A network attached storage device or
NAS box is a wonderful product I feel. I’ve pretty much abandoned
using external hard drives for my backups and use only NAS boxes,
they’re faster and they much more useful and I can access them while
I’m away, but I can also allow other people on my network to use it
as well. NAS boxes are the new external backup devices really, there
was a time when an external hard drive was what everyone used, those
have their place, but just not for backups anymore. At least that’s
how I feel about it anyway…
Today for review I’ve got a rather
large NAS box, the TS-419P from QNAP that houses four hard drives to
give you a ton of storage. The TS-419P not only offers a lot of
storage but tons of other features as well, so read on to learn all
about it…
Product
Name: QNAP
TS-419P Turbo NAS
Author: Kristofer
Brozio
Sponsor: QNAP
Tech
Specs,Features or the Basic Info:
QNAP TS-419P Turbo NAS is the
4-bay, 2.5-inch and 3.5-inch SATA HDD network-attached storage server
with iSCSI applications dedicated to SMB, SOHO and home users. As a
storage centre for mass data backup, management and sharing, the
TS-419P Turbo NAS supports excellent hardware design, outstanding
performance, high system reliability, and numerous powerful software
applications.
Excellent industrial design and
hardware specifications
The low-powered TS-419P Turbo
NAS adopts Marvell 1.2 GHz CPU and 512MB DDRII RAM and is able to
maintain superior performance in an intensive data access
environment. The NAS supports four hot-swappable SATA hard drives,
two Gigabit LAN ports for multi-IP settings, failover, and
load-balancing, four USB ports and two eSATA ports for external
storage backup, and is also equipped with an LCD panel for convenient
system status checking.
Superior performance and
abundant server applications
The TS-419P Turbo NAS supports
cross-platform services across Windows, Mac, Linux, and UNIX.
Enhanced industry-leading features are also provided, e.g. EXT3 and
EXT4 file systems, built-in iSCSI target service (max 8 iSCSI
targets), virtual disk drive (VDD) by built-in iSCSI initiator for
storage expansion, RAID 0/ 1/ 5/ 6/ 5+spare, single and JBOD disk
configurations, online RAID capacity expansion, online RAID level
migration, RAID recovery, policy-based IP blocking, instant SMS alert
notification, schedule power on/ off, and 4 IP cameras (optional
purchase) for network surveillance.
Maximize the enjoyment of your
home multimedia centre
The built-in UPnP/ DLNA media
server (with TwonkyMedia enabled) of the Turbo NAS supports a wide
range of DLNA media players such as Sony PS3 and Microsoft Xbox 360
gaming consoles and works well with NFS-supported High-Definition
(HD) digital media players for HD video streaming. By installing the
DLNA/ UPnP application on your iPhone or iPod touch, you can access
the Turbo NAS on the local network and play the multimedia contents,
e.g. videos, music, and photos on the server. In addition, the
high-speed PC-less Download Station with the unique QGet utility
enables you to manage the BT/ FTP/ HTTP download tasks remotely over
the local network or the Internet.
Advanced RAID Management with
Hot-swap Design
The NAS offers advanced RAID 0,
1, 5, 6, 5 + Spare, Single, and JBOD disk configurations. It also
supports hot-swap design that a failed drive can be replaced by hot
swapping without turning off the server. Besides, the best-in-class
RAID on the NAS brings users a higher level of data security by
allowing one more hard drive failure than other NAS of the same
level.
Online RAID Capacity Expansion
The storage capacity of a RAID
configuration can be expanded by replacing the hard drives with
larger ones. All the data will be kept and seamlessly moved to the
newly installed hard drives. There is no need to turn off the server
during the process.
Online RAID Level Migration
You can upgrade the disk
configuration to higher RAID level with the data retained. There is
no need to turn off the server during the process.
Virtual Disk Drive (VDD) adds
flexibility to storage expansion along with ease of management
The unique “Virtual Disk
Drive” adds flexibility to expand the capacity of NAS. By using
the built-in iSCSI initiator, the NAS can connect to other iSCSI
targets on the network and turn them into virtual disks, which become
multiple single volumes on the NAS. Up to 8 virtual disks can be
stacked. The NAS serves as the storage stack chaining master. The
user only needs to connect to this single entry (QNAP NAS) and is
able to reach and use all the iSCSI target storages on the network.
Built-in
iSCSI Target Service
The TS-419P can act as a NAS
and iSCSI target server at the same time. It provides a
cost-efficient iSCSI solution to set up an IP-SAN. You can make use
of the built-in iSCSI target service to add up to 8 iSCSI devices.
Different iSCSI Target LUNs (Logical Unit Number) can be defined as
storage expansion or backup destination of the existing application
servers, such as database servers and mail servers.
Furthermore, the “Virtual
Space Allocation” (Thin Provisioning) feature is provided which
allows you to flexibly allocate the capacity of iSCSI LUN (Logical
Unit Number). When the physical storage capacity of the volume is
going to be full, you can easily expand the storage capacity by
“Online RAID Capacity Expansion”, or adjust/ remove the
current unused volume space according to the demands.
S.M.A.R.T & Advanced HDD
Health Scanning (HHS)
The NAS supports Hard Disk
Drive S.M.A.R.T (Self-Monitoring Analysis and Reporting Technology)
for monitoring the hard drive status. Moreover, the NAS is embedded
with HHS Technology which supports disk checking and bad blocks
scanning.
UPS Support
The NAS supports the majority
of USB UPS devices (usbhid-ups supported) which enables the users to
store the data in time and avoid critical data loss when power outage
occurs during data transfer.
Complete Backup Solution
QNAP Backup Software – NetBak
Replicator
The backup software, NetBak
Replicator, is provided for the NAS users to perform real-time
synchronization or schedule backup from multiple PCs to the NAS.
3rd Party Backup Software Ready
The NAS works well with other
backup software, e.g. Acronis True Image, CA BrightStor ARCserve
Backup, EMC Retrospect, Symantec Backup Exec, and LaCie Silverkeeper.
Encrypted Remote Replication
The data on the NAS can be
backed up to or from another Turbo NAS over the network securely.
One Touch USB Auto Copy
The one touch button can be
configured to trigger instant data backup from the external USB
device to the NAS or the other way round (applies to the USB device
connected to the front USB port of the NAS only).
Cross-platform Data Sharing and
Storage Centre
Sharing Files across Windows,
Mac, Linux, and UNIX
The NAS is designed for users
to share the files across Windows, Mac, Linux, and UNIX environment.
Support Windows AD
The Windows AD feature enables
server manager to import user accounts from AD domain to NAS to
reduce the time and effort for account setup, and users can use the
same set of login name and password.
Web File Manager
The NAS provides Web File
Manager for you to easily download, upload, and manage the files on
the server by web browser.
Ease of User and Share Folder
Management
The NAS supports batch creation
of users and share folders to save the time and effort of the server
manager in account and folder creation. For the security of Windows
network environment, server managers can hide or show network share
folders.
Power Management
Hard Disk Standby
You can configure the hard
disks to enter standby mode if there is no disk access within the
specified period.
Schedule Power on/ off
The flexible schedule power
on/off feature is now provided on the NAS for IT administrators to
manage the NAS server’s up time according to the working hours. You
can set the time for automatic system power on, power off, or restart
on any days of the week.
Secure data storage, access,
and sharing
*
Comprehensive event logs: Detailed logs of file-level data access to
the NAS via samba, FTP, AFP, HTTP, HTTPS, Telnet, and SSH, and
networking services accessed by online users are all recorded.
*
SSL security (HTTPS): The NAS can be accessed and configured by web
browser securely.
*
Remote login to the NAS by SSH (secure shell) or Telnet connection is
supported.
*
Secure FTP: The data can be transmitted with SSL/TLS (explicit)
encryption. Passive FTP port range setup is also supported.
*
Write-only access right on FTP server: The third party partners are
allowed to upload data to the NAS but not able to read or edit the
data on FTP server.
Policy-based Automatic IP
Blocking
To prevent the NAS from
malicious attacks, the server manager can create an IP filter policy
to allow, deny, or auto-block the IP address or network domain which
attempts to connect to the NAS via SSH/ Telnet/ HTTP(S)/ FTP/ samba/
AFP.
Powerful All-in-one Server
Features
File Server
You can create the user ID and
password, and define the access right and storage quota of each user
on the NAS.
FTP Server
You can establish your own FTP
server using the NAS and share the files conveniently with others.
Backup Server
The automatic backup software,
NetBak Replicator, is provided for you to perform real-time
synchronization or schedule backup from multiple PCs to the NAS.
Remote Replication
The data on the NAS can be
backed up to or from another Turbo NAS or Rsync server over the
network.
Web Server
The NAS supports Joomla!,
MySQL, SQLite and editable php.ini.
MySQL Server
The NAS can be flexibly applied
in various deployments such as a database server of another web
server in remote site or as an additional backup database server.
Printer Server
The NAS supports network
printer sharing function (max 3 USB printers).
UPnP Media Server (with
built-in TwonkyMedia Server)
The NAS is a perfect media
storage centre and it works well with DLNA (Digital Living Network
Alliance) compliant media players. You can play the photos and videos
on TV, or listen to your favourite music and Internet radio on your
Hi-Fi System.
Multimedia Station
You can share you photos,
video, or music over the network by the Multimedia Station of the
NAS.
Download Station
The NAS supports PC-less
BitTorrent, FTP, and HTTP download. TCP/ UDP, encrypted BT download
function, and DHT (Distributed Hash Tables) are also supported.
iTunes Server
You can stream the mp3 music on
the NAS to the computers on the home network and listen to the music
by iTunes over wired or wireless network connection.
Surveillance Station
The Surveillance Station
enables you to configure multiple IP-based security cameras
simultaneously for real-time monitoring, recording, and playback.
The most comprehensive support
for numerous brands of IP cameras
The Surveillance Station of
QNAP NAS supports all the leading network camera brands such as AXIS,
D-Link, IPUX, LevelOne, Linksys, Panasonic and Vivotek etc. By using
particular models, users can use two-way video and audio monitoring
and recording, and smart PTZ control to control the monitoring
direction via the web interface. Each of the supported cameras has
been put through stringent tests with the NAS series in QNAP’s
laboratory to guarantee 100% compatibility and reliability with all
these camera brands.
Live audio and video
monitoring, recording and playback over the Internet
*
High quality video recording in MPEG-4 and Motion JPEG format
*
Real-time monitoring and recording for up to 30 fps per channel
*
Live 2-way audio supported for monitoring and voice broadcasting
*
Easy installation and management from remote location
Powerful System Management
Tools
Smart Fan
The fan rotation speed is
automatically adjusted according to the server’s temperature. You can
also define the system temperatures to trigger high speed or low
speed rotation of the fan. By manually setting the fan rotation
speed, the fan will rotate at the defined speed continuously.
Instant SMS/ Email Alert
You can configure the SMTP
server and SMSC server settings on the NAS in order to receive
instant system warning or error messages by email or SMS.
SNMP (Simple Network Management
Protocol)
Enable SNMP service on the NAS
to collect the information, warning or error of the NAS and send to
max 3 SNMP servers for centralized management and real-time
monitoring of your NAS.
SSL Secure Certificate
The administrator can upload a
secure certificate and an RSA private key in X.509PEM format issued
by a trusted provider in order to allow the users to access the NAS
by secure SSL login.
Syslog Settings
All the system event logs and
connection logs can be saved to a remote syslog server.
Network Recycle Bin
The files deleted from the
network shares of the NAS will be moved to a particular recycle bin
folder. You can restore your data anytime in case of unintended file
deletion.
Comprehensive Event Log System
The logs of connections to the
NAS via samba, FTP, AFP, HTTP, HTTPS, Telnet, and SSH, and networking
services accessed by online users are all recorded.
Detailed System Information
You can view the system status,
e.g., CPU usage, total memory, free memory, packets received, packets
sent, error packets, system up time, CPU temperature, system
temperature, HDD temperature, and system fan speed.
DDNS Support
You can register a unique
domain name from a DDNS service provider and assign it to your NAS.
Your users can access the NAS by the domain name instead of the IP
address.
Excellent Hardware Expansion
The TS-419P supports 4 USB 2.0
and 2 eSATA ports. You can connect external storage devices to the
NAS for data backup or storage capacity expansion.
Software Expansion and Website
Management
QPKG Software Package Platform
The QPKG software package
platform enables the users to maximize the usage of the NAS by
installing additional software packages developed from the users and
community worldwide. This can be done by simple “download &
install” clicking without going through any complicated process.
Hardware Spec.
CPU: Marvell 6281 1.2GHz
DRAM: 512MB DDRII RAM
Flash Memory: 16MB
HDD: 4 x 3.5″ or 2.5”
SATA I/II HDD
**NOTE: 1. The system is
shipped without HDD.
HDD Tray: 4 x hot-swappable and
lockable tray
LAN Port: 2 x Gigabit RJ-45
Ethernet port
LED Indicators: Status, LAN,
USB, eSATA, HDD 1, HDD 2, HDD 3, HDD 4
USB: 4 x USB 2.0 port (Front:
1; Back: 3)
–Supports USB printer, disk,
pen drive, USB hub, and USB UPS, etc.
eSATA: 2 x eSATA port (Back)
Buttons: Power button, USB
one-touch-backup button, reset button
LCD panel: Mono-LCD display
with backlight and buttons for configuration
Alarm Buzzer: System warning
Form Factor: Tower
Dimensions: 177(H) x 180(W) x
235(D) mm / 6.97(H) x 7.09(W) x 9.25(D) inch
Weight: Net weight: 3 Kg (6.61
lbs)
Gross weight:: 4.6 Kg (10.14
lbs)
Sound Level (dB):
W/o HDD installed: 33 dB
Stand by: 33.2 dB
In operation: 35.1dB
(Background: 25.5 dB)
Power Consumption (W):
Sleep mode: 11W
In operation: 26W (with 4 x
500GB HDD installed)
Power Supply: Input: 100-240V
AC, 50/60Hz, Output: 12V DC, 10A, 120W
Secure Design: K-lock security
slot for theft prevention
Fan: 1 x quiet cooling fan (9
cm, 12V DC)
Price: $599.99
{mospagebreak title=Unboxing Video and Still Pictures}
Video
Unboxing and Still Pictures:
We’ll start off with a video
unboxing and several still pictures of the QNAP TS-419P, check all
that out and continue on:
Installation,
Testing and Comparison:
Before I got started with any
testing, I popped one of the drives out and it’s a 750B Western
Digital Caviar Black, a good performance drive.
The TS-419P has two interfaces
essentially, one is the LCD panel on the front that gives you access
to system information and basic commends like shut down and reboot.
When you input the IP address of
the TS-419P in your web browser you’re greeted with a very nice
looking interface. It slides back and forth to allow you to access
the functions and access the QNAP website along with the support.
There are four main parts to the
user interface.
The main on is the file sharing,
or network folders, it’s a basic interface that anyone should be able
to use easily.
The next interface is the Download
Station, here you can download via HTTP/FTP or Bitorrent without
using your computer, you just set everything up and the TS-419P takes
care of the rest for you.
The next interface is the
Multi-Media Station, this is more for media sharing on your network.
Upload your files and you’re ready to share with enabled devices.
The last one is the Surveillance
Station, you’ll need compatible network IP cameras to utilize it, but
you’ll be able to access it from anywhere to keep an eye on things.
The Administrator interface is
graphically based, and looks nice. It’s icon and folder tree style
navigation makes life easy for the Admin. The main window is where
you’ll make your changes on the left side the navigation tree.
There are many, many setting to
change with the TS-419P, the navigation tree is large so I’ve broken
it down into three sections, and expanded them.
You can also see the same
navigation in the main window with icons and descriptions.
Overall I found the TS-410P easy
to use, and I really like the fact that you can install Qpkg, or
Q-packages that enable you to add even more functionality to the
TS-419p. There are things like WordPress, Joomla, Squeeze Center,
Python, Databases and many other things as well. QNAP has a large
community of users as well that are developing apps also, so there’s
new stuff appearing all of the time. So it’s truly much more than
just a NAS box.
To test the QNAP TS-419P I used my
FTP program and transferred different files.
For comparison I put it up against
another QNAP NAS box, the TS-109 Pro II single bay nas (with a 750gb
Caviar Black in it) and my Seagate Black Amror NAS220 (which comes
with Seagate brand 1TB drives in it).
The first test is multiple files
and folders, specifically there were 874 files in the folder I
transferred and it was a total of 3.02GB in size.
As you can see the TS-419P
performs fairly well, but the Black Armor is still a bit faster
overall.
Next test is a single large file,
an ISO file that is 3.02GB in size.
Here again we see the TS-419P
comes in second place, with the Black Armor being a bit faster.
The final test I ran was a small
files test, specifically a TS video file that is 904.77MB in size.
Here things are different, the
TS-419P shows as the slowest of the three I tested, I guess it
handles smaller files differently… not sure why this happened.
There are a couple minor issues
with the TS-419P.
The first is the boot time, from
the time you hit the power button to the time it’s up and running is
about 2 minutes, to me that seems like a rather long time. Then
again, if you’re using this as a NAS box, most likely it’ll be on all
of the time, so you won’t be turning it off and on often.
The next issue would be the price,
it’s expensive, about $600 in fact, and that doesn’t include the hard
drives which, depending on the size can cost a few hundred dollars
more.
I hopped over to NewEgg and found
the cheapest 2TB hard drive is $170 with free shipping, so $170 x4
would be $680. If we go with 1TB in size HDDs then the price comes
down a bit to $80 each, so we’re talking then $320. As I have it
configured with four 750gb drives, the Caviar Blacks which are the
same price at $80 each. So we’re talking anywhere between about $900
and $1200 to get the TS-419P up and running.
If you’re a home or personal user
this is a big high, so you’d be better off with a smaller NAS box,
like their TS-219P which uses two hard drives. If you’re getting a
NAS like the TS-419P for business use, then most likely you’ll be
able to afford the costs and in the long run it will be worthwhile.
So depending on who you are and on
your use of the TS-419P it might be considered expensive…
Another small issue I ran across
is noise level, and not the unit itself but vibrations. I didn’t lock
the bays, no real reason to in my own home, but I noticed that they
vibrate annoyingly if they are not locked in place. I have the
TS-419P sitting on my desk for testing, about two feet away from me
and the buzzing vibration drove me nuts. I stopped it just by pushing
on the bay, but then a few hours later it started again. To fix this
problem altogether you just lock the bays of course. Still though I
see no reason really to lock the bays in a personal home setting, if
someone breaks into my house they’ll most likely take the entire box
and not just a hard drive or two really. Of course there is a lock on
it so you can use a Kensington style lock to secure the box, then of
course the drives would just be taken, so whatever really….
Summary
and Comments:
The QNAP TS-419P is a powerful and
versatile NAS box that offers more features than you’ll know what to
do with. It’s an excellent product for those wanting full control
over their network storage capabilities and in addition you’ll be
able to do much more than just store files on it.
Yes it’s a bit expensive, but it’s
well worth it, you’ll never need another NAS box once you’ve got the
TS-419P.
DragonSteelMods gives the QNAP TS-419P a 4.5 out of 5 score and our Recommended Award as well.
Pros:
+Tons of features
+Easy to use, even for a novice
+Easy to use web based interface
+Fairly fast
+Menu LCD display
Cons:
-Expensive
-Doesn’t come with hard drives
-Slow boot time
-Can be noisy
I
would like to thank QNAP for the chance to review the TS-419P and for their support of DSM.
review# 619
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