Learn how to – How To Install and Configure TrueNAS CORE 13 Storage

Learn how to – How To Install and Configure TrueNAS CORE 13 Storage.

TrueNAS is a widely used open-source storage, efficient when managing and sharing data across a network. It is highly preferred since it creates a simple, centralized, and secure way to access your data.

TrueNAS CORE is an evolution of the FreeNAS code base. The latest release TrueNAS CORE 13, released on May 10, 2022, offers several features and advancements. These include:

• ZFS Linux Compatibility – deduplication performance improvements by defaulting to the SHA-512 algorithm.
• Faster ZFS Boot – OpenZFS 2.1 includes a more parallel process for importing a ZFS pool with many drives. This reduces boot and failover times.
• Two Factor Authentication – for increased security, two-factor authentication is highly desirable.
• API Keys – used to access the REST / WebSockets API. Keys can be created and revoked directly via the WebUI for additional security.
• OpenVPN Client and Server – VPNs provide security for remotely accessing storage services, such as SMB or NFS, across the Internet.
• KMIP Support – The Key Management Interoperability Protocol (KMIP) is an enterprise-grade approach to securing systems and data through a centralized key management system.
• UI improvements for disk temperature monitoring and UEFI booting
• Several M-Series and R-Series web UI improvements
• NFSv4 HA improvements
• More extensive SMB regression testing with various SMB options
• FreeBSD 13.0 and samba 4.15

This guide provides a step-by-step illustration of how to install and configure TrueNAS CORE 13 Storage.

System Requirements

To be able to successfully install and configure TrueNAS CORE 13 Storage, you must meet the below requirements:

• 64-bit system – Used solely for TrueNAS CORE
• Memory – Minimum 8 GB
• Storage
  • Boot Drive – 16GB
  • Data Drive – attached disk with a capacity based on your needs.
• Network port – no wireless support in TrueNAS
• Blank DVD or USB stick
• Internet access

Step 1 – Download TrueNAS CORE 13

TrueNAS Core 12 can be downloaded from the official TrueNAS downloads page.

Before you are allowed to download it, you need to join the Newsletter subscribers using the preferred method.

Step 2 – Create TrueNAS CORE 13 Bootable Media.

With the ISO file and a blank DVD or USB stick, you can create a bootable media that will be used to install TrueNAS Core 13.

The easiest method to create bootable media is from the Linux terminal with the commands:

# Identify USB device
$ sudo lsblk

# Flash TrueNAS CORE 13 to USB drive
$ sudo dd bs=4M if=TrueNAS-<VERSION>.iso of=/dev/sdX status=progress oflag=sync

In the command, replace TrueNAS-13.0.iso with the correct ISO path and /dev/sdX with the path of your DVD or USB stick.

There are alternative methods/tools to be used when creating bootable media. They include:

• Ventoy on Linux
• Rufus on Windows
• woeUSB on Linux and macOS
• Etcher Tool on macOS

When installing TrueNAS CORE 13 in a virtualized environment with Virtualbox, Xen-ng, Vmware e.t.c. Skip the above activities and just create a VM meeting the system specifications and mount the ISO file on it.

Step 3 – Install TrueNAS CORE 13

Insert the created bootable media to your Physical machine, power it on, and modify your boot options to boot from the media. In a virtualized environment, power on your VM and proceed.

The TrueNAS installer will begin as below. Select the Install/upgrade option.

In the next window, select the preferred disk for the installation. Select the boot disk here. To select the desired disk, press the space key.

Now accept the prompt and proceed.

Set a password to be used to log in to TrueNAS.

Once the preferred password has been set, choose the boot mode. For this guide, I will choose BIOS. Choosing UEFI requires a more modern and UEFI-capable motherboard.

The installation will then proceed as below.

Once complete, eject the installation media and reboot the system.

Step 4 – Fire up TrueNAS 13

Once the system boots, you will see the console setup menu as below.

You can configure a static IP by selecting option 1 “Configure Network Interfaces” and proceed as below.

Enter an option from 1-12: 1
1) em0
Select an interface (q to quit): 1
Remove the current settings of this interface? (This causes a momentary disconnec
tion of the network.) (y/n) n
Configure interface for DHCP? (y/n) n
Configure IPv4? (y/n) y
Interface name: em0
Several input formats are supported
Example 1 CIDR Notation:
    192.168.1.1/24
Example 2 IP and Netmask separate:
    IP: 192.168.1.1
    Netmask: 255.255.255.0, or /24 or 24
IPv4 Address: 192.168.100.108/24
Saving interface configuration: Ok
Configure IPv6? (y/n) n
Restarting network: ok

...

The web user interface is at
http://192.168.100.108
https://192.168.100.108

That is it! You now have a static IP address configured for TrueNAS. Now we will proceed and access the web interface using the provided URL https://IP_address

On the login screen, provide the login credentials for the root user created during the installation.

On successful authentication, you will see the below dashboard.

Creating an SSH Keypair

SSH provides a secure way to transfer files between two hosts. It can use the user credentials to establish a connection but more often SSH key pairs shared between the systems are used.

Generating the SSH key pairs on TrueNAS is easy. Navigate to System > SSH Keypairs

Click ADD and generate the by providing a unique name.

Generate and submit the pair.

Step 5 – Create a Storage Pool on TrueNAS

A storage pool is created by navigating to Storage->Pools->ADD

Create a new pool by setting a name, selecting the disk, and set VDEV

Add the disk.

Confirm if you want the disk to be erased.

Once the pool is created, It will appear as shown.

Step 6 – Create Shares on TrueNAS

To be able to get data shared over the network, you need to create a share. The supported share types are WebDAV, NFS, AFP, iSCSI, and SMB.

To create a share, navigate to Sharing and select the type of share. For a simple demonstration, I will create an SMB share.

Click ADD and proceed to provide the path. We will set the path to the created pool(ComputingForGeeks).

Submit the settings and enable the SMB service.

Now you should have the share as below.

To be able to access and use the share, you need to create a user with the required permissions for the share. This is done by navigating to Accounts->Users->ADD

Provide the required credentials and also set the directory(share) and permissions as shown below.

Submit the setting and you will have the user created.

Now proceed and access the share using the created user.

Provide the user credentials to be able to access the share.

Voila! You will have access to the share as shown.

Try creating a new folder.

TrueNAS also provided several plugins that include Plex media server, Nextcloud, Minio, Syncthing, Tarsnap, Asigra Backup e.t.c. To install the desired plugin navigate to the Plugins tab.

It was that easy!. Check out out guide on how to configure NFS, Samba, and WebDAV shares:

• Create and Use Samba / NFS / WebDAV Shares on TrueNAS

Final Verdict

That is it for now. This guide has been delivered with the hope that it will help you install and configure TrueNAS CORE 13 Storage. Once installed, you can proceed and set up your file share and access them across the network.

Interested in more?

• Install and Configure OpenMediaVault NAS Storage Server
• Create and Use Samba / CIFS / NFS Shares on OpenMediaVault
• Install and Configure NFS Server on Rocky Linux 8