Simpler Version of TrueNAS being developed???

[WI_Hedgehog]

I'm of the opinion the answer is "yes," a simpler TrueNAS is on the way since the guy who screws up everything (other than removing screws) loves iXsystems, his company runs TrueNAS on the main server, builds NAS D-I-Ys with TrueNAS as the core, and he's not yet mature enough to not micro-manage such things into a hot pile of steaming cow excrement. (accent on the 't')

Personally, I think this makes sense as so many people are coming from his and other YouTube content creator videos with the desire to set up home servers for Plex, Jellyfin, and Minecraft. A creator themselves (if successful) is eventually buying a Storinator from 45drives which by default uses Ceph, though still supports Gluster and FreeNAS/TrueNAS. The reason for this appears to be that Ceph scales out very well for very large clusters, and having to configure only one software solution is more cost-effective than multiple storage solutions--for 45drives, not necessarily its smaller customers (like YouTubers*) who have to maintain those systems. Creating an easy-to-use home NAS fills the market void occupied by YouTubers and their viewers. Synology, which could fill this void, is focusing on small and mid-size business. iXsystems is focusing on Datacenters, but the iX product is so good that it's being pulled into all markets, all the way down to the level of home use. Of course the glaring reason is Synology software only works on Synology devices whereas iXsystems software works on any capable hardware. From a marketing perspective Synology is known for ease of use at a mostly-reasonable price-point, whereas TrueNAS is becoming a household name.

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*They seem to hate being called "YouTubers" and prefer "YouTube content creators." Come on, pushing out crap-tastic blop that can barely be called "content" entitles you to...be ridiculed. Most YouTube "content" is as bad as TicToc, just longer.

 

[Arwen]

Why would you think iXsystems would develop a product that does not make money?

We, the free users, are basically testers for their Enterprise product. Some of us do run stable TrueNAS versions, similar to the Enterprise users, but on our own hardware.

For those that buy iXsystems SOHO hardware, (my second NAS was a FreeNAS Mini), other than it being guaranteed to work with FreeNAS / TrueNAS, it was just a regular small server that iXsystems supplied the warranty.


I jokenly suggested "TrueNAS Express" as suitable for NASplug hardware that uses WiFi and USB attached storage, for those really low end NAS users. But the reality is that it would not be reliable, let alone that performance would suck badly.

And for those that want a simpler TrueNAS, your own comment indicates that people now come to TrueNAS for applications, like Plex, Jellyfin, and Minecraft. That would be the opposite of simpler NAS.

 

[WI_Hedgehog]

Why would you think iXsystems would develop a product that does not make money?

Did I say that? I know I wasn't thinking it.

And for those that want a simpler TrueNAS, your own comment indicates that people now come to TrueNAS for applications, like Plex, Jellyfin, and Minecraft. That would be the opposite of simpler NAS.

Software Appliances are "simpler" in the respect you spin them up and they're pre-configured (mostly) and "just work." This is an end-user perspective and much of the draw of TrueNAS in context. Instead of an end user having to select, install, configure, test, and maintain an OS and multiple packages, iXsystems has Software NAS Appliances that automate everything other than a few basic settings (conceptually, for the average install). I'm guessing iXsystems could continue to make things even simpler for a non-enterprise (or home) user. 45drives does this for 'Tubers; tell them what you need and they build it, configure it, ship it, and the 'Tuber mostly just has to plug it in. I'm guessing iXsystems is doing something similar with TrueNAS and/or their hardware for 'Tubers and home users.

 

[HoneyBadger]

While I can't comment on the speculation about the future that the TrueNAS software or iX as a whole will take, I would be interested to hear what the community would like to see done to improve the overall ease-of-use.

 

[Patrick M. Hausen]

Sane defaults for bridged networking, less "magic" and more explicit confiuration, e.g. no automatic creation of bridges whatsoever. I've been chatting with Morgan and Kris about this. We'll start with the documentation. Unfortunately jails and VMs are rarely used by Enterprise customers it seems. Which is a shame. We replaced an entire vSphere cluster with 2x TrueNAS CORE.

 

[Samuel Tai]

I agree. Bridges should be the default build out of the box, instead of relying on the end user to create the bridge themselves. The ACL manager should also be redone, as its current implementation causes no end of confusion. (In my environment, I end up disabling ACLs altogether, and relying on the previous Samba permissions mapping.) Also, updating the autotune script for 10G and higher networking.

 

[jgreco]

Also, updating the autotune script for 10G and higher networking.

OH DEAR LORD PUT AUTOTUNE OUT OF ITS FRICKING MISERY ALREADY!!!!

 

[acquires23]

wow, It's great