Boundaries of Space

I have previously mentioned an external drive I have for my files. I use this disk as a mass storage for client files as well as my music (Don't Steal Music!).

This drive is only 160 GB, and once formatted it goes down to somewhere around 149 because of the space taken by allocation tables and all that good stuff that happens behind the scenes.

I am currently running out of space. And I have given thought of getting a bigger drive, but I believe that if I had just any external drive I'd not be making the most out of my storage, so I've decided to get a NAS. For those of you new to storage NAS or Network Attached Storage allows for disk space shared in a network environment. Unlike a regular external disk unit, several machines can have simultaneous access without bogging down the host machine. It is in fact it's own host machine and when you're working collaboratively this can be an advantage.

Now there are several places where you can get a prefab NAS or you can build your own. I have a spare motherboard with a cpu and memory so I'm taking this route.

If youdon't have the parts, following the previously linked guide can set you back anywhere from $200 to $500 USD, depending on how much storage you want (you can reach 1 TB easy with around $420 by looking around pricewatch.com . Just go over and check out their Hard Drive section and you'll see what I mean.

If you have storage needs and you have the little extra cash around, I recommend you go for it. I for one will tell you that if you build a wireless NAS you'll be set for the long haul.