Setting Up Old PC as NAS Network Media Server

Setting Up Old PC as NAS Network Media Server
We all have tons of photos, film and documents these days which we need to cuck somewhere safe. But buying a bit of kit like a buffalo NAS Media server, can be expensive, set up an old PC as a media server and save yourself some of your doe to spend on chocolate, or shaving foam.

Which PC for NAS Network Media Server

The PC should match the hard drives you want to use (SATA or IDE), it should fit where you want ot tuck it away, and it should be able to run XP (I just find XP easier to network on than previous versions), if it can hold more than two drives great, if it holds one you can use a drive caddy in the DVD bay as an extra hard disk.

This will enable you to use a small form factor PC as a NAS server / network media server. I am using a compaq with the following spec:

• Model: Evo D5S
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• Processor: Pentium 4
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• Processor Speed: 1.5GHz
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• Memory RAM: 384MB

It works just fine, so you certainly don't need anything better than this unless you want to.

Get Started building your own NAS Store / Media Network Store

1. Install XP on a 5 GB partition, and Syncback (a free backup software)
2. Create your main media store on the primary disk using the disk management in windows.
3. Create a secound eqaul or larger partition on you secound hard disk.
4. If you intend to run the PC with no keyboard, enable "network server mode" in the BIOS
5. Set the power scheme to always awake, with "turn off disks" after one hour.
6. Load all of the data
7. Allow remote desktop access.
8. Allow File sharing on your media store partion / drive.
9. Make sure you know your admin password.
10. Disable the login screen.

Mirroring without Dynamic Disks
If you want to keep you photos and music double safe, you need to keep a secound copy in case of hard drive death. You can use dynamic disks and official XP mirroring, but that is a one way, very unflexable process. Just use synback to syncronise, your primary drive to the secoundary one, scheduale to run every hours, day, wek, whatever you like.
Backing UP

Install syncback on your server and use scedualed tasks to "grab" all of the files you want backed up, this keeps your client PCs free for use, whilst backups execute automatically.

Acessing your NAS / media server

For acces to files, if you have shared your media drive on the server than you should be able to access it through network system, in your "my network places" folder.

To cahnge your setting, install drivers or sedual neww backups, access your server via remote desktop. ( this is when you will nedd your servers administrator password)

Wireless or wired.

Wired is best for your NAS / media server, but if you want to stick your sever in the loft or somewhere out of the way then you can buy a wireless PCI card and you are away, just rememeber to fully configure and connect you wireless before moving off to the loft! If you are using remote desktop it uses the netowork to connect so you wont be able to set up your wireless over remote netowrk.

Home made NAS Media Server Worth the Effort?

This takes a while I'll give you that, but I built mine with bits from other machines, and it works lovely.

If you only nedd one disk you could use a NAS dongle.

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