03 May 2011, 11:33

FreeNAS 8.0 now available

FreeNAS Logo Following five release candidates, FreeNAS 8.0 – a FreeBSD-based Network Attached Storage (NAS) UNIX-like server operating system – has been published by the FreeNAS Project. The new release includes a full web configuration graphical user interface (GUI) and supports the FTP, NFS, CIFS (Samba), AFP, rsync and iSCSI protocols and software RAID (0,1,5).

According to iXsystems developer James T. Nixon III, FreeNAS 8.0 includes major architectural optimisations and is more modular than previous versions. It features a redesigned GUI, built using Python and the Django web framework, that is aimed at making the OS easier to use. ZFS and UFS2 file systems are both supported – ZFS is used as the primary file system.

Highlights include better Apple Filing Protocol (AFP) and Common Internet File System (CIFS) configurations, as well as reworked and improved iSCSI support. Other changes include the addition of a volume importer, support for 6gbps 3Ware RAID controllers and GUI access via the HTTPS protocol.

The developers note that, unlike previous versions, the OS drive can't be used as a component for a volume, nor can it be partitioned for sharing. Upgrades from FreeNAS 0.7.x are unsupported as "the system has no way to import configuration settings from 0.7 versions of FreeNAS"; however, the volume importer "should" handle volumes created with FreeNAS 0.7.

In addition to the new release, the project has a brand-new FreeNAS.org web site. The forums and wiki, however, remain unchanged.

More details about the release can be found in the official release announcement. FreeNAS 8.0 is available to download from SourceForge and documentation is provided. FreeNAS is released under the BSD licence and development is sponsored by iXsystems.

Update: As noted in the FreeNAS.org news post below, version 8.0 of FreeNAS removes some "Home User" functionality. This includes iTunes/DAAP, the BitTorrent peer-to-peer file sharing and Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) support. The developers say that these features may return in the form of third-party plugins "at a later date".

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