Network Attached Storage

Protecting data in an emergency is vital to the continuation of any business. It doesn't matter how good the sales department is or how on top of things the accounting department is if all the records go up in a fireball. That's why the ioSafe (News - Alert) N2 NAS (Network Attached Storage) appliance should provide a sigh of relief for IT professionals and small businesses alike.

The new ioSafe N2 offers dual-drive capability for a combined storage total of up to eight terabytes of data (it can accept either 3.5- or 2.5-inch hard drives with a maximum capacity of four terabytes per drive), complete with network connectivity on a Gigabit LAN port, a pair of USB 3.0 ports, a single USB 2.0 port, 512 megabytes of DDR3 RAM, RAID, a built-in SD card reader, a newly-added Synology DSM (News - Alert) motherboard, and more besides.

But perhaps most important is the device's sheer robust nature. The ioSafe N2 weighs fully 28 pounds, and can be bolted to the floor for added security. It's also specifically hardened to resist damage from both fire and the water that is often used to put out fire.

What's particularly unusual here, though, is that ioSafe has turned to Indiegogo to get its funding to actually produce the ioSafe N2. Its growth, while impressive, has come at great cost, and ioSafe as a whole is finding itself a bit behind. Thus, they've turned to the Kickstarter analogue in order to get their project off the ground. With just over three weeks left on their time to raise their goal, and nearly ten percent of the $150,000 target in their hands already, it's a pretty safe bet that they'll make it to completion. When they do come out, the diskless model will be available for $599. Those pre-ordering can get in for $499, and additional discounts can be had by contributing to the Indiegogo effort.

The previous release hardware from ioSafe has been impressive enough in its own right, and makes this one well worth checking out.   It's always good to have an extremely safe backup in mind, especially with vital business data, so picking up something like the ioSafe N2 could be valuable. Of course, some may prefer storing data offsite, but for those who want their data in house, an N2 will likely bring peace of mind with it.

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