What Was Happening
A customer in Putney SW15 asked us to come out and set up a NAS — network-attached storage — and transfer their existing data onto it. A NAS is a small, always-on storage device that sits on your home or office network, so any of your computers can reach the same files in one place, and, set up correctly, it keeps a redundant copy so a single drive failing does not take your data with it.
This is a request we are glad to get, because it usually means someone has decided to stop relying on scattered storage before something goes wrong, rather than after. We arranged an onsite visit and took the cabling we would need to connect the unit properly, rather than leaving it depending on Wi-Fi for large transfers.
Our Diagnosis
For a NAS to be worth having, a couple of things matter beyond simply plugging it in. The first is the connection: a NAS handling large amounts of data wants a wired link to the network, because pushing a big file library over Wi-Fi is slow and far more prone to interruption. The second is getting the existing data across cleanly and confirming it is actually there and readable afterwards, rather than assuming the copy worked.
So the visit was planned around two jobs: physically installing and networking the NAS so it had a solid foundation, and then migrating the customer’s data onto it carefully. A NAS is only useful once your real files are on it and you can trust they are intact.
How We Fixed It
We set the NAS up onsite and connected it to the customer’s network, running the cabling so it had a proper wired connection rather than relying on wireless for the transfer. With the unit on the network, we moved the customer’s existing data across onto it and checked that the files were present and readable in their new home.
The result of doing it this way is that the customer’s devices can now reach one central store, instead of each machine keeping its own separate, unsynchronised copies of things. That single source of truth is the foundation a sensible backup routine is built on.
The Result
The customer ended up with one central, networked place for their files, their existing data moved across and verified, and a far better starting point than a lone external drive that could fail or be misplaced. From here, the storage can be backed up further — the point of getting it onto a properly set-up NAS first is that everything important is in one managed place rather than spread around.
Why This Happens
Most people’s data sprawls without them planning it: photos on one laptop, documents on another, an external drive in a drawer with a copy of some of it. It works right up until a drive dies, a laptop is lost, or a file simply cannot be found on the device you are using. A single external drive feels like a backup, but one copy is not a backup — if that drive fails, the data fails with it.
A NAS addresses both problems at once. It gives every device on the network access to the same files, and a NAS with two drives can be set up so that if one drive fails, the data survives on the other. It is not, on its own, a complete backup strategy — a NAS in your home is still in your home, so a fire or theft could take it too — but it is the central, reliable foundation that a proper backup plan is built around.
Getting Backup Right at Home or in a Small Office
- Remember that one copy is not a backup. Aim for the 3-2-1 approach: a couple of copies, on different media, with one kept somewhere else.
- A NAS with two drives protects you against a single drive failing, but on its own it is not an offsite backup — pair it with a cloud or offsite copy for anything irreplaceable.
- Use a wired connection for the NAS. Large transfers over Wi-Fi are slow and far more likely to stall partway.
- Test a restore, not just a backup. A backup you have never tried to restore from is an assumption rather than a safety net.
Local Help in Putney SW15
We set up storage and backup for homes and small businesses in Putney SW15 and across South West London, from a single NAS for the family photo and document library to backup routines for a small office. If your files are scattered across devices and drives, or you are relying on one external disk and quietly hoping it holds, we can set up something more reliable and move your data onto it properly. Call us, use the contact form, or drop into the shop.