Setup of new NAS server

Linux in the Cloud
2

  1. Assuming each Wifi SSID is on the same VLAN, which SSID each device is assigned shouldn’t make a difference. Since you didn’t mention VLANs, I’m going to assume each SSID is on the same network. If each device gets an IP from the same pool and they have the same subnet mask, then the SSID doesn’t factor in at all whatsoever. So Syncthing would allow you to back up each device without you having to do anything special in your router (again, assuming you didn’t set up VLANs).

  2. I recommend all servers have a static IP. But I prefer static leases (aka “reservations”) so you set everything up in the router. If your IP addresses start at 192.168.1.100 for example, assign the NAS a reserved IP (in the router) for something underneath that (or whatever your pool is). If DHCP currently assigns the entire block, limit it to something like 192.168.1.100 - 192.168.1.250 (adjust for your IP scheme). Then you can assign static IP addresses outside of that range for any device you want to have a predictable IP. Here’s a guide (the verbiage on their site seems incorrect, but I think this is the option you’re looking for): https://www.asus.com/support/FAQ/1000906/
    But to answer simply, yes, you always want a predictable IP for something that’s important on your network ESPECIALLY your VPN device.

  3. I use Backblaze B2, and their prices are ridiculously cheap. It can take me 20-30 minutes to get access to large data downloads, but I don’t mind waiting a bit in exchange for cheaper prices. I back up my entire YouTube channel on B2. I have about 6TB saved on their right now, and my last bill was around $30 USD or so. I didn’t even know that Crashplan still existed to be honest.

  4. The Pi can hold all of those things, but if you have a large download going over VPN while watching Avengers at the same time, you may run into trouble. Especially if Plex has to do any re-encoding. With proper file types you can game that and get a lot more performance from it. But it can vary. I don’t see any harm in trying it, unless setting it up for your media library requires a lot of work. Another option is to dedicate a Pi to Plex, and use AutoFS to automatically mount the movie share on the NAS via NFS.

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