Table of Content
The two 2.5GbE ports support link aggregation, giving you up to 5Gbps speed. Synology provides its range of software for better security, management, and cloud storage options. I own 5 different Synology NAS arrays and have yet to regret any of my decisions to purchase them. Stuffed with 16TB of Seagate's finest and 6GB under the hood, it sings for me each time I push or pull files to it. My eldest still chugs away, babysitting a UPS battery, ready to send shutdown signals to my server garden if we go to candle power. For this we used a 4.22GB folder of video files, transferred to the NAS and back.
What’s more, you run the risk of damage, or loss, to the drive once it is out of your hands. Random read/write tests of 4 GB of files, written in 4K blocks. These were tested again in single threads, with a queue depth of 32 and again with a queue depth of 1. We also liked the DS220J from Synology—if it wasn’t for TerraMaster's absurdly cheap $290 4-bay F4-210 NAS, this 2-bay machine might have been our pick for best budget network-attached device. It’s a slick-looking unit that performed well in our testing, but is held back unfortunately by non-expandable 512MB RAM—though priced well at $190, it simply didn’t offer a compelling enough case to overcome the TerraMaster.
The Best NAS (Network Attached Storage) Devices for 2022
That way, I could be sure the mirroring would be fully functional. I used the same physical drives and moved them from machine to machine. When deciding on a home router, you have several different brands from which to choose. Ten companies received enough responses to be included in our survey. Two—Apple and Asus—have stood out over the competition for years.
Not only is it one of the least expensive, its design is clearly best in show. NAS devices aren't cheap, but you don't have to buy the most expensive devices to get the best quality. In fact, with the exception of the hardened ioSafe, the opposite is true. Scores and weightings were assigned for all of these factors into one large spreadsheet, and then points and stars were assigned.
How we tested
NAS boxes that can manage 1080p on-the-fly transcoding through Plex are too expensive for most people—you're better off running Plex Media Server on a computer or on an Nvidia Shield TV and using the NAS for media storage. In addition to backing up PCs and other devices, several respondents told us they use their NAS along with the Plex media server to view their videos and listen to music on any device from anywhere. Serious photo enthusiasts turn to NAS to store all their photos including large, lossless RAW files. Many NAS devices also let you share your photos with others outside your network without first uploading them to a service.
The specifications are also adequate to support the transcoding of 4K videos for easy viewing on portable devices. Unlike it’s sibling, the DS220+, this device does not come with an Intel Celeron processor. Instead, you get a Realtek RTD1296 processor (4-Core, 1MB Cache, and up to 1.4GHz). Synology pairs this with a 512MB DDR4 RAM. The device features two bays that support 2.5-inch and 3.5-inch SATA HDD/SSD drives. And like the DS220+, this device allows you to choose the best storage drives for your need. Well, although we’ve answered that in our picks above, it remains imperative that a NAS provide the peace of mind that comes with the knowledge that your data is safe.
Small Office
The WD PR4100 is ideal when you have an extensive collection of media files. Its top-notch variant has a 72TB storage capacity and WD’s cloud storage apps for easy cataloging. Further, it offers excellent specifications that allow using Plex and transcoding for streaming on portable devices.
So, you only get the barebone version, which offers you added flexibility to choose the best storage drives. NAS devices are essentially hard drives you can access remotely through a network rather than plugging directly into your computer. They make it possible to do many things, such as setting up a Plex server to back up important files. The F5-422 is best for owners of small to medium businesses that require lots of storage and a reliable RAID configuration.
Understanding Hard Disk Drive Terminology
If you buy the machine with disks populated by ioSafe itself, then the NAS comes with a 2-year data recovery service that’s upgradeable to 5 years after you register the machine. This service means ioSafe will attempt to recover your data for free for any reason, from old-fashioned disk failure to human error to simple accidental deletion. IoSafe builds NAS boxes inside boxes that are, essentially, safes. They also weigh a ton and are rock solid, so , you can prevent them from walking away. As a bonus, the ioSafe machines use Synology's DSM software, making them very easy to use.
I’d recommend something like the SilverStone DS380B. It has support for up to 12 drives, four being fixed 2.5-inch bays and eight supporting hot-swappable 3.5-inch drives. There’s enough internal space for a graphics card though you will need to use the PCI slot for SATA expansion as only a Mini-ITX motherboard will fit here. There’s a lot to do still, including setting up the Machine Learning libraries, getting Samba going, configuring Kodi for the media server, tweaking power settings, etc. There are some great choices to make your NAS system easy to administer such as FreeNAS.Most people will enjoy using that. Personally, I’ve been avoiding pre-built applications like this because I like fiddling around a a lower level so I know how everything works.
If you fear the unthinkable event of a fire and losing precious photos or replaceable or sensitive data stored on computers or external drives, the IoSafe Bay NAS eases those fears. The design is fireproof up to 1550 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes. It's also submersible up to 10 feet underwater for as long as 72 hours. For many businesses, scalability is the name of the game when it comes to network storage. It's also a great choice for homes and businesses with cutting-edge networking components, since you can outfit it with a 10Gbps LAN adapter for high-speed network connectivity. Four-drive NAS devices are typically more suited to professional settings—and if you want to use one, having a good understanding of RAID storage management will help.
Small-business owners and home enthusiasts who require a robust two-bay NAS with high-speed connectivity options should put the AS6702T at the top of their shopping lists. Still, even though Synology advertises the DS218+ as being capable of all kinds of transcoding, you'll want to use a more powerful computer than the DS218+ if you're serious about on-the-fly media transcoding. We recommend transcoding your video files ahead of time if you plan on using your NAS as a media server. You can do this with the Offline Transcoding feature in Video Station, though unfortunately you need to manually choose individual videos to convert. If you're looking for an automated option, QNAP's software allows you to set up a specific folder that the NAS monitors; the NAS then transcodes any files you drop in. Network-attached storage devices allow users to easily create personal cloud storage for their files and system backups.
DSM also includes Cloud Station ShareSync, which allows you to use your NAS to sync files across devices, similar to a service like Dropbox. You should consider a NAS if you have more than one computer at home, since you can back them all up to the NAS rather than connect an external backup drive to each computer. And if you want to protect your data and backups from theft and natural disasters, a good NAS is capable of uploading files directly to a cloud backup service, too. Network attached storage boxes have gone from mere storage devices to what are essentially desktop departmental or small business servers.
You have access to all the same mobile apps for streaming, backup, and everything else the DS218+ offers. Since this model has two more bays than our top pick, you can use different storage configurations that offer better data protection and performance. This NAS is best suited for professionals or anyone who wants to expand a NAS system with more storage down the line. Although these devices didn’t make the cut, any one of the NAS systems we looked at for this page would make excellent additions to your home network.
No comments:
Post a Comment