Parts list:
- Raspberry pi 1 model b w/o ethernet, this might be the 256mb model aswell
- enc28j60 ethernet module
- 4 port usb hub
- 2 usb hard drives
- 2 old usb thumb drives
- 12v power supply
- 5v step down regulator
If you kind of understand what's going on with this project, then you're probably pretty perplexed. Why use a pi without a network interface for a project that needs ethernet? Why use a 12v power supply when everything requires 5v? Why didn't you use a powered usb hub? The simple answer is, this is what I had on me and I didn't want to spend the $$$. So there were many inefficiencies to get this to work. I used a $2 spi ethernet module that the latest Raspbian os supports, used a $1 voltage converter to step the 12v down to 5v, and spliced the non-powered usb hub to pull power from a separate source.
After soldering it all together, making a wood case out of scrap wood, and setting up the pi with samba. It works! But it's slow as fuck. Pretty much can only store documents on this punny beast, pictures and large files take to long to transfer to be useful. Pretty sure the issue is the ebay ethernet adapter. If I switched out the pi with a rpi 3 or 4, I think this would function alot better.
