What NAS Server tu buy?

General discussion about the media server. Feature requests. Hints, tips and tricks.
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blablabla
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What NAS Server tu buy?

Post by blablabla » Mon Mar 03, 2008 4:25 am

Hey guys!

Can somebody pls recomend a nas server to buy? I have a NSLU2, but I think the new version of Twonky doesn't run on it or is difficult to install. Furthermore the NSLU2 seems to be very slow...

I would like to have xbox 360 as a media client and the NAS as a fileserver, so i can connect from my laptop, pc, dreambox, internet (ftp). If it is possible i would like to have (in this order) :

* simple installation,
* 500gb (or more) shareable,
* stable run,
* web configuration/many features,
* less power consumation


Any Ideas?


THANK YOU!

bye
Andre

GregiBoy
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Re: What NAS Server tu buy?

Post by GregiBoy » Mon Mar 03, 2008 6:47 am

Linksys NAS200

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mgillespie
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Re: What NAS Server tu buy?

Post by mgillespie » Mon Mar 03, 2008 8:42 am

I would personally avoid a NAS, as all the ones I have seen are limited in memory, and have issues. As you share more and more media, and have complex navigation tree's TwonkyMedia's memory requirements go up.

I looked at a NAS, but decided it potentially limited my future options too much, and went for a MiniITX based PC running Linux. Most of the upsides, none of the downsides...
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blablabla
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Re: What NAS Server tu buy?

Post by blablabla » Mon Mar 03, 2008 1:31 pm

@gregiboy : how is your expirience with the linksys? Is it possible to update to the newest twonky version? Do you have to pay for this? Do you have many media files?


@mgillespie : hmmm... i would like to have something what is not so loud as a standard pc, not so expensive and doesn't need that much power, so I can let it run all the time.

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mgillespie
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Re: What NAS Server tu buy?

Post by mgillespie » Mon Mar 03, 2008 2:36 pm

The PC's I use are extremely low power, (11w max), and fanless, with pretty much zero noise. I run a custom Gentoo linux, which works nicely with TwonkyMedia.

Many of the NAS units are cumbersome to install Twonky onto, a search here should highlight that, the ones that are officially supported, you have wait for the vendor (not Twonky) to release new firmware updates.

Take a look at these links for MiniITX/PicoITX solutions..

http://www.icp-epia.co.uk/index.php?act ... t&catId=38
http://www.mini-itx.com/

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cbhwr
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Re: What NAS Server tu buy?

Post by cbhwr » Mon Mar 03, 2008 10:06 pm

mgillespie wrote:The PC's I use are extremely low power, (11w max), and fanless, with pretty much zero noise. I run a custom Gentoo linux, which works nicely with TwonkyMedia.

Many of the NAS units are cumbersome to install Twonky onto, a search here should highlight that, the ones that are officially supported, you have wait for the vendor (not Twonky) to release new firmware updates.
So, Mark, when are you releasing your line of custom-built, miniITX Twonky-servers?

/Nc

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Re: What NAS Server tu buy?

Post by mgillespie » Mon Mar 03, 2008 10:51 pm

cbhwr wrote:
mgillespie wrote:The PC's I use are extremely low power, (11w max), and fanless, with pretty much zero noise. I run a custom Gentoo linux, which works nicely with TwonkyMedia.

Many of the NAS units are cumbersome to install Twonky onto, a search here should highlight that, the ones that are officially supported, you have wait for the vendor (not Twonky) to release new firmware updates.
So, Mark, when are you releasing your line of custom-built, miniITX Twonky-servers?

/Nc
Available at a retailer near you soon :-)

Seriously though, building your own, and rolling your own Linux configuration, means you get EXACTLY what you want, no compromises. My MiniITX based server runs a EPIA ML600, 1GB of RAM, 1GB of flash for the OS, and a USB2 500GB Western Digital external drive for my media.

As well as twonky (It's main purpose), it also does web HTTP serving (HTTP and HTTPS), FTP, Shoutcast, SSHD, BitTorrent client, Samba, web proxy and a email server...
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Re: What NAS Server tu buy?

Post by typer » Sun Mar 09, 2008 1:05 am

I've got this one: http://www.reichelt.de/?ARTICLE=77994

Approx 350 EUR including an internal as well as an external (USB) hard drive. Installed Debian Etch (no GUI, I'm doing everything via SSH), runs Twonky, Apache Webserver (SSL!), blogging software (Serendipity) including MySQL. No problems at all, still plenty resources left to install additional software. But you require in-depth Linux knowledge. Power consumption is 20 to 25 Watts.

Andreas

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Re: What NAS Server tu buy?

Post by blablabla » Sun Mar 09, 2008 11:21 pm

Hey!

Thankyou for the information! You are great!!!


I wonder if its difficult to setup own linux system, i have done this many many years ago when I was at the university. I think i will need some kind of gui. ;) Any suggestions on how to install a system without spending many sex-less nights?


The Gigabyte case, mainboard & cpu looks very cheap. All I need is only some ram and a hdd drive... @typer : do you run your server without any fans?


bye
Andre

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Re: What NAS Server tu buy?

Post by typer » Mon Mar 10, 2008 1:18 am

Hi,

a Linux computer meant to act as a server only does not require a GUI. A GUI is a waste of resources.

Setting up Linux is not too difficult - but don't expect it to be a task that can be accomplished on one afternoon. But you'll be happy afterwards because the system perfectly suits your needs, as mgillespie said.

The hard drive mounting frame for the Gigabyte "machine" is equipped with a small fan. Compared to the noise a desktop PC produces, this fan is very quiet, but not silent. You might do without it, if the computer is operated in a cool environment like a cellar.

You'll also need to buy RAM (I recommend 1 GB, approx 25 EUR). If a 320 GB hard drive is sufficient, you don't need to attach an external drive because notebook drives with this capacity are available (currently ~130 EUR). If you need more disk space, I recommend buying a small notebook drive (80 GB or so) and a large external drive. For installing Linux you'll probably require a CD drive. I didn't manage to attach it via USB because it wasn't recognized, so I connected it directly to the IDE port.

Andreas

blablabla
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Re: What NAS Server tu buy?

Post by blablabla » Tue Mar 25, 2008 2:37 pm

Hey!

@tpyer : thank you for the information.

@mgillespie : i think a µ-itx solution can work for me... what cpu would you recomend? I would like to have a fanlas solution (or maybe a very quiet fan) and with low power. Do you think a mobile CPU would be better? And what mainboard would you recommend. Is a celeron 2,8 GHz to much power? Is there anythink else i should think about?


Thank you & bye
Andrej

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Re: What NAS Server tu buy?

Post by mgillespie » Wed Mar 26, 2008 12:08 am

VIA based systems are the best, as their C3/C7/EPIA series are fanless, and very low power (6w - 15w max on mine). It's 600Hmz CPU, totally underwhelming by modern standards, but more than enough to run a console based Linux system (will do XWindows too, and has hardware assisted MPEG decoders).

Plenty og info and prices here: http://www.mini-itx.com/store/?c=2#p1629

Prices for the basic models start at £59. Remember to factor in memory, HDD, case, PSU.

Think about what other things you want to do with it. If it's going todo web/ftp/twonky and other tasks, give it reasonable RAM (512MB or 1GB). I would personally recomment Gentoo linux, as you build it yourself, and it only includes the components you want.

Most importantly, ask yourself what's important, silent low power, or slightly more power, and a fan. For me, my desktop does the latter, so I went for low/power silent as my important...
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