Posts tagged NAS
Synology DS1010+ video overview
0HADD3RS on YouTube as uploaded a recent overview of my current NAS storage solution the Synology DS1010+
Worth watching because he’s striped it naked! Personally, I don’t like exposing my bits like that on video , well not so early on anyway
FreeNas vs Windows 7 RAID5
1I have created another dilemma for myself in my search for the best backup solution although secretly I love this stuff, any excuse to do something rally geeky.
With my recent purchase of the Synology DS1010+ I’m able to make it work in an apple environment (more on that later) so I’m selling my Drobo V2 which I have been very happy with but didn’t need it anymore since the DS1010+. So I will have four 1TB hard drives looking for a home in this case my brilliant Antec 300 case (best mid size case ever as far as I’m concerned). Housing the four 1TB drives is one thing but what operating system do I install?
My two options are Windows 7 or FreeNas. These are my pros and cons for each. Although the decision does seem simple I wanted the system to be primarily a backup solution:
MAC PRO (primary files) –> SYNOLOGY DS1010+ (backup) –> OLD PC (secondary backup)
I have played with FreeNas in the past. When it works it’s great but when it doesn’t it suffers from everything LINUX based, it’s a real pain in the neck to track the problem and fix. With Windows 7 it’s still not that clear cut. The system can be slow, it’s more demanding on CPU and I’ve not fully tested RAID 5 as a reliable backup solution. I could buy a RAID card, but I don’t see the need to spend another £100+ when I’m about to move away from the Drobo.
In the end, I felt all the advantages that Windows 7 had to offer outweighed FreeNas. I had already purchased a Windows 7 license anyway so the monetary factor was not an issue. The pros are heavy; websites, emails, editing, gaming as well as backup completely outweighed FreeNas in every other regard.
Right now, I’m archiving files off my Drobo onto this Windows 7 machine, it’s not superfast but it gets the job done. Once I’ve completed the copy I will remove the drives out of the Drobo and insert them into the PC; I shall try to configure it for RAID 5 but I have never tried it before so it’ll be a first for me! I will post transfer speeds when that’s done.
Expanding capacity of Synology DS1010+
1I’m a huge consumer of data; typically my data storage hovers around the 2.5TB range with most of that being my archive of photos. So as the Synology DS1010+ is to be my main file server I needed to feed it with drives. Yesterday after noon (approximately 20 hours ago) I added a 2tb drive to compliment the other 4 2tb drives already in there. It’s taking much longer than I anticipated but at least it’s doing it’s job. I’ve been having issues with the DS1010+ and Apple Macs which I’m hoping to solve. I have been in touch with Synology tech support but they have been very slow to respond and not up to the standard I would expect. Time will tell, I will keep you updated.

Synology DS1010+ a few days on.
0I received the Synology DS1010 less than a week ago. I’ve not really had time to put it through it’s paces, but I thought I would write about my impressions so far.
The unit itself is heavy for it’s size, sleek and does look the business in an understated fashion. I initially loaded it up with three 1TB drives; one Western Digital WD10EACS-65D and two Hitachi HDT72101.
The DS1010 took around six hours to build the Raid 5 volume, after that I decided to run some very short tests; I wasn’t impressed. The unit is attached to a gigabit Netgear switch, I made sure all the a cables were quick enough by testing it on other Gigabit capable machines. However when transferring files across to and from the DS101 the speeds were well below par, only reaching around 20mb/s. Sometimes it would burst to an unbelievable 100mb/s but only for short moments.
Since then I’ve put in two 2TB drives and as of right now it’s rebuilding the Raid 5 volume which does take a long time.
I shall post some benchmarks when I have a bit more time.
Synology Ds1010+ NAS
0First there was FreeNas, then there was Drobo V2, now I’ve expanded to the Synology DS1010+. I’ve been doing alot of research lately; I’ve been needing a proper NAS device for sometime, as good as the Drobo is, it’s not a NAS, the FW800 connection is painfully slow and it does not have a fraction of the abilities even my 5 year old Synology 106e NAS does!

I have literally ordered the DS1010+ today. It it totally geeky to admit I’m looking forward to playing with it, but so be it… I’m totally excited to get it!!
As a photographer with a thirst for huge amounts of disk-space, I shall be writing updates as and when I have time. In the meantime, below is a list of all the best reviews of the Synology DS1010+ I have been able to find on the internet.
- SmallNetBuilder.com
- Amazon.com – the feedback from purchasers is an interesting positive read
- TechWorld.com
- PCPro.co.uk
- Synology
I also discovered on YouTube that there is a video made by Synology to prove the LAN speed of the DS1010+
If you’ve found a good review, then please post it in the comments!