a NAS(network attached storage) as the name implies is a collection of drives connected over the network. a DAS (direct attached storage) is a collection of drives connected directly, usually over thunderbolt or high bandwidth connection. A typical USB drive is functionally a DAS.

[–] lud@lemm.ee 1 points 9 months ago

DAS can also simply be attached using SATA.

[–] _MusicJunkie@beehaw.org 5 points 9 months ago (1 children)

Directly Attached Storage. A NAS but without the network part, a box of drives which you plug into your PC directly. For consumers via USB mostly, for larger applications via SAS or something.

[–] fri@beehaw.org 2 points 9 months ago (1 children)

SAS? Now we need another explanation!

[–] _MusicJunkie@beehaw.org 3 points 9 months ago

It's a connection standard for enterprise hardware, think of it like your PCs SATA connections on steroids. You can have higher speeds, many drives on a single cable, and redundancy.