Small Business Build 6 endpoint pcs, 1 Server or NAS

[Enquiries]

I live in a very small town. I think I’m probably the only full out IT in this town. The town, City Hall and police department are merging into the same building. They have been taking quotes from other IT‘s as well as myself on upgrading all of the hardware desktop server switches routers all of it on the police side they have body cam footage that has to be uploaded and interacted with, but it’s not done all the time. The City Hall side they do their work on their machine back it up at the end of the night to either the server or NAS, which I have not decided which one I want to set up yet probably going to go with a server so that I could use active directory to split up the privileges using DHCP logins to prevent people from accessing files they not meant to access. I would say this building is roughly 1500 ft.² for the area that will have the network all in one floor. What type of switch and networking, would you recommend that I run for this setup to maximize storage access?

[ed]

Yes, if you have knowledge of active directory, you can build your own server, which may be cheaper than purchasing a pre-configured one. Synology NAS devices also support active directory, but with limited functionality. It is worth noting that using a NAS can simplify the maintenance of your network, as it is handled by the manufacturer and includes automatic updates.

In terms of cables, using CAT6a or CAT7 cables can be a good idea if you want to future-proof your network. These cables support 10 Gbps data transfer speeds and can be used for upgrading to 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10 GBE) in the future. You can also consider using a switch with a mix of 10 GBE and Gigabit Ethernet ports, allowing you to upgrade some devices to faster speeds while still supporting older devices at Gigabit speeds.

NAS devices also offer the ability to create separate shared folders and users, which can help to keep data safe and organized. You can use these features to set up different access levels and permissions for different users or groups.

I hope this helps!

https://www.synology.com/en-uk/dsm/featu..._directory

https://nascompares.com/2018/01/19/cheap...-switches/