Cloud Server/Online Storage/NAS Drive

[SmavidDavid]

Hey Guys,

My boss has popped up to the IT guy with this product from Western Digital.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/WD-4TB-Cloud-Personal-Storage/dp/B00FOKN7D8

We receive lots of emails from various people, and he would like to set up a 'server' where clients/sub contractors can upload their documents to send to us due to a 10mb Email limit.

Now my limited knowledge is making me think he wants effectively in house FTP server...

So my questions.. can anybody tell me of a better product?

Ask me questions if needed, im confused a little myself!

---------- Post Merged at 04:45 PM ---------- Previous Post was at 04:39 PM ----------

I have just noticed this product too:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00GJQ6P1C/ref=noref?ie=UTF8&psc=1&s=computers is that more suiting?

 

[Far]

If you're just wanting a place for people to upload documents then yes it seems like all you need is an ftp server.

Having it as a NAS instead of Cloud gives you the advantage of having the data locally - so large files will be quicker for you to grab (then having to download them again off the internet)

Personally for business use I wouldn't recommend a Western Digital. Their software leans toward home users and multimedia features.

I'd recommend a Netgear ReadyNAS, such as this.

http://www.ebuyer.com/487086-netgear-readynas-102-no-disk-rn10200-100eus

They're a little bit more money (that one comes empty so you need to buy 2 x 2TB drives to put in there) but you'd get the improvement of security and software being business oriented.


Your other alternative is a Cloud Solution. But to allow people to upload to your cloud storage, you'd either have to allow anonymous access (not advised) / have a set login for all your clients / individually set up a login for each one.

Cloud solution would be cheaper short term, and more practical as its designed for what you need (storing data) but you come with the price of usual annual / monthly small charges, for as long as you want it (so could get more expensive over time)

Hope that helps some what.

 

[SmavidDavid]

If you're just wanting a place for people to upload documents then yes it seems like all you need is an ftp server.

Having it as a NAS instead of Cloud gives you the advantage of having the data locally - so large files will be quicker for you to grab (then having to download them again off the internet)

Personally for business use I wouldn't recommend a Western Digital. Their software leans toward home users and multimedia features.

I'd recommend a Netgear ReadyNAS, such as this.

http://www.ebuyer.com/487086-netgear-readynas-102-no-disk-rn10200-100eus

They're a little bit more money (that one comes empty so you need to buy 2 x 2TB drives to put in there) but you'd get the improvement of security and software being business oriented.


Your other alternative is a Cloud Solution. But to allow people to upload to your cloud storage, you'd either have to allow anonymous access (not advised) / have a set login for all your clients / individually set up a login for each one.

Cloud solution would be cheaper short term, and more practical as its designed for what you need (storing data) but you come with the price of usual annual / monthly small charges, for as long as you want it (so could get more expensive over time)

Hope that helps some what.

Very helpful .

Did you see the 2nd link i posted? Seems like its more like the one you've posted.

The direct link is a must have imo, which is why my boss liked it. Also gives me easier control, although thE IT guy is getting it, my CAD department will be using it the most.

Id prefer a system where i could set up a login say [Company Initials]-[First Initial][Last Name] etc and manage them.

He also wants to set up 'shares' so we can allocate 200GB to one project, and just add everybody into it. Similar to Dropbox where multiple people can access it, also set up individual permissions within those folders. If that makes sense?

Its basically required to be a server where we can add random people.

 

[Far]

Yeah the second one you posted would be a better option - though being WD still i'd imagine the software being similar.

Personally i have a Synology NAS, with that you can create unlimited user accounts, and individual folders / shares for each user to access (with your chosen permissions)

I'd expect Western Digitial to act the same way, but unfortunately i've not played with one in detail to confirm it. - Their website likely has a fair amount of info on it.

 

[dsmir3]

Excellent advice Far, however I do have a little input.

From what I read, if your IT guy/s are any good then they should already have a solution in place (dependent on the size of the business). If you also have an IT team onsite, then you're already going to have servers, which taking a guess you should already have a NAS as a backup unit unless you're still using DAT 72 (This is one of the first things we bought, along side our servers). I'm also assuming you have a mail server, which means your running either Exchange or a third party mail server. If you're running exchange then all your IT team need to do is look at Sharepoint or Microsoft CRM.

http://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/dynamics/crm-purchase-online.aspx
https://www.microsoft.com/licensing/about-licensing/briefs/SharepointServer2013.aspx

You can also purchase standalone license, but it's more expensive.

There are a lot of things, your IT team should be able to do without actually spending money, or spending the lowest possible amount with the equipment you already have. It's always best to speak with the IT team first, as they should be able to make suggestions and implement a solution. If not, get rid of them and I'll offer you a cheap, but competitive support contract!!!

Also just to add some business standard NAS

http://www.misco.co.uk/Cat/Storage-Backup/Network-Attached-Storage
http://www.ebuyer.com/search?q=NAS

 

[SmavidDavid]

Late at night, our IT team is a 34 yr old gamer who got a job 20years ago and roll progressed into basic IT management. The mail complex stuff is outsourced. The whole server is underspeced for the company & rather clogged. I will pass this information onto him though.

i personally feel we need a server upgrade & all of this included in onto it also a better mail server allowing larger emails.

thanks dsmir i will read into it all tomorrow in work time!

 

[dsmir3]

Late at night, our IT team is a 34 yr old gamer who got a job 20years ago and roll progressed into basic IT management. The mail complex stuff is outsourced. The whole server is underspeced for the company & rather clogged. I will pass this information onto him though.

i personally feel we need a server upgrade & all of this included in onto it also a better mail server allowing larger emails.

thanks dsmir i will read into it all tomorrow in work time!

I can get you some good prices on sbs servers, ideal if you want mail server as well as they bring costing down.