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I’d like to introduce my new sidekick: L’il Stiny.

L’il Stiny is actually a Linksys NSLU2, a tiny network file server for USB2.0 hard drives. I first found out about this nifty device sometime last year when Jim Buzbee published an article on Tom’s Hardware entitled “Hacking the NSLU2″. The idea was intriguing but only took root the other week when I realized a serious need for additional storage.

Out of the box, the NSLU2 is ridiculously small (less than 6″ tall) and acts a file server on your network using up to two USB drives. It runs Linux on an ARM processor, serving files via Samba. Not long after Jim’s articles exposed the unit’s internals, a small community arose dedicated to opening up this little processor for other uses.

The file server by itself was enough for me to make the purchase (about $140CDN). I already had a USB2 drive that I wasn’t putting to good use and wanted to create a central place to backup files and store all my new MP3’s. Until recently, iTunes had been running off a noisy old desktop which generated far too much heat and was a sad waste of electricity. The NSLU2 is quite the opposite.

Setup was a snap (note that you have to reformat your drives for use with the NSLU2) and I was serving files in no time, so I figured I was ready to expand L’il Stiny’s capabilities.

The NSLU2 community has created a derivative of the Linksys firmware, dubbed “Unslung”. It opens up the unit to other uses, allowing you to customize system scripts and download new software in ipkg format. Some Linux knowledge is required. All possible since Linksys has published their source code under the GPL due to the use of Linux.

Before flashing the Unslung firmware, I tried to update the stock Linksys firmware as a test run. Big mistake — the flash failed, leaving L’il Stiny incapacitated. Linksys really ought to warn you to disconnect all USB drives prior to reflashing. But with the help of the Unslung wiki I was able to revive Stiny and get back to the task at hand.

Flashing Unslung was a breeze, and it wasn’t long before I had downloaded and installed OpenSSH and NNTP. Now Stiny keeps proper time (a notorious NSLU2 firmware issue) and I can ssh in to continue experimenting.

So far, L’il Stiny is just storing my MP3’s and backups. Future improvements will include:

• a print server for our shared printer
• an SVN repository for personal & professional projects
• serving MP3’s via mt-daapd to other home computers
• taking over the world

I think that Linksys has inadvertantly created a golden opportunity here. This simple device has so much potential — they could really revolutionize network appliances by leveraging open source communities to creatively extend their products. I hope we see this trend actively embraced in the future.

NSLU2 Resources:

• Linksys NSLU2 product page
• “Hacking the NSLU2″ on Tom’s Hardware. See also Part 2, Part 3, Part 4 and Part 5.
• Jim Buzbee’s Linux NSLU2 Site
• NSLU2 Linux Wiki — packed with information on the NSLU2, including official Unslung information.