A File Server for the Home

I've been thinking about building an inexpensive file server for the home for quite a while now. My primary home desktop has been multi-purpose- I use it for browsing the web, reading email, occasionally playing games and for storing all of the files that we consider important (pictures, music, home videos, backups, etc). I've wanted to be able to do other things with this computer - mostly trying out new software, operating systems, etc. I've also wanted to be able to dual boot both Ubuntu and Windows (only so that I could play a wider range of games that require Windows). But I haven't felt free to do so since keeping those files safe and accessible was the first priority. From time to time I would research different options, even trying out some of the choices in Virtual Machines on my main desktop. I've had envy for dedicated NASs like QNAP and Drobo, but never felt comfortable about spending that much. I recently decided to build a dedicated machine running Freenas. It has been a very good experience - the system I put together was relatively cheap, the Freenas software is very simple to use, the services it offers covers most of what I want to do, and it is very fast - accessing files across the network is simple and quick. I've also added some additional software to Freenas. I previously used Galleon to provide media for my TiVo. Just as I wanted to move my files from my desktop to the NAS, I wanted to move some of the other services to the NAS. I initially tried getting Galleon to run on Freenas but ran in to the problem of the wrapper Galleon uses to run java not being available for Freebsd (the OS that Freenas is currently based on). I then changed course to use pyTivo, which I was able to get running without too much trouble. That experience will be the basis for another post.

Now that I have my files copied over to the NAS, I am free to pull my current machine apart and do new things with it. I've already installed Windows on one drive and then re-installed Ubuntu as a dual boot option. I've started playing Dragon Age: Online under Windows. I'm back browsing the web and reading email under Ubuntu. All of the machines in the house are now backing themselves up to the NAS. Things are working out :)