ONE SERVER to rule them all. That's our dream-a single, centralized PC designed for always-on action, but which won't run up huge electricity bills. It needs to be able to run multiple services simultaneously, from media streaming to cloud sync and backup. It needs to be configured as headless machine, accessible from other devices on your network, and handle more than one connection, so friends and family can benefit from your NAS server.
For the past few years, we've been living the dream with the subject of our September 2022 build. It's as capable now as it was then, but we set ourselves the task of improving it in every way: a more powerful mobo that consumes even fewer watts? Check. Plenty of drive bays to allow us to easily expand storage? Check. Take up as little room as possible? Check. How about capping the price at $600 for the base unit? No problem.
The result? A pint-sized powerhouse that's not tied to proprietary technologies or operating systems, and one that will comfortably outlast even the best that Synology or QNAP has to offer the home market right now. Don't believe us? Turn the page to find out just how to spec, build, and set up your perfect NAS-like server.
OUR PREVIOUS NAS build was centered around Intel's Gemini Lake Refresh range of Pentium Silver processors. ASRock produced a series of miniITX mobos with embedded J-series processors passively cooled by heatsink for silent operation, but quad core and capable of handling all your server needs. But while Intel has updated its low-powered chips over successive generations, these have been restricted firmly to the tiny PC market. It's only with the launch of its Alder Lake-N line in 2023 that new mini-ITX mobos, sporting the latest N100 processor, have made an appearance.
This story is from the April 2024 edition of Maximum PC.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the April 2024 edition of Maximum PC.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Velocity Micro Raptor ES40
A compact PC that mixes it with the big boys
Intel Arc B580
Intel's second crack at the gaming GPU market
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
Dr Jones will steal your heart in MachineGames' best effort to date
Improve your memory with Windows Recall
SINCE ITS ANNOUNCEMENT at Microsoft's Build conference in May 2024, Recall has had a torrid time.
HAVE WE REACHED MAXIMUM PC?
Has the desktop reached the point where it can get no better? Ian Evenden looks ahead
THE EVOLUTION OF VIDEO GAME AI
Over time, game AI has become more refined.
X (formerly Twitter) vs Bluesky
The battle of the micro-bloggers
Fun and graphics card games at CES 2025
WE ALL KNEW what was coming at CES: a bunch of graphics cards from AMD and Nvidia. They were pretty much exactly as predicted, albeit with some surprises. AMD managed to botch the launch of its RDNA 4 cards, while Nvidia played 3D chess with the pricing of its new RTX 50 cards.
AMD UNVEILS NEW GAMING AND AI CHIPS
AMD Ryzen AI Max series announced at CES 2025
DOCTOR
Save CCTV system | Multiple audio devices | Encrypted download