NAS Build

Oct 15, 2014 computer_build

The build of my new desktop system earlier this year went so well that I thought it’d be fun to build a NAS (Network Attached Storage) system running FreeNAS for my home network.

After a little research, I decided to base the system on one of the new, super-efficient Intel Avoton system-on-a-chip boards. I decided to go with the Supermicro Atom C2758, which seemed perfect for a NAS machine. It had a small form factor (mini-itx) and allowed me to make use of server-grade ECC memory which is especially powerful when combined with the ZFS filesystem from FreeNAS and FreeBSD.

I’ve been incredibly happy with the result, especially after upgrading serveral components on my home network so that I could take advantage of gigabit ethernet speeds. I can now stream media to both of my raspberry pi’s simulaneously, while backing up photos from my desktop without noticing any slowdown from the network or the NAS.

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