Open-E NAS Solutions for Data Storage

A NAS is an independent computer connected to your network that allows multiple users to access data simultaneously, provides built‑in data redundancy (RAID), and can run background tasks like automated backups and snapshots.

An external hard drive is a single-device storage unit connected directly to a single computer, with no built‑in redundancy or multi‑user access capabilities that a NAS system has.

The NAS system provides file‑level access (appears as a shared network folder) and is used for general file sharing over standard Ethernet.

SAN provides block‑level access (appearing as a local, physical hard drive) and is used for high‑performance workloads such as databases and virtualization over a dedicated high‑speed network.

A NAS system offers private, high‑speed local connectivity (LAN/WAN), no recurring capacity fees, and full control over data privacy and security.

It is essential for businesses with strict compliance requirements, large file volumes, or the need for centralized, shared data storage.

A standard NAS system is designed for small offices or home use, with simpler features and limited scalability.

An enterprise NAS system is built for business‑critical workloads, with high availability, advanced data storage protection, clustering, and support for large user bases and high performance.

NAS can run on standard servers or dedicated NAS appliances; key requirements are enough RAM, a reliable network, and support for multiple drives and RAID. For production use, enterprise‑class hardware (server, NAS/enterprise drives, 10 GbE+) is recommended.

Because NAS software is independent of the underlying hardware, it can avoid vendor lock-in, enabling easier server upgrades or replacements and often delivering better price-to-performance than closed appliance systems, making it effectively hardware-agnostic.

However, NAS solutions can also be delivered as preconfigured hardware appliances, in which case they may introduce hardware vendor lock-in, depending on the vendor’s model

Estimate current data storage usage + 20–30% growth; select sufficient drives and an appropriate RAID level for performance and redundancy. 

Size the network and cache (SSDs) for the workload, and plan for future expansion (e.g., more bays, higher network speed, expansion units).

Professional NAS systems support vertical scaling (replacing smaller disks with larger ones) or horizontal scaling (adding an expansion unit or JBOD). It allows capacity to grow without migrating all data to a completely new system.

Thin provisioning allows you to “over‑allocate” data storage to users: you can tell a user they have 10 TB of space, but the NAS system uses only the physical disk space they actually consume. It prevents the waste of expensive storage capacity and simplifies capacity planning.

All-flash storage significantly improves data storage infrastructure performance, with further profits from adding more drives (RAID groups), leveraging SSDs for read/write caching, and upgrading hardware such as faster CPUs, more RAM, and 10/25 GbE networking. Additionally, configuring multiple network paths can substantially boost throughput and IOPS.

A NAS system can support tens to thousands of users and devices, depending on hardware (CPU, RAM, drives) and network bandwidth. High‑end NAS systems are designed to serve many concurrent users with large files and high I/O workloads.

NAS can be used for virtualization (e.g., VMware NFS datastores, Hyper‑V SMB shares) and some databases, especially when performance is not extremely demanding. For high‑performance, low‑latency workloads (large databases, high‑IOPS VMs), SAN (block storage) is usually preferred.

Your NAS system is only as fast as your network: 1 GbE limits throughput to ~110 MB/s, which is fine for light workloads but can bottleneck video editing or virtualization. For high‑demand tasks, upgrading to 10 GbE or higher is required to match the speed of internal drives and SSDs.

The NAS system is ideal for shared files such as documents, spreadsheets, presentations, media (photos, videos, music), and backups. It works well for any unstructured data that multiple users need to access and edit simultaneously.

Yes, a NAS system is a very common backup target for servers, workstations, and virtual machines, especially when using backup software or built‑in snapshot/replication features. Centralizing backups on a NAS system simplifies management and ensures all backups are stored in a single secure, accessible location.

Yes, the NAS system is well‑suited for large files such as video, CAD/CAM data, and backups, especially when configured with sufficient bandwidth and appropriate RAID levels. Proper tuning (network, RAID, cache) ensures smooth streaming and fast transfers.

NAS systems typically support NFS (Linux/Unix), SMB/CIFS (Windows, macOS), FTP/SFTP (for file transfers), AFP (older macOS), and WebDAV (for web apps and mobile). They allow seamless file sharing across different operating systems and devices.

The NAS system creates a single, shared repository where all departments can store and access documents, eliminating data scattered across PCs and local servers. Centralization improves collaboration, reduces duplication, and simplifies data storage and backup management.

Centralization reduces the need for many small servers and storage devices, lowers power and management costs, and increases disk utilization. It also simplifies backup, security, and access control, saving time and resources.

1. Plan capacity and performance.
2. Choose hardware and RAID level.
3. Install and configure the NAS infrastructure.
4. Set up shares, users, and permissions.
5. Configure snapshots/replication, and migrate data in phases.

Use user/group accounts and set read/write permissions at the share and folder level; many NAS systems (such as Open-E JovianDSS) integrate with Active Directory or LDAP for centralized control. It ensures that employees can access only the resources they are authorized to access.

Yes, most NAS systems support quotas (size limits) per user, group, or folder to prevent a single user from consuming the entire data storage capacity. It helps enforce fair usage and avoid unexpected capacity issues.

Yes, most business NAS systems can integrate with Active Directory or LDAP, enabling centralized user and group management and allowing users to access NAS shares with their domain credentials. It simplifies administration in larger environments.

Yes, most NAS systems support secure remote access via VPN or private web portals, allowing you to access your files from anywhere without compromising your local network’s security. For maximum security, use strong passwordsand encrypted connections.

RAID is not mandatory, but it protects against drive failure. Without RAID, losing a drive means losing the data on that drive. Therefore, RAID is strongly recommended for important data.

Modern NAS systems (such as Open-E JovianDSS) use checksums on all data and metadata to detect corruption and can self‑heal from redundant copies (mirror/RAID‑Z) if available. It helps maintain data integrity over time and protects against silent corruption.

Yes, Open-E JovianDSS-based NAS systems support snapshots (point‑in‑time copies) and replication (copying data to another NAS or site) for fast recovery and disaster recovery.

Snapshots allow quick rollback after accidental deletion or ransomware, while replication ensures data is available at a secondary location.

Beyond firewalls and access control, the most effective defense is read-only snapshots and immutable backups. If attacked, you can roll back the NAS to a state before the infection, minimizing downtime and data loss.

Clustering is useful when downtime is unacceptable for business file servers and virtualization, and you need continuous access to files and applications. In a high-availability cluster, if a node fails, the remaining node automatically takes over, minimizing disruption.

Use the built‑in Open-E JovianDSS dashboard to check disk health (SMART and RAID status), pool usage, and performance (IOPS and bandwidth). Apply external solutions such as CHECKMK. Set up email/SNMP alerts for disk failures, high usage, and other critical events.

• Daily/weekly: review alerts, capacity, and performance.
• Monthly: run a RAID scrub/check to detect and repair silent corruption.
• After any major change or incident: verify that everything is working as expected.

• Use RAID or mirroring for important data.
• Keep regular backups (3‑2‑1 rule: 3 copies, 2 media types, 1 offsite).
• Use snapshots and retention policies for quick, safe recovery.
• Proactively monitor health and capacity.
• Keep software up to date.