I use a Linksys NSLU2 (slug) network attached storage device on my home network. The device is great, primarily because it is low power and runs full-fledged Debian GNU/Linux which makes it extremely versatile. I use mine as
- File server – runs Samba, serves up music, videos and photos to home network
- Print server – allows wired and wireless PC/Mac/Linux computers to print to the laser printer
- Backup Server – makes automatic rsync backups of my website
- Music Server – serves up MP3s from a web interface to play on other computers
- Music Jukebox – has web interface to play songs through the stereo, using a USB Audio device
All this, and for less than 25W — 14W for the slug, which has no moving parts, and 5W each for 2x320GB USB hard drives.
Update: Tenx chipset USB adapters suck! See the end of the post for more details.