Network Attached Storage Systems Explained

Network attached storage used to be a very expensive system and was only used in corporate networks. With technology prices dropping year after year this technology is now available to the home user. Deciding what to buy and what all the specifications are can be confusing.

Body:

When it comes to data storage you can guarantee a number of things, you will never have enough and space will inevitably run out. Adding extra hard disk drives will help solve the problem but eventually the space will run out again. Long term there may be problems with drive failure causing the loss of data and if you have ever had to replace a computer with a new one then transferring all that data to the new system can be time consuming. If you have multiple computers then sharing data between them can be slow and the need for the computers to be switched on can be annoying. Luckily this is where network attached storage can be a useful asset to most household computer usage.

What is a NAS?
Network attached storage or NAS as it is commonly known is a system of hard disk drives that are housed in a case or box and connect to your existing network. This can be via a cable which plugs into the network switch or router allowing any data stored on it to be accessed by computers or laptops which are also part of that network. Sometimes referred to as media servers they can be useful for storing digital media such as music or video. These systems can still be vulnerable to data loss due to fact that the hard disk drive can fail as it could inside a computer.

Some NAS systems have the ability to keep your data safe by using a system known as RAID (Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks). RAID allows a series of hard disk drives to work together as one large disk. The way that the data is written in a RAID means that it is spread over the disks and if one drive fails then the data can be rebuilt from the other disks. Typical home media or NAS devices tend to have two hard disks installed that have to be the same size. The data is then written to both drives. In the event that one drive fails the other will contain the data. Obviously, in the unfortunate event that both drives fail then the data would be lost. This is known as RAID 1 or a mirrored RAID. There are many levels of RAID and they work using more drives to make the final array.

The Interface
NAS devices use an interface that can be accessed via a web browser such as Internet Explorer or Firefox. This interface allows management of the device from creating folders to backing up the entire system. If you have ever had to access a wireless interface then this is the same system as can be expected on the NAS.

The Home Setup
If you currently have a wireless router installed in your home then expanding the network with attached storage is a fairly simple task. They are normally connected using a standard network cable from the device to the network router or switch depending on your setup. Once the interface has been accessed and all setup steps are followed then the NAS should be available to any computers, laptops and even mobile devices allowing a central storage space accessible around the home.

The author has worked in the IT industry for a number of years in support for various public and private bodies. The company for which he now works IvoryEgg is a supplier of network attached storage.