How to Make a USB External Hard Drive into NAS

Have you ever wondered how you can use your external hard drive as Network Attached Storage (NAS)? The process really isn't that complex and with a few pieces and parts you can easily backup to a 'brand new' NAS device (or pseudo-NAS device:)

One of the easiest ways of connecting USB hard drives, external drives or a thumb drive to the network is with Belkin's N+ Wireless ADSL2+ Modem-Router. With this simple plug and play device you can store and share media content, photos, digital music and video files from the USB hard drive to every computer on the network. The N+ router is based on the draft 802.11n 2.0 technology which provides the wireless range to easily cover a large home or office

Another easy way to make your USB hard drive into a NAS is with the LinkSys Dual-N Band Wireless Router. This award winning USB to NAS router has been touted by PC Advisor as a Best Buy and by Laptop Magazine as Editors Choice. This Cisco/LinkSys router is made for for speed and optimized for media. Music, movies, gaming: whatever you’re into, Dual-N Band Wireless Router delivers double the bandwidth and media-optimized performance so you can enjoy it more smoothly, with less lag, all around your home. Easy to use and setup, this router also includes a Mac computer setup wizard.

When you take a look at a USB desktop drive versus the NAS storage there are pros and cons to each type of storage. However with the addition of network wireless router you can easily make the conversion and not hurt your wallet too much.