Can a simple USB to ethernet adapter allow my usb hard drive to be networked on my LAN?
December 29th, 2008 | by admin |I am trying to put my external usb hard drive up on my LAN. I know I can buy a new usb/ethernet hard drive enclosure for 70$, but would a simple hardwire usb to ethernet converter/connection do the trick. A usb to ethernet adapter is only like 5$.
No. You need more than simply connecting the hard drive to the LAN. The hard drive has to act as a NAS (Network Attached Storage). Basically that means the box that you're connecting to the LAN has to have in it, in addition to the hard drive, a simple computer that can handle network file-transfer protocols, such as FTP, NFS, SMB, etc.
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3 Responses to “Can a simple USB to ethernet adapter allow my usb hard drive to be networked on my LAN?”
By Grouchy Dude on Dec 29, 2008 | Reply
No. You need more than simply connecting the hard drive to the LAN. The hard drive has to act as a NAS (Network Attached Storage). Basically that means the box that you're connecting to the LAN has to have in it, in addition to the hard drive, a simple computer that can handle network file-transfer protocols, such as FTP, NFS, SMB, etc.
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By Brian Mair on Apr 5, 2009 | Reply
Addonics makes a small “NAS (network attached storage) Adapter” that does just what you need.
By Kiran on Nov 15, 2009 | Reply
Awesome suggestion Brian. I am having a similar situation and the addonics products I think will do the job.
I am also looking to connect a spare 500 GB drive to the network. Came across a bunch of usb to ethernet adapters, but somehow didnt feel they wud do the job.
Thanks