.. _FreeNAS® Support Resources:

FreeNAS® Support Resources
===========================

FreeNAS® has a large installation base and an active user community.
This means that many usage questions have already been answered and
the details are available on the Internet. If you get stuck using
FreeNAS®, spend a few moments searching the Internet for the word
*FreeNAS* with some key words that describe your error message or the
function that you are trying to implement.

The rest of this section discusses the following resources which are
available to FreeNAS® users:

* :ref:`Website and Social Media`

* :ref:`Forums`

* :ref:`IRC`

* :ref:`Mailing Lists`

* :ref:`Videos`

* :ref:`Professional Support`



.. _Website and Social Media:

Website and Social Media
------------------------

The
`FreeNAS® website <http://www.freenas.org/>`_
contains links to all of the available documentation, support, and
social media resources. Major announcements are also posted to the
main page.

Users are welcome to network on the FreeNAS® social media sites:

* `LinkedIn <http://www.linkedin.com/groups/FreeNAS8-3903140>`_

* `Google+ <https://plus.google.com/110373675402281849911/posts>`_

* `Facebook <https://www.facebook.com/freenascommunity>`_

* `Twitter <https://twitter.com/freenasteam>`_


.. index:: Forums
.. _Forums:

Forums
------

The FreeNAS® Forums are another information source which contains
categorized user-contributed tips and guides. This makes it an ideal
resource for learning more about a certain aspect of FreeNAS®. A search
bar is included for searching by keyword. Or click a category to
browse through the threads that exist for that topic.

These categories are available under **Forum Information:**

* `Forum Guidelines
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/forum-guidelines-read-before-posting.26/>`_:
  read this first before creating a forum post.

* `Announcements
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/announcements.27/>`_:
  subscribe to this forum if you wish to receive announcements about
  new FreeNAS® versions and features.

These categories are available under **Help and Support:**

* `New to FreeNAS?
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/new-to-freenas.5/>`_:
  post here if you are new to FreeNAS® and are unsure which category
  best matches your question.

* `Feature Requests
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/feature-requests.6/>`_:
  for the discussion of upcoming features.

* `Bug Reporting
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/bug-reporting.7/>`_:
  use this forum if you think you have found a bug in FreeNAS® and want
  to discuss it before creating a support ticket.

* `Hardware
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/hardware.18/>`__: for
  the discussion of hardware and tips for getting the most out of your
  hardware.

* `User Authentication
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/user-authentication.19/>`_:
  LDAP and Active Directory.

* `Sharing
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/sharing.20/>`_: AFP,
  CIFS, NFS, and iSCSI.

* `Storage
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/storage.21/>`_:
  replication, snapshots, volumes, and ZFS.

* `Networking
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/networking.22/>`_:
  networking hardware, performance, link aggregation, VLANs, DDNS,
  FTP, SNMP, SSH, and TFTP.

* `Installation
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/installation.32/>`__:
  installing help or advice before performing the installation.

* `Plugins
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/plugins.34/>`_:
  provides a discussion area for creating and troubleshooting PBIs.

These categories are available under **Development:**

* `FreeNAS
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/freenas.9/>`_: general
  development discussion.

* `nanobsd
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/nanobsd.10/>`_: the
  embedded operating system on which FreeNAS® is based.

* `Django
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/django.11/>`_: the web
  framework used by the FreeNAS® graphical administrative interface.

* `Dojo Toolkit
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/dojo-toolkit.12/>`_:
  the javascript toolkit used to create widgets and handle client side
  processing.

These categories are available under **How-To Guides:**

* `Hacking
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/hacking.14/>`_:
  undocumented tricks for getting the most out of your FreeNAS® system.

* `Installation
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/installation.15/>`__:
  specific installation scenarios (hardware and/or software).

* `Configuration
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/configuration.16/>`_:
  specific configuration scenarios (e.g. software or client
  configuration).

* `Hardware
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/hardware.17/>`__:
  instructions for setting up specific hardware.

* `Useful Scripts
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/useful-scripts.47/>`_:
  user-contributed scripts.

For tips on testing and increasing the performance of your system,
check out the
`Performance
<https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/performance.37/>`_
forum.

These categories are available under **Community Forum:**

* `Off-topic
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/off-topic.23/>`_: want
  to discuss something of interest to FreeNAS® users but which is not
  necessarily related to FreeNAS®? This is the place.

* `Resources
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/resources.24/>`_:
  blogs, reviews, and other sources of FreeNAS® information not listed
  at
  `freenas.org <http://www.freenas.org/>`_.

* `Introductions
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/introductions.25/>`_:
  FreeNAS® Community meet 'n greet - introduce yourself and let us know
  who we are chatting with.

These language-specific categories are available under
**International**, allowing FreeNAS® users to interact with each other
in their native language:

* `Dutch - Nederlands
  <http://forums.freenas.org/forumdisplay.php?35-Dutch-Nederlands>`_

* `French - Francais
  <http://forums.freenas.org/forumdisplay.php?29-French-Francais>`_

* `German - Deutsch
  <http://forums.freenas.org/forumdisplay.php?31-German-Deutsch>`_

* `Italian - Italiano
  <http://forums.freenas.org/forumdisplay.php?30-Italian-Italiano>`_

* `Portuguese - Português
  <http://forums.freenas.org/forums/portuguese-português.44/>`_

* `Russian <http://goo.gl/sCMUe5>`_

* `Spanish - Espanol
  <http://forums.freenas.org/forumdisplay.php?33-Spanish-Espanol>`_

* `Swedish - Svenske
  <https://forums.freenas.org/index.php?forums/swedish-svenske.51/>`_

* `Turkish - Türkçe
  <http://forums.freenas.org/forumdisplay.php?36-Turkish-T%FCrk%E7e>`_

To ask a question on the forum, click the :guilabel:`Sign Up Now!`
link to create an account and log in using that account.

When asking a question on the forum, it is important to:

* First check to see if the question has already been asked. If a
  similar question exists, do not create a new thread. Instead use the
  :guilabel:`Reply` link at the bottom of the post to add your
  comments to the existing thread.

* Review the available categories to see which one is most closely
  related to your question. Click on that category and use the
  :guilabel:`Post New Thread` button to open the editor. After typing
  your post but before clicking the :guilabel:`Create Thread` button,
  make sure the :guilabel:`Watch this thread...` box is checked. To be
  notified by email, also check the
  :guilabel:`and receive email notifications` box. You will be
  notified whenever anyone answers your question.


.. index:: IRC
.. _IRC:

IRC
---

To ask a question in real time, you can use the *#freenas* channel on
IRC
`Freenode <http://freenode.net/>`_.
Depending on the time of day and your time zone, FreeNAS® developers or
other users may be available to provide assistance. If no one answers
right away, remain on the channel, as other users tend to read the
channel history to answer questions as time permits.

Typically, an IRC `client
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_Internet_Relay_Chat_clients>`_
is used to access the *#freenas* IRC channel. Alternately, use
`webchat <http://webchat.freenode.net/?channels=freenas>`_
from a web browser.

To get the most out of the IRC channel, keep these points in mind:

* Do not ask "can anyone help me?". Just ask the question. If someone
  knows the answer, they will try to help.

* Do not ask a question and then leave. Users who know the answer
  cannot help you if you disappear.

* Do not take it personally if no one answers or demand that someone
  answers your question. Maybe no one who knows the answer is
  available, maybe your question is really difficult, or maybe it is a
  question that has already been answered many times in the other
  support resources. Try asking again in a few hours or research the
  other resources to see if you have missed anything.

* Do not post error messages in the channel as the IRC software will
  probably kick you out. Instead, use a pasting service such as
  `pastebin <http://www.pastebin.com/>`_
  and paste the resulting URL into the IRC discussion.


.. index:: Mailing Lists
.. _Mailing Lists:

Mailing Lists
-------------

Several FreeNAS® mailing lists are available which allow users and
developers to ask and answer questions related to the topic of the
mailing list. To post an email to a list, you will need to subscribe
to it first. Each mailing list is archived, allowing you to browse for
information by date, thread name, or author.

The following mailing lists are available:

* `Freenas-announce
  <http://lists.freenas.org/mailman/listinfo/freenas-announce>`_:
  this is a low-volume, read-only list where major milestones, such as
  new releases, are announced.

* `Freenas-commit
  <http://lists.freenas.org/mailman/listinfo/freenas-commit>`_:
  this is a read-only list. As code changes in the FreeNAS®
  repository, the commit message is automatically sent to this list.

* `Freenas-devel
  <http://lists.freenas.org/mailman/listinfo/freenas-devel>`_:
  FreeNAS® developers are subscribed to this list. Technical questions
  about the current FreeNAS® release can be posted here.

* `Freenas-docs
  <http://lists.freenas.org/mailman/listinfo/freenas-docs>`_:
  this list is for discussion regarding
  `FreeNAS® documentation <http://doc.freenas.org/>`_.

* `Freenas-testing
  <http://lists.freenas.org/mailman/listinfo/freenas-testing>`_:
  FreeNAS® developers are subscribed to this list. Technical questions
  about the upcoming FreeNAS® release and feedback on testing
  snapshots can be posted here.

* `Freenas-translations
  <http://lists.freenas.org/mailman/listinfo/freenas-translations>`_:
  this list is for discussion regarding
  `FreeNAS® localization <http://pootle.freenas.org/>`_
  and translating FreeNAS® documentation.

.. note:: The mailing lists were migrated from SourceForge to Mailman
   in December, 2013. Archives of the SourceForge mailing lists are
   available at
   `Gmane
   <http://dir.gmane.org/index.php?prefix=gmane.os.freenas>`_.


.. _Videos:

Videos
------

A series of instructional videos are available for FreeNAS®:

* `Changes in FreeNAS® 9.3
  <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weKWqmbWdR4>`_

* `FreeNAS 9.3 Updates <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lC7af_ahwSE>`_

* `How to Upgrade FreeNAS® 9.3
  <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L61IJF98eP8>`_

* `How to Install FreeNAS® 9.3
  <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-mRgeDS8rk>`_

* `FreeNAS® 9.3 Shares Overview (AFP, NFS, CIFS, + New WebDAV)
  <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVJQ0Vx_6i4>`_

* `How to Replace HDD in FreeNAS® 9.3
  <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8bvtj-LQ_A>`_

* `TrueNAS® 9.3 Snapshots Setup
  <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R92wb_xN9k4>`_

* `Install Murmur (Mumble server) on FreeNAS/FreeBSD
  <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAeZRNfarJc>`_

* `FreeNAS® 9.3 - First Time Setup Wizard
  <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=isvHJ51YRBk>`_

* `FreeNAS® 9.3 Permissions Overview
  <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBszScnsRgY>`_

* `FreeNAS® 9.3 iSCSI Overview
  <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvyOWlFISdo&>`_

* `FreeNAS® 9.10 - Certificate Authority & SSL Certificates
  <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OT1Le5VQIc0>`_

* `How to Update FreeNAS® 9.10
  <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2nvb90AhgL8>`_

* `FreeNAS® 9.10 LAGG & VLAN Overview
  <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqSH_uQSArQ>`_


.. index:: Professional Support
.. _Professional Support:

Professional Support
--------------------

In addition to the freely available community resources, professional
support may be available through iXsystem's network of third-party
consultants. Submit a support inquiry using the form at
`<https://www.ixsystems.com/freenas-commercial-support/>`_.


