Netgear ReadyNAS NV+ : My impression.

[Shivam]

I have recently bought Netgear ReadyNAS NV+ (4 bay model) for using it as a media server.

It is as the name says a Network Attached Storage with bays for upto 4 HD. NV+ supports upto 2 TB whereas the new version NV+ V2 supports even 3TB. It runs on a very small footprint gnu-linux based operating system.

Features-
http, https, ftp support
bittorrent
dlna
itunes server
upnp server
USB ports for connecting printers, UPS or even another storage device.

I installed two 2TB hard discs and connected it to my existing wired network. First thing was to update the firmware (which turned out to be a mistake) and the factory default. It led to format of both the new hard discs and preparation of the RAID which got completed overnight.

Now I started copying my music to the NAS and felt the copying speed to be very slow. Later on searching the various forums I found out the problem of speed drop with the new firmware. I downloaded the old firmware and downgraded the NAS. After a few minutes it was up again and the speed was better. I then switched off the journaling option. This further improved the copying speed.

One has to understand that this is a network storage and so the copying will always be slower than directly connected sata hard discs.

Once the NAS was up and running, I found it to be very comfortable. I can access the music on my notebook, desktop, media player in my listening room and my wife is happy for she can access the music on her android phone. Very easy to configure and use.

I installed a printer through the USB port and now it is available on my wife. I can print documents directly from my laptop.

I don't use bittorrent so I can't comment on it but users of this NAS say that it's a very good feature to download files without switching on the computer. The files can be added to the download list even from a connected phone.

My advice for future buyers of this NAS-
Don't update the firmware.
Switch off the journaling.
Buy NV+ if you like a simple setup. If you need better processor and an interface with bells and whistles then opt for NV+ V2.

 

[anm]

thanks for the review. What is the exact model number? Which interface do you use to copy, USB 2.0 or eSATA?

 

[Shivam]

Model - RND4000

I copied the files over Gigabit LAN. Maybe I should have copied via USB. Copying over LAN takes really really long time !

 

[gaurav_s]

Shivam,
Thanks for the review. Can you please mention the price and also where did you buy it from.

-Gaurav

 

[Shivam]

I bought it at a local store for 25K + tax. The deal was made sweet since I was given two HDD for the price of one along with it.

 

[ukjeyaraj]

Few months back when i was doing looking for NAS, I read review about a NAS box, that, whenever admin console needs to be accessed, it needs internet connection. I dont remember which model is that. I hope its not netgear readynas.

How is power consumption, noise and heat?

Is it possible to access the NAS through ssh/telnet or web access is the only way for administration?

 

[Shivam]

Power consumption is minimal. It runs cooler than my laptop. Fan does make a lot of noise when the system boots but within a couple of minutes it quietens down. I won't keep it in my listening room anytime.

The administrative console can be accessed locally using a utility called RAIDar.

 

[GeorgeO]

I've been debating buying the NV+, to upgrade from my Duo but am holding off until the USB 3 becomes bug free. Copying over the LAN is a bit slow I agree, despite my having a gigabit network-I think having the systems in different rooms and not so good ethernet cable adds to the delay.

 

[omishra]

Switch off the journaling.

:thumbsup: That Journal is overkill for this usage pattern.

It seems you created RAID and I hope RAID1 (mirror) on two disks. In that case you should keep journaling on. Because each read/write transaction is gone through journal, will make fail-safe and optimize recent read/write. For initial bulk copy (day 1 copy) you can feel the speed is slow with Journal as data blocks are journaled and then written to Final File System. But if you have original source is safe for redoing then switch off Journal as you can restore failed copy operation again.

Anyway for RAID-0 (concat) or random and read/write operation afterwards - there are no simultaneous multi-user read-write transactions in this use-case which needs journal.

So that is bottleneck only

 

[Shivam]

I tried the NAS with 1080p mkv files over wired gigabit network to Seagate Home Theater Plus.

The movie was full of pauses in the playback. I am not sure if it is the problem with the media player or the slow read response of the NAS. I'll update this post as soon as I find out for sure.

 

[anm]

try to connect your NAS via USB to the player and see if movie experience gets better. This will eliminate or confirm NAS slow read.

 

[kGr99]

try to connect your NAS via USB to the player

anm - All over the internet I read that NAS cannot be used as a DAS via USB. Also, the USB port on any NAS is only for additional storage. Can you please confirm if you can use a NAS via USB like a normal external HDD?
I would like to connect my NAS to TV via USB.

 

[haisaikat]

Using NAS as USB drive using its USB port is not possible by default on my Dlink DNS 323 however if the funflug addin is installed then it runs additional programs inside the NAS making it visible over USB connections. However NAS have mostly ext file system so not sure if TV will be able to read that.

My other question to OP is how much copy speed (mbps) are you getting. Have you tried enabling Jumbo frame support and are all nework cables at least cat5e / cat6?

I saw another post on HD video getting stuck on media player, what is the player and does it have gigabit ports?

 

[anm]

some NAS may give a usb slave port.

 

[Shivam]

My Netgear ReadyNAS doesn't work as a USB drive. I have to access it only as a network device.

I have tried copying files to NAS on gigabit network from SATAIII hard discs and maximum I could get was around 18 MBps rate. Usually it comes to around 10-14 MBps.

I got these speeds after switching off journaling, not needed services and also after switching off jumbo frames. With the Jumbo frames on, the speed dropped by about 2-4 MBps everytime. I had to switch to older firmware too so as to get better speeds. The new firmware available for the NAS at present brings the speeds down by about half.

I tried connecting it with gigabit lan and supported cables to Seagate Hometheater plus and HD movies could not play well. The same player plays the same movies perfectly using a USB hd. I am not sure about if the player supports gigabit LAN or not.

This NAS however serves my purpose since I listen to music mostly. Sometimes when I do watch movies, it's either discs or from my portable USB hd.

 

[haisaikat]

My Netgear ReadyNAS doesn't work as a USB drive. I have to access it only as a network device.

I have tried copying files to NAS on gigabit network from SATAIII hard discs and maximum I could get was around 18 MBps rate. Usually it comes to around 10-14 MBps.

I got these speeds after switching off journaling, not needed services and also after switching off jumbo frames. With the Jumbo frames on, the speed dropped by about 2-4 MBps everytime. I had to switch to older firmware too so as to get better speeds. The new firmware available for the NAS at present brings the speeds down by about half.

I tried connecting it with gigabit lan and supported cables to Seagate Hometheater plus and HD movies could not play well. The same player plays the same movies perfectly using a USB hd. I am not sure about if the player supports gigabit LAN or not.

This NAS however serves my purpose since I listen to music mostly. Sometimes when I do watch movies, it's either discs or from my portable USB hd.

On my DNS 323 I got max 17 mbps without jumbo frames.

http://www.hifivision.com/media-str...ome-theater-video-streaming-3.html#post316750

Regarding your HD Theater + player, it probably has Ethernet which may explain what is causing your bottleneck while tranferring video over LAN. For Full HD video we need around 25mbps (sometime this is lesser) but Ethernet limits it to 12.5 mbps or below.

 

[Shivam]

On my DNS 323 I got max 17 mbps without jumbo frames.

http://www.hifivision.com/media-str...ome-theater-video-streaming-3.html#post316750

Regarding your HD Theater + player, it probably has Ethernet which may explain what is causing your bottleneck while tranferring video over LAN. For Full HD video we need around 25mbps (sometime this is lesser) but Ethernet limits it to 12.5 mbps or below.

I feel that the drive itself is slow since even on full gigabit network, I am getting similar speeds.

Although it's not a problem. NAS serves high quality flac files comfortably to my client.