Question : I need a NAS server with 4TB that is expandable to 8TB for around $3000.

Hey guys... can anyone recommend me a good model of HP, Dell, etc server that I can use for NAS?

I need to keep it around $3000. I want the NAS side to be about 4TB when I get it, but I want some empty bays so that I can throw in some other drives in the next couple months and bring it up to 8TB+ without changing all the drives... and I want the NAS to be RAID5. I'd prefer the system drives be on a separate RAID set and mirrored.

Can anyone tell me how to do this for around $3000? The quotes that Dell and HP are giving me are all around 10-15k and I KNOW I can do it for less...

Thanks!

Answer : I need a NAS server with 4TB that is expandable to 8TB for around $3000.

Take a look at Buffalo. http://www.buffalotech.com/products/network-storage/business/terastation-iii-ts-xlr5-ts-rxlr5/

You can go ahead and go with 8TB now, unless you have a deeper reason for only wanting 4 to begin with.