I currently have a 10-year old off-the-shelf NAS (Synology) that needs replacing soon. I haven’t done much with it other than the simple things I mention later, so I still consider myself a novice when it comes to NAS, servers, and networking in general, but I’ve been reading a bit lately (which lead my to this sub). For a replacement I’m wondering whether to get another Synology, use an open source NAS/server OS, or just use a Windows PC. Windows is by far the OS I’m most comfortable with so I’m drawn to the final option. However, I regularly see articles and forum posts which frown upon the use Windows for NAS/server purposes even for simple home-use needs, although I can’t remember reading a good explanation of why. I’d be grateful for some explanations as to why Windows (desktop version) is a poor choice as an OS for a simple home NAS/server.
Some observations from me (please critique if any issues in my thinking):
- I initially assumed it was because Windows likely causes a high idle power consumption as its a large OS. But I recently measured the idle power consumption of a celeron-based mini PC running Windows and found it to be only 5W, which is lower than my Synology NAS when idle. It seems to me that any further power consumption savings that might be achieved by a smaller OS, or a more modern Synology, would be pretty negligible in terms of running costs.
- I can see a significant downside of Windows for DIY builds is the cost of Windows license. I wonder is this accounts for most of the critique of Windows? If I went the Windows route I wouldn’t do a DIY build. I would start with a PC which had a Windows OEM licence.
- My needs are very simple (although I think probably represent a majority of home user needs). I need device which is accessible 24/7 on my home network and 1) can provide SMB files shares, 2) act as a target for backing up other devices on home network, 3) run cloud backup software (to back itself up to an off-site backup location) and, 4) run a media server (such as Plex), 5) provide 1-drive redundancy via RAID or a RAID-like solution (such as Windows Storage Spaces). It seems to me Windows is fine for this and people who frown upon Windows for NAS/server usage probably have more advanced needs.
I agree that Windows Desktop has more overhead to run an manage. However, if I remember correctly, Windows Desktop has a limit on the number of open sockets it will allow to listen for incoming connections.
You will hit a point when you SMB shares may drop, and other servers running open listening ports will lose connection. You would be better off using a server OS for the things you want to do. You could try using:
Window Server Linux OS distros FreeBSD
You should install anti-virus on whatever you’re running, and maybe a firewall as well.
I’m just a casual home user in a 4 person household. I’m not looking to create a nas/server for business-purposes or learn business-class networking **. I believe the connection limit in Windows is 20. I’m assuming this means max 20 concurrent connections and if this is the case, we won’t trouble it.
** Probably I put my post in the wrong sub; I didn’t entirely realise what homelabs meant when I posted (it’s just that this sub dominates the reddit search results for home nas/server so seemed a good place to post). But the responses I received have been really useful all the same. I may end up trying one of the linux-based suggestions anyway even though I still think Windows desktop would work ok for my needs.