Build a Cheap and Fast RAID 5 NAS
 

RAID ("Redundant Arrays of Independent Disks"), especially RAID level 5, is particularly compelling to geeks, even wannabe geeks like me. What's not to love? You lose one disk, throw in another and your data rocks on! This is the RAID 5 dream. RAID 5 reality, however, is not so compelling. In fact, many people who know they should be using RAID 5 systems do not or cannot use the technology.

The purpose of this article is to build an inexpensive RAID 5 Network Attached Storage (NAS) system. I'll then compare the home-built system to off-the-shelf products to see how they compare in terms of performance. If we cut enough cost and produce enough value, we might convert some of the RAID 5 procrastinating masses into RAID 5 users.