Network attached storage

1. NAS
( Comes out of the closet )
Greg Thomas
Texas A&M University

2. Our History of File Sharing
“Repurposed” older computers hidden away in closets
• Upkeep
• Access Security ( profound lack of it )
• Updates
• Management Access ( physical and virtual )
• Geographic challenge
• Network security issues
• COUNTY IT “HELPERS”
We had a tiger by the tail and GROWING demand

3. Network Attached Storage
AKA: The Server, Shared folder, P drive, Common drive, Shared drive
Where we started ^ Where we are ^
• Security issues
• Hacked up Linux OS
• NTFS backup destinations *

4. So, A&M has a network?
El Paso to California
575 miles
250 county offices
Bunch of Research
and Extension facilities

5. County offices connected to WAN almost entirely by private ISP
More and more connected to host county networks
Most - really notSome - really good

6. Netgear ReadyNAS RN 10221D
www.smallnetbuilder.com/nas/nas-charts/view
www.pcmag.com/products/25618?Price=[0%20TO%20500]
www.smallnetbuilder.com/nas/nas-reviews/32161-netgear-readynas-rn102-reviewed
The criteria used to decide:
Needed to be under $400 (less if possible)
Needed to be 1 Terabyte (upgradable to more)
Needed to be RAID 1 (some level of protection) *** Uses “X-RAID” or RAID version whatever…
Needed to support USB 3.0 and/or eSATA for external backups, using NTFS file system
Needed to have a decent warranty ( 3 year with 24 X7 phone support )
Needed to have a cloud storage / access feature ( allows us some level of remote management i.e. ReadyCloud)
Needed to have a built-in backup utility with scheduler that might support network/cloud
Needed to have some level of security / encryption
Needed to be at least somewhat easy to setup
Relevant Reviews

7. We settled on the NetGear ReadyNAS RN10221D –
2 bay model that comes with 2 - 1TB drives.
Listed as 2 Terabyte capacity but with RAID 1 - really get 900 + Gigabytes
It is upgradable by replacing the drives with 2TB or 3TB drives
Most vendors list this model around $350
We have paid from $230 to $355 for them
Supply is not a problem
Probably can get quantity discounts from CDWG et al
Can be purchased with no drives for less than $150 (model RN10200)
If you have a supply of drives - that makes sense
* We’ve have had 1 drive go out
Netgear support sent a replacement the next day
Bays are hot swappable and the box was never really down
We rebooted it anyway...

8. The Standard Configuration Template
County Office NAS Configuration Notes
County Office:
Date of installation:
Regional IT Specialist:
Unit hardware & Network
Unit Make / Model Netgear Ready NAS RN102
Unit Serial Number
Firmware version
Unit Name
IP number assigned
network mask
gateway
administrative login account
password
Groups and Folder Structures
Groups created
Include names & permissions
granted
Shared Folders created
Include names groups allowed
access
Available online for RITS
Word document
Held in county named folders
County Office NAS Records Template.docx
The SCT provides:
• Consistency across state
• Pre-deployment configuration
• Few surprises for third parties
• Standard drive mappings
• Standard backup jobs
• Standard User Accounts
• Standard folder names
• Standard permissions for folders

9. What’s Under the Hood…
The NAS does a WHOLE lot more than
just sharing files…
• Office on-site/off-site backup
• Media sharing
• Remote file access (ftp, sftp, web)
• ReadyDrop / Dropbox interface
• PC, Mac and Linux environments
• Disaster recovery

10. The Grittys and Nittys
Accessing across the LAN
Which one is it?
RAIDar program discovers NAS
Configurable mgt accounts

11. Accessing across the WAN
ReadyCloud – meh…
Way better than nothing but you can’t
really get your hands dirty
Good overview and status monitoring
of numerous installations where ever

12. Accessing across the WAN
Some drill-down but
no real management

13. Remote access by VPN or remote control software ( TeamViewer ) allows
-- really good remote management --
• Various protocols for remote file access
• Secure protocols, ports etc. configurable
• User account/protocol access configuration
• User account access control via “cloud” management tools

14. The MENUS -

15. The MENUS -
Shared elements

16. Power timing – off on weekends?
Backup ( here ) means replicating the NAS
Alerts – handy and useful tool

17. Accounts
Groups - First
Users - Second
Interface is NOT
Intuitive and some Linux
experience is comforting
Interface is also very efficient once you catch the rhythm and beat

18. User accounts
• Extreme granularity
• Easily created/deleted
• Effects are immediate
Assign rights and
permissions to groups…
then add users to each
group
User accounts and Group accounts offer sharp focus on rights and permissions

19. Way more tools and applications available…

20. Cloud access…
Useful but remotely disappointing

21. BACKUP ( worth the price alone )
Little bit quirky… not in a bad way
Each folder requires it’s own backup job, schedule, destination etc.

22. Creating a Backup job – The usual stuff in the usual way…
• Give the job a name
• Tell it a source (folder)
• Tell it a destination
Destinations can be external HD’s or network locations

23. Creating a Backup job – The usual stuff in the usual way…
• When it will happen
• How often it happens

24. Creating a Backup job – The usual stuff in the usual way…
Each item (folder) is a
different job
Quirky…maybe – BUT
very granular
Program the magic button
to do whatever.
Front USB (3) port works
well with external HD’s
Assign the “Friday swap”
to one staff member

25. Q&(maybe) A