Cloud or NAS Device – Which is Better?

NASCloud computing has been the biggest buzzword in business for the past few year, and for good reason too. The cloud provides many businesses with a new-found freedom to do and achieve more than ever before. Greater collaboration, the ability to work in new locations combined with low costs provide a healthy boost for many companies.

Every business is unique however and cloud solutions don’t fit for every scenario. Internet stability and speed issues or technical requirements can rule the cloud out as an option in some instances. In these situations, a Network Attached Storage (NAS) device may provide a better solution. A NAS can be thought of as a small file server that allows users to share data across a network.

A NAS is particularly popular in small and mid-sized businesses due to their low power consumption, small footprint and low cost. Power users and businesses can enhance their networks and get more out of their systems by employing a NAS device to do the heavy lifting.

Reliable, Fast Access

When a location doesn’t have fast internet speeds or services aren’t reliable enough to run a business on; a NAS solution may be the ideal solution — serving files locally rather than from a remote server can save vast amounts on uploads and downloads.

Many of the benefits of the cloud can be created locally inside your business or home office. Network storage allows you to save and retrieve files from multiple devices with fast local network speeds. Rather than being limited by the speeds offered by your ISP; you can complete file transfers, backups and sharing at the speed of your internal network.

A NAS gives you some of the advantages of the cloud with the level of control, speed, and accessibility of a local server. All this is achieved for a fraction of the cost and maintenance overhead typically associated with conventional hardware servers.

One Device, Many Uses

NAS devices can act as a centralized backup location for active files and devices across the network. Using the device as a file store allows you to share projects easily, collaborate on files and keep up-to-date copies while revisions change.

The device can be set up to allow redundancy across multiple hard drives. This means backed up data is never vulnerable to a single hard drive failure.

A fully redundant NAS is capable of handling a hard drive failure or even removal, without interrupting your workflow. Simply replacing the affected hard drive with a new one will backup your files again and re synchronise your data as if nothing had happened at all.

Lightweight File Access

Access smaller sized files when you are out of the office is also possible. NAS devices can be configured to provide secure access to files and folders on remote connections. Working remotely, using a NAS solution, can be done just as easily as if you were sat in the office.

A NAS device can run 24/7 without issue. Their low power consumption makes it practical to leave the device powered on for regular backups and easy data access. Devices don’t require the heavy maintenance or large footprint of a bulky server. As a simple file sharing solution, a NAS device allows you to focus only on the data.

The Best of Both Worlds

A NAS provides high-speed file access and configuration of a local server and combines it with the low footprint and ease of use. Without relying on a bad internet connection or power-hungry hardware, a NAS could be the solution that supercharges your business.

Find out if a NAS device is the right fit for your business. Contact us today on 08 8326 4364 or via email at su*****@dp*********.au to talk about how best to proceed for your business.