Right now I have a NAS running 24/7 for some self hosted apps (p2p, *arr…) and as primary storage for my multimedia files.
This NAS has some limitations because it has a low spec hardware and the OS is “propietary”, so sometimes I have issues with docker or I miss some random feature that “standard” Linux distros have.
I work in IT and deal with the technology at home sometimes feels like a second job. I’m thinking that maybe I could simplify my home hardware avoiding NAS servers and use only a desktop running 24/7. This could give me a lot of flexibility (a standard OS, VMs, standard docker, better hardware, faster file operations because no LAN involved…) and less hardware to deal with.
Does anybody went this way? Any recommendations in favor or against it?
Sorry for my english.
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Yeah, that is my standard way of doing things. Old desktop becomes the server, and it’s specs blow everything I want it to do out of the water, so things like file storage (and the CPU required to encrypt-on-disk), etc have no chance of ever presenting an issue. Though, I do have a pair of Pis with POE hats on them (as well as a POE switch), because I really like POE.
Then I set it up for auto-updates and proceed to ignore it. Love very simple home networking setups that still accomplish every goal.
The dedicated NAS appliances really annoy me. Every time I have had to use one I just think ‘I can just do this in Linux on any random desktop lying around, why am I learning another proprietary thing?’
@lIlIllIlIIIllIlIlII I don’t have a NAS hardware. The only thing I have is 1 old PC that I’m using as a 24/7 server. And it’s just AWESOME! I really encourage you to do it. I have a lot of self-hosted stuff and everything runs smoothly. Even Jellyfin and Frigate at the same time (Both use video encoding and decoding) on my CPU! Because my GPU is just so old (2012) that the system doesn’t even recognize it.
Do you have any concerns about solid state storage life? Are you using any RAID?
@lIlIllIlIIIllIlIlII in my current setup I have 1 SSD and 3 HDDs. Not using any RAID. I still have plans to upgrade the hardware, which is something that isn’t possible using NAS hardware. I need to change almost everything here. Better storage, better RAM and a compatible GPU. The only thing that I’m not worried for now is the CPU, it’s doing a decent job handling everything alone, even 4k video encoding.
I’m in the same boat going the opposite way. I want to move my server stuff to separate hardware from my main PC.
Why not use the NAS as a NAS and pick up a cheap SFF or mini workstation for the compute tasks? Only reason I would ever consider running your endpoint as a server 24/7 is cost/availability of just adding a dedicated box.
im a firm believer in task appropriate stuff… 24/7 server apps should be on a dedicated server box… network storage should only perform storage tasks. i wouldnt use a primary workstation also as server cuz i want to do crazy shit on my workstation. i wouldnt ever want to interfere with my ‘production’ stuff on the server.
ive been quite happy running a headless server and various nas boxes for storage redundancy… my home related i.t. tasks are very minimal now that everything is solidly automated.
Yep I changed my whole setup recently - had a Synology DS920+ running with docker containers for everything. I had started moving stuff off to a NUC because the NAS was starting to struggle.
What I ended up doing was buying a Mac Mini M4 and a DAS, and just running everything on the Mac with it running 24/7, and the DAS just acts like a giant HDD (and it’s running in RAID). Performance of everything is out of this world better, while power draw is significantly less. The Mac Mini M4 is unbeatable as a home server imo.
The Mac Mini M4 is unbeatable as a home server imo.
How do you figure that?
This is what I’ve been trying to figure out, so I’m glad you did it. I have a Synology too and I’ve outgrown it, but building my own server scratch is daunting so I just wanted to hook a DAS up to a mini PC and call it good. But there were a lot of people online saying it was a bad idea.
