Guide to Setting Up FreeNAS
For many of us, a home network is not complete without some storage attached. NAS devices and home servers are the ideal way to serve up media throughout a home, and for folks who like to roll their own systems, FreeNAS has long been a popular OS option. Certainly it is a popular topic here in our forums and a favorite of our own, Michael Welter. Part of the appeal of FreeNAS is how easy it is to deploy, but if you have been on the fence about taking FreeNAS for a spin, perhaps a guide is in order. Our friends over at Engadget have put together a nice step-by-step guide for installing and configuring a basic FreeNAS installation, complete with screenshots for nearly every step. I would definitely take their advice and go with ZFS for the file system and check against the FreeNAS hardware requirements before splurging on new equipment.
What is FreeNAS you say? Put simply, it’s is an operating system based on FreeBSD that brings with it a snazzy web interface for management, and all the protocols you need to share files between Windows, Mac and Linux. In other words, a perfect solution for your digital bookshelf. Let’s get to it.