I combined a NAS and an SSD for a MacBook backup strategy.

The author used a Thunderbolt-connected 2TB SSD to make a fast Time Machine backup of an ~800GB MacBook before a clean macOS reinstall, then moved smaller or frequently used files to a home NAS for network access. The SSD backup finished in a few hours while the NAS is planned as the long-term Time Machine target for multiple household Macs.

I prepared for a fresh macOS installation by backing up my MacBook using both a fast external SSD and a home NAS. The SSD sat in a Thunderbolt dock and handled a large, short-term Time Machine backup. At the same time, I moved smaller or frequently used files onto the NAS so they could be accessed across the house during and after the restore. The article frames this as a practical use of a homelab beyond self-hosting. Key details: - The initial Time Machine backup was about 800GB and completed in a few hours using the Thunderbolt-connected SSD. - The author used a 2TB SSD inside a Thunderbolt dock for the fast local backup and notes USB/NVMe SSDs that read/write ~1,000MB/s are much faster than the author’s 2.5Gb/s LAN. - The author’s 2.5Gb/s network is estimated to provide a maximum near 250MB/s, which would make the same initial backup take several hours longer according to the NAS estimate. - Smaller configuration files and items needed soon after restoring were transferred to the NAS so they could be mounted and accessed without plugging in an external drive. - Long-term, the plan is to configure Time Machine backups to the NAS for multiple Macs in the household and to continue using the homelab for backups and self-hosting tasks. Summary: Using a fast local SSD allowed a large, time-sensitive backup to finish quickly, while the NAS provided networked access to files and a planned long-term Time Machine target. The next stated step is to set multiple household Macs to back up to the NAS as the ongoing backup destination.