QNAP network storage

[Bly]

Like most of us I've been wondering what do about storing and backing up the ever increasing amount of data these days.
So I did a bit of research and bought one of these QNAP T-412 network servers.
It takes up to 4 drives configured in a variety of RAIDs.
I got 2 x 3t drives and set them up so if one fails no data is lost. RAID 1 I think.
So this sits on our network sharing all our job files.. very good.
The sweet thing is this also comes configured as a server so you can host websites, FTP, a web file manager and other services even while your other PCs are off.
I only turned on the FTP server but even that is very handy.
I just tested a 1.6g upload from home and it ran flawlessly, resuming after several interruptions. Speed was limited by our ADSL upload limit but you get that from any kind of transfer.
The hardest part about the setup was configuring accounts and permissions so you only allow people to access what you want them to.
I haven't done it yet but it seems you can plug in a usb HD and press one button to back up everything to take offsite.
All in all this seems a worthwhile investment for any small business.
It cost me $350 Aus without the drives.

 

[jasonx]

I've got a 409 model I think at work.

The one touch backup works but if you use the user interface you can do a backup synchronize mode so only modified and new files get copied to your backup drive for redundancy.

I need to setup my user permissions a lot better also.

 

[signswi]

You should buy another 2 drives and put it in RAID 5. Good purchase, QNAP is solid. Don't host websites or anything from it though your NAS should only be accessible on your intranet and only be functioning as a NAS, not as a misc. services box.

 

[Bly]

Everything is blocked to the internet especially the web admin page.
The FTP server is open through the firewall though since that service will be handy for clients.