NAS for businesses: A shared storage solution that saves time and money

Do you send files by email? Are your important documents scattered across USB drives and shared folders on various computers? NAS (Network Attached Storage) is the solution that brings order, security and efficiency at a fraction of the cost of a traditional server.

What is NAS and how does it work

A NAS is essentially a smart network drive. It is a small device with one or more hard drives that you connect to the company network. All employees can then access shared files from a single location: from a desktop computer, laptop, phone or tablet.

Unlike a standard external hard drive, a NAS has its own operating system, a web interface for management, and supports access rights, automatic backups, remote access, and other features. Think of it as a mini-server that does not require a dedicated server room or an IT department.

Why does a company need an NAS?

Central repository: All documents in one place. No more searching for "where is that version of the contract".
Access rights: Define who sees which components. The accountant has access to finances, the salesperson to offers, but not vice versa.
Automatic backups: NAS can automatically back up data from all computers in the company.
Remote access: Access files from anywhere: at home or on a business trip.
Data protection: Thanks to RAID disk arrays, a single drive failure is survived without data loss.

Synology vs. QNAP: The two main contenders

On the market for NAS devices for small businesses, two brands dominate:

Synology

Synology is known for its intuitive DSM (DiskStation Manager) interface. Setup is simple and can be handled even by non-technical users. It offers a wide ecosystem of applications: from file sharing and backup to Synology Drive, which functions as a local alternative to Dropbox.

QNAP

QNAP offers usually better hardware (more RAM, faster processor) at a comparable price. The QTS interface is slightly more complex but provides more advanced features. For companies expecting more from their NAS than just file sharing (for example virtualisation or surveillance), it may be the better choice.

For most small businesses, we recommend Synology for its simplicity and reliability. For more technically proficient companies, QNAP may be more interesting.

RAID: Protection against disk failure

RAID is a technology that distributes data across multiple disks so that the failure of one disk does not cause data loss. For business NAS, two types are relevant:

RAID 1 (mirroring): Two discs contain identical data. If one fails, the other continues to operate. You will utilise 50% of the total capacity.
RAID 5: Three or more drives with distributed parity. Survives the failure of one drive. You will utilise approximately 67-75% of capacity.

Important: RAID is not a backup. It protects against disk failure, but not against ransomware, device theft or fire. Therefore, an additional offline or cloud backup is required.

Access rights: Who sees what

One of the most important functions of a corporate NAS is the ability to precisely configure who has access to which folders.

Each employee has their own account with a unique password.
Components are grouped by department or project.
Access may be "read-only" or "read and write".
Shared folders for the entire company (templates, forms) alongside private ones (personal folders).

If an employee leaves the company, you simply deactivate their account and access to all data is immediately revoked.

Backup strategy with NAS

NAS can be part of a comprehensive backup strategy:

Deposit for calculators on us: Automatic nightly backups of all workstations.
NAS backup to the cloud: NAS synchronises data to the cloud (Backblaze B2, AWS S3, Synology C2).
Versioning: NAS stores multiple versions of a file, if someone accidentally overwrites or deletes it, you can restore an older version.

This way you have the data in three places (computer, NAS, cloud) and comply with the 3-2-1 backup rule.

How much does a NAS cost

Indicative prices for a small business (5-15 employees):

NAS equipment (2-bay): 6,000-12,000 Kč (e.g. Synology DS224+)
Drives (2x 4 TB NAS drives): 5 000-8 000 Kč
Total: 11,000-20,000 Kč for a solution with 4-8 TB of usable space in RAID 1

That is a fraction of the cost of a company server and a fraction of what you would pay for comparable cloud space over 3-5 years.

Summary

A NAS is one of the best investments in IT infrastructure for a small business. For a reasonable price, you get a central storage with access rights, automatic backups and data protection. Installation takes hours, not days, and you feel the benefit immediately.