Best Shared Storage Options for a Small Team: What Do You Recommend?

Honestly, just set up a basic Linux file server with Samba. It’s free and can run on super affordable hardware. Just grab a couple of hard drives, set up mirroring for reliability, and you are good to go! Easy to manage and no ongoing costs other than the hardware.

Server 2019 has plenty of life left until 2029, so maybe consider just keeping it for a couple more years if the backups are solid. If file sharing is the only requirement, a NAS would fit nicely—low maintenance and reliable. If they want something cloud-based, SharePoint is a strong contender, especially for giving users access anywhere.

Have you thought about using TrueNAS? It's awesome for storage and very reliable. You can get a used server for a reasonable price, and with Backblaze B2 for backups, you're covered. It might be a bit of an investment upfront, but it pays off with low maintenance costs down the line.

I've worked with setups like this before, and if you're leaning towards cloud options, Microsoft 365 Business Premium could be a great fit. You'd get features like Entra and Intune, plus you can redirect documents to OneDrive. For local storage, a NAS from Synology or QNAP is solid, especially since they offer Office 365 backup options. This way, you protect your data with cloud backups too. I wouldn’t recommend using Windows 11 as a file server since it’s really not designed for that role.

For light file sharing needs with 10 users, it's not that complicated. If they have M365, SharePoint is a no-brainer without needing hardware maintenance. If they prefer on-prem storage, go for NAS options like Synology or QNAP with RAID setups. It’s low-cost and provides good backup options, making it a solid choice. Windows 11 as a server feels a bit sketchy to me though; better to avoid it.