I have just got TrueNAS Scale working, but my browser says my connection is not secure. From what I read I think I need to assign my server a static IP, but my package from my ISP does not allow static IP’s. Is it necessary to have an HTTPS connection? How should I go about fixing this?
As a beginner, I’m quite overwhelmed and not entirely sure where to start. Along with making sure everything is secure, here is what I want to be able to do with my server:
a. Backup files from my main PC. I want to be able to access these files from anywhere on any device.
b. Run game servers (Minecraft, Arma 3, DCS). I am aware that there is a Minecraft application built in to TNS, but are there any other steps I need to take beforehand to make sure it will work?
Thanks for the help in advance, and sorry if anything I said doesn’t make sense. I really do not know much.
Static vs. dynamic IP has nothing at all to do with this.
Nope.
There’s nothing to fix. If you want HTTPS, just browse to https://ip_of_nas. You’ll get a different warning (because you’ll be using a self-signed certificate), but it’ll be HTTPS.
Thanks for your reply. If I wanted to have a secure connection, how would I do that? Is there any point?
Also, any suggestions for my original second question?
To have a connection that your browser will call secure, you’d need to be using HTTPS with a trusted certificate. In order to do that (relatively) easily, you’d need to own a domain (starts around $10/yr from Cloudflare–and that’s where I’d buy it), and then you can get a certificate through TrueNAS directly.
Once you have the domain and the cert, you’d need you set up your local DNS in such a way that, e.g., truenas.yourdomain points to the local IP address of your NAS. If your router isn’t brain-dead, you can do this there. If it is, Pi-Hole is a popular choice for local DNS and will let you do this.
How much do you trust the other devices on your network? Including the Alexa devices, the smart thermostats, the sprinkler controllers, the Roku, etc.? Remember, the S in IOT (“Internet of Things”) is for security.
“Back up files” and “make them available anywhere” are two very different requirements. For the first, well, any backup software that can back up to a SMB share will work–Veeam seems pretty popular, and it’s free for this purpose. Edit: or Urbackup is available as an app and would do the trick.
The latter is much more complicated. Nextcloud is probably the way to do it, and use Tailscale on the NAS and the remote devices to let them access it.
