Tell me about NAS

[zahc]

Besides my work laptop, I have one of the high-end Intel NUC's that I use for all my hobby/3D printing stuff. It's running Linux. I have very cramped physical space, and don't need or want a PC - building hobby,  so I'm happy with this. It has a 1 TB SSD in it.

I'm starting to do a little bit of videos. Not like, big production stuff, just files from my GoPro and dashcams. I can tell that video is going to use up my space fast because one download is typically 5-10GB. So I need some kind of external storage.

In the past I would go buy a big external HDD. But I'm thinking maybe I should buy some kind of NAS box and stick it in a closet somewhere? I have a "server" closet where my router is that I could plug it into Ethernet. But how do they work? Will any NAS box work with Linux? How does it appear in the filesystem...do I need to set up NFS, like I did back in the day, so that it maps every time I reboot my computer, or is there something newer? What specs do I want to look for in a NAS?

[WLJ]

Check your router, many routers will have USB ports for that.

[zahc]

Is USB better than Ethernet?

[RocketMan]

Is USB better than Ethernet?

If it's a USB 3 port it should be pretty fast.  I've got a USB 3 port on my Asus router that's intended to use with a hard drive for network file storage.  I've got a terabyte SSD hooked to it and am pleased with its performance.
However, I am experimenting with a NAS using a Raspberry Pi so that I can set up some kind of redundancy like a RAID 1 in case of a hard drive failure.  A Raspberry Pi 4 has such a small footprint and two USB 3 ports that I think it might work pretty well in that application.  There are even HATs available that would allow connection of NVME SSDs to the Pi.  That would make a very fast and compact NAS.
My experimental setup allows me to save files from Windows machines without a problem.  I haven't saved anything from a Linux machine over the network yet, but that is supposed to work well, too.

[Hawkmoon]

I use a Western Digital MyCloud, which is an NAS. Physically, mine is a pair of WD Black physical hard drives, set up as a redundant array. The MyCloud hardware and firmware allow it to be connected to a router as just another device on the network. I can access it from any computer I have turned on and connected to my home network, and it works whether I'm connected by Ethernet or by WiFi. I haven't had to test it but supposedly if one of the drives goes bad the replacement can be hot-swapped in, and the redundant array will repair itself automatically.

You can also configure it to be accessible from the Internet, so you can have access to all your personal files from anywhere in the world where you have an Internet connection. My traveling days are pretty much over so I don't need that, and I'm not sufficiently tech savvy to feel comfortable about how to keep it secure once it's open to the world, so I don't do that.

I have it set up just as you suggest. I have my cable modem and router in the back of a coat closet in the middle of the house. I just put the MyCloud on the same shelf. Next set will be to put in a slightly larger shelf and add a UPS to power the modem, the router, and the MyCloud.

This is the one I have. They are available in a variety of capacities, and you can also get models with four disks rather than two for even better redundancy.
https://www.amazon.com/Cloud-Ultra-Network-Attached-Storage/dp/B01AWH04EW/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3211P4MPN6FCP&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.DUe4z5pxFwo5m25dDCV3bCSccDwDP1toQ17kc7MqSnSEyi23CcCo3MFqUgeZm6kL1diaGG8Gw5L-_r51uEgwjHVrtnw3t3ZoglS_STxOuTT5tvDW1hF9dsjExmwkmEsgze_YUY0MrgQitnQMhytFIguzyUV0V7hp2H_IUO1q2GYgTPp0rfflfBJhhuCFGYMoDQ-z0BoJPo0ljpbvxb0BY22ZH8FyiSCAI6i2x6F1YUM.xCjG2hPT_qt2b0UG1gzOI8pFFavu-0DLW5ytD1l-CLY&dib_tag=se&keywords=western+digital+mycloud+ex2&qid=1732997947&sprefix=Western+Digital+MyCloud%2Caps%2C180&sr=8-3

I was running Windows 10 when I set mine up and I'm still running Windows 10. I don't know about setting up a MyCloud with Linux, but I have installed LMDE6 on an old laptop as a way of dipping my toe into the Linux pool, and I can connect to the MyCloud from the Linux laptop.