Build your Own Network-Attached Storage (NAS) using FreeNAS

For this tutorial Ill be using Oracle virtualBox to create a NAS, but you can do this on an old PC you have laying around. By using VirtualBox this would be a Virtual NAS.

Video Tutorial:

Build your Own Network-Attached Storage (NAS) using FreeNAS

1. To follow this tutorial you need to download and install Oracle VirtualBox. and also download FreeNAS.ISO.

2. Run Oracle VirtualBox and click on New, To open Name and operating system window here enter the following:

Name: FreeNAS
Type: BSD
Version: Free BSD

3. I selected Windows 8 in the video tutorial because it automatically set my System Memory to 1024 and 25 GB hard drive space.

4. Follow the installation as follows: Create a virtual hard drive now, VDI (Virtual Disk Image), Dynamically allocated, and click on create Button.

5. Now we need to create additional virtual drives on our virtual Machine simulating multiple physical drives on a NAS server.

6.  Click on Settings, Storage, select Controller SATA, click on the little add HDD icon to the right, a pop up will appear here select Create new disk, VDI (Virtual Disk Image), Dynamically allocated, and here change the virtual hard drive size to an amount you like. For this HDD is going to be one of the Backup drives. By using the same process you can create as many virtual drives as you need. In my tutorial I created 3 100 GB HDD’s.

7. Now go to Settings, Storage, select the empty IDE Controller, click on the disk icon under Attributes, and here select Choose a virtual CD/DVD to brows and select the FreeNAS.ISO we downloaded.

8. Then go to Network, next to Attached to: Select Bridge Adapter.click on OK button, and click on install.

9. It will automatically boot from the virtual disk giving us the installation options.

10. Select option 1 Install / Upgrade.

11. Select the HDD where you want to install FreeNAS. if you added multiple disk make sure to select the one you chose for your FreeNAS OS.

12. Select yes to the confirmation Warning. once the installation has succeded select yes to reboot, and shutdown system.

13. Once is turned off go to settings, storage, select the FreeNAS.ISO and click on the minus icon on the bottom to remove it. clik OK.

14. Start your FreeNAS Once it finish booting up it should give you an IP address.

15. Open Windows explorer and enter http://IP address and press enter.

16. A popup will appear to enter the new password for the root user and log in.

Done!!! we have successfully installed a Virtual FreeNAS.