Over a quarter-century of digital transformation has brought us to an age where 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are produced every day. That’s a number with a lot of zeros, to be precise, it is 2.5 followed by eighteen zeros. As more applications and technologies, especially IoT devices are added to our lives, the rate of data creation will grow more rapidly.

It is estimated that by 2025, more than 180 zettabytes of data would be created annually. To better appreciate the quantum of the data, let’s try to visualize it. To store all of that data, you would need DVDs stacked from the earth to the moon sixty times over.

Thankfully, not all of the data created is saved. Of the data produced and consumed in 2020, just two percent were retained. Nevertheless, along with the growth of data volumes, the storage capacity is also projected to increase. In 2020, the installed storage capacity was around 6.7 zettabytes, and this is expected to keep growing at a compound annual growth rate of 19.2 percent from 2020 to 2025.

A majority of this data is captured and stored by the tech giants such as Google, Facebook, and Amazon. But data is equally, if not more, valuable to smaller businesses as well. According to a report by Spiceworks, 59% of SMBs expect local shared storage needs to grow.

Now the growth in storage needs begs the question: where should businesses store the data? This article answers this and other questions related to data storage and evaluates the common storage options, namely, Network Attached Storage (NAS) devices, local servers, and the cloud.

NAS Vs. Server Vs. The Cloud: How Do They Compare?

Network Attached Storage (NAS)

• What is NAS?

A NAS is a network-connected device that allows the storage and retrieval of data by authorized network users. Unlike an external hard drive, it does not need to be connected to a computer. Rather, it connects directly to the network and is accessible to everyone on the network.

NAS devices have high storage capacity and are fast so they feel like having a private cloud in the office. They offer a convenient way to store and backup data, which can be accessed from anywhere as long as there is access to the internal network.

• How does NAS work?

NAS devices generally contain three to five hard drives. The multiple drives not only provide high storage capacity but also provide redundancy and facilitate faster file access. The hard drives used in NAS devices are specially designed for high usage and 24x7 operation.

Each NAS device contains an operating system and a processor with a fair amount of computing power. This enables the device to intelligently manage filesystems, handle read-write operations, run applications, and provide simultaneous access to multiple users.

NAS devices connect to the network either via ethernet cable (hardwired) or Wi-Fi. They are configured for access via permissions to users on an internal network, but can also be configured for access via the Internet, in which case they function as a private cloud.

Local Server

• What is a Server?

A server is a technology that provides a service or functionality to another computer or application. Servers can be physical, located in the office, or virtual servers, located in the cloud. They can perform a variety of functions such as mail server, web server, or print server. But in this blog post, we are interested in storage servers.

Storage servers, also known as file servers, are a type of server that allows secure storage, access, and management of digital files. These servers are specifically built for storing and accessing large amounts of data over a shared network. Since their primary purpose is to store and retrieve data, they have high storage capacity but relatively low processing power.

• How does a storage server work?

Servers are similar to personal computers (PCs) and are made up of the same basic components such as motherboard, Central Processing Unit (CPU) / processor, Random Access Memory (RAM), hard drive, etc. In fact, it is possible to use a PC as a server. However, traditional servers are much more powerful than PCs and are specifically designed for reliability, 24x7 operation, and handling large numbers of requests.

A storage server functions as a central repository for data storage and access. It follows the server-client-model architecture, where the devices or applications that use the services of the server are the “clients”.

The clients access the server through a Graphical user interface (GUI) control panel and File Transfer Protocol (FTP) or Application Programming Interface (API). When a server receives a request from a client, it performs some operations and sends back a response. This is commonly referred to as the request-response model.

If you are interested in learning more about servers, you should check out our guide to servers for small businesses, where we cover important topics such as building a server vs. buying and types of servers based on form factor and purpose.

The Cloud

• What Is The Cloud?

Cloud refers to on-demand system resources such as storage, computing power, etc. that can be rented from a service provider. In most cases, the term cloud implies “public cloud”, which is a multi-tenant model where multiple organizations or individuals rent the same computing resources. The most common cloud service providers are Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud.

Similar to physical servers, the cloud can also serve a wide range of functions such as mail servers, application servers, web servers, etc. But in our case, we are more interested in data storage. The cloud allows storage and retrieval of any amount of data at any time and from any place via the Internet. The cloud is a reliable data storage solution that is highly scalable. An example of a cloud storage service is AWS Simple Storage Service (AWS S3).

• How Does The Cloud work?

The most basic form of cloud storage consists of a physical server connected to the Internet via a high-speed connection, enabling clients to store and access files from anywhere. Users generally access the data server through a web-based interface but most services also support API connections. In addition to storage and retrieval, the cloud servers also allow manipulation of the file on the server itself.

Cloud service providers have large data centers consisting of hundreds of large physical servers, which allow the storage and retrieval of massive amounts of data. The large number of servers ensures high-speed access, 24x7 availability, and redundancy. So even if some of the servers are under maintenance or repair, the data is still readily accessible.

Large cloud service providers such as AWS, Google Cloud, etc. maintain independent data centers all over the world to ensure redundancy and to reduce latency to the end-user. The data centers also have redundancy built into their power supply. This means that data is stored on servers that use different power supplies. So even if power from one source suffers an outage, the servers are still running and accessible.

Key Comparisons

1. Ease Of Use

NAS devices are user-friendly and require minimal setup and configuration. They often come pre-packaged with dedicated applications and are pretty much plug-and-play. Such devices simply need to be powered up and plugged into the network and will immediately start functioning as a file or media server.

However, the ease of setup means that NAS devices have very limited customization options. Repairs are also generally harder. Servers, on the other hand, are much more flexible and can be customized to suit different purposes. The customization options also extend to the hardware as components such as hard drives and processors can be swapped or added with relative ease.

In contrast, the customization and flexibility of servers mean that they require technical knowledge and experience to set up and configure correctly. Finally, the cloud offers the best of both worlds as it is easy to use and scalable. While simple cloud storage solutions such as Google Drive and Dropbox are easy to set up, more robust cloud solutions such as AWS, Azure, etc. require specialized knowledge for set up and configuration.

2. Performance

The performance of NAS devices and local servers is dependent on the network speed and the volume of data uploaded/downloaded. While the performance of cloud servers is dependent on the Internet connection.

Uploading to and downloading from NAS and local servers are much faster than the cloud even if the internet connection is fast. This is because the cloud service apps do not use the maximum available bandwidth as this will congest the Internet connection.

In general, hardwired NAS devices and local servers give better performance than cloud servers, especially when working with large files. The exception to this would be when users are accessing the data remotely, in which case, the performance of the cloud server is usually the best.

3. Backup And Reliability

Typically, for data storage reliability Redundant Array of Independent Drives (RAID) technology is recommended. RAID is also extremely useful for business applications that require high uptime and availability. Additionally, RAID enables the storage devices to weather drive failures without data loss and, in many cases, without downtime.

NAS devices that have multiple bays can be built for redundancy but not all of them support RAID. Moreover, it will limit the storage capacity by using up the already limited number of drives. RAID configurations are easier to achieve in local servers since you can easily add more drives to them.

However, the backup and reliability of cloud servers are unparalleled. Most cloud service providers guarantee 99.9% uptime for storage. Backups can be created easily and for added security, those backups can be stored on a different cloud.

4. Security

The security of a NAS device typically depends on whether or not it is accessible over the internet. Since most businesses support remote work, NAS devices are configured to be available via the Internet. The same goes for local servers. So, the storage devices are as secure as the rest of the network.

The cloud usually follows the shared responsibility model, where the service provider is responsible for the security of the cloud infrastructure, while the client is responsible for account and application security.

Data storage devices warrant added attention since they are a favorite target of hackers. Data security is an expansive topic and it would not be possible to address it meaningfully in this short section. To get started, check out our blog post that shares best practices and tips for data security.

5. Capacity

The capacity of a storage device depends on the capacity and number of hard disk drives it contains. The capacity of each drive can range from 500GB to 8TB. The NAS devices and even desktop-sized tower servers have a limited number of bays, which limits their capacity.

For businesses that require large storage capacity, rack-mounted servers and blade servers are excellent options since they offer high storage capacity in a compact form factor.

Next Steps

• NAS

If a NAS device fits your use case, the next step would be to choose the right one that meets your business needs. In which case, you might benefit from reading our top three recommendations for NAS devices.

• Server

If you have determined that your business requires the customization and flexibility of local servers, you will benefit from reading our blog post on the top 5 servers for small and medium businesses.

• Cloud

The share of corporate data stored in the cloud has increased from 30% in 2015 to 60% in 2022. Before you embark on the cloud train, you will find it beneficial to learn about transitioning your business to the cloud. To get started, head over to our blog post on things to consider before migrating to the cloud.

Click the button below to reach out to us if you need help with data storage, security, backup, and best practices.

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