Hi,
update: too much text here, I know... I've highlighted the most important points below in red.
Not sure which forum would be most appropriate so I'm posting in general. I hope that's okay. I've currently got an Acer H340 WHSv1 which is used exclusively for backups of our network attached computers (currently 5 of them, with a few older ones archived still). Unfortunately, it's network connection has become increasingly unstable to the point where it's now pretty much impossible to finish a backup on it. Also the 2 TB disk limit means I can't expand any more if necessary. So I think it's time to find a new solution.
The features that I find indespensible is:
1. Full boot/system partition restore in addition to file backup (I realize it's all image based on WHS) - I find the best way to remove malware is to restore an older backup as some of the stuff out now is virtually impossible to remove and I don't trust that it's really gone. Having full restore capability can save a lot of time.
2. Fully automated client backups.
3. Versioning - I really like to ability to get older or deleted versions of files. WHSv1 is actually quite weak in this area as you need to load a different image for each version so comparing changes for a particular file over time is incredibly slow and tedious - but at least it's possible.
4. Expandibility - I want to be able to add drives to increase storage as necessary without having to lose data already there. I want to be able to mix drive sizes or have some way to migrate to newer, larger drives.
Additional feature I like:
Deduplication - potentially save a lot of server storage space, but this wouldn't be a deal breaker.
Anything that makes the essential features faster/better would be a great upgrade.
The other feature I really want, which I never got working under WHS, is a backup of the server. Cloud or internet based backup would be nice but I also would like to be able to backup to a local drive (either in a spare bay or attached to USB3/eSata): preferably this could also be automated but allow me to alternate destination drives -- I'd like to setup a rotating schedule where i'd swap one drive at home with another I'd keep at work on a weekly basis so I'd always have an offsite backup no older than a week or two.
Other features that would be nice but not necessary:
Media streaming to chromecast or roku (eg. plex server)
Price range: $1000 for the base unit is about the most I'd be willing to spend but preferably less.
Is there anything that would fit my needs in this price range?
It would be nice to have a single solution but I've also considered just setting up backup software on each machine independently. I think there are a few software backup solutions that would fit most of my needs, some of which have pretty decent academic discounts that I could make use of.
One possibilty then would be to get some sort of NAS appliance. If it doesn't have an included backup system that fits my needs I could buy a software backup solution independently and use the NAS as the destination. This would allow aggregating all the backups into a single location that could then be backed up for offsite backup. I would then just need a NAS appliance that fullfills my automated self backup scheme. Of course a single solution that could do everything I want would be preferable.
Any suggestions?
Thanks!