How to build your own DIY NAS

There are many network-attached storage (NAS) enclosures to choose from. Brands such as TerraMAster, Asustor, QNAP, and Synology offer a range of NAS servers for different applications and price points. Still, these enclosures come with a premium, just like a prebuilt desktop PC. Instead of buying an enclosure, you can build a DIY NAS through standard, off-the-shelf PC parts. If you have an old PC in storage, it can be used without purchasing a single component aside from NAS storage drives. This guide will run you through what you'll need to build a NAS.

What you will need to build a NAS

It all starts with the hardware

If you already have an old desktop PC somewhere that can be repurposed as a NAS, you're already one step closer to getting online. Building a NAS is much like putting together a desktop PC and starting from scratch, we can approach it like we would a normal PC. One thing I would recommend is a small chassis, as this allows you to place the NAS elsewhere in the home or office. Regardless of how you build your DIY NAS, you'll use a Linux OS with a web interface. This will give you the ability to store files and run apps like Plex Media Server.

An example build can look something like what we have below.

• Case

  

  Fractal Design Node 304

  Motherboard Size (Max.)

  Mini-ITX

  Graphics Card Size (Max.)

  170 - 310 mm

  3.5" Drive Slots

  6

  Power Supply Size (Max.)

  160 mm

  CPU Cooler Height (Max.)

  165 mm

  Exterior Dimensions

  250 x 210 x 374 mm

  Fractal Design's Node 304 is an excellent case for servers and NAS with three included fans and space for up to 6 SSDs or HDDs. A great starting point for any NAS build.

  $111 at Amazon $100 at Newegg

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• CPU

  

  Intel Core i3-14100

  While the Intel Core i3-14100 doesn't have ample performance for powerful PC builds, it's great for a NAS that doesn't need too much computing power. As well as drawing less electricity, this is way better than what's inside most turnkey NAS.

  $127 at Amazon $127 at Newegg

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• Motherboard

  

  ASUS ROG Strix B760-I Gaming WIFI

  The ASUS ROG Strix Z790-I is a top Mini ITX motherboard for gaming PCs, featuring a sleek design, efficient cooling, and strong performance with 14th Gen Intel CPUs.

  $200 at Amazon

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• RAM

  

  TEAMGROUP Elite DDR5-4800 (2x16) RAM

  Looking to upgrade your PC to DDR5 but don't want to spend too much? TEAMGROUP has you covered with its affordable range of Elite DDR5-4800 RAM.

  $71 at Amazon $71 at Newegg

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• PSU

  

  MSI MAG A550BN

  Brand

  MSI

  Output

  550 W

  Modular Cabling

  No

  80 Plus Efficiency Rating

  Bronze

  The MSI MAG A550BN is an affordable 550W power supply with an 80 Plus Bronze efficiency rating, and all the necessary connections for building a capable gaming PC.

  $50 at Amazon $50 at Newegg

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• OS Drive

  

  Western Digital Black SN770 250GB

  Storage capacity

  250 GB

  Hardware Interface

  M.2 NVMe

  Brand

  Western Digital

  Transfer rate

  4,000 MB/s

  TBW

  200

  Warranty

  5 Years

  Western Digital Black SN770 offers a range of SSDs designed for gaming and other intensive software. With transfer speeds of 4,000MB/s for this 250GB variant, it makes for an excellent OS drive.

  $40 at Amazon

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The total cost of building this NAS and installing drives will come to more than prebuilt enclosures, but the available performance and freedom to upgrade more than makeup for it. An advantage of building a NAS from scratch like this is having the option to upgrade almost anything inside the PC case at a later date. Turnkey NAS are more restrictive with even RAM slots being locked down or soldered to the PCB. The Core i3-14100 alone has four powerful cores and integrated graphics. A discrete GPU can be added further down the line, but the Core i3's GPU will be great for transcoding and other intensive NAS tasks.

Choose your favorite OS

Picking an operating system is a relatively straightforward task. A few are available, but they're mostly the same, with notable exceptions such as unRAID. For beginners, I'd recommend either TrueNAS SCALE or OpenMediaVault. If this is the first time you're building and launching a server, these two operating systems will be a great place to start. All of these solutions use a web interface to manage the NAS, much like prebuilt enclosures.

Which storage drives to use with the NAS?

You can use any hard disk drive (HDD) or solid-state drive (SSD) for your NAS, though I would recommend NAS-specific drives. They may be more expensive than the drives you'd typically buy for a desktop PC, but they're designed for continuous operation and heavier workloads. You can rely on better endurance ratings and warranties. You'll also gain more advanced features such as vibration protection to prevent disk failure. Seagate IronWolf or Western Digital Red Plus is a good place to start, though you should be prepared to pay a considerable sum for the highest capacity drives.