Ok, so I need some recommendations to setup server for my parent’s business. This server would be access by three clients and would be use to host all the reports and documents of the compagny (maybe it can act as a email server if it’s possible).
Which hardware do you recommend me to acquire? Max storage needed is 2TB, even 1 TB would be allright, but I need protection for data loss and reliability, and to be fool-proof and needing low-maintenance. Is using SSDs in one would be sane? (I don’t care if it’s only overkill)
How do I setup this server? The three clients would be all using Windows 10 Pro, but two of those clients are laptops that are often on the go and rarely in presence of a good internet connection. So they would need to have the files locally on these computers that would sync-up automatically when connected to internet, and this while being also fool-proof. (aka the system should be able to solve conflicts and to warn the users when there is competing version of a document)
So do you have any recommendation for me? Or helpful resources I can look into?
Does it have to be a local server? Isn’t something like Dropbox for Business a better (and easier) option?
Stuff needs to be failsafe, there’s so many things that can go wrong if you plan to DIY.
Stay away from the email server side. You do not want that headache.
Dell T20 with dual core processor would work great.
Are you using linux or maybe Freenas?
Seafile looks interesting gonna look more for that one. And for the NAS, ya I’m looking to use Freenas, already have some experience with it and ZFS would be great to have. However, I’m best to buy an already made NAS or do it one myself? For cost and reliability?
I am all for a DIY FreeNAS build or something else along those lines. But keep this in mind: How comfortable are you with troubleshooting and what kind of downtime can the business afford. When you are talking about a system that is critical for the business to function, you can’t spend days trying to troubleshoot an issue via forum posts on the internet. I’m by no means trying to discourage DIY. Just ask yourself some of these non-technical questions before you decide. When the shit hits the fan, it’s nice to have support available right away to minimize downtime. Also, do you have a target budget in mind?
Could not agree more, especially for only a few users. Many email providers out there and for reasonable prices per account.
Also, what kind of files are you looking to share and sync over the internet? What’s your upload speed?
Ya I think maybe then I will be more bright if I go for an already made NAS. I just try to get the budget the lower, without having any clear budget bracket.
At home it’s fiber 250 Mpbs both ways. Mostly docs, excel, pdf and pictures. It just I need to figure out a way to still the files locally on the laptops and made them sync as they will be rarely connected to the internet outside of the house.
If you are just looking for file sharing, it might be more economical to just do a Dropbox for Business or another cloud based service. The reason I say this is because if you do go the NAS route at home, you will need a backup plan of some sort in place as well. Which unless you are shuffling hard drives around or have another unit setup in a different location, you are going to be using a cloud backup solution for this. I have personally had small shops like yours as clients and for only a few users it makes sense cost wise. Also, one of them had an employee get ransomwear on their laptop, which then encrypted all the files in the Dropbox folder, which then synced to Dropbox as new versions of the files. One call to Dropbox and they just rolled all the files back before the infection, I gave the user a stern talking to, and it was right as rain in a few hours. The ability to keep all or some of the files stored locally would allow your users to work on the files while not online and automatically sync when they get an internet connection.
Again, this is all doable with a NAS unit, but keep in mind the other costs that could sneak up on you. With ZFS and BtrFS, snapshots can easily roll you back to point before the attack, but won’t save you if something happens to the unit itself.
If it’s just a couple of people and a couple of clients, you can use Gmail + Google Drive , or office 365 (Outlook+OneDrive+offline apps)
Having a dedicated sysadmin on retainer, which is what you’d be, for a 2 people non IT oriented company tends to be very expensive. It’s really not worth doing yourself.
I don’t know what you think will happen by having your remote clients ‘sync’ up… but this is a recipe for disaster. You WILL lose data, and it will be catastrophic. Don’t even attempt this nonsense.
For cheap, a small server would work fine. FreeNAS is OK, as long as you understand that there are some characteristics that are different than a Windows server.
Frankly, a Windows 7 or 10 Pro system would work fine as a server for up to 5 connections. You just gotta create shares, users, and permissions correctly. It can also share printers, etc. You can remote into it for administration with remote desktop. And since it’s Windows, it should be somewhat familiar.
Yup, this is what I would recommend. Most Office 365 because it takes care of the email, storage, and productivity software in one subscription. The Google stuff is fine too. These days, unless you actually need to run server/client applications, I don’t recommend a physical server to small shops if they have decent internet connections.
Thank you for all your feedback. Following your recommendations, I made some test and ya, I will instead use OneDrive for that purpose, gonna be way simpler that way. Plus my mom already have a Office 365 subscription ofr the Office suit, so gonna be able to use OneDrive for business.