For years we wondered why external hard drives didn't come with multiple USB ports so that two or more computers could work off of the same drive at once. Sadly, there isn't a simple way to connect two computers to a single hard drive, but we've found a better solution.
Every time we travel we bring along our trusty Synology NAS (Networked Attached Storage) box. The one we currently have isn't available anymore but the current version is the DS716+II. This small little box will hold two separate drives that will work together to back up your data and it will share this footage over a network connection. These NAS boxes can do a ton of different things but we only use them to backup our data and to access our data from multiple computers at once.
In the past I connected the NAS box to a standard five-port switch and then ran Ethernet cables from the switch to our laptops. This gives us around 110 MB/s read speeds with a wired connection. Recently I've swapped out our switch for the TP-Link C7 AC1750. This router has the same five Ethernet ports on the back so we can still use it wired but it will also broadcast our NAS box wirelessly as well. Sadly the top speeds we were able to get with any router on the market was around 45 MB/s. Also, unless your computer has multiple Wi-Fi chips, you won't be able to connect to the box and the Internet at the same time. It's not as good as a wired connection but it's nice to have the option.
If you're looking for a server solution while traveling or if you want more storage for your home, the DS716+II is a great choice because it has the ability to connect to a five-bay expansion unit to add even more storage. We use a much larger version of this in the Fstoppers office as our main server.
This post may read like an ad but we have no connection with Synology. We are just extremely satisfied customers and I wanted to pass this info along to anyone who may also need this type of solution.
If you'd like to learn how to make your own videos and don't know where to start, check out our filming and editing tutorial, Introduction to Video. If you purchase it now, you can save a 15% by using "ARTICLE" at checkout. Save even more with the purchase of any other tutorial in our store.
That's cool to know you guys use them like that. It's kind of hard not to love them really. We store our photos on them, push them all to Amazon Unlimited Storage (paid), and run Plex that works great on the TV/iPads/Computers in the house. I actually won mine from Synology! https://twitter.com/Synology/status/544937834097176576 :)
"Also, unless your computer has multiple Wi-Fi chips, you won't be able to connect to the box and the Internet at the same time."
I guess you already know it, but if you run a cable from the WAN port of the TP-Link router to the router connected to the internet (if this is possible at all) you don't need to have "multiple Wi-Fi chips" on you laptop. This can also work with any other port on the TP-Link implying you are using the same IP address class of the internet connection.
I agree on the quality of the Synology products, I can also recommend Qnap but Synology's are better on some aspects of the software.
Most of the time we are in hotels that only give us a wifi connection. Is there a way to give the router the hotel's wifi and then have it broadcast that connection to each of the laptops wirelessly?
I looked it up on the TP-Link website and it looks like you are lucky. Just go to the settings page and check out the option I underlined on the following screenshot
My bad in the enthusiasm of the moment I didn't see that you need to know the MAC Address of the router with internet, and that it's a bit complicated to obtain. Let me think about it and I guess I can find a solution for your problem
Ok I may have the solution but, not having that TP-Link, I'm not sure it will work so you guys have to test it. Windows 10 have a pretty nifty feature that is called Hotspot Mobile and it works just like your iPhone so what you got to do is connect Laptop 1 to the hotel WiFi, then activate this Hotspot Mobile feature in the Settings under Network & Internet. When you are ready go to the settings page of the TP-Link with Laptop 2 and activate the feature Enable WDS Bridging I showed you before and input the data of the Hotspot Mobile of Laptop 1, in the MAC address field just input the Laptop 1 WiFi card MAC address. It really is a MacGiverish procedure and if it works I should tap myself on the shoulder. Give it a try and let me know. If you have any question just hit me up with a direct message
Or just get one of these:
http://www.tp-link.com/us/products/details/cat-5508_RE580D.html
Personally I'd not recommend any 2 bay NAS for data storage. The minimum I'd recommend is a 4 bay unit for redundancy and also storage. Don't get me wrong 2 bay units are a good choice for home users but not for a SMB environment.
Also the 5 bay attachment install used on any Diskstation series other than the DS1815/DS1815 (or newer) are only shown as JBOD systems which reduces their usefulness.
This said, I can pull around 70Mb/s with my old DS415+ and a Surface Pro over WiFi when needed over AC. I use a HP managed ProCurve router in the stack to control the network and a ASUS router (the ProCurve is to create VLANs to separate the network from personal and for business/VPN for NAS to NAS back up).
You're right but I think Lee is talking about a portable solution here and 5 bay and HP ProCurve are not exactly portable. He also talk about this solution as a "backup" device but if he works on it, then it's not a backup device. I can't stress it more, if you have only one copy of it then it's not backed up and RAID it's not a backup solution but a continuity of service solution
I've used a Two-Bay NAS for a very long time and it's always served well as a backup and shared storage. I think we get a bit too gear crazy/paranoid about data loss sometimes.
This is precisely how I do it...TP-LINK AC750 wireless router wired to the NAS...though I also have FTP and all that enabled for access when I'm on the road.