 Tb of actual storage.
Fingers crossed I won't be running out of storage space any time soon, and the performance should mean it is going to genuinely usable.
The cost was fairly eye-watering but it's all relative as it is only about half the cost of each of my camera bodies. I would hate to lose my images, so I figure this is money well spent.
It'll be great to have my archive back in one place and accessible from all my devices.
 
I have been in a similar situation to Duncan over the last few months.

I have a Readynas Duo with a couple of Seagate drives configured in RAID 1 that gives me 1.5Tb of space but now I am running out and need more space. The ReadyNas and the Seagate drives have performed impeccably over the last 6 years, running 24/7 without a hiccup (famous last words!)

Over the last few months I have been trying to work out what my best option is. I definitely want at least 4 drive bays this time so I can run Raid 5 and still have a decent amount of space available. For me, the best balance between price and capacity are 3Tb drives. I was going to go for these but then came across a deal on 4Tb WD Red drives so bought those instead. In Raid 5 that wll give me 12Tb of space which should last a few more years.

Now the hard part, deciding which NAS to go for. Although not a lot of people like them, I was considering going for another ReadyNas but with 4 bays. Unfortunately, they seem to be more expensive than their equivalent Synology and QNAP equivalents so I started looking at the Qnap 451 and Synology 414 but as you usually do, I then got drawn to their slightly more expensive brothers, the Qnap 453 Pro and Synology 415+

Interestingly, the Qnap is slightly cheaper than the Synology but more powerful and with more features. That put the Qnap ahead of the Synology for hardware but on the software side, everyone seems to prefer and rate the Synology DSM software. Having played around with them (they both have live demos you can play with here: https://www.synology.com/en-global/dsm/5.1/live_demo and here: https://www.qnap.com/i/en/support/con_show.php?cid=8) I agree that the Synology software is prettier and nicer to use. I was swaying towards the Synology but in the end, I chose the Qnap as it was much better value for money (£30 less) and more powerful with more features. Although I liked the Synology software, I have been using the outdated ReadyNas software (the new ReadyNas software interface is not available for my old Duo) for 6 years so the Qnap software will be like a breath of fresh air for me.

I placed the order about 5 minutes ago as Amazon were running out of stock.

For anyone interested, in addition to being slightly more powerful and having upgradeable memory, here are the key features that the Qnap has over the Synology:
  • Hardware Transcoding of videos in real time whch means it will convert stored videos to work on any device as you watch it, without slowing the machine down
  • HDMI port so you can connect it to a monitor and use it as a media centre or PC if you wanted.
  • Virtualization i.e. you can run different applications on it eg, if you wanted to run Wordpress on Windows, it can act as a Windows/Wordpress server
To be honest, I probably won't use those features but they are nice to have just in case and seeing as it still costs less than the Synology, why not ;)
 
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I'll be interested to hear you you get on.
I went for a QNAP 663; like I said well OTT!
Compared to the QNAP 451 it offers twice the read/write performance and gives me nearly twice the RAID 5 storage space; but also cost me twice as much!
 
Did you buy a 663 or 653?

I was tempted by a 6 Bay machine but couldn't justify the cost and figured i could always upgrade the drives for higher capacity ones if prices drop.

Mine is being delivered today so will let you know how i get on.

Have you got your one yet?
What size drives did you buy?
 
Went for a 663, faster Ethernet for when I upgrade my network and faster write speeds. I'm thinking future proof and don't want to suffer a slow NAS like my old one.
Disks were 4Tb WD Red in a bundle from DABS.
Fingers crossed will arrive either today or tomorrow.
 
Looks like you went for the same disks.

Your Qnap looks great. As you say, very powerful with lots of expandability but hopefully that means it will last a good many years
 
Ive had two synology 5 bay servers. The DS508 which I had on 24/7 for 5 years never gave me a single problem. I upgraded recently to the DS1515+, I didnt actually need to upgrade at all. I got sucked in by the new features of the newer firmare versions and havent used a single one of the new features :)

I've used Qnap too, I think for useability the Synology software has the edge, Qnap on price and performance. If like me you just want to use them for storage and not all the other fancy features, any of them with a decent CPU and RAM will be fine :)
 
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