Unraid
Operating system for self-hosted servers and network-attached storage
Unraid OS is a server operating system developed by Lime Technology that combines network-attached storage, Docker containers, and virtual machines in a single web-based interface. It addresses the problem of building a server from mismatched drives of different sizes and types, allowing storage to be mixed and grown over time rather than requiring matched hardware. The operating system supports parity-protected arrays, cache pools, and storage pools formatted with ZFS, BTRFS, or XFS, with optional internal boot storage and mirrored boot redundancy.
Core capabilities include a Docker application manager with access to Community Apps, a plugin catalog of user-created applications and extensions, and a virtualization host supporting Windows and Linux VMs with GPU pass-through for gaming or video editing. Tailscale integration provides encrypted remote access to the web UI, VMs via VNC, and private networking between servers. The platform is managed through a web interface and is designed for self-hosted servers, media libraries, game server hosting, backups, and homelab use.
Unraid is sold as a perpetual license with no subscription, offered in three editions: Starter for smaller builds with a limited number of storage devices, Unleashed for unlimited devices, and Lifetime for unlimited devices with lifetime updates. Each license includes the full feature set. A 30-day free trial is available without a credit card.
12 alternatives to Unraid
Ranked by how well each tool replaces Unraid: shared features, audience, price and popularity.
Cloud VPS hosting platform built on OpenStack with KVM virtualization
Covers 0 of 15 key features.
56 out of 100 match$2/moSet up and manage homeserver apps with a simple self-hosted tool.
Covers 0 of 15 key features, has a free plan and is open source.
Free planOpen source54 out of 100 matchFree- 54 out of 100 matchFree
- 52 out of 100 match—
Network attached storage solution based on Debian Linux with web-based administration and
Covers 0 of 15 key features, has a free plan and is open source.
Free planOpen source51 out of 100 matchFreethe distributed cloud
Covers 0 of 15 key features, has a free plan and is open source.
Free planOpen source48 out of 100 match$7/mo- 48 out of 100 match—
- 48 out of 100 match—
Rockstor: Open-source, multi-arch NAS built on OpenSUSE with customizable Btrfs storage.
Covers 0 of 15 key features, has a free plan and is open source.
Free planOpen source47 out of 100 matchFree- 46 out of 100 match$500/mo
Self-hosted file management and sharing system
Covers 0 of 15 key features, has a free plan and is open source.
Free planOpen source46 out of 100 matchContact salesAI-enabled data resilience for small and mid-sized organizations.
Covers 0 of 15 key features.
46 out of 100 match—