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We discussed this topic some in December 2015, so this is perhaps a continuation:
Many home NAS builders consider using ZFS for their file system. But there is a caveat with ZFS that people should be aware of.
Although ZFS is free software, implementing ZFS is not free. The key issue is that expanding capacity with ZFS is more expensive compared to legacy RAID solutions.
With ZFS, you either have to buy all storage you expect to need upfront, or you will be wasting a few hard drives on redundancy you don't need.
This fact is often overlooked, but it's very important when you are planning your build.
Other software RAID solutions like Linux MDADM lets you grow an existing RAID array with one disk at a time. This is also true for many hardware-based RAID solutions. This is ideal for home users because you can expand as you need.
ZFS does not allow this!
To understand why using ZFS may cost you extra money, we will dig a little bit into ZFS itself.
(Score: 2) by janrinok on Sunday January 17 2016, @08:48PM
The point that I am making - apparently not very well - is that we should endeavour to move away from the command line for most every-day users of computers. A computer should be a tool that can be used by the largest number of people possible, not the province of a gifted few who have mastered the command line.
TFS is discussing the installation of a home NAS - and setting one up should be within the abilities of those that want to use a NAS in the home environment. Advocating the use of cli to achieve such a thing is not making it within the abilities of the majority of computer users. We, as programmers and system developers, should be providing the tools the enable such things to be done as easily as possible by the majority of potential users.
If, as you mentioned, the problems tend to begin when a GUI is used then we, the people who write the GUI software, are responsible. We need to up our game.