Iomega StorCenter px6-300d

The Iomega web GUI offers a variety of options and is easy to use, but it is not as highly configurable as some of its competitors (Figure 3). A Linux client is available on request. The LifeLine operating system benefits from the expertise of storage giant EMC and is specially tailored for small business and home users. In terms of network-based storage, backup, data protection, file management, and media serving, the device offers much useful functionality. The feature set includes an integrated print server for USB printers that automatically identifies supported devices.

Figure 3: The Iomega NAS impresses with an easy-to-use browser interface.

Iomega (like QNAP, Synology, and others) also offers a personal cloud, which is no more than web access in combination with synchronization, or in Iomega's case, the ability to replicate to a second, geographically remote StorCenter. At least this kind of centralized storage on the web is a useful thing to have for smaller businesses or branch offices, given that it avoids a subscription fee and keeps access control firmly in the user's hands.

What is otherwise a good NAS server has a weakness when it comes to (missing) IPv6 support and storage configuration, which only supports a pool with all disks; it also lacks support for SSH access and access to the hard disks' S.M.A.R.T data.

Thecus N6850

We imported the Thecus N6850 from its vendor in the Far East, but you can buy it directly from dealers. What you immediately notice about this device is its excellent equipment, with USB 3.0 (4x plus 4x USB2.0!), eSATA, and HDMI, optional 10Gb Ethernet (PCI Express slot), and a Sandy Bridge processor. You can retrofit a slimline Blu-ray drive if you want to burn backups directly to Blu-ray.

The attractive housing, with its bright OLED display and touch buttons, has immediate appeal. A vertical LED array even gives you a light show while the device is booting, indicating errors if applicable. However, the Thecus's fan noise is hard to ignore. This noise level might be due to the increased cooling requirements of the Pentium G620 CPU.

The web GUI of the Thecus N6850 (Figure 4) is more technically oriented compared with Synology or QNAP, and it is designed less with multimedia in mind. It offers numerous configuration options, such as RAID configuration, and supports a relatively large choice of filesystems. Professional users will gladly accept this complexity given the advanced configuration options. In our benchmarks, the Thecus was one of the front runners because of its mature hardware. In addition to the model we tested, the company also makes variants with 8 and 10 disk slots.

Figure 4: The resource monitor offered by the Thecus N6850 with graphical display of storage use and network load.

Buffalo TeraStation 5800

The 5000 series TeraStations were introduced this year. The manufacturer seems to have targeted users who are looking for a storage and management solution to back up IP cameras. The "Buffalo Surveillance Server Client Bundle" management server gives you the option of integrating surveillance or IP cameras that use the RTSP protocol and are ONVIF compliant. The software offers camera and storage space management and a cross-storage search function. It can capture images parallel to performing administrative tasks or searching. Buffalo claims that you can connect more than 1,400 cameras from 180 camera vendors to its TeraStations.

In line with the intended application, this model does not offer such a wealth of retroactively installable functions, and it does not have such a full-fledged and visually appealing web GUI as, say, Synology or QNAP. The look is fairly reduced and functional, and the choice of disks is restricted: 2.5-inch models are not supported.

The TeraStation has much to offer for enterprise users – for example, the ability to integrate Amazon S3 or connect external disks via the built-in USB 3.0 ports. Access controls can be implemented via the integrated user management features or Active Directory. The TeraStation's scope of delivery also includes 10 NovaBACKUP Business Essentials licenses.