A network file server

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Things You'll Need. Related Articles. Author Info Last Updated: August 9, Think about your needs. Do you have to server hundreds of movies to multiple independent PCs throughout a house, or do you just need a convenient place to put your music to play on your HTPC?

The use of a home fileserver will strongly guide the next steps. Think about storage space. How much do you need? This is also tied closely to the last question. If all you have is a couple HD movies or many DVD-quality movies and a bit of music, you could probably get away with a single GB drive. For many HD movies, a large music collection, and lots of family photos, a larger hard drive or an array of many hard drives may be better suited.

If you decided you need a lot of space in the previous step, a RAID array might be what is needed. Decide about RAID level. RAID 1 mirrors the content in all disks, offering the most reliability with capacity of the single disk only.

For less paranoid, RAID 6 tolerates as much as two disk failures without data loss. RAID 5 gives the most capacity just one disk less than total number of disks. RAID 10 provides the most performance, offering half of the capacity.

Finally, RAID 0 is fastest but loses data in all disks after any single disk fails, so is generally not a good choice if you have no other backup source. Not all levels are possible with any number of disks - usually the more disks, the more choices you have. There are also more levels - read up on the standard RAID levels on a web. Think about a RAID controller. Hardware controllers are fast, reliable, easy to install and offer wider choice of possible RAID configurations.

However they are not cheap and if your motherboard has enough hard drive ports you can also try software RAID without controller. It will outperform the cheapest hardware RAID cards. However you need to search the web for setup instructions and likely use Linux.

Think about the rest of the PC. Gigabit Ethernet allows for future expansion and high speeds when loading content from the server. A power supply needs to provide enough power for all your hard drives. The 3. Think about a case. Will this server be in a rack, or just in a desktop case? Conflicts between different versions of a document can be practically ruled out, as certain actions — such as editing or deleting — are blocked for other users as soon as you open a file.

If users have to share the desired files on their own system instead, or transmit them using removable media, this would be considerably more time-consuming and cumbersome — and it would most likely result in different file versions. Another key advantage of using file servers is that it relieves the strain on client resources. With the exception of personal documents, essentially all business files and backups can be stored on the file server, depending on how the company wishes to use the file repository.

And with the right organization comprising directories, folders, etc. If the file server is configured for remote access over the internet, the files are also accessible on the go — much like an online storage service. But unlike a cloud solution, the company retains control of the files and their security at all times.

This represents a clear advantage over third-party solutions. The advantages listed clearly show how valuable a file server can be. However, many companies make the mistake of underestimating the work involved in setting up and managing such a server.

Companies often do without advance planning. For example, if there is no clear principle for the assignment of rights, situations will likely arise in which users are unable to perform necessary actions.

Problems may also occur when the directory and folder structure is unclear — or if no folder structure exists at all. In the case of the latter, this is important if the file server is also accessible over the internet. The installation and configuration of security software are just as critical as training the employees who access the file server. Only when they have been made aware of topics like cyber security and data protection can the configured protection mechanisms work as intended.

This is also true when it comes to storing the files: Clearly communicate where and how files should be saved on the file server to prevent a chaotic data situation from occurring in the first place. Microsoft Exchange Server is considered the standard solution for business e-mail traffic and computer-supported collaborative work. The software has many different usage models of available and these require purchasing special licenses.

This is a great method of testing out web pages and checking scripts. To get started, all you need is the free software package and a few minutes. The traditional data center could be significantly streamlined by migrating to a hyper-converged system. This is made possible using preconfigured standard hardware and a complete virtualization of the IT infrastructure Provides centralized administration.

Provides security, i. The architecture consists of a client-side file system and a server-side file system.

A client application issues a system call e. It is interesting to note that to a client application, the process seems no different than requesting data from a physical disk, since there is no special API required to do so. This phenomenon is known as transparency in terms of file access. It is the client-side file system that executes commands to service these system calls.

For instance, assume that a client application issues the read system call. Finally, it buffers this data into the read buffer and completes the system call. Skip to content.

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