Five disks showing how RAID 5 handles your data via disk striping with parity

What is RAID 5? Good Speed, Safety through Parity

RAID (Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks) is the combining of multiple disks to mimic a single physical storage device. Depending on the type, or "level", RAID can increase performance, capacity, fault tolerance, or combinations...
What is Thin Provisioning

What is Thin Provisioning? Use Only What You Need

No, we're not talking SlimFast here, or a forced hike on limited rations (don't ask). We're talking about yet another computer term that doesn't completely clue you in on the concept it represents. What is...
Signal Messenger Logo

Signal Messenger: Simple Security, Guaranteed Privacy, Great Functionality

In our hyper-connected, always-on world, privacy is in everyone’s thoughts. Instant messaging is the dominant tool for remote conversations. How can we use instant messaging and maintain our privacy? By using Signal. Signal Messenger Signal is...
TrueNAS vs FreeNAS

TrueNAS vs. FreeNAS: What is the Difference?

Alas, dear reader, the title of this article is a bit misleading. There is no longer a NAS operating system named FreeNAS, nor one named simply TrueNAS. They exist under new monikers, but it's...
Four disks showing how RAID 10 handles your data via disk mirroring and disk striping

What is RAID 10? Speed and Fault Tolerance

RAID (Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks) is the combining of multiple disks to mimic a single physical storage device. Depending on the type, or "level", RAID increases performance, capacity, or fault tolerance, or some...
The FreeNAS OS dashboard

What is FreeNAS? Leverage the Power of OpenZFS

If you're reading this, you're likely familiar with NAS, or Network-Attached Storage. NAS boxes are slightly dumb, or if you prefer, highly-focused file servers. I.e. they store data and allow access to it over...
Mac floppy disks

A Brief History of the Floppy Disk

Ah, the floppy disk. How I miss thee. How I don't. There was a certain tactile pleasure to inserting you into your drive, and in the early days, locking you in place. The audible...
A hacker with a smartphone on the roof of a tall building

What RF Attacks Are and How to Defend Against Them

Firewall and rules are in place, intrusion detection systems are running, and all industry best practices are being followed. Great, but what about Radio Frequency attacks? They nimbly sidestep all of that. Radio Frequency Attacks Firewalls...
FreeNAS vs UNRAID

FreeNAS vs. UnRAID: What are the Differences?

To the outside world, FreeNAS (TrueNAS) and UnRAID appear far more alike than different. In effect, they are. Both are operating systems that allow you to leverage your own hardware as a NAS (Network...
World map with pins and strings connecting cities

ExpressVPN Review: How Does It Perform (and How to Install) on Ubuntu?

ExpressVPN is considered one of the top-tier VPN products. We install it on Ubuntu 21.04 and use it from the command-line and from within a browser. How does it shape up? What is VPN? A Virtual Private...

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A Practical Guide to Small Business Network Security in 2025

This article provides a clear roadmap for implementing crucial cybersecurity measures to safeguard your company's digital assets.
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What is Btrfs? The Better (than most) File System

Btrfs may be a "better" file system next to everything except ZFS, but what Btr actually stands for is not "better", or "butter", but...
Mac floppy disks

A Brief History of the Floppy Disk

Ah, the floppy disk. How I miss thee. How I don't. There was a certain tactile pleasure to inserting you into your drive, and...
hard drive showing platter and read write headread-write-head

How to Install ZFS and Create a ZFS Pool on Ubuntu

ZFS is a stable, robust, and fault-tolerant file system with built-in RAID-like properties and drive pools. We show you how to create a ZFS...
UnRAID array with parity and caching drives

What is UnRAID? Outstanding Capacity with Parity

There are a number of NAS operating systems out there, including several based on the BSD (Berkeley System Development) operating system. Most are proprietary...