TrueNAS: The Ultimate Guide to Building Your Own Cloud. Pros, Cons, and Pitfalls

In a world where data volume grows faster than GPU prices, the question “Where to store files?” becomes critical. Google Drive and iCloud are convenient but expensive and not unlimited. External hard drives are unreliable. Ready-made solutions from Synology or QNAP are good, but hit the wallet.

Enter TrueNAS. It’s an operating system that turns a regular computer into a powerful enterprise-grade network-attached storage (NAS).

Let’s figure out why TrueNAS is so popular, what challenges you’ll face, and whether this system is right for you.

What is TrueNAS and why is everyone talking about it?

TrueNAS (formerly FreeNAS) is a free open-source operating system. At its core lies the ZFS file system.

Remember this acronym. ZFS is the heart of TrueNAS. It’s not just a way to write files — it’s a system obsessed with data integrity. It protects against silent data corruption (bit rot), allows instant system snapshots, and can restore deleted files in seconds.

Two versions: Core vs. Scale

There are currently two main free versions:

1. TrueNAS Core
   Built on FreeBSD. It’s the classic: stable, reliable, ideal for a pure NAS without extra features.

2. TrueNAS Scale
   Based on Linux (Debian). It can do everything Core can, but handles containers, virtual machines, and applications much better. If you want a media server with Plex, Docker containers, smart home integrations, and automations — choose Scale.

Pros of TrueNAS: Why people love it

1. Maximum data reliability (ZFS)

This is the main reason to choose TrueNAS. ZFS constantly checks data integrity. If a bit is corrupted or a disk returns wrong data, the system will detect and correct it (if redundancy is configured — RAIDZ or mirrors).

2. Free and open source

Features that cost thousands of dollars from commercial vendors are available here for free. You only pay for your hardware.

3. Rich out-of-the-box functionality

TrueNAS provides:

• Snapshots — point-in-time copies of data. You can schedule snapshots as often as every 15 minutes. Deleted a file? Roll back in seconds.
• Syncing — Rsync, S3, Google Drive, Dropbox. You can automatically back up the NAS to the cloud.
• Apps and plugins — Plex, Nextcloud, Home Assistant, Transmission and dozens more (especially in TrueNAS Scale).

4. Hardware independence

Unlike Synology, you are not tied to a proprietary box.
Motherboard died?
You pull the drives, insert them into another computer — the data is accessible. This is a huge plus for long-term storage.

Drawbacks: What you need to be prepared for

1. Resource demands

ZFS loves RAM.

• Minimum to run: 8 GB RAM
• Recommendation: 1 GB RAM per 1 TB of data for optimal performance

But for home use, 16 GB is more than enough.

2. Difficulty of expanding storage

This is the main pitfall of TrueNAS and ZFS.

ZFS works with vdevs. You can’t just add a single drive and increase an existing pool.

Example:

• You have an array of 4 drives.
• To expand it, you cannot add 1 drive.
• You need to add another vdev, for example, another 4 drives.

An alternative is to replace each drive one by one with a larger one and wait for ZFS to fully rebuild the pool.

3. Learning curve

TrueNAS is not “plug-and-forget.”
You will need to learn:

• Pool
• Vdev
• Dataset
• Scrub
• Jail

The interface is user-friendly, but the concepts are aimed at those willing to dive in.

Who definitely NEEDS TrueNAS?

1. Those with terabytes of data.
   Photo archives, movies, backups — TrueNAS is ideal for large volumes.

2. Video editors, photographers, audio engineers.
   Using 10GbE over the network, you can work with source files almost like a local disk.

3. Small businesses.
   A great solution for a file server, workstation backups, and accounting.

4. Home labs and enthusiasts.
   If you want to run a VPN, reduce cloud service costs, or build your own media server — TrueNAS gives almost limitless possibilities.

Who is TrueNAS NOT suitable for?

1. Owners of mismatched drives.
   If you have drives of 500 GB + 1 TB + 2 TB, ZFS won’t be able to work efficiently with that combination. A great alternative is Unraid.

2. Those who want Apple-level simplicity.
   If you need a device that’s “take it out of the box — it works”, without extra thinking and terminology, it’s better to buy a Synology.

Conclusion

TrueNAS is a powerful, mature storage system. It requires attention, an understanding of ZFS principles, and planning. In return you get:

• professional-grade reliability,
• flexibility,
• control over your hardware,
• data security,
• no subscriptions or limits.

If you’re willing to spend a few evenings learning and want absolute confidence in your data safety — TrueNAS will be the best solution for your home or business.