Home Storage & Backup Planner
A complete first configuration for households and home offices.
Start planningStorage planning tools
Storage needs planning
Choose a focused planner for growth, creator media, computer backups, a small office, or a personal media library—or start with the complete home recommendation.
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Plan capacity before it becomes a constraint.
Every result distinguishes primary usable capacity from independent backup space and uses decimal TB consistently.
Annual Storage Growth Calculator
Forecast capacity and set a purchase horizon.
Forecast growthCreator Media Storage Planner
Separate working media, archive, and backup capacity.
Plan media tiersComputer Backup Storage Planner
Size an independent, versioned backup target.
Size a backupSmall Office Storage Planner
Build a vendor-neutral shared-storage requirements brief.
Build a briefMedia Library Storage Planner
Plan a personal library, copies, and an expansion trigger.
Plan a libraryBring estimates, not perfect measurements.
Use the amount of data you keep, an honest growth rate, the length of time you want the configuration to last, and an estimate of what must be recoverable. Use Decimal TB vs Binary TiB to compare labels and system displays.
For the underlying sizing method, read How Much NAS Storage Do I Need?.
Planning path
How to use the Storage needs hub
Where to start
Start with the decision that has the least reliable evidence. A household with several devices should begin with the Home Storage & Backup Planner; a known capacity with uncertain growth belongs in Annual Storage Growth Calculator. Creator Media separates fast working space, archive, and copies, while Computer Backup focuses on retained versions. Small Office adds users and network context, and Media Library uses linear annual additions.
Recommended workflow
Use a measured current-data total first, model growth second, and add independent copies third. Carry the resulting usable-capacity target into NAS configuration instead of treating raw drive labels as usable space. If upload or restore timing affects the design, continue to network performance before pricing. This order keeps capacity, protection, recovery, and transfer constraints distinct while allowing each later tool to reuse the earlier evidence.
What to prepare
Prepare folder or device used-space reports, a one-year history if available, the planning horizon, expected additions or percentage growth, retention needs, and the number of truly independent copies. Separate replaceable downloads from irreplaceable originals. Record whether inputs are GB, decimal TB, or TiB, and note the date measured; stale inventory is often a larger error than rounding.
What to do next
After capacity is credible, open the NAS Bay, Drive Count & Capacity Planner for a physical layout, the 3-2-1 Backup Plan Generator for copy topology, and the Full Storage System Budget Planner for complete acquisition and operating cost. Revisit this cluster annually or after a new camera, employee, computer, project type, or retention policy materially changes the data stream.