BYO Redundant NAS

I needed redundant network storage and I was working to a budget.  Sure there are some great off-the-shelf NAS boxes out there - QNAP's are a great choice, but if you're not rolling in cash, here's a cheaper way (let the Blogumentation begin):

• find yourself an old PC.  I had an old Compaq EVO desktop - P3 1.8 GHz with 128 MB RAM.  Its a complete piece of crap, but works just fine.  You can probably find a similar piece of crap for free.  Someone might even pay you to get it out of their life.
• Buy two identical IDE drives, as big as you can afford.  I bought 2 x Western Digital 500 GB 7200 RPM drives for $90 each.
• Install the drives in the crappy box, ensuring only one drive per IDE bus - VERY IMPORTANT
• download the ISO image for Linux SME Server
• put the CD in the drive and boot crappy box
• answer a few dumb questions and have a cup of coffee
• (when asked what kind of server this will be, answer "private server only", unless you want it to act as your gateway etc

You will end up with a completely redundant NAS, complete with FTP and Quota, compatible with any other file system (you can store your Apple and Windows files on it) - it even has a web interface for setting up users and stuff.

Kudos to Tim Lindsay for putting me on to SME Server and the guys that developed it.  I will backup my next family photo in memory of you.