You would be better off being paid by Google, Nielsen, or other ad tracking companies.
It was paid $45 a month for years by Google to track my internet. They gave me a custom router to do it. It was all my own traffic, so I didn’t worry about shady outside traffic. Figured Google already tracked me anyways so I might as well be paid for it.
I would not use NTFS.
Do the reverse. Use ZFS, Ext4, or Btrfs. Those are native Linux file systems.
Then you share the Linux folder with Windows over SMB, which is a Windows file sharing protocol that both Linux and Windows understand well. Voila, copy and paste between both machines without worrying about corruption.
It’s for editorial integrity.
A lot of redditors only read the title and it’s what a lot of discussion is around. Allowing titles to be edited after the fact would really change what information is presented and how the conversation is contextualized.
No, you want Ethernet not fiber.
Your downstairs router, computers, and your new upstairs switch / Wi-Fi access point are all guaranteed going to be RJ45 Ethernet.
The only part that is fiber is the part running to the outside.
You can put both a fiber and CAT5E/6 Ethernet in, but just a fiber connection will not accomplish what you want. You need the Ethernet connection in order for each floor to have its own wired connection and/or wifi access. That’s what the consumer equipment will use. Otherwise, you will need more enterprise-level equipment and that will add unnecessary complication.
Serve The Home forums and YouTube is dedicated to these devices.
Protectli, CWWK, Topton are the manufacturers. Protectli is actually a rebrander of the Chinese products for western audiences. CWWK designs the actual motherboards. You can order from whichever vender you like, although Topton seems the least reliable as far as English support and firmware.
If you have a Managed Switch with VLAN capabilities, then your new proposed idea and layout make sense.
Your current setup kind of looks like it's double NAT. Which is not great. You want the Protectli router to be the first device after the Arris Surfboard modem. Have the modem be in only modem/bridge mode. We do not want to use the Arris as a router.
Mikrotik CSS610-8P-2S+IN - $200
8x Gigabit PoE-out ports and 2x 10 Gigabit SFP+ ports.
Miktrotik CRS328-24P-4S+RM - $500
24 port Gigabit PoE with 4x 10Gbps SFP+ ports.
There's lots of solutions.
Cheap:
But a full tower PC case with room for 10+ HDDs. Lot of options like those from Fractal, CoolerMaster, etc.
Enterprise (expensive):
Buy a JBOD with a backplane that you plug all your discs into then plug that into a server.