Sonic

I use the default settings in Proxmox: SeaBIOS and i440fx. In my test setup, I also have a PBS VM. Ideally, PBS requires local storage, but it also works with NFS and SMB shares. I'm currently testing with a HexOS SMB share and a Synology NFS share. So far, it works well, but NFS sometimes suddenly becomes very slow. I'm still undecided about what I'll run on the Lincstation N2. Right now, I have a Shuttle DL30N with an Intel N100 and 32GB RAM as my always-on Proxmox server. I run several Docker containers, including Homepage. The main question is whether the N2 with 16GB RAM will be enough to run: ✅ A HexOS VM (8GB RAM) ✅ Several Docker containers I think it will work fine, but I’ll have to test it! 😊

This week, I reconfigured my Lincstation N1 with Proxmox and HexOS in a VM. This is a temporary test setup, mainly to experiment with NVMe passthrough. Spoiler alert 😊: It works! For over a year, I had TrueNAS running on it, and that worked perfectly fine as well. Lincstation N2 – My Future Setup I backed the Lincstation N2 on Kickstarter. With the 30% early bird discount, it costs $309 / €329. 🔗 Kickstarter Link Eventually, I’ll use the N2 for my final setup, while the N1 will become my Proxmox Backup Server. Lincstation N1 – Specs Intel Celeron N5105 (4 cores) 16GB RAM 128GB ROM (not used) 2× 2.5" SATA bays (2× 500GB Samsung 870 EVO SSDs) 4× PCIe M.2 2280 slots (4× 2TB Samsung SSDs) 2.5GbE NIC Installation Steps – Proxmox & HexOS (NVMe Passthrough) 1️⃣ Install Proxmox Download the latest Proxmox ISO and create a bootable USB using Rufus. Boot from USB and install Proxmox. Installed on two 500GB SSDs (btrfs mirror setup). After installation, access Proxmox via the web interface. Run some post-install steps: Post-install helper script: 🔗 Proxmox Post-Install Script Install the latest Proxmox updates. 2️⃣ Install HexOS in a VM (NVMe Passthrough Setup) Download HexOS ISO and upload it to Proxmox. Create NVMe passthrough mappings: In Datacenter → Resource Manager, create 4 NVMe mappings (NVME1, NVME2, NVME3, NVME4). Create a new VM: BIOS: SeaBIOS Disk: 50GB HDD RAM: 8GB CPU: 2 cores (host) Network: Virtio CD/DVD: Connect the HexOS ISO (At this stage, do not attach the NVMe SSDs yet.) Boot the VM and complete the HexOS installation. Shutdown the VM. Attach NVMe SSDs: In the hardware tab, add the 4 NVMe SSDs as PCI devices. Boot HexOS again: If everything is correct, HexOS should detect all 4 SSDs, allowing you to create a storage pool. Done! 🎉 Special thanks to @Dylan and @PsychoWardsfor encouraging me to share more about my homelab! 🚀 Also a picture of my N1. It's fits perfectly in my 10 inch rack. (BTW, the other device is a NUC 11 pro)

a lifetime license is doubled in price. That's way to much if you ask me

You never can have to much memory. If you have 64 gb in your machine, leave it like that. 😀. You also have buy new memory if you sell the 64GB. And that for a few $ or euro "profit"

If have just seen some news about the a big refresh of the Synology line up. (We can discuss about how big big is 🙂). https://nascompares.com/2025/03/13/synology-ds525-ds1525-ds425-ds1825-and-more-revealed/ To be honest, I think it is in general not a exciting refresh. Synology was always more famous for the software as for the hardware. But introducing 2,5gbe in 2025 is already odd, they seem to sacrafice the 10 gbe upgrade option (TBC). This looks really strange to me. And the CPU upgrade is also not a major step. It looks like they are still pretty confident and not afraid for competition. I see a lot of new NAS vendors entering the market with great hardware specs. And there is also great NAS software available. Of course HexOs is not there yet, but looks very promissing. But e.g. a brand as Ugreen in also investing heavely in the software. I had expect a stonger answer of Synology, but perhaps they are not so interested in home / SoHo space anymore. What do you think? Looking forward to hear your opinion.

Short answer: no You'll need to resort to using SMB, NFS, or Rsync over the network to copy from the USB drive to your TrueNAS ZFS pool. See also: https://www.truenas.com/community/threads/is-it-possible-to-copy-data-from-external-usb-drive.115693/

It's possible with other mainstream NAS brands like QNAP, Terramaster, Asustor. But Synology has always blocked this option. You can find more background information here: https://nascompares.com/tag/truenas-2022/

If you want to see more new NAS devices. See: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4FVdzddNGpk Especially the OpnNas could be interessing https://opnnas.com/ A complete other angle is to buy reused enterprise hardware. E.g. you can buy a refurbished workstation with ECC support. I don't have a lot of experience in that erea, but people like @ubergeek do. For me is this the fun part of discussing what hardware someone should buy. There are a lot of possibilities, but in the end you have to decide what's important for you. A nice example is the homelab challenge I watched a few day ago. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z06LavaCZv0 Same assignment, totally different outcome.

Several people on this forum have a WTR Pro (either the Intel N100 or AMD version), including myself. I'm very happy with it. It's a solid device. However, you should be aware that things like customer support and the ordering process are not always at the level you might be used to. They’re not yet up to US/EU standards. AOOSTAR ships orders in batches, meaning they send everything out on a single shipping date. This means you might have to wait a few weeks for delivery.

There are some new kids on the block. Just to show you some alternatives. https://aoostar.com/blogs/news/the-aoostar-wtr-max11bay-is-about-to-meet-you-all Minisforum will also introduce a new NAS with the same CPU and ECC memory support. And have seen several other examples Those brands are not as proven as a brand like Supermicro. But the new brands are shaken up the market for sure. More functionalty at a lower pricepoint. I have to say that I am not an encoding and transcoding expert. But you can find a lot of reviews via Google. https://www.reddit.com/r/PleX/comments/1h7fskn/amd_ryzen_7_8845hs_is_a_transcoding_beast/ I also found this on YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jr5MjhgPz_c&t=1337s , perhaps also a good example. Just some thoughts. In the end you have to choose which option fits best for you.

Hi @freid, almost $900,- for motherboard / CPU combo is a lot of money. I am wondering what the main purpose will be for your NAS setup? It seems a little top heavy to me. But don't get me wrong. You probably have good reasons for the choice of this combo. I only like to learn from your choices.

Nice journey! Looking forward to see HexOs on your mini NAS. Can you share your experiences with the temperature? I'm really curious about the cooling system in this NAS mini PC.

This is a good background artikel. Thanks! It’s always good that you really understand the stuff you working with. In my opinion this is also the reason why TrueNas has a pretty steep learning curve. You have to understand the basics of ZFS and the authorization model, before you can configure the right options. To be honest, I am still not really comfortable in TrueNas. With a few guides from the internet I got my TrueNas setup up and running. But after that I change as less as possible 😀 This is exactly the reason I like the concept of HexOs. Rock solid TrueNas / ZFS in the background and easy config in the front end

@PsychoWards, you are more then welcome to copy some parts of my setup! That's also how I started with my setup. Always learning a lot of other homelabbers. And still learning every day. Do you have specific part where you are interested in? We can eleborate on that. And yes, perhaps you are right. I should create my own topic 🙂

@ChrisAcrobat See also this post above. Probably you have to change some BIOS settings. You can always contact @Suljaman, since he has the same device.

I am looking forward to all the reviews of all the new NAS devices, which are entering the market. Also Minisforum Will introduce there NAS line. The specs looks also promising. And what will the answer of Synology and QNAP be. It’s really quit in that erea.

$699,- is reasonable price. I use SPF+, but only for connections between my router and switches. So the interconnects are 10gbe, and I have one 1gb switch and one 2,5 gb switch btw, I standardized my network on Mikrotik.

Let's keep in touch! Already some inspiration and scripts: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5KAt76Bg3w https://www.apalrd.net/posts/2024/pbs_hibernate/ I need to find some time to start experimenting.

@Dylan, my answer is already in your comment. 😀  I mean, they're essentially servers the size of a large grapefruit. My answer depends on how you define a NAS. In the end, they are all mini PCs or servers with a certain form factor. But to give you an idea, I’ll describe my setup. I distinguish between my home network and my homelab. Home Network My home network is used by my family, mainly for file sharing and backups. The cornerstone is a rock-solid Synology NAS DS1520+, which I use for local Office 365 backups. Additionally, I back up my photos from my NAS to the cloud, so all my files are stored both locally and in the cloud. Before this, I had a DS414, which ran 24/7 for over 10 years. Homelab I have a separate network segment for my homelab (Mikrotik 2.5GbE & 10GbE network). All devices in my homelab run Proxmox in a cluster. My Aoostar WTR Pro serves as a NAS/storage (HexOS) and Proxmox Backup Server. Additionally, I have: Intel NUC 11 Pro → Runs Windows 11 and macOS VMs, stays powered off when not in use. Shuttle DL30N (Intel N100) → Runs Docker apps. Lincstation N1 → Test server, including a second HexOS installation. I recently ordered a Lincstation N2, which I plan to use as my primary HexOS server. This will allow me to repurpose my Aoostar WTR Pro as offline storage, activated only when needed using Cron jobs and Wake-on-LAN. The Lincstation N1 will then become my Proxmox Backup Server, allowing me to quickly restore VMs or Docker containers when experimenting with configurations that don’t work as expected. All of this is housed in 10-inch racks. I’m a big fan of small form factor devices that strike a balance between maximum performance and minimal power consumption.

I just backed the Lincstation N2 on kickstarter. Also the Lincstation S1 is available. The S1 is comparable with the Aoostar WTR Pro. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/lincplus/redefining-nas-style-power-and-usability-with-lincplus/description I have already a Lincstation N1, really a great device. $309 for a N2 with 30% early bird discount is really a great offer. And the N2 had 10 gbe network

Keep us posted which you like the most in the end 🙂. I am very curious.

I did the same. 64GB and 3 SSD's (I have a adapter for the WiFi slot). I run Proxmox and HexOs in a VM with SATA passthrough. I am very happy with it.

it also says 6xSATA and 6xNVMe. So is on of the 7 drive bays an NVME expander? Probably. It's a nice device, but I think i don't need so much power. AMD Ryzen7 8845HS has a TDP of 45W. That's much more compared to the WTR pro.

Source: Aoostar Facebook page, in the New Product chat. They were uploaded by Joyce (Aoostar admin). Aoostar announced the 6 WTR 6 bay Nas already in 2023, but it's postponed. See: https://aoostar.com/blogs/news/aoostar-new-diy-nas-metal-shell-mini-pc-with-6-hdd-bays-6-nvme-slots-10-gbe-ethernet-port-2-x-2-5-gbe-ethernet-ports-led-screen-and-a-ryzen-7-5800u-processor?page=4#Comments-607102894378 But the funny thing is, that Aoostar is talking about a 6 bay NAS and there are 7 bays on the pictures. Nothing final yet 🙂

Did you buy Intel or the AMD version?