The cheapest terabytes left for a home NAS are used SAS drives, and they need a $30 card most people have never heard of
An inexpensive adapter can help you could save hundreds on NAS storage
In the current PC hardware crisis, the price of storage has skyrocketed, making it difficult for NAS and home lab users to find affordable options. Consumers are turning to pre-owned enterprise SAS drives as a budget-friendly alternative. These drives, designed for server use, offer excellent reliability and massive capacity at a fraction of the cost.
To use them, a Host Bus Adapter (HBA) card is required, which can be sourced for as low as $30. While the initial investment may be around $500 for three SAS drives and necessary cables, it's a significant savings compared to regular hard drive prices. However, there are some challenges to consider, such as formatting SAS drives for ZFS and ensuring compatibility with consumer motherboards.
Users may also face increased noise levels and power consumption with these server-grade drives. Despite these drawbacks, used SAS drives present a compelling option for those seeking affordable, reliable storage for their home NAS or server.
Written by urgent.news from XDA Developers's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
