Review: TrueNAS 24.04.2 "SCALE"
Quoting: DistroWatch.com: Put the fun back into computing. Use Linux, BSD. —
This was my first experience running TrueNAS's SCALE edition. For the most part the features and abilities are quite similar to what I experienced with past CORE editions. There are some additional support features and the interface has gradually improved over time. However, if you've run the FreeBSD-based CORE edition in the past, I believe you'll find SCALE to be nearly the same experience on small/medium deployments.
Like past versions of TrueNAS (and FreeNAS), SCALE is wonderfully easy to set up. We really just need to hand it a disk and an admin password and the installer automates the rest of the process. When TrueNAS is run for the first time it shows us the machine's IP address and connecting is as easy as pointing a web browser at the given IP.
With SCALE setting up ZFS pools and user accounts is quite easy. A few clicks can create a pool, schedule snapshots, and even transfer the snapshots to another computer or cloud service. These are all areas where SCALE shines. I also appreciate how easy it is to toggle background services, such as the FTP, Samba, and SMART monitor services. These can be turned on/off with a click on the System Settings page.
I did run into a few issues and some problems. While not a bug, it bothers me the text console logs the user in automatically as root. This has always been an annoyance to me on previous versions of TrueNAS and it's one of the few aspects of the platform which prevent me from using it at home. In a big office environment it makes sense as storage devices will likely be placed behind locked doors. But in home and small office environments it's common for systems to be less guarded. It shouldn't be possible for me to lose my entire setup if a cat walks across the keyboard.
In a similar line of thought, I'm not a fan of the TrueNAS shell in its current state of development. Some of the commands don't work, some are not described, there isn't much in terms of documentation yet, and some commands which do work have output that isn't useful. I like the idea of a command line control centre for TrueNAS, but this one has a ways to go before it's ready to take over from the standard command line or the web interface.