Building a NAS using a Laptop (Based on Ubuntu)¶

Introduction¶

A Network Attached Storage (NAS) is a dedicated file storage system that provides local area network (LAN) users with centralized, consolidated disk storage through a standard Ethernet connection.
In this tutorial, we will guide you through the steps to turn your old laptop into a NAS using Ubuntu.

Prerequisites¶

An old laptop with Ubuntu installed.
An external hard drive or SSD for additional storage.
A stable network connection.
Basic knowledge of Linux commands.

Step 1: Update and Upgrade Your System¶

First, ensure your system is up to date. Open a terminal and run the following commands:
```
sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade
```

Step 2: Set Up a Static IP Address¶

To ensure your NAS has a consistent IP address, you need to set up a static IP. Open a terminal and edit the network configuration file:
Why? We want your NAS to have a permanent IP (say, 192.168.1.100) so you always know where to find it.
```
sudo nano /etc/netplan/01-netcfg.yaml
```

Add the following configuration, replacing the values with your network details (This is just a example, replace address and Gateway with yours):

network:
  version: 2
  renderer: networkd
  ethernets:
    eth0:
      dhcp4: no
      addresses:
        - 192.168.1.100/24
      gateway4: 192.168.1.1
      nameservers:
        addresses: [8.8.8.8, 8.8.4.4]

Apply the changes:
```
sudo netplan apply
```

Alternative: Set Up Static IP Address Using GUI¶

If you prefer to use a graphical user interface (GUI) to set up a static IP address, follow these steps:
1. Click on the network icon in the system tray.
2. Select the WiFi network you are connected to and click on "Settings".
3. Go to the "IPv4" tab.
4. Change the "Method" to "Manual".
5. Enter your desired IP address, Netmask, and Gateway.
6. Add DNS servers if needed.
7. Save the settings and reconnect to the network.

Step 3: Install OpenSSH Server and Test It¶

To remotely access your NAS, you need to install the OpenSSH server. Open a terminal and run the following command:
```
sudo apt install openssh-server
```

Once installed, start and enable the SSH service:

sudo systemctl start ssh
sudo systemctl enable ssh

Test the SSH status on your laptop
```
sudo systemctl status ssh
```
Test the SSH connection from another machine on the same network:
```
ssh username@192.168.1.100
```
Replace username with your actual username and 192.168.1.100 with the static IP address you set up.

Additional Step: Set Up Remote Access with GUI Using Chrome Remote Desktop¶

To access your NAS with a graphical user interface (GUI), you can use Chrome Remote Desktop. Follow these steps:

Install Chrome Remote Desktop¶

Open a terminal and run the following commands to install Chrome Remote Desktop:

wget https://dl.google.com/linux/direct/chrome-remote-desktop_current_amd64.deb
sudo dpkg -i chrome-remote-desktop_current_amd64.deb
sudo apt-get install -f

Install Google Chrome¶

If you don't have Google Chrome installed, download and install it:

wget https://dl.google.com/linux/direct/google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb
sudo dpkg -i google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb
sudo apt-get install -f

Install Desktop Environment¶

Install a desktop environment if you don't have one. For example, you can install Xfce:
```
sudo apt install xfce4 xfce4-goodies
```

Configure Chrome Remote Desktop¶

Link your Google account to Chrome Remote Desktop by visiting remotedesktop.google.com and following the instructions.
Set up a new remote access session and choose a name and PIN for your NAS.

Step 4: Mount All Drives Permanently and Set Up Easy-to-Remember Mount Paths¶

Identify Your Drives¶

First, identify the drives you want to mount. Open a terminal and run:
```
sudo fdisk -l
```
For GUI, go to disk to check your disk info

Create Mount Points¶

Create directories where you want to mount your drives. For example:
```
sudo mkdir -p /mnt/storage1
sudo mkdir -p /mnt/storage2
```

Edit the mount options in `disk` (GUI)¶

Uncheck Default option, check Mount at system startup
Change the Mount Point to where you just setup

Edit the mount option using `cmd`¶

To mount the drives permanently, edit the /etc/fstab file:
```
sudo nano /etc/fstab
```

Add entries for your drives. Replace UUID with the actual UUID of your drives, which you can find using the blkid command:

UUID=your-drive-uuid-1 /mnt/storage1 ext4 defaults 0 0
UUID=your-drive-uuid-2 /mnt/storage2 ext4 defaults 0 0

Mount the Drives
- Apply the changes and mount the drives:
```
sudo mount -a
```
Verify the Mounts
- Verify that the drives are mounted correctly:
```
df -h
```

Now your drives are mounted permanently with easy-to-remember names.

Install Samba¶

To share your drives over the network, you need to install Samba. Open a terminal and run the following command:
```
sudo apt install samba
```

Configure Samba¶

Edit the Samba configuration file to add your shared drives:
```
sudo nano /etc/samba/smb.conf
```

Add the following configuration at the end of the file, replacing the paths with your actual mount points:

[share]
comment = share folder
browseable = yes
path = /home/book/Share
create mask = 0755
directory mask = 0755
valid users = book
force user = book
force group = book
public = yes
available = yes
writable = yes

Create Samba User¶

Create a Samba user and set a password:
```
sudo smbpasswd -a your_username
```

Restart Samba Service¶

Restart the Samba service to apply the changes:
```
sudo systemctl restart smbd
```

Access Shared Drives¶

Mac User, use Connect to Server under Go
Windows User, right click and select Add a network location

Now you're ready to explore the Hard drive connected your laptop use LAN

Additional Tips: Prevent Laptop from Sleeping When Lid is Closed¶

Method 1: Using the Graphical Interface¶

Open Power Settings:¶

Click on the system menu at the top right corner.
Select "Settings" and then go to "Power".

Adjust Lid Close Behavior:¶

Find the option "When the lid is closed" or similar.
Set it to "Do nothing" or "Turn off screen only". The exact options may vary depending on the version.

Save Settings:¶

Close the settings window.

Method 2: Editing Configuration File¶

If the graphical interface does not have the relevant options, you can set it by editing the configuration file:

Open Terminal:¶

Press Ctrl+Alt+T to open the terminal.

Edit logind.conf File:¶

Enter the following command to open the configuration file:
```
sudo nano /etc/systemd/logind.conf
```
Find and modify the following two lines: Ensure the following two lines exist and are uncommented (remove the # at the beginning), and modify them to:
```
plaintext
HandleLidSwitch=ignore
HandleLidSwitchDocked=ignore
```

Save and Exit:¶

Press Ctrl+O to save.
Press Ctrl+X to exit the editor.

Restart systemd-logind Service:¶

To apply the changes, run the following command:
```
sudo systemctl restart systemd-logind
```