backup & home network question

[AngieK]

I hope this hasn't been asked already and if it has, I apologize. I am still getting used to how to navigate this site. 

Here is what I want to do:

Be able to access my files from any computer in the home. 

Have my hard drive backed up to another hard drive.

Right now I have 3 hard drives that I bounce back and forth between for client work and business stuff and personal stuff. I'd like to be able to access all this information from any computer without having to switch out hard drives all day long AND have an on site backup of all of these files. I have a Mac desktop and laptop that work between. What are my options here that is most cost efficient and won't require me to have to hire a tech/computer guy to set it all up? 

[Brian]

You will need something independent, called a NAS. Since you are running Macs, this could be accomplished a few different ways. 

What does your budget look like? 

[AngieK]

Not a bunch of money but I'm willing to find money somewhere to make this work. I'm super frustrated with my set up now. Ideally something less than $400-$500. 

[Brian]

You are gonna need to save up more than $500. I'd shoot for $1000-$1500.

You could get a used Mac Mini, and upgrade to OSX Server ($20) and create a network server. Then you hook up your hard drives to the Mini and configure OSX Server. That's probably the most expensive option these days.

Better yet, purchase a NAS model that has an Ethernet Port. It acts as a stand-alone device, similar to how the Mac Mini is setup. The problem with these models is you can purchase a NAS for about $300, but then you have to purchase high quality hard drives to put in the thing. You'll also have to get your Geek On to configure things, install hard drives, etc. This is where cost also becomes an issue.

Third option is to purchase a really large External HD that has built-in RAID 1 capability, then share that drive out. Have 4 separate main folders:

Business | Client | Misc. | Personal

With RAID 1, one hard drive automatically copies things over to a 2nd drive, in real time. So if one Hard Drive fails, the other has the data. When you replace the failed drive, the RAID Software duplicates the HD. Here is a fairly inexpensive model: WD My Book Pro 12TB. Now if you are thinking, but it says 12TB...why are you saying 6TB? Because to get 12TB, you have two 6TB Drives configured as a RAID 0.  RAID 0 is two Hard Drives acting in unison as one big HD. As soon as you switch to RAID 1, one HD is copying to the other, you only have 6TB to play with. The downside to that model is it needs to be hooked up to a powered-on computer and shared on the network. 

The third option is to purchase two 4TB or larger separate EHDs and copy one HD over to the other on a weekly or daily basis. A program like SuperDuper! for the Mac will clone hard drives for you. As for an external, I like G-Drives, such as this one: 4TB G-Drive with Thunderbolt and USB 3.0

You could go one step further and get the WD My Book RAID 1 unit and a 6TB G-Drive and use SuperDuper! to copy the WD unit to the 6TB G-Drive, then move the 6TB G-Drive to a off-site location.

Data Management is expensive if you want to do it well. If all you want to spend is $500 max, then I'd just get the largest EHD that you can afford and only use that drive by sharing it with the Mac Laptop. Then use your current separate externals to copy folders weekly. You will need at least 3 existing HDs for each main folder. (or four if you want.) One existing HD has the "Client" Folder, the second has the "Personal" and the third contains the "Business & Misc." Folders. This way you aren't swapping out HDs and the main big 6TB or 8TB Drive has a backup.