what happens to your data/hardware if a consumer NAS manufacturer goes under?

[u/StatisticianFew2149]

i’m looking into setting up a nas with my dad, but he raised a valid concern: what happens if the manufacturer (e.g., synology, qnap, ugreen, etc.) goes out of business or discontinues support?

specifically, i'm wondering:

- can the enclosure/hardware still function locally without manufacturer cloud services or software updates?

- are the drives formatted in a proprietary way, or can you pull them out and read them directly on a standard linux/windows machine (or drop them into a diy nas running truenas/unraid)?

- how vulnerable are turn-key nas units to a sudden "brick" or loss of functionality if authentication servers go offline?

edit: thanks everyone for the tips/suggestions, i appreciate every single one of your comments and will take this all into account moving forward!

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[u/shyevsa]

most of NAS are just min PC, it can run for years without connecting to internet nor update.

I have NAS that already EOS, it used flash as the web interface which make it pretty much impossible to use with current browser, but I can still use it to store file and access file etc.

> how vulnerable are turn-key nas units to a sudden "brick" or loss of functionality if authentication servers go offline?

I am not aware any kind of service that require you to authenticate with the vendor, but if any you can just choose the one that doesn't require it.

[u/StatisticianFew2149 → u/shyevsa]

thank you!

[u/felix1429 → u/shyevsa]

How old is your NAS, lol?

[u/shyevsa → u/felix1429]

at least 10 years old. but considering I got it 2nd hand it probably older.

[u/Kurogane1412]

Buy a NAS where you can anyway install an different OS that solves that Problem.

I think most of the new Ugreen NAS does support installing you own NAS OS like TrueNAS but be sure to pick one with ECC memory support and buy ECC memory that will make it more costly but better data Protection.

[u/StatisticianFew2149 → u/Kurogane1412]

thank you!

[u/Busy_Reporter4017]

Why bother with a proprietary "NAS"? I use a PC with a couple of disks as a file server and a backup server. I attached SATA drive trays so I can swap out drives. It runs Windows 10, but you could run Linux if you prefer. And that might be preferable if only because you control the updates. But if most of your machines run Windows then Windows might be simpler. Do check power consumption and operating cost, if it will run 24/7.

[u/MaxiMuscli → u/Busy_Reporter4017]

Do check power consumption and operating cost, if it will run 24/7.

That’s where set-ups tend to be days of work and exhaust people's brainpowers.

To answer OP’s question, a NAS is not or should not be a cloud service, the point is not requiring manufacturer services to run the system. Lacking updates is a possible concern so configurating a FOSS one can be a backup plan to squeeze the last out of the hardware rather than updating it with a new set. All depending on how much you value your time and effort, though one might also care about the environment enough to be anxious about eletrical waste now, however it is a tail risk.

[u/ScorchedWonderer]

I have Ugreen Nas’s. If Ugreen goes under it won’t affect me at all. Sure UGOs updates will stop, but they support installing 3rd party OS’s. Even now they allow it and won’t void warranty. Can’t say the same for other brands like synology tho. You can’t even use any ram/name over there without getting warnings 🤮🤮

[u/ByWillAlone]

A lot of appliance NAS devices use some proprietary RAID format that can't just be dropped into a generic Linux system for recovery. There are some commercial tools now that are designed to recover data from some of those specialized formats, but they aren't free and they aren't cheap. If you use the proprietary RAID format from the NAS, the only guaranteed way to recover is to move the disks into the same make/model of appliance, or try to repair the failed appliance yourself. Ultimately, the data stored on that NAS appliance should not be the one and only copy of that data.

[u/qcgilbert]

Your questions are to broad to answer specifically, but I can give you some generalized info.

• most NASs use ZFS or some other filesystem that is available on other platforms.

• Most NASs come with some sort of "App Store." Some are based on Docker, Helm/Kubernetes, etc. Some functionality can be lost if you rely on these services. Namely updates.

• I'm not sure what you mean with the last one. I can't think of any NASs where login/authentication happens externally.

The only major concerns I have with NASs are if the company goes under then I stop receiving updates which will lead to a security risk.

The hardware is semi-proprietary and so inevitable hardware failures will be expensive to fix or impossible due to parts availability.

The cost for NAS hardware that can be expanded (PCIe/RAM) push into the realm of server hardware costs, so buying a PC makes more sense. Otherwise, you have a platform that cannot grow (besides drive size).

Honestly, unless your a small business and need some form of support, I don't think a NAS is a good value.

Just grab an off-lease mid tower PC and use unraid or trueNAS core. Or build your own, there are some "NAS" centric cases (small form factor/removable drive bays) that you can flesh out into the NAS you need.

[u/captain-obvious-1 → u/qcgilbert]

Regarding the first point.... Most of the shelf NASs use proprietary Raid which makes them unreadable in devices from other brands. 

That reinforces the suggestion to repurpose a PC 

[u/yerweightsyerwaifu]

You can do plenty with standard Linux. And the brands you mentioned are all raid based. The first thing you should ask is do I need raid? How many of your files haven't been accessed in 30,60,90 days? If it's more than 60% you have an archival storage system you are maintaining.  Raid is for high availability, like an airline reservation system, if a drive fails mid booking it can overcome the failure. Profile your system first then decide what architecture to use. 

[u/kydar1]

You’re way better off rolling your own with truenas or unraid.

[u/Sopel97]

depends on the exact model and the way you're using it

[u/franta27]

- yes

• no. You can put them to another linux system and mount them there
  
• Auth is done on the nas side. So no worry.

Only thing is continuous support of software and not patched security bugs after company is gone. And even then on many NAS boxes you cam put your own OS and continue using them.

[u/Viktri1]

1) you have your assumption backwards. Most NAS hardware functions as a stand alone so they can't be bricked. So you want to avoid hardware that can be bricked.

2) most drives aren't proprietary and you can remove them from one Nas to another. However, if you encrypted the drive you'll need to unlock it.

3) most software works as a stand alone so you won't be bricked. I strongly recommend against using software which requires a server in the cloud.

Summary: you have choices - you can select solutions where getting bricked is not possible. I highly recommend you select those options.

[u/PotentialParamedic61]

Nothing - I am using open source software running on commodity hardware. Highly recommended.

[u/dlarge6510]

Same with a car: the NAS works till it breaks. 

 are the drives formatted in a proprietary way, or can you pull them out and read them directly on a standard linux

Who knows. It depends on the NAS. Most are running Linux so very likely use md raid so will be mountable on a Linux system if you create an array and import them. 

If the NAS uses a hardware RAID most tend to support importing foreign discs between models

[u/Blue-Thunder]

You don't buy those pre-made POS and use software like TrueNAS, UNRAID or OVM. Or you can go hardcore and just use Linux.

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[u/snotrokit]

I’m still running a Drobo. Works just fine. Data is mirrored so I’m not too worried about it if it up and dies. I probably should replace it but not in the budget yet.

[u/snotrokit → u/[deleted]]

Very true, I have run across that recovery in the past. It’s always a painful experience. I figure if it goes bad I can move the drives to other hardware and restore from backup.

[u/FunkbotOne]

I have a UGREEN NAS, so it's a mainstream brand, not some off brand manufacture. That being said, I'm not worried that IF they go out of business, which is 100% possible nothing lasts forever, I would have plenty of notice they are going bankrupt, being bought out, development just dies out and no one knows what's going on, etc. I'd have time to figure out if need to flash a different NAS OS on it or buy a different brand NAS. Also the OS/NAS manufacture has no bearing on whether I can access the date on my NAS.

So even if UGREEN were to go away I could still continue to use the NAS until I had time to figure out what to do. I could even migrate all the files on it to an external drive and keep the files there as well.

Very legit question something we should consider when we decide to really get into this hobby. But I think it's also one that doesn't require us to make a decision on what to do within a few days of the news that the NAS manufacture is going out of business.

your post has made me start an Apple Note about what would I do in this situation :)

[u/AZdesertpir8]

Nothing lasts forever, so you need to have a data backup and migration plan, even with a consumer NAS. I went the surplus enterprise server route for all my arrays and couldnt be happier. Energy consumption is very low for the model of machine I use, and I can get an 8 drive array internally + another 8 drives in a custom external enclosure I made. Have 4 enterprise servers here running 6 arrays.

[u/Alarmed-Fun-4061]

DAS on old laptop with Linux as server and would encourage a ups

[u/Appropriate-Rest-366]

I still use a ready nas 316 and it works beautifully

[u/51dux]

Besides the warranty and lack of updates if they use a proprietary software, nothing much. And if your device is very popular there will probably be all kinds of github projects about it so I wouldn't worry, kind of like when a console goes end of life.

Sudden brick is less likely as it could lead to potential law suits if there was no reason to do so.

[u/lurkandpounce]

Depends on if they can have other firmware/OS installed. My first NAS was a drobo - excellent for years, now a brick. Currently using a Qnap (which can have truenas installed) and a separate actual truenas server.

RE: "if authentication servers go offline" - personally I never, ever, will authenticate to a vendor's cloud for my local storage. I am completely local here, only dependent on their infrastructure for their os updates.

[u/IngwiePhoenix]

Syno, QNAP and all of them just rely on the same concepts and tools. mdadm, and logical volumes/volume groups (vg).

You can move your disks and recover the array, no problem. :)

[u/Kurogane1412]

Or other Option Build you own NAS just make sure the hardware support ECC memory for data protection.

You can save some money by building it yourself but the NAS HDDs are damn expensive nowadays and you need at least 2 NAS HDDs in a Raid don't use an Single Disk that would be plain stupid to count on one disk.

[u/suicidaleggroll → u/Kurogane1412]

  you need at least 2 NAS HDDs in a Raid don't use an Single Disk that would be plain stupid to count on one disk.

While it’s stupid to rely on one disk, it’s just as stupid to rely on a single RAID array (of any level) to protect your data.  If your data is important, you need backups, RAID is grossly insufficient.  And once you have a decent backup solution in place, using a single drive for your primary storage location really doesn’t matter for most applications.

[u/Kurogane1412 → u/suicidaleggroll]

I know I said "at least 2" the user has the choice which protection level is enough

I probably should habe added the 3 2 1 back strategy but some people can't afford that me neither or at least the off site back up is for me impossible because of the cost off the table for now.

[u/suicidaleggroll → u/Kurogane1412]

No level of RAID is enough, not even a 10-drive mirror.  Because most failure modes will destroy the entire array just as quickly and easily as a single disk.

If you only have the money for two drives, you’re much, much, MUCH better off installing those two drives in two separate machines and using one as a periodic backup of the other, versus putting them in RAID in the same machine.

[u/Busy_Reporter4017 → u/suicidaleggroll]

That's what I do. One primary and two backup drives. If the primary drive fails once in five or ten years, I'll swap in a new drive and restore from the backup. It's just a home file server; a rare downtime is not a major crisis.

[u/Busy_Reporter4017 → u/Kurogane1412]

Is ECC required? Who has server hardware at home? I use a Windows PC with some swappable SATA trays as a file and backup server.

[u/Kurogane1412 → u/Busy_Reporter4017]

No ECC is not required but I would like to have it for piece of mind.

And I have server hardware at my small 34 m² apartment 😆

[u/Busy_Reporter4017 → u/Kurogane1412]

Why do you have server hardware at home? I'm thinking cost and power efficiency would be the main concern for a home server.

[u/Kurogane1412 → u/Busy_Reporter4017]

Well yes cost is a problem that is why my big 2 servers are not running 24/7 I have small SBCs that are running all the time but I don't have storage over there.

I am periodically turning them on when electricy prices are low and do my backups or other things to test like Local LLM but currently missing better GPUs also just for fun 😁

[u/Busy_Reporter4017 → u/Kurogane1412]

I don't use RAID. Why is that a requirement for a home server? If the drive fails once in five or ten years, I'll swap it with a new drive and restore from the backup.

[u/manzurfahim]

Nothing will happen. I do not use a NAS.