Is your storage slowing your team down?
When your team struggles with data access delays, it stalls projects and creates frustrating bottlenecks for everyone involved.
What’s worse is the constant pressure to choose the right upgrade, fearing a costly wrong pick that disrupts your entire workflow.
Cognitive Market Research reports that 73% of businesses face data access delays due to inefficient storage solutions. This shows how widespread this productivity-draining problem really is for growing companies.
The right network attached storage (NAS) software can fix this by providing resilient data and smoother sharing across your entire organization.
In this article, I’ll review the best network attached storage software. I’ll help you find a proven solution that scales with your growth and protects your data.
You’ll discover options that streamline collaboration, ensure robust data protection, and fit within your existing infrastructure and budget.
Let’s get started.
Quick Summary:
| # | Software | Rating | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | TrueNAS → | Large enterprises & Fortune 500 | |
| 2 | Unraid → | Tech-focused SMEs | |
| 3 | openmediavault → | Small offices & home users | |
| 4 | Synology → | IT managers & CTOs | |
| 5 | QNAP → | Growing mid-sized firms |
1. TrueNAS
Need resilient data and smoother sharing?
TrueNAS offers mission-critical storage with real-time resilience, delivering absolute data integrity. This means your IT team can finally overcome the headache of data loss and ensure always-on performance.
Your valuable archives are protected with the highest level of resilience. This directly addresses concerns about security and scalability, providing peace of mind.
Here’s how TrueNAS delivers on its promises.
TrueNAS provides high availability, ensuring instant failover between nodes for uninterrupted data access. This significantly reduces downtime, a key desired outcome for your operations.
Built on OpenZFS, TrueNAS offers ransomware-resilient, scalable, and reliable performance. This allows seamless integration into your existing infrastructure, managing analytics, backup, archival, and file sharing with ease.
Additionally, TrueNAS offers various appliances like the F-Series for NVMe performance and the Mini Series for small office use, all designed to be future-proof and optimize for your budget, avoiding unnecessary spending with transparent total cost of ownership.
The result? Always-on performance you can trust.
While we’re discussing data management, understanding different ways to handle and analyze data is key. My guide on robust assessments and data offers further insights.
Key features:
- Absolute Data Integrity: TrueNAS is built on OpenZFS, ensuring your data remains secure, protected from corruption, and resilient against ransomware attacks for continuous business operations.
- High Availability & Uptime: Experience continuous access to your critical data with instant failover capabilities and 24×7 enterprise support, guaranteeing maximum uptime and reliability.
- Seamless Integration: TrueNAS integrates effortlessly into existing workflows, supporting file, object, and block storage, simplifying data management across diverse applications like virtualization and analytics.
TrueNAS features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: TrueNAS excels as a best network attached storage software choice, providing federal-level security and award-winning resilience trusted by over 60% of Fortune 500 companies. Its robust features, including OpenZFS and high availability, ensure your data is always protected and accessible, making it a reliable investment for growing businesses.
2. Unraid
Struggling with mismatched drives and complex server setups?
Unraid is an operating system for network-attached storage that simplifies your self-hosting, letting you build the server you want. This means you can consolidate your hardware, making the most of what you already have.
Unraid OS helps you [manage your entire stack] of Docker applications easily, turning a closet full of drives into flexible storage.
It’s time to unleash your hardware.
Unraid empowers you to utilize diverse hard drives of any size to construct and expand your server’s storage capacity. This flexibility means you’re not limited by specific drive types or brands.
You can also [run applications and manage data] on the same server, allowing for network-free file access and high-speed transfers. Additionally, Unraid supports virtual machines, enabling you to pass through graphics cards for gaming or video editing, greatly accelerating your creative and productive workflows.
Plus, you can run popular applications directly from your Unraid server, even submitting your own for the community, ensuring limitless possibilities from local file storage to game hosting, truly optimizing your rig. The result is robust data protection and streamlined file sharing.
Key features:
- Flexible Storage Management: Unraid OS lets you mix and match hard drives of any size, allowing you to build and grow your server’s storage capacity efficiently and cost-effectively.
- Integrated Application Hosting: Run Docker applications and virtual machines directly on your server, enabling seamless data management, high-speed file transfers, and specialized tasks like gaming or video editing.
- Community-Driven Support: Benefit from an active community, extensive guides, video tutorials, and user-created application templates, ensuring comprehensive support and continuous evolution for your self-hosted server.
Unraid features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: Unraid stands out as a top contender for the best network attached storage software, especially for growing companies and tech-focused SMEs. Its ability to unify diverse hardware, simplify Docker and VM management, and offer robust community support means you get a powerful, scalable, and resilient data solution that minimizes downtime and maximizes productivity for your team.
3. openmediavault
Struggling with complex NAS software and limited control?
OpenMediaVault provides an out-of-the-box network attached storage solution that’s designed for simplicity. This means you can quickly get your storage running without needing deep technical knowledge, addressing common setup frustrations.
It offers a web-based administration interface, making it easy to manage your data and services remotely, and helps you avoid overwhelming command-line interfaces.
Here’s how OpenMediaVault simplifies data management.
This solution is based on Debian Linux, ensuring a stable and reliable foundation for your network attached storage needs. You can easily manage volumes, share files, and even get snapshot support for shared folders.
OpenMediaVault supports essential services like SSH, SFTP, SMB/CIFS, and RSync, providing versatile options for file transfer and synchronization across your network. Plus, with features like link aggregation and Wake On Lan, you can optimize network performance and energy efficiency. Additionally, you can extend its capabilities significantly through a wide array of available plugins and apps, allowing you to tailor the system to your specific requirements, whether for a small office or more extensive scenarios, ensuring scalability for your growing company.
Streamlined data management is now within reach.
Key features:
- Out-of-the-box operation means you can quickly deploy your NAS solution without extensive configuration, saving valuable IT time and resources.
- Web-based administration simplifies management with an intuitive interface, allowing you to control your storage from anywhere without specialized command-line expertise.
- Extendible via plugins enables customization and growth, so you can add new functionalities and integrate with your existing infrastructure as your needs evolve.
openmediavault features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: OpenMediaVault stands out as the best network attached storage software for those seeking an approachable yet powerful solution. Its Debian Linux foundation, web-based administration, and extensive plugin support deliver robust data protection and seamless collaboration, ensuring streamlined file sharing and significant productivity improvements for your team.
4. Synology
Struggling with data sprawl and unreliable storage?
Synology offers powerful, scalable, and versatile network attached storage software to unify your business data. This means streamlining protection and ensuring high availability.
You can consolidate unstructured data with their expandable systems, ensuring your valuable information is always safe and accessible.
Here’s how you can solve your storage challenges.
Synology provides a secure foundation for your private cloud with DSM 7.2. This means you can create your cloud in minutes, ideal for growing companies.
Their purpose-built HDDs are optimized for NAS workloads, ensuring effortless management via DSM. You’ll find their dual-controller storage solutions, like the UC3400 and SA3400D, offer non-disruptive iSCSI/FC SAN and high-availability NAS & SAN. Additionally, ActiveProtect Appliances streamline and unify your business data protection, crucial for your team’s peace of mind. Plus, from edge to data centers, Synology solutions are designed to keep your data safe, ensuring maximum security.
The result: resilient data and smoother sharing.
While managing your data, consider how to optimize customer interaction platforms. My article on Android Kiosk software provides insights.
Key features:
- Secure data protection: Unify and streamline your business data protection with ActiveProtect Appliances, providing a secure foundation for your private cloud and keeping your data safe.
- Scalable storage solutions: Consolidate unstructured data with petabyte-scale and expandable systems, alongside purpose-built HDDs optimized for NAS workloads and effortless management via DSM.
- High availability NAS & SAN: Utilize dual-controller storage solutions like UC3400 for non-disruptive iSCSI/FC SAN and SA3400D for high-availability NAS & SAN, ensuring continuous access.
Synology features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: Synology stands out as best network attached storage software for its powerful and versatile solutions. With features like ActiveProtect for data security, scalable storage options up to petabytes, and dual-controller systems ensuring high availability, it directly addresses the critical needs of IT managers and CTOs for robust data management and seamless collaboration.
5. QNAP
Is your data resilient and sharing smooth?
Outdated storage servers often lead to inefficient file sharing and collaboration hurdles. QNAP addresses this with solutions for NAS, networking, and surveillance, providing a holistic approach.
This means you can replace old infrastructure and expand existing NAS capabilities while streamlining file management and ensuring robust data protection across your organization.
Here’s how QNAP delivers.
QNAP offers multiple operating systems like QuTS hero, QTS, QES, and QuTScloud, which run on public clouds and local hypervisors, enabling flexible deployment for diverse business needs. This ensures robust storage and virtualization capabilities for all your applications.
You can leverage features like Hybrid Backup Sync for comprehensive data protection across various sources, including PCs, servers, VMs, and SaaS applications. Additionally, Qsync allows one-stop file backup and synchronization, ensuring your team has seamless access to files across multiple devices for efficient teamwork. This comprehensive suite simplifies data management and enhances productivity.
The centralized App Center provides a wide array of productivity tools, multimedia applications, and robust security features like Security Center, QVPN Service, and QuFirewall. This helps your growing company manage everything from essential file serving to advanced virtualization, securing your data and network from potential threats.
The result is truly seamless data management.
If you’re also looking into other specialized storage solutions, my article on best self storage software covers how to boost efficiency.
Key features:
- Comprehensive Data Management: Leverage Qsync for one-stop file backup and synchronization across devices, streamlining teamwork and centralizing file management for improved efficiency.
- Robust Security Measures: QNAP provides Security Center, QVPN Service, and QuFirewall, offering enhanced protection against cyber threats and ensuring your sensitive business data remains secure.
- Flexible Hybrid Cloud Solutions: Deploy QuTScloud on public or private clouds and use HybridMount for cloud mounting, allowing you to easily scale storage and backup data offsite.
QNAP features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: QNAP stands out as a strong contender for the best network attached storage software due to its comprehensive OS options like QuTS hero and QuTScloud, which provide scalable and secure storage for diverse business needs. Its focus on robust data protection, including immutable storage and Veeam-certified solutions, makes it ideal for IT managers prioritizing data resilience and seamless file sharing.
6. StarWind Software
Is your current storage infrastructure giving you headaches?
StarWind offers hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) solutions like their Virtual SAN, effectively replacing expensive physical SAN hardware with software. This means you can forget about juggling complex management or shelling out big bucks for maintenance.
This shift provides the building blocks for a modern data center, streamlining your IT journey.
How can you simplify your IT infrastructure?
StarWind’s HCI Appliance integrates compute, storage, networking, and virtualization software into a single, easy-to-use platform. This helps you unify your entire setup, removing the need for separate, costly components.
Furthermore, StarWind Virtual SAN allows you to pool flash memory and traditional disks from your cluster, creating a virtual storage “pool” that everyone can access, eliminating the need for physical shared storage hardware like SAN, NAS, and DAS. For those wanting to leverage their own hardware, the Virtual HCI Appliance offers the same powerful software stack pre-packaged and ready to roll. Plus, StarWind provides 25/8 support, proactively preventing issues before they arise.
The result is optimized performance and significant cost reduction.
Beyond robust storage, protecting all your information is vital. My guide on Android data recovery software explains how to reclaim lost data from mobile devices.
Key features:
- Hyperconverged Infrastructure (HCI): Unifies compute, storage, networking, and virtualization into a single, easy-to-manage platform for streamlined operations.
- Software-Defined Storage (Virtual SAN): Replaces expensive physical SAN hardware with software, pooling diverse storage resources into a shared virtual storage environment.
- Proactive IT Infrastructure “Babysitting”: StarWind offers 25/8 support that proactively identifies and addresses potential issues, minimizing downtime.
StarWind Software features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: For IT managers seeking a cost-effective, high-performance, and resilient solution, StarWind offers the best network attached storage software. Its ability to replace physical SAN with software and provide robust data protection with proactive support, as evidenced by 300+ success stories and 4.8/5 customer reviews, makes it a compelling choice.
7. Rockstor
Are you tired of storage limitations and data silos?
Rockstor offers specific features to address these pain points, giving you robust data control. This means building your own dependable storage platform becomes effortless, no matter your Linux expertise.
You’ll gain complete control over your storage layer without needing deep technical knowledge. This is a critical step towards overcoming complex storage challenges.
Here’s how Rockstor helps.
It empowers your organization to build a private cloud, offering a hybrid workflow that combines the best of both public and private storage. This allows you to scale capacity with low incremental costs and manage everything easily from a simple web interface. Additionally, you can integrate seamlessly with public cloud storage, reducing operational costs and boosting efficiency. This comprehensive approach means you can access data from any device, anywhere, and protect it from loss or unauthorized access, ensuring data security and privacy while reducing storage expenses. The result is a highly adaptable and secure network attached storage solution.
Speaking of efficiency and streamlining operations, you might also find my guide on best email management software helpful for other areas of your business.
Key features:
- Customizable BTRFS NAS: Build your own robust, dependable storage platform on almost any hardware, leveraging BTRFS capabilities for advanced features like bitrot protection and snapshots.
- SMB Private Cloud: Create a scalable private cloud solution to manage hundreds of terabytes, integrating with public cloud storage for a hybrid workflow and lower operating costs.
- Comprehensive Data Protection: Utilize Copy-on-Write snapshots, instant share clones, and Rockstor to Rockstor replication for resilient data backup and protection from theft or loss.
Rockstor features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: Rockstor stands out as a best network attached storage software for its customizable BTRFS platform, enabling IT managers to build scalable, resilient storage. Its robust features like bitrot protection, snapshotting, and private cloud capabilities directly address data security and sharing pain points, making it a powerful choice for growing companies.
8. Openfiler
Struggling with complex network storage and data sharing?
Openfiler offers a unified storage solution, combining network attached storage (NAS) and Storage Area Network (SAN) capabilities seamlessly. This means you can manage all your data needs from a single, centralized platform.
The software addresses your pain points by providing features that simplify file sharing, ensure robust data protection, and facilitate seamless collaboration across your teams. Here’s how it solves that challenge.
Simplify your storage management now.
Openfiler directly solves the problem of outdated storage servers and expanding NAS needs by offering both iSCSI SAN virtualization and traditional NAS. This flexibility allows you to integrate Openfiler into your existing infrastructure, minimizing high switching costs and implementation complexity.
With Openfiler, you can streamline your data operations, reduce downtime, and boost team productivity. The dual functionality means you have the power to centralize storage and virtualize your SAN, giving you robust control over your critical information. Additionally, direct download access and dedicated purchase support ensure you can deploy and maintain your solution with confidence, leading to a measurable improvement in your data security.
Your reliable storage solution awaits.
If you’re also looking into robust data security, my article on privileged access management software covers essential strategies to secure your infrastructure.
Key features:
- Unified Storage Solution: Combines NAS and SAN capabilities, centralizing data management and simplifying file sharing for your growing business needs.
- iSCSI SAN Virtualization: Provides advanced virtualization features, allowing you to optimize your storage infrastructure for resilient data and smoother sharing within your organization.
- Comprehensive Data Management: Offers a robust platform for data protection and seamless collaboration, ensuring your critical information is secure and accessible to your teams.
Openfiler features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: Openfiler is an excellent choice if you’re seeking the best network attached storage software that offers both NAS and iSCSI SAN virtualization. Its unified approach to data management empowers your team with streamlined file sharing and robust data protection, directly addressing the complexities of modern storage.
Conclusion
Is your data storage truly resilient?
Choosing the right NAS software feels overwhelming. You’re trying to balance mission-critical security and scalability with a budget, all while fearing a costly mistake.
Cognitive Market Research shows hybrid solutions can reduce data retrieval times by 45%. This is a massive productivity gain, proving the right software completely transforms your daily workflow and efficiency.
Here’s my top recommendation.
After reviewing all the options, I found TrueNAS stands out. It delivers mission-critical storage with the absolute data integrity that growing companies urgently need.
Its foundation on OpenZFS delivers ransomware-resilient performance that you can trust. I believe the best network attached storage software for your small enterprise is TrueNAS for this reason alone.
I highly recommend you start a free trial of TrueNAS to experience how it secures and streamlines your entire data management workflow.
You’ll finally achieve data peace of mind.
