NAS - how to synch laptop to 2 RAID 1 drives?

[Guillermo]

so I had another thread on here about how best to backup my work files. Someone suggested NAS, and I went to memory express and the guy there (great, btw) suggested I get the D-Link DNS-323.

I did a bit of reading about that unit, and it seems like it would work well for what I need. I am considering 2 disks in a RAID1 arrangement, where the data is mirrored across those 2 discs. However, I also want to mirror my laptop drive to this, as it's the working files on my laptop that I am mostly concerned about backing up. Does anyone know if this is possible, and how I might go about doing this? Obviously, I have no idea wtf i'm doing, but I do learn fast, so it would be great if someone could point me towards info about this.

Do I just need one drive in the NAS, that I synch with my laptop? Or, can I actually have all 3 synched? (note i also have other data like pictures, moveis, etc. that I would like synched between the 2 NAS drives, but aren't on my laptop.)

where the heck can I get help with this?

Thanks :thumbsup:

[adam c]

easiest way is to map a network drive to your laptop from the nas and copy all the files over to it, then access all your files from the nas

or you can use synctoy from microsoft to mirror the contents of your work folder across your laptop and nas

[evoXfan]

Another way you can try is map the nas as network drive and use offline files, but that is only available with xp pro and win7 pro or higher. It will automatically sync when you are connected.

[Guillermo]

Thanks guys. I am running windows 7. I will check into those options.

[artieg30]

if you're NAS is constantly on then you can change your user profile (your documents and settings eseentially) to point to your NAS drive via a mapped drive as someone mentioned. You can do this by right clicking on your username when you click the start orb in win 7 and click the "include in library" feature. Be advised though if you take your laptop outside your home connection then you won't be able to access those files unless you have some sort of VPN or remote connection to your stuff at home.

[sabad66]

Just the two drives in teh RAID1 will be fine (assuming they are big enough). In case you didn't know, you won't actually see two drives when you browse your NAS. It will just appear as one drive, although it mirrors everything behind the scenes automatically.

So basically it's a matter of backing up your laptop files to the NAS periodically. I like synctoy as well. Get it here for free:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/details.aspx?familyid=C26EFA36-98E0-4EE9-A7C5-98D0592D8C52&displaylang=en

Once you set it up initially (pick which folder(s) to mirror, and to where), it's just a matter of running it every week or so. Very easy, and it gives you a lot of options for how you want to sync (echo, mirror, never delete etc).

[Guillermo]

thanks for the help guys! yea, the NAS will always be on, but it's just a home network and these are my daily work files, so I don't think I would want to keep them on the NAS and just access them remotely. i think my best option would be to just keep the backup on the RAID, and then backup my files every week or so.

I've also been looking into cloud backup. any thoughts on that? i'm worried that the service might go bankrupt, and it would be a hassle to have to move all that data around. also, i have about 100 gigs of fairly obscure and hard-to-find music, and i'm not sure if I would want to put that on the cloud in case someone starts thinking i've violated some copyrights or something.

[evoXfan]

Google Docs allows upload of any type of files.

[Zhariak]

Originally posted by evoXfan
Another way you can try is map the nas as network drive and use offline files, but that is only available with xp pro and win7 pro or higher. It will automatically sync when you are connected.

I second this... Offline synchronization works great...

[Guillermo]

OK, i've been thinking about it some more, and now i'm leaning towards cloud synchronization for my work files, and NAS for my media file (don't have to synch these with my laptop, but do need network access for watching movies and playing tunes).

Anyone use http://www.sosonlinebackup.com? they were highly rated in PC Magazine (for whatever that's worth).

[UndrgroundRider]

I've found that with all of the syncing software, online backup software and even offline files, none of it is 100% seamless.

Here's what I do instead, and it works beautifully:

On my home computer (desktop), I use hard links to remap my documents folder (and other user folders) to my network drive (which is running RAID 6). I then use Microsoft Live Mesh to sync my documents folder between the desktop and the laptop.

This means the documents you use on your workstation will always be the same as your laptop. And at the same time they are backed up on your networked raid share. Once everything is all setup, you never have to touch it again, it's all automatic. You just use your computer as normal.

Live Mesh is pretty neat, it AES encrypts your data and is able to create tunnels directly between your laptop and your workstation to transfer the data directly. So regardless of where you are in the world, or what kind of network you're behind, it syncs your files no problem.

[Guillermo]

LOL, so last night I signed up and paid for SOS Online Backups, which is the best could backup service according to PC Magazine and tons of online reviews. So I install the software and start the backup... it's only like 30 GB, so it shouldn't take too long, right? WRONG. wake up this morning and the thing was trying to backup, but was still going... :confused: Then I get a message popping up saying "C: drive is out of space." :confused: :confused: :confused: wtf, since I had like 15 GB free on that drive. Lo and behold, this freaking software creates a local cache that IS THE SAME SIZE as the files you're trying to backup. :banghead: So if you want to back up 50GB from your laptop, you need to have an empty 50GB just for this thing to make a local cache. how does that make any sense at all??? Also, the backups are extremely show as they compress everything (on your end), which uses your processing power AND tkaes forever.

There is an option to not have a local cache, but then the backups take longer, and based on my experience overnight, i'm not willing to try that again.

So, I canceled the service. fuck those guys LOL. anyone else use a cloud backup service, and have any opinions?

[adam c]

most appliances create a local cache other wise if a file is open your backup will stop, this allows for maximum performance and transfer speed

[UndrgroundRider]

Originally posted by adam c
most appliances create a local cache other wise if a file is open your backup will stop, this allows for maximum performance and transfer speed

Don't listen to this guy, he doesn't know what he's talking about.

The reason SOS caches files is to speed up backup times. Without the cache SOS can't determine what part of a file changed between the most recent backup set and the current file, so the whole file is transferred over the internet. This takes longer than if a local copy of the most recent backup set is kept, and can be compared locally before transfer.

Apparently you can set it to "no cache" mode if you like.

Here's the details: http://kb.sosonlinebackup.com/article/AA-00474/22/Frequently-Asked-Questions-FAQ/Home-User-FAQ/What-should-I-be-aware-of-in-order-to-properly-set-the-Caching-Option.html

Most online backup software uses more advanced algorithms, such as the rsync algorithm, to transfer only changed portions of a file. SOS is clearly a piece of crap if it needs to retransfer the whole file.

As others have mentioned, Mozy is a pretty good one for light use.

[adam c]

if you say so, i mean the company i work for only does offsite backups using cloud technology

not that i don't have first hand experience with it and all...:zzz:

[whoatemyling]

For online backups I'd recommend Mozy, the default free service doesn't sound it has enough storage for your needs, so you may need to pay to upgrade.

As for your offline backups, I'd just do it manually. I'm not sure if your familiar with command line, but it sounds like you're fairly savvy.

As other users have said, map the NAS to your PC and mount it as a drive.

I'd forget using offline file sync etc. I personally prefer user a scripted run of "robocopy"

Goto your command line

Type in:

robocopy C:\ <nas drive>:\ /mir

This will copy your entire C:\ to the nas drive, run this daily or weekly. Robocopy will only copy the differentials to the NAS.

To automate this into a single click:

Open Notepad
Copy of the above command into Notepad
Save the file as a .bat file
Double click the file anytime you want to run a backup

- To further this task, put a schedule in task schedule to run this .bat file

Your initial backup will take longer, but your subsequent backups will be super fast.

Hope this helps.

[adam c]

no don't use robocopy, any file that is in use will lock up the backup process and you need a tool like unlocker to unlock the file

using synctoy will skip those files and tell you which one's it doesn't sync

robocopy is for shared drives where you want to keep file permissions mainly not for copying C drives

[whoatemyling]

You can set a timeout for locked files using robocopy.

BTW synctoy just uses robocopy in the background. ~__^

[adam c]

yes i know but synctoy is easier for the average user and tells you what files were missed, not so easy on robocopy

[UndrgroundRider]

Originally posted by adam c
if you say so, i mean the company i work for only does offsite backups using cloud technology

not that i don't have first hand experience with it and all...:zzz:

I'd love to know what company and what position, because you clearly don't have a clue. Even though I linked to the KB article from the provider that explains exactly why they cache files...

Having a local cache of a file has nothing to do with backing up "in use" files. What would the point of that be? If the file is in use, then it's being modified. The local cache file would be out-of-date anyway. It doesn't solve anything. Most backup software uses the volume shadow copy service (VSS) to backup in-use files. The problem of backing up in-use files hasn't been an issue for 5+ years. Maybe whatever shitty software your company uses has that issue. Maybe they should hire a real developer (me) to implement VSS support.

[adam c]

Different companies different technologies idiot

[The_Penguin]

Robocopy FTW
I've used Robocopy in large corporations for years.
For data migrations, or D2D2tape, it's very reliable, and hugely powerful. Just watch the defaults. Default retry is forever, and it will try that long.

[Guillermo]

so I ended up getting a D-Link DNS-323, with two 2 TB seagate barracuda drives. updated firmware to v1.10 beta, which supports 4k drives.

Initially, i set up an FTP server and installed the fun_plug. I was able to read/write from windows machines on the local network, and login via FTP. Then, I set up SSH and had to implement a root password with that.

i'm having a problem now, though. I can read filed from windows machines on the network, but I can't write anything - I guess because I set up the root password. Does anyone know how I can map this drive in windows 7 using the root password? I tried looking for it on win7, but can't seem to find it!