Low power home-made NAS or QNAP / Synology ?

  • Hi,


    I am searching for some information about NAS solution since one month, and I am wondering if it is a better option to build my own NAS with OpenMediaVault, or to buy an expensive QNAP or Synology NAS.


    I would like to know if it is possible to have the same performance with a home made NAS than a commercial NAS (power consumption and flow-rate...) at a price below 100$, and with the possibility to expand in the future up to 4 disks. I have already HDD, so I only need the computer board and the case.


    The better solution for low power NAS seems to be Helios4, but it is a little bit expensive, and not available right now.



    Is the stability is the same with OpenMediaVault and commercial solutions ?


    Thanks for your help.

  • the possibility to expand in the future up to 4 disks

    Rule of thumb: the more disks the less energy efficient, the more expensive and the more hassles (sound, vibrations and faster wear down due to these vibrations).


    An ODROID-HC1 or HC-2 with one single 2.5" or 3.5" disk accompanied by an optional USB2 attached (backup) disk for example is able to fully saturate a Gigabit Ethernet NAS connection.

    • Offizieller Beitrag

    Yes, it is possible to build or buy a DIY NAS that is competitive with commercial products.


    Yes, the stability is the same or better. As long as you don't reconfigure all the time. Get an extra system to experiment with if you know you will be fiddling.


    With OMV and a DIY NAS you need to know or learn a little more about how the NAS and how the system work. Could be either good or bad. But in return you get much greater flexibility and the ability to scale up and fix problems much easier.


    In fact, OMV is only a part of a full Linux server. If you need to do something that isn't supported by OMV, then you have a full Debian Linux server available.


    I have an old 4 bay 411j 12TB Synology NAS. Now it's only used for offline backups. When I needed to upgrade I went with OMV and a bunch of tiny SBCs with single huge HDDs. To expand I just get another tiny SBC with another huge HDD. My old Synology NAS with 4x4TB and RAID gave me 12TB storage. That is the same amount of storage that I get with one tiny HC2 SBC and a 12 TB HDD.

  • Thanks for your answers,


    So, I think I will go for DIY solution. 4 HDD is not the better solution, but for evolution, It is maybe necessary to have at least 2 HDD connection ?


    ODROID-HC1 or HC-2 have only USB2.0 port, isn't it a big disadvantage for evolution as we have a lot of USB3.0 devices ? If I want to do some quick USB backup, it can take close to one day with all my data! Maybe the ODROID-XU4Q is a better option with its USB3.0 ports ?


    I saw some tutorials to setup OMV for beginner, I hope they are not too old and easy to go!

    • Offizieller Beitrag

    I would avoid relying on USB for continuous use. Backups are fine.


    An alternative to connecting the backup drive via slow and/or unreliable USB 2/3 to the NAS is to connect via the network.


    If you have a stationary PC, in the network, with a spare SATA port, plug the backup drive in there. Then you can run backups as fast as your network allows. Either make the drive available using a windows share or boot to Linux from a thumbdrive. You could even connect the backup drive to your PC using USB3...


    That said, if you use rsync you only need to copy over changes and new files. That should be doable even over USB2. But the very first backup would, of course, take a while to finish.


    Or do as I have done and get an extra HC2 only for backups over the network. 8)

  • Maybe the ODROID-XU4Q is a better option with its USB3.0 ports ?


    Nope, this device is horrible as NAS and the major reason Hardkernel developed HC1 and HC2. On the XU4 the USB3 ports are behind an internal USB hub (reliability sucks) and the USB3-A receptacles are the reason for an awful lot of disk connection hassles.


    TL;DR: If you can then try to avoid USB storage, especially USB3 (SuperSpeed) with USB3-A receptacles and cables (USB-C is the answer to USB3-A receptacles crappiness but unfortunately still not everywhere).

  • Hey. That's my first post over here.


    Reading this forums a few days now... I've decided to go with OMV and need the hardware to start...


    Would there be any advice for another low powered system compared to the HC2.


    Cannot wait until it will be shipped - need a new NAS quite fast. So I have to go with alternatives.


    What would be a good alternative?


  • Nope, this device is horrible as NAS and the major reason Hardkernel developed HC1 and HC2. On the XU4 the USB3 ports are behind an internal USB hub (reliability sucks) and the USB3-A receptacles are the reason for an awful lot of disk connection hassles.


    TL;DR: If you can then try to avoid USB storage, especially USB3 (SuperSpeed) with USB3-A receptacles and cables (USB-C is the answer to USB3-A receptacles crappiness but unfortunately still not everywhere).

    Thanks for your help.


    So I need to avoid USB, and a would like to be able to have at least 2 connection for hard disk drive for evolution of capacity without buying a new disk, so what is the best option as HC2 have only one sata port?


    Thanks

    • Offizieller Beitrag

    No, I'd say 2-4 HC2 is about the same price as a single Synology or QNAP 2 bay NAS.


    Depending on exact model and shipping and so on.


    When you add HDDs the price difference is reduced. Unless you use RAID 1 with the Synology or QNAP NAS, then the difference increase...


    You could use the price difference to buy bigger and/or better HDDs for the HC2s.


    Feel free to compare prices online yourself.

    • Offizieller Beitrag

    I'm from Sweden. I bought most of my HC2s directly from Korea.


    https://www.hardkernel.com/shop/odroid-hc2-home-cloud-two/


    $54 without shipping. Add $6 for the PSU.


    For two HC2 with shipping $30 (same for France) it comes to $150.


    Add customs fees and VAT.



    You also need a good SD card. SanDisk 32GB A1 is about €10.


    You could also buy a single 12 volt PSU for both HC2. That may be cheaper. I bought one 12 volt 20 A PSU for all my HC2s + Switch + WiFi mesh unit + fan. €19.

    • Offizieller Beitrag

    I use this PSU. It should be suitable for up to 10 HC2 with good short cables. I use it with 7 HC2 and some other 12 volt hardware. Works fine. It is the biggest I could find without a fan. Too big for only 2-3 HC2.


    https://www.amazon.de/dp/B01MRSAT39

  • For one HC2 to begin, it is more than 80€ with custom fees and VAT...


    And for two HC2, we are close to the price of the Helios4 solution with PSU included :


    https://kobol.io/helios4/


    What do you think about the Helios4 ?

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