Synology and QNAP NAS come with many extra plugins to give their software additional features. If you already have a 64bit computer with 8 GB of ram sitting around doing nothing, why not put it to good use and turn it into a NAS box that will cost you next to nothing except for little bit of your time. New store bought NAS boxes also offer certain advantages like much smaller form factor and quiet enclosures compared to using older computers. It will even plug directly into your TV with a HDMI cable.Īlthough, once you start adding the additional cost of four drives, you could have well over $1200 dollars invested in this NAS. Granted you are getting some really great hardware specs housed in a nicely designed enclosure with great software. Especially when you start looking at models that contain more than 2 drives.įor Example, let's take a look at the highly rated and popular QNAP-469 Pro. While commercial NAS boxes are very nice and offer a ton of great features, they also can get very expensive. This may be the prime motivator for those that would like to own NAS but are on a shoestring budget. It costs less than commercial alternatives.

This is also a perfect option for people that like to do things for themselves.įreeNAS has the Most Potent Rock Solid Open-Source NAS Software for Building your NASīenefits of Building Your Own NAS A NAS box gives you access to your files from anywhere in your home network or even from across the world.īuilding your own NAS box using Free NAS software offers some great benefits and financial rewards. Although, for home use, a home brew NAS box to use for sharing and backing up files across your network will work really well. This is not something you probably should do if your business depends on a NAS for backup or storage.

Using the excellent open source Free NAS Software from, you can set up your own NAS box in no time. If you have had a chance to read our popular article, Synology Vs Qnap best NAS for 2015, you will see some of the best selling NAS boxes available today.įor those on a tight budget that can't afford to shell out a lot of money for a professional NAS, we will show you how to build your own using an old PC you probably already have laying around the house.

Free budget software stand along