Editing Network-attached storage (section)

== Uses ==
NAS is useful for more than just general centralized storage provided to client computers in environments with large amounts of data. NAS can enable simpler and lower cost systems such as [[Load balancing (computing)|load-balancing]] and fault-tolerant email and web server systems by providing storage services. The potential emerging market for NAS is the consumer market where there is a large amount of multi-media data. Such consumer market appliances are now commonly available. Unlike their [[19-inch rack|rackmount]]ed counterparts, they are generally packaged in smaller form factors. The price of NAS appliances has fallen sharply in recent{{When|date=September 2024}} years, offering flexible network-based storage to the home consumer market for little more than the cost of a regular [[USB]] or [[IEEE 1394|FireWire]] external hard disk. Many of these home consumer devices are built around [[ARM architecture|ARM]], x86 or [[MIPS architecture|MIPS]] processors running an [[Linux on embedded systems|embedded Linux]] [[operating system]].

A '''purpose-built backup appliance''' (PBBA) is a kind of NAS intended for storing [[backup]] data. PBBAs typically include [[data deduplication]], compression, [[RAID 6]] or other redundant hardware components, and automated maintenance.<ref>
Johnny Yu.
[https://www.techtarget.com/searchdatabackup/definition/purpose-built-backup-appliance-PBBA "What is a purpose-built backup appliance (PBBA)?"].
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[https://www.veritas.com/information-center/purpose-built-backup-appliance-ultimate-guide "Purpose-Built Backup Appliance (PBBA): The Ultimate Guide"].
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[https://www.starwindsoftware.com/blog/purpose-built-backup-appliance/ "Purpose-Built Backup Appliance: Enhance Your Data Protection and Recovery"]
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Hubert Brychczynski.
[https://objectfirst.com/guides/data-storage/purpose-built-backup-appliance-pbba/ "Purpose-Built Backup Appliances (PBBA) - Features and Market Potential"].
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A PBBA may also be called a '''[[backup and disaster recovery appliance]]''' or simply a '''backup [[computer appliance | appliance]]'''.