Article 2: OS installation, disk preparation, SMART checks

Choosing and preparing the land

This article covers:

• Installing the operating system
• Preparing and mounting disks
• Verifying disk health before trusting them with data

OS Installation

The OS used is Debian. There are many good Debian installation tutorials available online, so this section focuses on practical decisions, not screenshots.

Create a Bootable Installer

1. Take a USB pendrive
2. Install Ventoy on it
3. Copy the Debian ISO onto the drive

Downloads

Ventoy: https://github.com/ventoy/Ventoy/releases/download/v1.1.10/ventoy-1.1.10-linux.tar.gz

Debian ISO: https://cdimage.debian.org/debian-cd/current/amd64/iso-cd/debian-13.2.0-amd64-netinst.iso

Ventoy lets you keep multiple ISOs on one USB and avoids re-flashing every time.

• Connect: External display (TV or monitor), Ethernet cable, USB drive
• Power on the system
• Repeatedly press the boot menu key
• Select the USB drive
• Ventoy menu appears → select the Debian ISO
• Continue with the installation

Installer Choices (Important)

During installation:

• I did not set a root password This enables sudo access for your user. This is just a workaround and not the ideal practise.
• I installed a lightweight GUI (XFCE) for emergency or future use. This is optional. You can run headless-only if you prefer.

Select these components:

• XFCE
• SSH server
• System utilities
• Debian desktop environment

Once installation completes, reboot.

Network Setup and SSH Access

DHCP Reservation (Do This Early)

Before disconnecting the screen:

1. Run: ip a
2. Identify the Ethernet interface (enp…)
3. Note its MAC address
4. Create a DHCP reservation in your router Example: MAC → 192.168.x.x

This prevents IP changes after reboots.

Install Tailscale

Install dependencies:

sudo apt install curl

Install Tailscale:

curl -fsSL https://tailscale.com/install.sh | sh

Bring the node online:

# For browser
sudo tailscale up
# For using the auth key
sudo tailscale up --authkey tskey-auth-<authkey>

At this point:

• The NAS is reachable over Tailscale
• You no longer need a screen or keyboard

SSH Into the Server

From your main laptop:

ssh user@<tailscale-ip>

or

ssh user@192.168.x.x

Accept the fingerprint and enter the password. From now on, everything is remote.

Disk Preparation and Mounting

Identify Disks

List block devices: lsblk

Get UUIDs: sudo blkid

Example devices:

• /dev/sda → 4 TB HDD
• /dev/sdb → 1 TB HDD

Create Mount Points

for me (you can name as per your convenience):

sudo mkdir -p /mnt/hdd4tb /mnt/hdd1tb

Configure Automatic Mounting

Install an editor (use what you prefer): I prefer vim, but for convenience I will once tell both and then continue without caring about the specifics.

sudo vim /etc/fstab or sudo nano /etc/fstab: for loading automatic mounting of the HDDs on startup.

For nano do crtl + o to save and crtl + x to exit

For vim do i to enter insert mode , make the changes and then press esc then :wq to save and exit

Want to learn vim? just complete the vim tutorial using vimtutor

sudo apt install vim

Add entries:

UUID=<uuid-of-4tb> /mnt/hdd4tb ext4 defaults 0 2
UUID=<uuid-of-1tb> /mnt/hdd1tb ext4 defaults 0 2

Reload and mount:

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo mount -a

Verify:

lsblk
df -h

You should now see both disks mounted correctly.

Disk Health & SMART Checks (Critical)

Before trusting any disk with data, check its health.

Install smartmontools:

sudo apt install smartmontools

Detect disks:

sudo smartctl --scan

Check a disk:

sudo smartctl -a /dev/sdX

(replace sdX with the actual device)

You can use the CrystalDiskInfo app for Windows

What to Check (New Drives)

Now, the most important , lets check if the drive are good or not (new and working?)

Key attributes to look at:

• Power_On_Hours : Should be very low for a new disk, ideally 0/1 but less than 50 works
• Reallocated_Sector_Ct : Must be 0
• Current_Pending_Sector : Must be 0
• Offline_Uncorrectable : Must be 0
• Read / Write Error Rates : Should not show abnormal growth

If any of the above are non-zero on a new drive, return it immediately.

SMART does not prevent failures. It only gives early warning. Backups still matter more.

What’s Next

• Article 2.5: Base System Hardening , Utilities & Folder Structure
• Article 3: Docker setup, volume layout, service deployment
• Article 4: Backup strategy, rsync scripts, failure recovery

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