Most of us now pay a monthly fee to store our photos and files in the cloud, whether it’s iCloud, Google One, OneDrive or Dropbox. As our photo libraries grow, so do the bills. That’s one reason more households and small businesses are buying a NAS: a private cloud that lives at home.
What is a NAS?
NAS stands for Network Attached Storage. It’s a small box containing one or more hard drives, plugged into your router. Every device on your home network, and you when you’re out and about, can store and access files on it.
Think of it as your own private cloud. You buy it once, and it’s yours.
Popular brands include Synology, QNAP, UGREEN, Asustor and TerraMaster.
Why are people switching?
- Rising subscription costs. Cloud storage plans add up, especially for a whole family.
- Lots of space. A NAS can hold many terabytes, enough for a lifetime of family photos and videos.
- One-off cost. No monthly fee for the storage itself.
- Privacy and control. Your files stay in your home, not on someone else’s servers.
- Speed. Copying large files over your home network is far faster than uploading to the cloud.
What can a NAS do?
- Back up every computer in the house automatically (it works with Windows Backup and Apple’s Time Machine)
- Back up phone photos automatically, like iCloud or Google Photos, with apps that sort by date, place and face
- Share files between family members or colleagues
- Stream films, music and home videos to your TV
- Access your files remotely, securely, through the maker’s app
- Store footage from security cameras
What does it cost?
- A 2-bay NAS suitable for home use starts at around £150–£300, without drives.
- Hard drives designed for NAS use are extra. Two 4 TB drives is a common starting point.
- Electricity. A NAS runs all the time, though home models use little power.
Compared with a family cloud plan, a NAS typically pays for itself within two to four years, depending on how much storage you need.
The downsides
- Up-front cost.
- Some setting up. Modern NAS boxes are far easier than they used to be, but it’s more involved than signing up for iCloud.
- You’re responsible. You need to keep it updated and replace drives if they fail.
- A NAS on its own is not a backup. A fire, flood, theft or power surge could take out the NAS and your computers at the same time.
The 3-2-1 rule
The golden rule of backups:
- 3 copies of your important files
- on 2 different types of storage
- with 1 copy kept somewhere else
A NAS makes this easy. Your files live on your computer (copy 1) and the NAS (copy 2), and the NAS backs up the most important folders to a cloud service or a drive kept elsewhere (copy 3).
What to look for
- Two or more drive bays, so drives can mirror each other (RAID 1). If one fails, you don’t lose anything.
- NAS-rated hard drives, designed to run all day.
- A reputable brand with regular security updates and good phone apps.
- Enough capacity for the next five years, not just today.
Keep it secure
- Change the default admin password and turn on 2-step verification.
- Turn on automatic updates.
- Use the maker’s secure remote access service. Don’t open it directly to the internet.
- Plug it into a surge protector or a small UPS (battery backup).
💡 Tip: not ready for a NAS? Start with an external hard drive and a weekly backup. It’s cheap, simple and far better than nothing.
Wrapping up
A NAS gives you huge storage, no monthly fees and control over your own files. It takes a little setting up, and you still need an off-site copy, but for families with growing photo libraries and small businesses, it’s an increasingly smart alternative to renting space in the cloud.
Sources: Synology · NCSC: Cyber Aware
