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The easiest way to set up a NAS (network-attached storage) device is to buy a COTS (commercial off-the-shelf) system from an established company like Synology, QNAP, Asustor, or Terramaster. But folks with the technical know-how often find they get better bang for the buck by building their own systems from scratch and installing software that meets their needs.
Over the past few years we’ve seen a growing number of solutions that fall somewhere in the middle: little computers with all the hardware you need to build your own NAS, but without any custom software. One of the latest is a model with an Intel N100 Alder Lake-N processor, two 4.5 inch drive bays, dual 2.5 GbE Ethernet ports, and a bunch of other features that could make it a decent starting point for anyone looking to build a NAS or networking device.
The folks at AndroidPC.es spotted a model called the AIOPCWA 3-in-1 that’s listed at Amazon in the UK, Germany, Spain, and several other countries… but not the United States. But it look US customers can order an identical system from Newegg for $487. It’s just sold under the Healuck brand name instead of AIOPCWA.
Each model is powered by a 6-watt, 4-core, 4-thread Intel N100 processor with support for speeds up to 3.5 GHz and each features a single SODIMM slot that supports up to 32GB of DDR5-4800 single-channel memory.
There’s an M.2 2280 slot with support for up to 2TB of PCIe 3.0 x2 solid state storage, and two drive bays with support for 2.5 inch or 3.5 inch hard drives or SSDs. There’s also an M.2 slot for an optional wireless card.
The computer has an aluminum chassis that measures 245 x 135 x 110mm (9.65″ x 5.31″ x 4.33″) and features two fans inside for active cooling: one for the CPU, and another near the back of the system.
Ports include:
- 1 x HDMI
- 1 x DisplayPort
- 2 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A
- 2 x 2.5 GbE LAN (Intel i226V)
- 1 x 3.5mm audio
- 1 x microSD card reader
- 1 x 19V DC power input
Like most NAS systems, the computer doesn’t ship with any hard drives: users are expected to bring their own. But, according to the Amazon product pages, customers can configure the PC with up to 32GB of RAM and up to 2TB of storage.
There’s also mention of support for up to a 15-watt Intel Core i3-N305 octa-core processor, but I haven’t found any stores selling models with that chip yet.