Price : Too low to display
QNAP 4-bay iSCSI NAS, Hot-swappable Marvell 1.6GHz CPU, 512MB DDRII RAM
This review is from : Qnap TS-419P+-US 4-Bay USB 2.0 NAS Server
Fantastic NAS For the Price... . I did my best to research the various NAS solutions out there before making my final decision to purchase the QNAP TS-419P+. I feel like I made the right choice.
I unpacked the unit after the long-awaited arrival of the delivery guy and plugged it in. I had also ordered a single Seagate Barracuda XT 2TB 7200RPM Hard Drive which I installed. Why only one drive? Easy. After buying this drive and the NAS itself, I was broke. Plus, the TS-419P+ allows additional drives to be added later and allows for RAID level migration without data loss. So I'll be starting with the single 2GB drive, eventually upgrading to a 4-drive, 6TB RAID 5 configuration as I get the money.
Actually, while I'm on the point, let me expand on the description presented for the product on this page, since it's missing some configurations. Below I've listed the possible drive configurations supported by the TS-419P+:
* Single Disk: Used when you only have one disk in the NAS.
* JBOD: "Just a Bunch of Disks", 2 or more drives each accessed as if they were separate drives.
* RAID 0: For 2 or more disks, disks are grouped together as one large disk, and results in the fastest possible read/write speed, but the loss of one drive due to hardware failure would incur significant data loss.
* RAID 1: 2 or more disks, each additional disk is a mirror copy of the first. Total size is only the size of one disk, but data is safe as long as at least one drive remains operational. Fast read speed, normal write speed.
* RAID 5: 3 or more disks, size is (number of disks - 1)*(disk size). Any one of the drives can fail without data loss, as long as the bad drive is replaced before a second one fails. Read/Write speeds faster than Single or JBOD, slower than RAID 0.
* RAID 6: 4 disks, size is smaller than RAID 5 at (number of disks - 2)*(disk size). Redundancy similar to RAID 5, but up to two drives can fail without data loss as long as the drives are replaced before a third one fails. Read/Write speeds faster than Single or JBOD, slower than RAID 5.
* RAID 5 + Hot Spare: Size/speed same as a 3-disk RAID 5 configuration, with the 4th drive used as an automatic backup to replace the first drive to fail.
So after installing the drive and plugging one of the two included ethernet cables into the gigabit router, I powered it up. Some software can be added via the installation CD, but I opted to just go to the website and download the latest versions. After boot-up, I installed the latest firmware and fired up the administration tools in my web browser.
There's a LOT going on here, and I could easily see how it might be a bit daunting to the beginner. It takes a while to set up the services you want: FTP, ssh, telnet, http/https, nfs, snmp, Samba for Windows sharing and drive mapping, Apple networking options, mySQL, UPnP media server, etc.
Then you've got several backup options to choose from, as well as available packages to add additional functionality (such as Tomcat for your web server). [* UPDATE: Oops, turns out the Tomcat and JRE packages don't support the TS-419P+ due to the non-Intel x86 CPU *] There is a web-based file manager, as well as a "Multimedia Station" and a "Download Station".
The Download Station is useful for torrents, or any web- or ftp-based download. By using the Download Station instead of your web browser, the download can continue independently of any computers. You can shut down your computers if you want, and the downloading will continue. You can even log in remotely from any computer or smart phone in the world and check the progress of your downloads, add new items to your list, etc. Unfortunately, I have noticed that the torrent download speeds are inexplicably capped at 200KB/sec, while downloading the same torrent on my computer's client gets me 3.7MB/sec. From what I've found, it looks like it might be an issue that cropped up in a recent firmware update, so hopefully it will be fixed soon.
There is also a Multimedia Station that you can use to see all of the photos, music, and video stored on the drive. I don't get this. I guess you can use it to create song playlists and whatnot, but the interface is clunky at best, and generally useless from what I've seen.
The QMobile iPhone/Android app has similar functionality - you can connect to the NAS over your home network or anywhere, if you've opened up a port on your router. You can then access your multimedia library from your phone. It's nice, but suffers from the same clunkiness as the Multimedia Station. It also seems to be oddly picky about what videos it displays. I have one folder with about 20 mp4 videos in it, but only two show up. Three show up in the Multimedia Station. But they all show up on my devices via the UPnP media server. I'm still trying to figure this one out. [*UPDATE 07/24/11: Multimedia Station and QMobile both seem to have a file size cap of about 2GB - larger files will not be displayed. This is a software issue rather than a file system issue since the NAS is formatted ext4. Presumably, it's because these applications are designed to stream externally (you'd be using the TwonkyMedia server on the LAN). I don't know why they wouldn't allow that to be a configurable option, but maybe it will come in a later update. Also, videos that contain more than 2 channels of audio will be silent in QMobile, although they will play in Multimedia Station. *]
Streaming seems to work extremely well, when the destination hardware supports it. The PS3 seems to be far better in this respect than the iPhone, laptops or TV. [*UPDATE 07/18/11: I've figured out that the most compatible video format seems to be MP4 with AAC-encoded audio. Oddly, MP4 with MP3-encoded audio is not supported by many devices. I have started converting all of my videos to MP4/AAC, and they have all been playing great when streamed over any device in my house. As a matter of fact, the TV now outperforms the PS3 in streaming due to the wireless-N capability. *]
Overall, transfer speeds are good for a network drive. I regularly achieve 56MB/s, with bursts of 86MB/s operating in single drive mode and writing to a single drive. I don't have any information yet about RAID 5 performance, but once I have it set up, I'll update the review with that information.
User management and permissions can initially be a bit brutal if you plan on having multiple users with multiple permission sets. Users and groups are standard Linux users and groups, but then the Multimedia Station requires its own set of credentials for some reason. Then you have folder share permissions which are independent of the folder access permissions and determine who can mount what directories as share drives, and what level of access they have.
I like the fact that I can ssh into the box, but I don't like the fact that I can only do it as the admin user (although according to the support forum, there is a third-party update package that circumvents this limitation). dnsmasq would have been nice, but I can do without it at the house, I guess. Included in the purchase price is access to QNAP's MyCloudNAS service, which seems to merely act as a front end to a DDNS service. Enabling the service will give you a web address, which will allow access whichever services you select, such as the main administration page, file manager, Multimedia Station, etc. Other than having the front end with a set of buttons you can click to access these services, I'm not sure how it's any different than forwarding the port on your router and accessing it from a DynDNS address.
Fantastic NAS For the Price... . I did my best to research the various NAS solutions out there before making my final decision to purchase the QNAP TS-419P+. I feel like I made the right choice.
I unpacked the unit after the long-awaited arrival of the delivery guy and plugged it in. I had also ordered a single Seagate Barracuda XT 2TB 7200RPM Hard Drive which I installed. Why only one drive? Easy. After buying this drive and the NAS itself, I was broke. Plus, the TS-419P+ allows additional drives to be added later and allows for RAID level migration without data loss. So I'll be starting with the single 2GB drive, eventually upgrading to a 4-drive, 6TB RAID 5 configuration as I get the money.
Actually, while I'm on the point, let me expand on the description presented for the product on this page, since it's missing some configurations. Below I've listed the possible drive configurations supported by the TS-419P+:
* Single Disk: Used when you only have one disk in the NAS.
* JBOD: "Just a Bunch of Disks", 2 or more drives each accessed as if they were separate drives.
* RAID 0: For 2 or more disks, disks are grouped together as one large disk, and results in the fastest possible read/write speed, but the loss of one drive due to hardware failure would incur significant data loss.
* RAID 1: 2 or more disks, each additional disk is a mirror copy of the first. Total size is only the size of one disk, but data is safe as long as at least one drive remains operational. Fast read speed, normal write speed.
* RAID 5: 3 or more disks, size is (number of disks - 1)*(disk size). Any one of the drives can fail without data loss, as long as the bad drive is replaced before a second one fails. Read/Write speeds faster than Single or JBOD, slower than RAID 0.
* RAID 6: 4 disks, size is smaller than RAID 5 at (number of disks - 2)*(disk size). Redundancy similar to RAID 5, but up to two drives can fail without data loss as long as the drives are replaced before a third one fails. Read/Write speeds faster than Single or JBOD, slower than RAID 5.
* RAID 5 + Hot Spare: Size/speed same as a 3-disk RAID 5 configuration, with the 4th drive used as an automatic backup to replace the first drive to fail.
So after installing the drive and plugging one of the two included ethernet cables into the gigabit router, I powered it up. Some software can be added via the installation CD, but I opted to just go to the website and download the latest versions. After boot-up, I installed the latest firmware and fired up the administration tools in my web browser.
There's a LOT going on here, and I could easily see how it might be a bit daunting to the beginner. It takes a while to set up the services you want: FTP, ssh, telnet, http/https, nfs, snmp, Samba for Windows sharing and drive mapping, Apple networking options, mySQL, UPnP media server, etc.
Then you've got several backup options to choose from, as well as available packages to add additional functionality (such as Tomcat for your web server). [* UPDATE: Oops, turns out the Tomcat and JRE packages don't support the TS-419P+ due to the non-Intel x86 CPU *] There is a web-based file manager, as well as a "Multimedia Station" and a "Download Station".
The Download Station is useful for torrents, or any web- or ftp-based download. By using the Download Station instead of your web browser, the download can continue independently of any computers. You can shut down your computers if you want, and the downloading will continue. You can even log in remotely from any computer or smart phone in the world and check the progress of your downloads, add new items to your list, etc. Unfortunately, I have noticed that the torrent download speeds are inexplicably capped at 200KB/sec, while downloading the same torrent on my computer's client gets me 3.7MB/sec. From what I've found, it looks like it might be an issue that cropped up in a recent firmware update, so hopefully it will be fixed soon.
There is also a Multimedia Station that you can use to see all of the photos, music, and video stored on the drive. I don't get this. I guess you can use it to create song playlists and whatnot, but the interface is clunky at best, and generally useless from what I've seen.
The QMobile iPhone/Android app has similar functionality - you can connect to the NAS over your home network or anywhere, if you've opened up a port on your router. You can then access your multimedia library from your phone. It's nice, but suffers from the same clunkiness as the Multimedia Station. It also seems to be oddly picky about what videos it displays. I have one folder with about 20 mp4 videos in it, but only two show up. Three show up in the Multimedia Station. But they all show up on my devices via the UPnP media server. I'm still trying to figure this one out. [*UPDATE 07/24/11: Multimedia Station and QMobile both seem to have a file size cap of about 2GB - larger files will not be displayed. This is a software issue rather than a file system issue since the NAS is formatted ext4. Presumably, it's because these applications are designed to stream externally (you'd be using the TwonkyMedia server on the LAN). I don't know why they wouldn't allow that to be a configurable option, but maybe it will come in a later update. Also, videos that contain more than 2 channels of audio will be silent in QMobile, although they will play in Multimedia Station. *]
Streaming seems to work extremely well, when the destination hardware supports it. The PS3 seems to be far better in this respect than the iPhone, laptops or TV. [*UPDATE 07/18/11: I've figured out that the most compatible video format seems to be MP4 with AAC-encoded audio. Oddly, MP4 with MP3-encoded audio is not supported by many devices. I have started converting all of my videos to MP4/AAC, and they have all been playing great when streamed over any device in my house. As a matter of fact, the TV now outperforms the PS3 in streaming due to the wireless-N capability. *]
Overall, transfer speeds are good for a network drive. I regularly achieve 56MB/s, with bursts of 86MB/s operating in single drive mode and writing to a single drive. I don't have any information yet about RAID 5 performance, but once I have it set up, I'll update the review with that information.
User management and permissions can initially be a bit brutal if you plan on having multiple users with multiple permission sets. Users and groups are standard Linux users and groups, but then the Multimedia Station requires its own set of credentials for some reason. Then you have folder share permissions which are independent of the folder access permissions and determine who can mount what directories as share drives, and what level of access they have.
I like the fact that I can ssh into the box, but I don't like the fact that I can only do it as the admin user (although according to the support forum, there is a third-party update package that circumvents this limitation). dnsmasq would have been nice, but I can do without it at the house, I guess. Included in the purchase price is access to QNAP's MyCloudNAS service, which seems to merely act as a front end to a DDNS service. Enabling the service will give you a web address, which will allow access whichever services you select, such as the main administration page, file manager, Multimedia Station, etc. Other than having the front end with a set of buttons you can click to access these services, I'm not sure how it's any different than forwarding the port on your router and accessing it from a DynDNS address.
Qnap TS-419P+-US 4-Bay USB 2.0 NAS Server Reviews
QNAP TS-419P+ . Been using this network storage for over a month now and I cannot complain very much yet. I put 4-500GB hard drives in a raid 5 configuration for a total storage space of 1.3TB. The reason I bought this unit is for its extra options. I have my whole music and video collection shared on my network so I can get to them from anywhere in the house and I have even used a hard drive imaging program called G4L to make a full 58GB hard drive image straight to the QNAP unit using the FTP protocol.
I did not receive the same device pictured, however. The one I received does not have the lockable hard drive trays and I was a little disappointed about that, but it really isn't that big a deal. Initial setup is easy until you get into the QNAP firmware. Then it can get a little hard because of the many menus and features included. I had to factory reset mine about 2 times because I locked myself out somehow.
Overall I would definatly recommend this product to others who are at least a little tech savy or at least willing to try hard.
QNAP TS-419P+ . Been using this network storage for over a month now and I cannot complain very much yet. I put 4-500GB hard drives in a raid 5 configuration for a total storage space of 1.3TB. The reason I bought this unit is for its extra options. I have my whole music and video collection shared on my network so I can get to them from anywhere in the house and I have even used a hard drive imaging program called G4L to make a full 58GB hard drive image straight to the QNAP unit using the FTP protocol.
I did not receive the same device pictured, however. The one I received does not have the lockable hard drive trays and I was a little disappointed about that, but it really isn't that big a deal. Initial setup is easy until you get into the QNAP firmware. Then it can get a little hard because of the many menus and features included. I had to factory reset mine about 2 times because I locked myself out somehow.
Overall I would definatly recommend this product to others who are at least a little tech savy or at least willing to try hard.
Qnap TS-419P+-US 4-Bay USB 2.0 NAS Server Opinions
More than 5 stars... . This device is awesome. I had expected just a big disk that would protect my files via RAID. I knew it had a few other features but didn't really check into it before I ordered. WOW!!!! 1) Super easy setup, 2) Super easy interface, 3) Super easy backups, 4) More features than I could have hoped for... The features are unreal!There is so much packed into this device that every week I choose another feature to explore and setup. The media server alone is a reason to get this device, as I just copied my media files onto it and they showed up on my Sony Blu-ray players (which are connected to my wireless network of course). Now that super expensive stereo system I bought can see my entire mp3 library. All my wifes photos can be viewed on the TV's around the house. There is even an iTunes server, so all that music can be played on the ipads and computers on my network.I only wish I had bought an 8 disk model (big bucks) because I can see putting every blu-ray and DVD I have on it so I can get to my media library anytime.Thanks QNAP for a device that just works the way you'd want it to work.
More than 5 stars... . This device is awesome. I had expected just a big disk that would protect my files via RAID. I knew it had a few other features but didn't really check into it before I ordered. WOW!!!! 1) Super easy setup, 2) Super easy interface, 3) Super easy backups, 4) More features than I could have hoped for... The features are unreal!There is so much packed into this device that every week I choose another feature to explore and setup. The media server alone is a reason to get this device, as I just copied my media files onto it and they showed up on my Sony Blu-ray players (which are connected to my wireless network of course). Now that super expensive stereo system I bought can see my entire mp3 library. All my wifes photos can be viewed on the TV's around the house. There is even an iTunes server, so all that music can be played on the ipads and computers on my network.I only wish I had bought an 8 disk model (big bucks) because I can see putting every blu-ray and DVD I have on it so I can get to my media library anytime.Thanks QNAP for a device that just works the way you'd want it to work.
Pain to setup but works very well once it's up. . This is my 3rd 419 series Qnap NAS (adding, not replacing). In each case, they've been a nightmare to get initially installed but, once running, runs like a champ. Setting up products like these always involve a little seat-of-the-pants work and the docs rarely match the revision of software you're installing. In each case, it's just taken a few tries at the process with some creative tweaks before I've gotten all 4 disks formatted, online, and the box remembering it's IP. However, once it's all dialed in, it's pretty much a forgetaboutit device. My oldest unit has been in service for almost 3 years with no issues at all in a mixed OS-X/WinXP/Win7 environment using it as network storage, media server, and also a Time Machine target.
Great NAS; Not for the faint of heart . This is a great NAS but you need some technical background to effectively use it.I installed it with 2 2TB drives as RAID 1. I'll expand it as I need more space and migrate to RAID 5.The configuration software is pretty complex with lots of options. The NAS does a great job of taking control of your windows workgroup network ensuring visibility on all machines (a lot of times client computers will fight over being the browser and then do the job poorly).I got about 40MB/sec sustained. Great performance in my book.Amazon S3 replication is not trivial (there's a bug -- must have your container names in lower case) but works great. An awesome deal for 10GB or so of your critical files, expensive for a couple hundred GB. It doesn't support reduced reliability storage natively but you can mostly switch files as an extra step.If you're looking for super easy this isn't it. This is pro quality and requires a technical person, some online research, and a few hours to set up.
Awesome!... For a system administrator! . Do you like using ssh to enable features that should work out of the box? Do you like cracking open Terminal on your mac in order to get things working? Do you like features mysteriously not working and then searching for the answer on forums? DO I HAVE THE NAS FOR YOU!Seriously. I like taking things apart and figuring out how things work. I enjoy learning the ins and outs of most of the technology that I own but this thing is ridiculous. I'd admit that it's awesome what it can do (BitTorrent, serve multimedia files, act as a Wordpress site, etc...) but I'd trade 80% of these features for the ability to know that some day, I won't have to hack a binary source code in order to get the contents of my backups after my house gets hit by a tornado. Do you see what I'm saying? The device is for backups and so should be the least fussiest piece of technology that I own but it's not. I'm fearful of the day when I am losing my mind because I can't find my files and I have to fuel the frustration by dealing with an engineers idea of a backup solution.
Really great Item! . This is one nice unit. It supports every protocol and has a free app to also provide access to Iphones and Ipads. It has a bit of a learning curve, and as with most things, it has a few quirks. But it's quite the speedy swiss army knife.
The Netgear is supposed to work with an Ipad/iphone but I heard of lots of complaints so I went with this unit and i'm glad I did.
The Netgear is supposed to work with an Ipad/iphone but I heard of lots of complaints so I went with this unit and i'm glad I did.
Feature Qnap TS-419P+-US 4-Bay USB 2.0 NAS Server
- CPU Marvell 6282 1.6GHz
- DRAM 512MB DDRIII RAM
- Flash Memory 16MB
- HDD 4 x 3.5" and 2.5" SATA II HDD
- HDD Tray 4 x hot-swappable tray
- LAN Port 2 x Gigabit RJ-45 Ethernet port
- LED Indicators Status, LAN, USB, eSATA, HDD 1, HDD 2, HDD 3, HDD 4
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Product Details
EAN : 0885022001699UPC : 885022001699
MPN : TS-419P+
Brand : Qnap
Weight : 11 pounds
Height : 10 inches
Length : 13 inches
Width : 12 inches
Binding : Personal Computers
Manufacturer : Qnap
Model : TS-419P+-US
Publisher : Qnap
SKU : DHTS419PUS
Studio : Qnap
Where To Buy
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