Enhanced network attached storage (NAS) interoperating with and overflowing to cloud storage resources

A computer-implemented method comprising:

• by a first computing device that comprises one or more hardware processors,
• wherein the first computing device is in communication with a network attached storage device, and with a client computing device, and with one or more cloud storage resources configured in one or more cloud services, and
• wherein the network attached storage device comprises a first network share for the client computing device:
• determining that a first data object on the first network share meets a criterion for archiving, wherein the first data object was stored by the client computing device at the first network share, and wherein the first data object is in a primary data format;
• based on the determining, generating a secondary copy of the first data object,
• wherein the secondary copy is in a secondary copy format that is distinct from the primary data format of the first data object, and
• wherein the criterion for archiving comprises one or more of:
• the first data object exceeds a threshold size, the first data object exceeds a threshold age, the first data object has been accessed less frequently than a threshold frequency, and a second data object that comprises the first data object exceeds a threshold count of data objects within the second data object;
• causing the secondary copy to be stored at a first cloud storage resource among the one or more cloud storage resources;
• replacing the first data object on the first network share with a stub, wherein the stub stands in for the first data object in a file system that comprises the first network share;
• associating the stub with the secondary copy of the first data object in an index that is maintained by the first computing device;
• and
• responsive to the first computing device detecting an access to the stub at the first network share, restoring the secondary copy, based on using the index, to a primary data object at the first network share, wherein the primary data object is in the primary data format.

A storage management appliance apparatus comprising:

• a first computing device comprising one or more hardware processors,
• wherein the first computing device is in communication with a network attached storage device, and with a client computing device, and with one or more cloud storage resources configured in one or more cloud services;
• and
• the network attached storage device, wherein the network attached storage device comprises a first network share for the client computing device;
• wherein the first computing device is configured to:
• based on a determination that a first data object on the first network share meets a criterion for archiving, generate a secondary copy of the first data object,
• wherein the first data object was stored by the client computing device at the first network share, and wherein the first data object is in a primary data format,
• wherein the secondary copy is in a secondary copy format that is distinct from the primary data format of the first data object, and
• wherein the criterion for archiving comprises one or more of:
• the first data object exceeds a threshold size, the first data object exceeds a threshold age, the first data object has been accessed less frequently than a threshold frequency, and a second data object that comprises the first data object exceeds a threshold count of data objects within the second data object,
• cause the secondary copy to be stored at a first cloud storage resource among the one or more cloud storage resources,
• replace the first data object on the first network share with a stub, wherein the stub stands in for the first data object in a file system that comprises the first network share,
• associate the stub with the secondary copy of the first data object in an index that is maintained by the first computing device, and
• based on the first computing device detecting an access to the stub at the first network share, use the index to restore the secondary copy to a primary data object at the first network share, wherein the primary data object is in the primary data format.