What about warranty? Is it covered? By who?
YES! YES! YES! The NAS device itself is BRAND NEW, and fully covered under the respective manufacturer's warranty. For warranty terms and conditions, visit the manufacturer's website or contact the manufacturer directly. Included hard drives are not covered under warranty by the NAS manufacturer. Included hard drives are fully covered under the respective drive manufacturer's warranty. For warranty terms and conditions, reference the drive information on this website, or visit the drive manufacturer's website.
When my purchase is shipped, what if someone isn't there to receive it?
All purchases are shipped requiring signature confirmation. If nobody is there to receive the delivery, a card will be left. You can then either request redelivery, or simply go and pick up your purchase at a local office location.
--------->> Which NAS/DAS Device Is Best For Me? <<----------
That is a good question. Decision making factors would be - TOTAL STORAGE CAPACITY NEEDS TODAY AND TOMORROW, WANT/NEED FOR VARIOUS NETWORK SERVICES, WANT/NEED FOR MULTIMEDIA STREAMING SERVICES, and WHAT EXACTLY WILL THE DEVICE BE USED FOR. Another determining factor would be HOW MUCH MONEY DO I WANT TO SPEND. NAS HQ provides as much information on the website as possible, but nothing beats doing a little homework. Read as much as you can, and learn about the devices you are considering.
VISIT SMALLNETBUILDER.com FOR REVIEWS AND COMPARISONS
Which NAS is best overall? Which NAS is the top seller? Which one does everyone else buy?
You will find a very wide variety of devices, offered at a very broad price range. The "best" NAS, is the one that meets your own unique requirements. There is no "top seller". The wide variety that is offered here, is to hopefully target all possible markets, price ranges, and requirements. With all of this in mind, it doesn't really matter what "everyone else" buys, because that may not be the best device for YOU.
What drives are included in these configurations? Where can I find information about these drives?
1000gb - Seagate ST31000528AS
1500gb - Seagate ST31500341AS
2000gb - Western Digital WD20EADS
2000gb - Hitachi DeskStar 7K2000
All drives are fully covered under warranty by the respective drive manufacturer.
I read about problems with the Seagate drives. Do they work? Are they compatible?
When the ST31500341AS drives were FIRST introduced in the fall of 2008, random problems were reported by some users. Seagate quickly released a firmware update that addresses these issues. The drives are fully compatible and no problems have been observed. All configurations purchased using these drives include the most recent firmware version, to assure compatibility and functionality.
I read about problems with the Western Digital WD20EADS drives. Do they work? Are they compatible?
When the WD20EADS drives were FIRST introduced, random problems were reported by some users. Western Digital quickly released a firmware update that addresses these issues. The drives are fully compatible and no problems have been observed. All configurations purchased using these drives include the most recent firmware version, to assure compatibility and functionality.
What is the difference between the Western Digital WD20EADS WD20EVDS WD20EARS Drives?
These drives are all part of Western Digital's Green Series 2td drive family. Aside from minor specification differences, they all perform virtually the same, offer virtually the same transfer rates, and are all excellent drives. At times, Western Digital or a distributor will offer incentives on either the WD20EAVS or WD20EARS. These incentives are then passed to you, the buyer, by including these drives in your purchase.
I want a NAS to simply back-up computers around my house or office. Which will do that?
First, virtually any of the NAS devices you will find here will accomplish this task. NAS devices are not "backup devices" per say, although they will house and store backups very well. Backing up your computer is largely dependant on the backup software you use or have installed on the computers themselves. Many NAS devices come with backup software. After years of testing various packages, Norton Ghost from Symantec is one of the best backup programs available. Backup software is then installed on the computer(s), and you simply "point" this software to the NAS, to store the backups there. These backups can be performed automatically at a set interval or schedule, or manually. Many NAS devices also have the ability to create snapshots and/or maintain "versions", which allows you to keep and maintain up to, for example, 5 historical versions of a given file or set of files.
I want to add a NAS to my home network. I want to share/stream my pictures, music, and video, to a few computers, and enjoy them in my living room as well. Which NAS is best for that?
First, virtually any of the NAS devices you will find here will accomplish this task. Media "streaming" to a PC is a very basic function, as you are simply accessing the files directly from the share on the NAS. Media streaming to the TV and audio system in you living room, requires a media player of some sort. Examples would be the DViCO TViX or the Logitech Slim Devices SqueezeBox. In this case, the media player itself is more of a determining factor than the NAS device you are using. Once you select the media player, that will allow you to more accurately identify the network features you require in the NAS.
What is the difference between the HP MediaSmart EX470 EX475 EX485 EX487?
The EX470 and EX475 were HP's first generation MediaSmart server. They feature HP's MediaSmart Home Server operating system, and an AMD processor. The EX485 and EX487 are HP's newer generation MediaSmart server with an Intel Celeron 2.0Ghz processor. They also feature Microsoft Windows Home Server operating system, with quite a few addition feature from the first generation. The EX485 and EX487 are identical machines, simply with different pre-packaged drives from HP. NAS HQ offers MANY more drive configuration options.
What is the difference between the Seagate BlackArmor 420 and 440?
The "420" and "440" simply designates, from Seagate, how many drives are included with the configuration. NAS HQ offers MANY more drive configuration options, and directly indicates these in detail.
What is the difference between the Linksys/Cisco NMH400 NMH405 NMH410?
The NMH400 NMH405 and NMH415 are identical machines, simply with different pre-packaged drives from Linksys/Cisco. NAS HQ offers MANY more drive configuration options.
If I want to rip and stream my DVDs, how do I do that?
The best way to do this, is using Slysoft AnyDVD software. This software can be purchased directly through the NAS HQ website. AnyDVD will allow you to rip a movie off of a DVD, and store it on your NAS device. From there, you can watch it on your PC, or using a media player. If you want to enjoy video in your living room, from your NAS device, the DViCO TViX is the only way to go. Follow this link, if you want to learn more about the AnyDVD software.
If I want to rip and stream my CDs, how do I do that?
You can use Microsoft Windows Media Player to rip your CDs. Windows Media Player has a nice interface, and will allow you to rip all of your CDs directly to your NAS device.
There are also some freeware programs that do the job just as good as Windows Media Player. From there, you can enjoy your music on your PC, or using a media player. If you want to enjoy audio in your living room, from your NAS device, the Logitech Slim Devices Squeezebox is the only way to go.
How many ripped DVDs will my RAID device hold?
That depends on a few things - how long is the movie, and did you rip all of the menus and extras, or just the movie? A 2 TeraByte array will hold about 325 movies. A 3 TeraByte array will hold about 500 movies. Once you have your movies ripped, you can use some freeware programs to shrink the size.
Will my movies look just as good when they are ripped?
If you rip the movies with no compression, at full quality, ABSOLUTELY. You will notice no difference between watching the movie using a media player or PC, from your NAS device, as opposed to watching it using a traditional DVD player. You will notice, however, that you no longer need to leave your comfy couch or chair, to change movies.
How many ripped CDs will my NAS device hold?
This obviously depends on the size of your NAS device. For 99% of the people out there, a 2tb NAS device, for example, will be more than enough space for your music.
Will my music sound just as good when it is ripped?
You have the option of selecting the quality of your ripped music. Lower quality takes up less space. Higher quality take up more space. You bought the CD, and a huge RAID device for a reason - just use the highest quality possible.
What is required to get things up and running?
Assuming you have the necessary network cabling and hardware, you can literally take the device out of the box, plug it in, run through some basic configuration questions, and start using it. Once you get comfortable with it, you can then start configuring it to your specific needs.
What networking stuff is necessary?
This obviously depends on what you want to do with the device. A very basic setup, could simply be a computer connected directly to the device, using a crossover CAT5 network cable. If you want to connect other devices, the best way to do that is using CAT5 cabling, along with a small router or switch. You can even add wireless components, and fully access the device that way.
What is RAID? I don't have bugs!?
RAID is a technology developed to provide fault tolerant data storage. RAID is applied using 2 3,4 or 5 drives. In the event that one of the drives happens to fail, you will not lose a single bit of information. That bad drive can be replaced on-the-fly, then the device will automatically rebuild the array for you. Click here for a detailed description.
Is there a RAID option on the HP MediaSmart Server?
The HP MediaSmart Server uses a sophisticated technology in the Microsoft Windows Home Server software called “folder duplication.” For extra protection, selected shared folders can be duplicated on a separate hard drive on the HP MediaSmart Server. Selected folder duplication works with both internal and external hard disk drives. Selected folder duplication is superior to RAID in that you don’t have to duplicate those folders that don’t need duplication – for instance, TV shows and PC backups. This utilizes hard disk drive space more efficiently. This technology allows you to add different or higher capacity hard drives as they become available without sacrificing space on the new drive for RAID. As you add hard disk drives to the system your overall storage capacity simply grows larger by that amount.
For more information, see Microsoft's FAQ and Hewlett Packard's FAQ
How many different PCs and media players can access these NAS devices at once?
This obviously depends on what exactly you are doing with the connected devices, and what hardware you are using to support the networking. In a very basic scenario, you can add a NAS device to your network, and share movies and movies to media players throughout your home. In a mid-level scenario, you can use a NAS device to share files and host printers, across a small office workgroup. A step beyond that, would be to use a NAS device to independently provide file storage and network printing to a larger workgroup. These same NAS devices can also provide file storage and media sharing capability to your home. The NAS devices you find here, can provide bullet-proof network file storage and media sharing capability for your home, and even the most demanding office workgroup environments.
What happens if my power goes out? Do I need a battery back-up?
Having a UPS is always a good thing. If you don't have one, and your power goes out, you shouldn't have a problem. Once power is restored, the RAID device will check itself, and automatically correct any synchronization problems across the array.
Why would I want a RAID array with fewer drives than the device will handle?
Lets say that today, all you need is a 2 terabyte array. You say to yourself, "there is no way I will ever need more space than this". A year from now, you find that you are starting to fill up your array. To expand a fully populated array, you must replace ALL DRIVES. If you select a 2 or 3 drive configuration, you can scale your array a bit better, and provide more cost effective expansion options. You could initially select a 3x750gb array, with gives you just a pinch more space than a 4x500gb array, but provides the ability to add a fourth drive, should you ever need more space.
What is difference between these different QNAP models?
For more information, see QNAP's website.
What About The Actual Drives? - How Many? What Size?
Lets say that today, all you need is a 2 terabyte array. You say to yourself, "there is no way I will ever need more space than this". A year from now, you find that you are starting to fill up your array. To expand a fully populated array, you must replace ALL DRIVES. If you select a 2 or 3 drive configuration, you can scale your array a bit better, and provide more cost effective expansion options.
I bought a 4TB RAID device - will I actually have 4000gb of space?
Because of the nature of RAID, and the configuration you select, you will see a certain percentage of storage capacity. In a two drive configuration, one drive mirrors the other. In this case, you will see a useable capacity of the size of one of the drives. In a three drive configuration, you will have completely fault tolerant storage, and will see approximately 62% of the total combined capacity of the three drives. In a four drive configuration, you will see approximately 68% of the total combined capacity of the four drives. In a five drive configuration, you will see approximately 73% of the total combined capacity of the five drives. For example - in a four drive 2 terabyte configuration, you will see approximately 1368gb of useable storage space. In a four drive 3 terabyte configuration, you will see approximately 2015gb of useable storage space. Click here for a detailed description.