Cheap NAS Enclosure

[Marc J]

If anyone's looking for a good cheap NAS enclosure for storage or backup, eBuyer have got a good deal on: -

D-Link DNS-323 2-Bay Network Storage Enclosure (http://www.ebuyer.com/product/124390)

Only £60. RRP £150.

Be quick, though, last time this was on at this price they sold the whole stock in a day.

[Corabar Entertainment]

Thanks Marc.

I have been looking at NAS enclosures, but I am not sure I understand how they work / how easy they are to set up / benefits over just having shared folders, etc.

Any chance of a brief explanation? :whistle:

[BeerFunk]

I use a Synology one, for streaming music, video and photos to several devices throughout the house - PCs, a LG DVD player (which is capable of streaming media), a Netgear MP3 player (also capable of streaming) and two XBox 360s. You can also use it as a print server,or even as part of a CCTV setup.

The advantage to me is that it can stay always-on, and everyone has instant access to it, and it doesn't use as much power as a dedicated PC server (or take up as much space). It's also very simple to update files on it.

As for the link in question - it looks an absolute bargain! :)

[Marc J]

I have been looking at NAS enclosures, but I am not sure I understand how they work / how easy they are to set up / benefits over just having shared folders, etc.

Any chance of a brief explanation? :whistle:

To be honest if I was to recommend a NAS unit then QNAP gets my vote every time, it's what I have myself and have installed a few for clients as well. BUT the one in the OP is a cracking deal for a first foray into using Network Attached Storage.

As Callum says, they're great for accessing data from multiple devices instead of requiring a PC to be always on (and take up a lot less room).

One huge benefit is the ability to setup the disks in a RAID array. For the one in the OP, which is only 2 disks, I would use RAID 1 (mirroring), which as the name suggests mirrors the data over both disks, so you will survive one failing at any time. Obviously you only get half the storage, i.e. 2 x 1Tb drives would only give you 1Tb of useable storage, but you'd have the peace of mind that the mirroring gives you.


You can also use it as a print server,or even as part of a CCTV setup.

Mine is hooked up to a wireless IP camera, which is on motion detection. When enabled it records anything it senses to the NAS, as well as uploading a snapshot to a remote FTP server so that even if a thief steals the camera and the NAS, I've still got a pic of him :D

[sweetie]

mmm, interesting, which camera did you use?

[Marc J]

mmm, interesting, which camera did you use?

iPux ICS-1013 Wireless IP Camera (http://www.scan.co.uk/products/ipux-ics-1013-wireless-ip-camera-for-qnap-10125012-20-and-101)

[sweetie]

thanks marc, what 2tb drive would you recommend to go with this, cheers

[wensleydale]

Just taken the plunge an bought one of these primarily to use with the Joggler I bought last year and stream music around the house.

Out of interest Marc what level of knowledge do you need to set them up?

[Marc J]

thanks marc, what 2tb drive would you recommend to go with this, cheers

I always go for Western Digital, so I'd go with 2 x http://www.ebuyer.com/product/183971


Just taken the plunge an bought one of these primarily to use with the Joggler I bought last year and stream music around the house.

Out of interest Marc what level of knowledge do you need to set them up?

You need to be able to read (the instruction PDF). All fairly straightforward :)

[sweetie]

bought the newer 320 model from amazon and the wd hd you recommended. thanks!

[wensleydale]

Isnt the 323 likely to be newer/better than the 320?

[sweetie]

you would think so but the 323 is 3 yrs old and the 320 came out last year.
very similar I believe

[wensleydale]

fairs enough.
either way, i've taken the plunge- plan is to use it with the joggler i bought last year to stream music around the house.