Local Stand-alone USB Storage Accessible via FTP

[nebula828]

I remotely manage the irrigation system on a fruit farm. The irrigation controller on the farm is plugged in directly to a Verizon 4G broadband router via an ethernet cable, allowing me to access the controller via the manufacturer's web-based interface. Unfortunately, the only way to pull the irrigation logs from the controller is by connecting a USB thumb drive or other USB storage device to a USB port on the controller; I can't pull the logs off remotely through the internet.

Is there a way to permanently attach a USB storage device to the irrigation controller (via a USB cable) and connect the storage device to the router such that I can remotely access it through the internet via FTP or some other protocol? I'd like to have remote access to the logs and also be able to remotely back up the controller's irrigation programming. I initially believed I could use a network attached storage (NAS) device, but I'm at a loss when it comes to using it simultaneously over USB. Am I out of luck here?

Thanks in advance!

 

[JaredDM]

I'd have to know more about this irrigation controller to really help. As far as plugging a USB storage device into both the controller and router, I don't think it's possible. At least not without some sort of KVM type switching like this: https://www.google.com/shopping/product/4578100475872341701?sclient=psy-ab&biw=1429&bih=961&q=share+usb+storage+on+two+computers&oq=share+usb+storage+on+two+computers&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_cp.&bvm=bv.96952980,d.cWw&tch=1&ech=1&psi=AYedVcGcOYyt-AG5u7uIBQ.1436387057025.7&prds=paur:ClkAsKraX1kFKWFeHFzWeuDMcVygZ0MweaVyhi4mOS_9uBnekQpLaK_C3NoNeiC9wZsunyjwBTPJfZd1UKD3JjMzuxfsQMDVM5VdYS_I7FoEvYZuYQvJnkQBeRIZAFPVH71auaUjwyJ0Q5QgqZVmNn0Xn8ZWXw&ved=0CFkQpis&ei=KIedVc2TDILw-AGZ74SYBQ but I suspect it'd be problematic. At the very least you'd need to have a computer on at the location with remote access to actuate the switch.

Using a NAS won't be any help because the USB ports on them is used for expansion (adding another drive), not accessing the NAS's own storage. So plugging the USB from the irrigation controller into the NAS is like plugging two computers into each other.

 

[bill001g]

Unfortunately what you are seeing is the limitation of USB itself. A USB connection is considered point to point between 2 devices. Although you can use things like USB hubs it just switches between point to point connections you can never have say 3 devices connected.

Your best bet likely is a NAS but you would need a special one. It would need to allow access to the disk via USB. It could have multiple USB connection or maybe USB and ethernet. I have not seen this device. This is like a router that allows USB rather than ethernet, they are pretty rare devices.

I suspect you could use something like a raspberry pi device and build your own but that is a question best posted to one of the forums on that site.

 

[jsmithepa]

Ask the irrigation vendor or look up the manual whether it can write the log to a NAS rather than a thumb drive. Once in a NAS, ur home free. Or maybe the controller can send that log to an email?