OpenMediaVault (OMV) in 2025 - Better or Worse than TrueNAS and UnRAID for your DIY NAS?

Summary of the Video (Technological Concepts + OMV Features/Analysis)

What OpenMediaVault (OMV) is / background

• OpenMediaVault (OMV) (“Open Media Vault”) is a Debian-based NAS/server platform that’s been around for about 13–14 years.
• The speaker argues that OMV has been historically overlooked compared to TrueNAS and UnRAID, but still offers many capable NAS features.

Core comparison claim vs TrueNAS / UnRAID

• OMV is positioned as the most user-friendly option among the three for handling “fundamentals”—basic NAS storage management and common services.
• The UI is described as intuitive and “in-between”:
  • It’s not as desktop-like as Synology DSM / QTS / QNAP.
  • It’s not as text-heavy / structure-heavy as TrueNAS / UnRAID.
  • It uses an adjustable, widget-style layout with a clear side menu for system/service configuration.

What OMV includes in the base install (“fundamentals nailed down”)

The speaker highlights that OMV makes it easy to create and manage:

• Storage areas (example: selecting ext4)
• Shared folders with clear labeling

Built-in system and network capabilities mentioned include:

• Air gap creation
• Scheduled power on/off and scheduled hibernation
• Network bonding
• Firewall management
• Monitoring/diagnostics via the GUI

The speaker also notes that some “advanced”-style storage actions are included by default, such as:

• Secure erase (permanent wipe of a drive), with the claim that some other NAS products may require extra steps/plugins.

Major limitation: many “modern NAS” features are plugin-gated

A key critique is that many core/modern feature sets are largely behind plugins. Examples explicitly cited include:

• ZFS support
• Two-factor authentication

For advanced use cases (e.g., Dockerized apps and “bells and whistles” services), the speaker suggests you may rely on:

• SSH / command line and repositories/extras
• Third-party containers/services, typically provided by external projects rather than OMV core

The speaker also indicates plugin availability may vary by hardware/architecture and by how OMV is deployed.

Performance/footprint + ARM support

• The speaker hypothesizes OMV’s popularity is partly due to it being lightweight.
• OMV can run on ARM-based CPUs.
  • The speaker claims there are multiple stable OMV deployments on ARM.
  • In the speaker’s view, TrueNAS/UnRAID on ARM are rare and not as stable.

Cost and update ecosystem

• TrueNAS core is described as free.
• UnRAID is described as requiring a paid license.
• OMV is completely free, with reliance on donations/community emphasized.
• Community support is framed with tradeoffs:
  • TrueNAS has a larger community with faster/more abundant answers.
  • OMV users can still find answers, but UX/design evolution and “extras” may progress slower in practice.
• OMV is said to receive regular updates without paid requirements.

When OMV is recommended (per the speaker)

OMV is suggested as a good fit in 2025 for:

• Low-level backup roles
• Turning a small device into a secondary/targeted backup appliance
• A completely free NAS/server that can run on low-power hardware, including ARM
• Enthusiasts who enjoy community/homebrew applications and are comfortable adding features via plugins

The speaker frames OMV as good for “enthusiast exploration,” with the caveat that expectations should be realistic.

When OMV is not recommended (per the speaker)

The speaker discourages OMV as a primary/business NAS solution, citing likely tradeoffs such as:

• Reliance on plugins
• Potential need for command-line involvement beyond basic tasks
• Extra time/complexity due to third-party integrations

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Main Speaker / Sources

• Main speaker: The video narrator (name not provided in the subtitles)
• Referenced source: NASCompares (the speaker repeatedly refers to an “article here over on NAS Compares”)