Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Benefits of Using Nas to Backup Data

There are many ways to backup data. Most citizen have an external hard drive and copy their documents and photos over to it every now and then. Or you might have some backup software running that automates the process. The problem with these solutions is that the external hard usually sits on the same desk where the Pc is located. If there is ever a break in and the Pc is stolen, there is a good occasion they'll swipe the external hard drive as well. Likewise if there is a fire, it will likely engulf your Pc and backup hard disk.

A Nas drive, or Network Area storehouse drive allows the external hard disk to be placed elsewhere in the house. Because its physically in a separate location the chances of it being stolen or damaged at the same time as your Pc are greatly reduced. Especially if you get creative and position in a place that's difficult to spot.

Wireless External Hard Drive

In order to keep cost down, many Nas drives do not have wireless capabilities and rely on an ethernet cable which connects the Nas to your home modem/router. From there it can be accessed by all the other Pc's and mobile devices in the house. Any way if you spend a bit more and get one with wireless capability, you can have more flexibility as to where you position it in the house. As long as there's a power point nearby, it could go anywhere along with on top of kitchen cupboards, incommunicable in the bedroom, or anywhere you can think of that's securely away from sight.

Benefits of Using Nas to Backup Data

Another advantage of Nas drives is built in redundancy. The models that hold two hard disks usually offer Raid 1, meaning that each disk is a copy of the other. So if one disk fails, the other is still available. When you replace the faulty one, it rebuilds itself and data is ever lost. Larger Nas drives that hold four or more hard disks offer Raid 5. Raid 5 requies a minimum of four hard disks and one is used for redundancy and total of the remaining disks is your available disk space.

If a house or enterprise has more than one Pc and a whole of mobile devices such as smart phones and conveyable media players, the Nas could instead be used as a central repository where all these devices can passage and use the same data. Because the Nas uses less power than a Pc, all else in the house can still use the data without the Pc having to be on, therefore salvage on power costs. For example you might want to show friends some photos on the Tv, and with the photos stored on the Nas there is no need to boot up the Pc.

These Nas best practices are just some things you can do with network storage. Some also have built in BitTorrent clients, or they may have Dlna which allows media streaming. Any way the best thing they do is enhance the security of backups. Configured properly and safely positioned in the house, a Nas drive provides additional peace of mind that your data is securely backup up and separated from your everyday Pc.

Benefits of Using Nas to Backup Data

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