--- title: I tried building a budget NAS with ZimaOS, and it’s a... description: ZimaOS is a lightweight NAS operating system that works well on budget hardware, offering low system requirements, an intuitive web UI, and easy SMB share... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/i-tried-building-a-budget-nas-with-zimaos-and-it-s-a-better-package-than-a-new-synology-kmr4gstfh twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: I tried building a budget NAS with ZimaOS, and it’s a better package than a new Synology | daily.dev og:description: ZimaOS is a lightweight NAS operating system that works well on budget hardware, offering low system requirements, an intuitive web UI, and easy SMB share... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/i-tried-building-a-budget-nas-with-zimaos-and-it-s-a-better-package-than-a-new-synology-kmr4gstfh og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/kmr4gstfh.png og:image:alt: I tried building a budget NAS with ZimaOS, and it’s a better package than a new Synology og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # I tried building a budget NAS with ZimaOS, and it’s a better package than a new Synology **[XDA Developers](https://daily.dev/sources/xda-developers)** · 5 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary ZimaOS is a lightweight NAS operating system that works well on budget hardware, offering low system requirements, an intuitive web UI, and easy SMB share setup. Unlike TrueNAS, it allows using the boot drive for user data — ideal for 2-bay units without extra SSD slots. Its free license supports up to three users, four drives, and ten apps, with a perpetual license available for $30. It supports Docker containers and Compose files, though NFS and iSCSI still require manual Linux configuration. While it lacks TrueNAS's ZFS data protection and advanced features, it's a strong choice for beginners and those wanting a no-fuss NAS setup. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### What are the limitations of the free version of ZimaOS? The free ZimaOS license restricts users to three user accounts, four drives, and ten active apps. Removing these caps requires a perpetual license priced at $30, which contrasts with Unraid's trial-based free license that locks the NAS down after a month without payment. _Comparing NAS operating system licensing terms gets easier when developers follow real build writeups on daily.dev._ ### Can ZimaOS use the boot drive to also store NAS data? Yes, ZimaOS allows the boot drive to be used for storing user data, unlike DIY distributions such as TrueNAS which typically require a dedicated OS drive without extra workarounds. This makes ZimaOS particularly suited to 2-bay NAS units that lack additional SSD slots for a separate boot drive. _Budget NAS builders comparing storage tradeoffs can follow more hands-on hardware experiments on daily.dev._ ### Does ZimaOS support NFS and iSCSI shares through a graphical interface? No, NFS and iSCSI shares in ZimaOS still require configuration through Linux commands rather than a GUI, unlike its SMB sharing which offers an easy right-click setup with Samba options and Time Machine support. JBOD functionality is also listed as a coming-soon feature rather than currently available. _Home server tinkerers weighing NAS feature gaps can track platform capabilities on daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [I tested TrueNAS, Unraid, and ZimaOS back-to-back, and they're built for completely different people](https://daily.dev/posts/i-tested-truenas-unraid-and-zimaos-back-to-back-and-they-re-built-for-completely-different-people-fcv3w9qrt) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [ZimaOS and FygoOS prove the real DIY NAS fight is no longer just TrueNAS versus Unraid](https://daily.dev/posts/zimaos-and-fygoos-prove-the-real-diy-nas-fight-is-no-longer-just-truenas-versus-unraid-xxcixfkbb) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [ZimaCube 2 Review: Combining Self-hosting, NAS and Local AI in a Single Package](https://daily.dev/posts/zimacube-2-review-combining-self-hosting-nas-and-local-ai-in-a-single-package-th1m7rc6h) · It's Foss · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [I ditched my Raspberry Pi and built a DIY NAS with a cheap rival SBC](https://daily.dev/posts/i-ditched-my-raspberry-pi-and-built-a-diy-nas-with-a-cheap-rival-sbc-ffrrlnmwj) · XDA Developers · 1 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#docker](https://daily.dev/tags/docker), [#self-hosting](https://daily.dev/tags/self-hosting), [#truenas](https://daily.dev/tags/truenas) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/i-tried-building-a-budget-nas-with-zimaos-and-it-s-a-better-package-than-a-new-synology-kmr4gstfh) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"I tried building a budget NAS with ZimaOS, and it’s a better package than a new Synology","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/i-tried-building-a-budget-nas-with-zimaos-and-it-s-a-better-package-than-a-new-synology-kmr4gstfh","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/i-tried-building-a-budget-nas-with-zimaos-and-it-s-a-better-package-than-a-new-synology-kmr4gstfh"},"datePublished":"2026-07-17T12:01:22.378Z","dateModified":"2026-09-14T08:15:45.734Z","description":"ZimaOS is a lightweight NAS operating system that works well on budget hardware, offering low system requirements, an intuitive web UI, and easy SMB share...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/7dce276caec6df1472e19a6b1e0629cb?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/7dce276caec6df1472e19a6b1e0629cb?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"XDA Developers","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"XDA Developers","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--kCg6yyAP--/f_auto,q_auto/v1774964407/logos/xda-developers?_a=BAMAMiWQ0","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/xda-developers"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/i-tried-building-a-budget-nas-with-zimaos-and-it-s-a-better-package-than-a-new-synology-kmr4gstfh","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"docker,self-hosting,truenas","timeRequired":"PT5M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"XDA Developers","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/xda-developers"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"I tried building a budget NAS with ZimaOS, and it’s a better package than a new Synology"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/i-tried-building-a-budget-nas-with-zimaos-and-it-s-a-better-package-than-a-new-synology-kmr4gstfh#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"What are the limitations of the free version of ZimaOS?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"The free ZimaOS license restricts users to three user accounts, four drives, and ten active apps. 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