What NAS should I use for movies and TV shows?

locutus1

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I have a lot of movies and TV shows and would like to put it all on a NAS but I'm not sure which brand I should get. I've never used a NAS before. The NAS will be accessible from my network and I will stream wirelessly from the NAS to my TV. The only NAS I've read a lot about is Drobo. The 5D has 5 bays. Drobo sent me an email about their newest model - the 5C. I haven't read about it yet so I don't know the differences. I know there are many other brands. QNAP is one. I also know Drobo is proprietary so if the NAS fails, you can't read the data. You have to wait for them to send you a new NAS. Other brands are not proprietary, right?
However, with Drobo you can replace just 1 drive if you want to increase storage space. With any other NAS, if you run out of space, don't you have to replace all the drives at the same time? That means Drobo is cheaper since you only need to buy 1 drive at a time.
So I'm not sure which one I should get. There might also be things I don't know about when setting up a NAS. Any advice is appreciated.
 
Hi There, I have worked with several brands of NAS, from netgear, qnap to synology. I would recommend you have a look at the Synology ones, how
many drives do you need? their software is fantastic. You can format the drives with different types of raid or synologys hybrid approach that allows you to have different sizes of hard drive. Depending on your configuration you can replace just one hard drive to increase space. Depending on budget have a look at the DS916+, DS416 play,Ds416, DS416j. Also you can read this to look into the different raid options: DiskStation Manager - Knowledge Base | Synology Inc.
 
In terms of replacing drives can you confirm what you actually mean? I have interpreted this to be a case of you simply running out of storage space say on a 3Tb HDD & then wanting to replace it with a 6Tb drive; correct?
If RAID is what you have in mind then that is a different matter. I would however reiterate that you would be better off having a backup of your NAS than a RAID set up.
 
I started with a 2 bay DS212j, I now have a DS414 Synology. You only need to fit one drive at a time. You can use RAID, I do not. My drives are separate, & I backup to an external usb drive plugged into the NAS.
Because, as everyone says, " RAID isn't backup"
 
Completely agree with the above comments, Raid isn't a backup!! and that is important to bare in mind. I have one of the NAS boxes backing up everything to the amazon drive that way you can restore everything if anything happens to the NAS.
 
You could get 2 synology boxes and have them synced if RAID 5 isn't good enough.

I'd go synology. Best software. And easy to use.
 
I'm using a HP MicroServer for my NAS but importantly it's running the Synology DSM software which is awesome. Been running flawlessly for a couple of years now.

I am now considering replacing it with a DS1515+.
 
Anther Synology recommendation here.

QNAP and Asustor are worth a look.

Avoid Drobo like the plague.
 
Hi There, I have worked with several brands of NAS, from netgear, qnap to synology. I would recommend you have a look at the Synology ones, how
many drives do you need? their software is fantastic. You can format the drives with different types of raid or synologys hybrid approach that allows you to have different sizes of hard drive. Depending on your configuration you can replace just one hard drive to increase space. Depending on budget have a look at the DS916+, DS416 play,Ds416, DS416j. Also you can read this to look into the different raid options: DiskStation Manager - Knowledge Base | Synology Inc.

How many drives do I need? Well, I thought RAID was the way to go. I've heard "RAID is not a backup" but you can use single or dual drive redundancy - at least with Drobo you can. So I've been told to start with 4 drives - 2 for storage and 2 for backup. If a drive fails, you remove it and use one of the backups. RMA the drive if it's in warranty and then put the new one back in the NAS as the new backup. Isn't this the idea? Currently, I have everything on a usb drive, with 2 backups of everything. I've heard of Synology. If I can replace 1 drive at a time to increase space and it's not proprietary then that sounds good.
 
In terms of replacing drives can you confirm what you actually mean? I have interpreted this to be a case of you simply running out of storage space say on a 3Tb HDD & then wanting to replace it with a 6Tb drive; correct?
If RAID is what you have in mind then that is a different matter. I would however reiterate that you would be better off having a backup of your NAS than a RAID set up.

Yes, by replacing drives I mean if I have 4 2TB drives (2 for storage and 2 for backup) and I run out of space then I replace one of the storage drives with a 4TB drive. As I write this I now have a question, if I replace one of the storage drives with a bigger drive, don't I have to replace one of the backup drives, too?
 
In terms of replacing drives can you confirm what you actually mean? I have interpreted this to be a case of you simply running out of storage space say on a 3Tb HDD & then wanting to replace it with a 6Tb drive; correct?
If RAID is what you have in mind then that is a different matter. I would however reiterate that you would be better off having a backup of your NAS than a RAID set up.

I thought using RAID was standard when using a NAS? 4 or 5 drives - 2 for backup (dual redundancy) and the rest for storage. If a drive fails, you use one of the backups. Using a NAS without using RAID never occurred to me.
 
Looks like everyone likes Synology. That's good to know. As I've said I've heard "Raid is not a backup" but you can use single or dual redundancy so why wouldn't you use that instead of just having a drive or 2 that are backed up? Currently, everything is on a 4TB drive with backups on a few smaller drives.
 
... you can use single or dual redundancy so why wouldn't you use that instead of just having a drive or 2 that are backed up? ...

There are (at least) two scenarios in which a backup will save your data where a redundant system will not. The most common is accidental deletion - a backup will still have the data. The second is catastrophic failure of the storage device, taking out *all* the drives. Redundant systems are primarily useful where you need uninterrupted access to your data, the system continues to operate while the defective drive is replaced and the redundancy restored. Backups (at least two, one off-site) are always required.

Most domestic setups do not need uninterrupted access to the data, a delay of a few hours/days while the data is restored from a backup is usually acceptable. For a business that is usually *not* acceptable.
 
On a Synology you can use their own hybrid raid which I use on an 8 disk NAS.

I use single disk redundancy (SHR-1) which is there if a single disk in my array fails to carry on working with no stoppage required. If my NAS borks or I lose 2 disks or more than I'm screwed. That's why I have a full backup. RAID is redundancy not backup.

I doubt I'd bother with any RAID type with an array of 4 disks or less.
 
OK, so if I'm not going to use RAID as many of you are suggesting, what's the difference between a NAS with 4 drives (2 for storage and 2 for backup) and 4 USB drives (2 for storage and 2 for backup). I guess I don't understand how it works when you're not using RAID. I thought you were always using RAID if you're using a NAS. What does the software do for you if you're not using RAID?
 
The NAS gives you the ability to show as a single pooled drive, that is connected via your router to any device anywhere that has an internet connection and is always on.

4 USB drives can be seen as 4 separate drives only on the device they're connected to or shared via a PC that's switched on. You switch the PC off the drives don't work.

If all you want is to connect it to a single device like a streamer or to watch on your PC then you don't really need a NAS. I use mine to stream music all over the house, video to 3 TV's and a home theatre and also to mobile devices when at home or out and about if I feel like it. It also backs up my PC, laptop and mobile devices.

As you don't really get what a NAS is for I'd hazard you don't really need one. I'd also suggest, going back to your OP, that streaming wirelessly is a bit of a hit and miss for a lot of people, moreso if you're talking about higher bitrate material.
 
And to add to what Sloppy Bob has said if you have a NAS with 4 drives, you do not have to use at 4 drives at the same time.
To clear up your confusion about RAID, if you have a RAID 5 set up for instance, all the drives but one can be absent so that in the event of a drive failing you can replace that drive and have continuity.
 
The NAS gives you the ability to show as a single pooled drive, that is connected via your router to any device anywhere that has an internet connection and is always on.

4 USB drives can be seen as 4 separate drives only on the device they're connected to or shared via a PC that's switched on. You switch the PC off the drives don't work.

If all you want is to connect it to a single device like a streamer or to watch on your PC then you don't really need a NAS. I use mine to stream music all over the house, video to 3 TV's and a home theatre and also to mobile devices when at home or out and about if I feel like it. It also backs up my PC, laptop and mobile devices.

As you don't really get what a NAS is for I'd hazard you don't really need one. I'd also suggest, going back to your OP, that streaming wirelessly is a bit of a hit and miss for a lot of people, moreso if you're talking about higher bitrate material.

Streaming wirelessly to my TV works fine. This isn't something I haven't done yet. I've been doing it for a couple of years. I keep running out of space and end up buying a bigger usb drive. I was told a NAS would be the most efficient way to do what I want.
 
If you want a NAS, buy a NAS. But I'm not sure why you need one, when it runs out of space you'll just do the same thing you do now which is buy a larger drive. If you can stream now with no issues then great, as I said it's a hit and miss especially for higher bitrate material, so either you have a good wifi signal or you're watching smaller files.

If you're only connecting to one TV/PC then a JBOD enclosure might do you.

Something like this https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hornettek-...qid=1477373754&sr=8-1&keywords=jbod+enclosure

It's not a NAS and has no processing, all it does is house 4 disks and power them, then connect to your PC via a single USB cable. It doesn't network or have RAID etc.

JBOD= Just a Bunch of Disks.
 
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If you want a NAS, buy a NAS. But I'm not sure why you need one, when it runs out of space you'll just do the same thing you do now which is buy a larger drive.

Yes, but what happens after that? There are several differences.
1) Right now, I buy a bigger usb drive and then I have to copy everything to the bigger drive which takes me longer each time I buy a new drive. Next time I'll be copying over 3TB. I don't want it to copy 24/7 because then the computer is slow to use so I only copy when I'm not using it so it takes days and days...

I was told a NAS and RAID was better. When I replace a drive, the NAS would go through the process of rebuilding the data. I don't know how long it would take but it would definitely be faster than copying all the files.

2) The NAS rebuilds the data automatically - at least Drobo does - so I don't have to do anything after replacing a drive. I won't be getting a Drobo, though.

So it would be faster and easier. That's 2 differences.

3) USB drives obviously take up more space than NAS drives. That's 3 differences.


If you can stream now with no issues then great, as I said it's a hit and miss especially for higher bitrate material, so either you have a good wifi signal or you're watching smaller files.

I watch movies and TV shows as I said in my first post. It's not perfect but 99% of the time it works.
 

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