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I'm trying to decide whether to invest in a proper six-bay NAS or build one myself from older workstation hardware. I'd appreciate honest opinions from people with real-world experience using both approaches.

1. My current setup

I have two QNAP TS-231P NAS units, both running RAID 1:

One with approximately 8 TB of storage.

One with approximately 12 TB of storage.

They provide central storage for photos, videos, music, documents, and other files, as well as network file access and backups.

Unfortunately, the QNAPs are increasingly struggling with their workload. I've experienced software instability, limited resources for services such as Immich and internal media streaming, slow startup with the larger hard drives, and painfully slow file indexing.

I'm now looking for a substantial improvement in performance, reliability, and long-term expandability.

1. My existing network architecture

I already have a separate Proxmox VE server running my applications and services in containers.

One example is Immich, which accesses photo files stored on the NAS. The idea is to keep the application and its database on the Proxmox server while storing the actual photo collection on central network storage.

The NAS is therefore primarily intended to provide reliable storage over SMB and, where useful, other standard network file protocols.

My main use cases are:

Central storage for photos and videos.

Photo management through Immich, running on Proxmox.

Internal media streaming.

Shared storage for music, documents, and other files.

Client backup storage and file synchronization.

Access to and management of large file collections from Windows PCs.

For client data, I use Veeam Agent for image-level backups and SMB-based file synchronization for selected files and folders.

My phone photos are also synchronized over Wi-Fi to network storage using SMB-based file synchronization.

Proxmox Backup Server is a separate system and already handles my Proxmox backup requirements. I don't need the NAS to replace PBS.

This is an important distinction: I don't need Docker, virtual machines, or another application server on the NAS. Proxmox already handles that role. I want the NAS to concentrate on storage, file services, data protection, and reliable network access.

1. Option A: Buy an ASUSTOR Lockerstor 6 Gen2 (AS6706T)

This is currently my preferred turnkey solution, but it is also at the upper end of my budget.

My initial plan is to install four 12 TB Toshiba N300 drives in RAID 5, providing approximately 36 TB of usable capacity before filesystem overhead.

Two drive bays would remain available for future expansion.

What attracts me to the ASUSTOR is its six-bay design, integrated hardware and software, expansion options, and the prospect of spending less time maintaining the storage system.

I also like the possibility of using snapshots and other built-in storage management features.

Since Proxmox already runs my applications, I don't need to pay for NAS-based virtualization or container hosting. I mainly want a reliable storage platform with good SMB performance, responsive file access, and sensible data protection features.

The downside is the initial investment, especially after adding the drives and potentially upgrading the RAM.

1. Option B: Build a DIY NAS from used workstation hardware

I could save a substantial amount of money by repurposing older workstation hardware, for example:

HP Z420 or Z220 workstations.

Potentially an HP Z2 G4 or another suitable workstation.

Xeon E3 or E5 processors, depending on the platform.

ECC memory where supported by the motherboard and CPU.

OpenMediaVault or TrueNAS SCALE as the storage operating system.

The attraction is obvious: much lower hardware costs, flexibility, and potentially more processing power than I need for a storage-only system.

Since Proxmox handles my applications, the DIY NAS would not need to run a large collection of containers or virtual machines. It would mainly provide network shares, storage management, and data protection.

However, I've already had disappointing experiences with both OpenMediaVault and TrueNAS SCALE.

On previous occasions, an update or upgrade was followed by a RAID pool becoming unavailable. I had to resort to data recovery before I could get my data back into a working NAS.

I realize that the precise cause of such failures depends on the system and configuration, and that a RAID pool becoming unavailable does not necessarily mean the data itself has been destroyed.

Nevertheless, these experiences have made me cautious about building another storage system that might require significant hands-on troubleshooting.

I am comfortable working with hardware and maintaining my home server infrastructure. What I want to avoid is turning the NAS itself into a recurring maintenance project.

1. What matters most to me

My priorities are:

Reliable storage over the long term.

Good SMB performance for Windows clients.

Responsive file indexing, browsing, and management of large collections.

Reliable access to photos and videos through Immich and other services.

Internal media streaming.

Client backups and file synchronization.

RAID, snapshots, and a practical recovery strategy.

Six drive bays and room for future expansion.

Reasonable power consumption and maintenance requirements.

I am planning for a system that should remain useful for the next 5–10 years.

I don't necessarily need the fastest hardware. I need a storage system that does its job reliably without requiring constant attention.

1. What would you choose?

I'm torn between two approaches:

Option A — ASUSTOR Lockerstor 6 Gen2: A higher initial investment for a purpose-built NAS with an integrated software platform and six drive bays.

Option B — DIY NAS: A considerably cheaper system built from used workstation hardware, with more control but potentially more responsibility for compatibility, maintenance, updates, and recovery.

Given that Proxmox already handles my applications and PBS independently handles Proxmox backups, would you consider the ASUSTOR worth the premium for the storage role alone?

Or would you build a storage-only NAS from used workstation hardware and put the savings toward additional drives and backup capacity?

I'd especially appreciate feedback from people who have run either approach for several years.

How reliable have OpenMediaVault and TrueNAS SCALE been for you through major updates and upgrades?

Have you found a turnkey NAS such as the ASUSTOR noticeably easier to maintain over the long term?

For SMB file access, large photo collections, indexing, and media storage, does modern NAS hardware offer meaningful advantages over older workstation hardware?

If you were building a home NAS for the next 5–10 years, would you buy the ASUSTOR or build your own?

I'm interested in long-term reliability, recovery experiences, maintenance effort, and total cost of ownership rather than benchmark results alone.

Thanks for sharing your experiences and recommendations!

Hi everyone,

When Bose killed the SoundTouch cloud servers back in May, thousands of us lost the ability to easily stream local music or add new NAS drives. If you are looking to get local streaming back online but don't want to drop £200+ on a dedicated Synology or QNAP enclosure just to host your MP3/FLAC library, you don't have to.

If you have an old, slow Windows laptop gathering dust in a cupboard, you can wipe it and install OpenMediaVault (OMV)—a free, extremely lightweight Linux operating system that will turn that old laptop into a rock-solid 24/7 DLNA music server for your SoundTouch ecosystem.

Because laptops have built-in batteries (effectively a free UPS) and run silently, they make fantastic, low-power media nodes.

Here is the step-by-step guide to building your own budget NAS and bypassing the usual "laptop sleep" issues.

Phase 1: The Installation

1. Download the free OpenMediaVault ISO from their official website.
2. Use a free tool like Rufus or BalenaEtcher to flash the ISO onto a USB thumb drive.
3. Plug the USB into your old laptop, boot from it, and follow the on-screen prompts to install the OMV operating system over the entire hard drive.
4. Once finished, plug the laptop directly into your broadband router using an Ethernet cable and turn it on.

Phase 1.5: The System Prep (Vital)

Because OMV is a lightweight, barebones system, we need to teach it a few basic commands before we can hack the laptop lid.

1. On the laptop's black text screen, log in with the username root and the password you created during setup.
2. Tell the system to update its app directory by typing: apt-get update and hit Enter.
3. Install the vital system tools by typing exactly this: apt-get install sudo nano bash-completion curl -y and hit Enter.
4. Let the screen scroll through the installation matrix. Once it stops, your system is fully prepped!

Phase 2: The "Lid Hack" (Crucial for Laptops)

By default, if you close a laptop lid, it goes to sleep and takes your server offline. We need to tell the server to ignore the lid completely.

1. Type this exact command to open the power settings: nano /etc/systemd/logind.conf
2. Scroll down to find the line that says #HandleLidSwitch=suspend.
3. Delete the # at the start, and change the word suspend to ignore. It should look exactly like this: HandleLidSwitch=ignore
4. Press Ctrl+O to save, hit Enter, then press Ctrl+X to exit.
5. Type systemctl restart systemd-logind and hit Enter.

You can now safely close the laptop lid, tuck it away next to your router, and do the rest of the setup from the web browser on your main PC!

Phase 3: The "Single Drive" Bypass

OMV is designed for massive servers and usually forbids you from putting music on the same drive that holds the operating system. Since a laptop only has one internal drive, we must bypass this constraint.

1. Look at the laptop screen one last time to find its IP address. Type that IP address into the web browser on your main computer.
2. Log into the OMV web dashboard (Default Username: admin, Password: openmediavault).
3. Go to System > Plugins in the left menu.
4. Search for sharerootfs, check the box, and click the install button (the down arrow).Note: Whenever OMV finishes a task, a yellow banner appears at the top. Always click the checkmark to apply changes.

Phase 4: Create the Music Folder & Network Share

Now we create a folder and broadcast it to your Mac or Windows PC so you can easily drag and drop your music.

1. Go to Storage > Shared Folders and click the + to create a folder. Name it Music.
2. Go to Services > SMB/CIFS > Settings and check the Enable box.
3. Go to Services > SMB/CIFS > Shares, click +, select your Music folder, and set Public to Guests allowed.
4. The Permissions Fix: If Windows/Mac won't let you copy files into the folder, go back to Storage > Shared Folders, highlight the Music folder, and click the ACL button (the gear/key icon). Scroll to the bottom and change the "Others" dropdown to Read/Write/Execute. Check Replace existing permissions and hit Save.

Phase 5: The DLNA Fix

Your computer can now see the drive, but SoundTouch speakers cannot read standard Windows (SMB) folders. They require a specific streaming protocol called DLNA.

1. Go to System > Plugins and search for dlna.
2. Install the openmediavault-minidlna plugin.
3. Go to Services > DLNA > Settings and check Enable.
4. Go to the Shares tab, click +, and select your Music folder.
5. Click Rescan on the Settings tab so the server indexes all your albums.

🎉 You're Done!

If you are using the Controller Pro app (or any local Marge bypass solution) to manage your system post-shutdown, just go to Settings > Browse Local NAS > Add. Your repurposed laptop will proudly appear, ready to stream your entire local collection to your speakers instantly.

Hope this helps some folks rescue their hardware without breaking the bank! Let me know if you run into any permission issues setting this up.

Hi all, I'm tired of upgrading my cloud storage plan every year, so I'm thinking of building a home NAS and shrinking my cloud subscription. I need at least 2 TB of space for our family's photos and large videos, with room to grow. I'm a complete beginner, so I'd prefer something easy to set up that doesn't need much tinkering.
The main goals are to keep everything safely backed up and let the whole family view and upload from their phones, even when we're away from home. I'd also like good photo software with automatic phone backup and easy search.
What would you recommend for hardware and software at this level? Is a prebuilt like Synology a better fit than a DIY build for a beginner, and which photo app works best for family use? I'd also appreciate advice on safe remote access and whether a small cloud plan is enough as an offsite backup.
Thanks in advance!

I mostly use my NAS for lightroom photo storage (mostly family photos)and media files (which I occasionally use). The DS223j has been notably slow but it has never made me want to upgrade before.

My lightroom workflow is I save my catalog and newer photos (say the past 5 years) in the DAS, and older ones in the NAS. The DAS is backed up to my NAS and my NAS is backed to the cloud.

MY DAS is actually the one about to die. But I am thinking, instead of getting a new DAS, what if I upgrade to a 4-bay instead, and since my NAS storage is about to run out of space. The DS425+ seems to be the obvious upgrade, but the cost for this plus a new HDD is more than $800. For someone only mildly bothered by the performance of the DS223j, it might be overkill. But I don't want to need an upgrade again in the next 5 years. Getting a DAS is a bit cheaper but I'm just delaying the inevitable when the NAS fills up.

I installed a new router a couple days ago, and now my apps can't fetch metadata. For instance, if I test abs-tract is get

{"error":"failed to make request: Get \"https://www.goodreads.com/search/index.xml?key=ckvsiSDsuqh7omh74ZZ6Q\\u0026page=2\\u0026q=The+Hobbit\\u0026search%5Bfield%5D=title\\": dial tcp: lookup www.goodreads.com on 192.168.1.1:53: read udp 172.17.0.3:52996-\u003e192.168.1.1:53: i/o timeout\n.........

Any help is appreciated

I have an external USB3 HDD that I'd like to utilize for network storage. Does someone make a box that takes in USB power, lets you connect a USB drive, and then plug it into the ethernet as a super simple shared drive?

My router doesn't have USB ports for this function so I'm wondering about alternatives that aren't investing in a full-blown NAS as I'm not interested in redundancy or extreme performance for this particular use.

I have an old NAS drive that I can no longer access to delete data. Tried everything. I don’t need to get the data. I just need to delete/destroy the data/drive before I send the drives to be destroyed. Any idea how I can do this? Thank you.

I recently bought a DXP 4800 Pro and set it up with 4x 8tb drives and installed unraid.

I ran it for about a week, spending the first few days bouncing my data from drive to drive to set up an XFS array, as my data was previously all BTRFS.

I got docker setup and began running it as my Jellyfin server and Home assistant etc.

sadly, one morning I woke up to find it had turned off over night and would not boot up.

initially I thought it was a broken PSU as the led was blinking soft blue. however, when disconnected from the NAS, it shows full blue, so I believe the Nas has suffered a hardware failure like a short.

removing all drive cages did not resolve.

I am now in a position where Amazon can give me a refund and I find myself with a few options and a few concerns.

1) I could pursue a warranty fix via ugreen. I have attempted to reach them, but their communication has been poor with no follow-up after the initial messaging.

2) I could return this to Amazon and pick up another unit (same model)

3) I could buy another brand.

4) I could build my own. I have building experience, and would probably stick Debian on there and mergefs etc. as long as it has the grunt to handle transcoding on the processor and is power efficient I'd be happy enough.

My concern with ugreen is that despite having the best specs for the value, I worry they have achieved this with poor QC and I don't want the worry that the unit might barely survive it's warenty period.

Has anyone else been a similar position and if so how did you handle it, i.e. balancing specs, price, performance and efficiency etc.

Ryzen 7600x

B650 aorus elite ax

16gb of ddr5 vengeance

850w corsair psu

2x Seagate 4TB Enterprise Capacity HDD 7200RPM SATA 6Gbps 128 MB Cache Internal Bare Drive(ST4000NM0033)

rosewill internal hot swap drive enclosure

256gb oem samsung nvme for boot

thermalright peerless assassin with lcd $37 dollar model on amazon

With the parts listed, mostly upgrading my son’s computer to a X3D cpu and other stuff lying around, I’ll be building a home NAS to support PLEX and iCloud back up. Figured I would post it here as a quick quality check. This will be headless and in my IT closet.

Hi is there other OS besides Ubuntu to use for my NAS? I honestly use MxLinux but I don't know the configuration for using it as a NAS.

Hi all, and thanks in advance for your advice and patience. I would say I'm not very tech-literate at all. But I'm looking for a secure way to store and access my files that will not be reliant on companies like Apple (I can be a bit paranoid).

I'm a writer, so backing up my work is really, really important. The work is part of my profession, but it's also extremely sensitive and personal. I'm sure you get it. I'd also like to store all my old videos and photos, so that I don't have to worry about it all only being on my phone (which gets very full and then slows down).

Is getting an NAS the best way to go about this? If so, what's the simplest and cheapest (I'm not rich, see: writer) option, while still remaining secure?

I also have a little trouble understanding some of the threads I've been looking at. If you wouldn't mind ELI5, I'd appreciate it. Apologies, I know that's probably frustrating!

i just bought this used microserver, I'd Like to turn into a Home Nas Server ,add it to my office and also share to my Home network , other Devices. .The system has already been upgraded to the max allowed. Since getting it I installed 3- 1 TB , 2- 1 TB Totaling 5 HD's .# 5 is installed instead of cd drive HD's. .. I'm computer & hardware savvy ,no questions there ....This is my first server so is it a simple as just Download True Nas to the thumb drive or do I have to use hp software and aa rade. what's the difference between nas and raid??

I currently have a networked Windows 11 PC that I use for file storage (via Windows Shares) and Jellyfin (including needing to transcode 4K x265 10-bit video files on the fly if the requesting client cannot natively decode them).

The hardware is:

• AMD Ryzen 5 5600X (from old PC)
• 32 GB DDR4-3600 (from old PC)
• NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 (bought to help with the transcoding)
• 2x M.2 SSD (boot and storage)
• 3x 7,200 IDE HDD (storage)

I hear a lot about NAS' for file storage and Jellyfin from places such as LinusTechTips and Gamers Nexus.

I am happy with my hardware and Windows 11 and do not wish to buy a NAS or change to Linux.

However, my question is, in theory, would a NAS have served my purpose?

Would it have been cheaper (UK £) than buying the CPU, RAM and GPU I currently have above?

Or would you say I made the right choice (in my specific circumstance) in buying a PC containing consumer hardware? (even assuming I did not use hardware from my old PC)

He usado dispositivos NAS de varias marcas, y algo que he aprendido a apreciar es lo fácil que es acceder a los archivos cuando estás fuera de casa. Tuve una experiencia frustrante con el acceso remoto en otra marca, así que me alegró descubrir que este modelo de gama media lo gestiona bien a través de su aplicación móvil.

He grabado un vídeo donde muestro cómo configuro el NAS, incluyendo el acceso remoto desde mi teléfono. Lo comparto aquí por si le resulta útil a alguien que esté eligiendo o configurando un NAS:

¿Qué tal ha sido el acceso remoto en el NAS que usas?

My MacBook is on macos 27.0.1 , it is connected to my NAS server through SMB. In the past two days , when I try to copy a file from my NAS to the mac internal drive , the file vanishes immediately after the progress bar disappear and the transfer is finished. This happens to multiple files . Additionally , some files on the server is missing in finder when connected through SMB but are visible through Webdav.

Everything is was perfectly normal before this , I don’t know what is happening. I had already restarted everything including my macbook , NAS and Router , but the issue persisted. Anyone knows why and now to fix it ?

Please help.🙏

I think my Synology DS918+ may have bit the bullet, which is rather depressing since it was lightly used. But I'll know more once my third party power adapter arrives on Monday. If I need a replacement what do you guys recommend?

I only use my NAS to host my movie/TV Show library. Kodi for local, Plex for remote. If I get another Synology I shouldn't need to transfer everything from scratch, I can just migrate everything into the new NAS? Looking at the DS423+ or DS925+ but there seems to be drawbacks to both. The DS423+ seems to be more Plex friendly and is cheaper, but it supports less RAM than my DS918+
The DS925+ seems overpriced to me for what you get, but maybe you folks disagree.

I like the Synology software, but I definitely think the hardware should've lasted longer considering how little I used it. So maybe I'm better off going with another company and just transferring everything from scratch. It looks like I can buy better hardware for cheaper elsewhere. Do you guys recommend anything else like a UGREEN DXP4800 Plus or TerraMaster?

Hey everyone,

I ran out of space on my ALL SSD NAS and seriously did not want to spend $280 on a new m2 nvme stick...

So I wanted to share with you all a NAS build I did on top of a $34 HP EliteDesk G3 I got from ebay. The total cost obviously was not $34, but if we exclude the HDD drives which I already had, the build was only $53.

• I got an m2 adapter for $10 on amazon
• a small form m2 nvme 128GB on ebay for around $13 (and funilly enough also sold the 240 SSD it came with for $13) just as a boot drive for truenas
• A 10GbE for $9 on AliExpress (Intel X540-T2 ) and yes, they do get a bit hot, but it's been working fine for over a year now. I got two of those, and had them connected peer-to-peer until I saw a switch with 2 10GbE ports for $70 on amazon (which also gets hot lol, but that's 10G though)

The full video of the project is available here: https://youtu.be/ALiHzOHvVIQ?si=4WF13HCyDQ47S4Ra

P.S. this was just a fun project to see what I could do with a cheap old PC, not an enterprise-grade NAS! And yes, if you do not have old HDDs lying around you will have to multiply the $53 by at least 10!! But then again, that is true for any NAS you buy (UGreen, Synology, Lincplus, etc)!

Raid controller not registering

Hello I'm working on setting up a NAS to use for plex and cloud storage. I'm using some old part as well as new.

Parts list:

Intel Core i5-7500

ASRock B250M Pro4

2x Silicon Power DDR4 3000 8GB

WD Black SN750 250GB NVMe M.2 SSD

WD Blue 500GB 3D NAND SATA SSD

HBA LSI IT Mode 9211-8i \*NEW

2.5Gb PCIe Network Card with Intel I226-V Chip, 2.5GBase-T Network Adapter NIC, \*NEW

4x 8TB seagate ironwolf HDDs \*NEW

I'm having trouble with my HBA as it doesn't seem to be getting power. I've swapped PCIe slots with the NIC as that has been working fine, but no success. I've updated the Bios to the most recent version which was 2018.

Is the HBA not compatible with my MOBO?

any help or insight is much appreciated!

Hi everyone,

I’d like to transfer and back up the photos from my phone to my Synology NAS. I’d like to do the same for my wife’s phone.

We’d also like to be able to view the photos stored on the Synology NAS directly on our phones, of course, only via a secure connection.

How do you back up your photos? Do you use Synology’s app, or do you use a third-party solution? What would you recommend?

Best regards,

Marc

A lot of people are saying to update home servers, is there something I need to do or will UGreen push a fix?

I just got a brand new WD elements desktop 12TB external Hard Drive to back up my synology NAS , but before doing that I want to run a extended smart test on it to make sure it is good.

I downloaded WD Kitfox and run extended device self test (I know wd elements is not officially supported but it is detected in the software plus WD doesn't offer any other diagnostic tools for it) , and now it is stuck at 10% progress for an hour now , should I keep it running or abort the test ? Also is there any software that can do extended smart test ?

So I recently bought a UGREEN NASync DXP2800 GT. Started putting it through its paces. Nothing intense. Literally just basic file storage. No VM's, no docker containers, no nothing. But since this is the first time I'm using a NAS from Ugreen (was a Synology refugee), I'm actively monitoring the thing, making sure it's working as it should.

So I decide to run a virus scan and next thing I know, I'm seeing temps being reported of 52C within seconds (so I assume it will go up from there) on the drives. WTF??? I go to the NAS and sure enough, the thing is ROASTING. You can literally see the air shimmer around it. Touching it was super hot of course. I look at the fan in the back, it's working. I check the fan settings on the UGOS OS, it has 3 settings, quiet, auto and high. No fan curves. Just 3 settings to choose from. The default is auto (which is what it was on). So I set it to high to bring the temps down. Ok, helps to bring down the temp by a few degrees. Only now it's super loud. OK, fair enough. I don't have an issue with noise so long as it saves my drives from melting. Especially in this economy where a 22TB drive costs about $2000AUD.

But something doesn't add up. I never had this kind of excessive heat on auto mode on my Synology 720+, despite it also having a virus scanner, multiple docker containers running etc. I go to check the official Ugreen documentation. According to this:

https://ai.ugreen.com/blogs/how-to/fix-nas-temperature-problems

Ugreen (in their infinite wisdom) has decided that:

UGOS uses 80°C for the CPU, 55°C for HDDs, and 70°C for SSDs as cooling-protection thresholds. When a component reaches its threshold, the system displays a notification and switches the fan to Full Speed.

I don't know what kind of lunatic decided this was an appropriate fan curve for HDD's, but they're clearly insane. I can maybe buy the 80C for the CPU and the 70C for the NVME's (although both those figures are pushing it for NVME health), but the 55C for HDD's BEFORE the fan kicks into high gear??? There's a reason why Unraid starts throwing out alerts at the user if a HDD breaches the 45C barrier. HDD's going above 50C when the machine is not under massive load is craaaaaaaaaazy. I would think that this is gonna wear out my drives that much faster too.

Am I the crazy one? I've set my Unraid system to keep 8 HDD's to below 40C and it does that just fine no matter how much load I throw at it. Obviously that's a custom built machine with far superior cooling capacity. But the context here is my Synology 720+ that was able to handle more load than the Ugreen, without roasting the ever loving bajeezus out of my drives.

Was really hoping to make the switch to Ugreen. But with this unbelievably bad temp management, I gotta go back to Synology.

I built a tiny NAS using esp32 and an SD card for stardance challenge is NAS and this is my Github repo if you're intersted

https://github.com/karimsm16/a-lightweight-NAS.git

taking a look , and reviewing it would mean a lot

I've been looking for a while, but haven't bought anything yet. The prices all over seems really high. Stumpled upon a Halloween sale, is this common or a good idea?

https://link.amazon/B01LEnlSQ

Been toying with the idea of making the switch and wondering what others who made the switch may have run into in terms of endurance concerns over time.