Why would home user be interested in NAS?

[Duemarch]

for life of me I can't figure out what the need is here for NAS but I keep reading about it so there is demand there. I have terabyte WD hard drive & Clickfree automatic back up drive that I used to back up everything from our computers. I ethernet streaming to roku 3 on 5 ghz band. What am I missing here? why the need for such extreme storage for home user?

 

[sinshiva]

people that /need/ NAS systems are generally using them to protect their livelihood. more 'extreme' NAS setups are likely dealing with uncompressed media of some kind. something that makes storing the data locally impractical, at least.

of course, many are probably used for nothing more than as media center or simple file servers

 

[Duemarch]

sinshiva,
Are you referring to something like this: http://youtu.be/91BW4v2h1FU

If so couldn't someone just use external hard drive (uncompressed ISO files) and plug it into WD TV play at fraction of cost? These NAS devices I am seeing are almost $1,000 dollars. Still not clear what the draw is for home use.

 

[sinshiva]

well, i was talking about work related, uncompressed material.

as far as NAS cost goes, the one you linked is in the few hundred dollar price range, which isn't too bad, imo. these things have like dual+ core processors and can essentially perform most of the tasks of a regular computer when connected to a TV, aside from potentially storing much more data than a single external, plus being able to provide backup solutions for that data. would be difficult to automate if you were swapping externals all the time.

over $400, though and i'm of the DIY mind-frame, really.

 

[thiggins]

Primary use for large home storage are folks with large media libraries who like the convenience of having it all in one place and network accessible without the need to run a computer to share the files.

 

[TonyH]

Hi,
Also easiness of sharing remotely, locally. There are many ways to use NAS once installed.

 

[stevech]

I have a modest cost 2 bay NAS (DS212) - not much media use (but some). My goal was to centralize storage (stop having important stuff on random places on different PCs/laptops). Change our habits.

Once centralized in the NAS, triple-backups are automated, easy.
Important to me as I keep job work and all of our finances and family photos on it.
The backup methods I use protect me from

• Theft on NAS or PCs
• Human error - file/folder delete
• Need to get older version of a file
• File system corruption (I don't use RAID1)
• Power supply/mainboard failure
• Drive failure

 

[L&LD]

The benefits of a NAS in a home environment is the same as for a business/corporation:

A central point for static files that are used by many.

A central point for backup purposes.

A lower cost overall than equipping each user with the same access to common files and same, total storage capacity.


Controls for what each user can do with the files and directories. (Read only, create new files in folders or full access, etc.).


Offer the ability to access these files anywhere in the world.

Allows quota's for each user - helps prevent data bloat.


These are just a few things that come to mind - there are more benefits too, depending on the specific NAS that is considered.