This solution explains how to build a home nas , how to secure it and ways to access it remotely from outside the network.
A Network attached storage is a storage device which has a network port and can be shared among the users on a network.
Adding a NAS is similar to having an external hard drive on your network.
The WD 8TB My Cloud EX2 Ultra Network Attached Storage is a good choice for a home based NAS device.
The following are the features of the device.
Supports multiple storage size
The WD 8TB My Cloud EX2 Ultra Network Attached Storage supports various storage size like 4 TB, 8 TB, 12 TB, 16 TB and more. Based on your requirement you can purchase the same.
High performing dual core processor and memory
The NAS supports high performing 1.3 GHz dual-core processor and provides lag-free streaming
How to setup home nas
In this setup, we assume that there is a wireless router at home. Ensure that the following steps are used to setup the NAS.
Step 1 – Assign an IP address to the nas
The IP address which is assigned to the NAS should belong to the same IP address range assigned by the router. For example, if the IP address range assigned by the router is 192.168.1.1-192.168.1.100, the IP address 192.168.1.150 can be used for the NAS.
The IP address should be available and not used by another systems or devices on the network.
Step 2 – Connect the NAS to the router
The nas server would have a network port on it. Ensure that you connect the nas server to the inbuilt switch on the wireless router using an ethernet cable.
Step 3 – Ensure connectivity of the NAS on the network
A ping from any of the systems on the network to the IP address of the NAS can ensure that the device is up and running on the network.
How to secure home NAS
The Home nas can be configured with username and password for access. This would ensure that only authorized users have access to the NAS and its contents. Folder based permissions can also be configured as an additional layer of security.
Also ensure that secure access protocols are configured. For example, Secure FTP should be used instead of FTP. This would ensure that eavesdropping attacks are prevented as the username and password is send encrypted when secure ftp is used.
How to access home nas remotely
There might be instances where you may want to access your home nas device remotely from a different location. For this , you need to setup port forwarding on your home router.
Port forwarding is a feature which would allow users from the internet to connect to an internal IP address for the required service. In this case, port forwarding feature can be configured for the IP address of the NAS server for secure ftp service.
Users from the internet would then connect to the IP address of the wireless router (Public IP address), which would then forward it to the internal NAS device.
Benefits of Home NAS
By having a NAS on your home network, you have a network based storage. You can have all your files stored and accessed from a central location.