Just returned an IcyBox 4220 - what actually works out there??!

[simond83]

I bought an IcyBox 4220 as it was cheap and looked perfect for my needs. I have returned it now however as it wasn't very good and kept on failing :-(

I need a NAS box that can hold 2 Sata drives for RAID1, has gigabit lan, usb ports for printers and management software that works!!

Which product on the market works and can suit my needs??

 

[thiggins]

Plenty, although I would not count on the USB print server working.
Use the NAS Charts to narrow your search.

 

[simond83]

Do you mean the USB won't work on the Icy Box or just NAS' are crap in general for USB??

I like the look of the Synology 209+ and the Qnap 209 Pro, but am still undecided and open to any other suggestions!

 

[thiggins]

Do you mean the USB won't work on the Icy Box or just NAS' are crap in general for USB??

In general, embedded USB print servers are "black boxes" with no controls except maybe the ability to kill the print queue. They don't support multi-function printer features or any communication from the printer (like paper out).

I like the look of the Synology 209+ and the Qnap 209 Pro, but am still undecided and open to any other suggestions!

Those are nice products, if not a bit expensive due to all the services they support beyond basic NAS storage functions.

 

[simond83]

I've gone for a Qnap 209 Pro. I'll let you know how i get on.

 

[Osamede]

That QNAP 209 has problems with file transfer speed and backups. If you were not happy with the Icybox then I would take that as a sign that you need to invest a bit more for performance. Low end is low end - and you get low end performance if you dont spend money or take a different tack to the problem.

I would say either get a Synology 209+......or consider just buying a simple PC and putting and OS in there to make your own NAS. For instance the basebones BBS2 PC made by Tranquil PC ( www.tranquilpc.co.uk ) will cost you about 300 quid. Throw Ubuntu server on that and you will get far better performance than you will with any commercial NAS for the same money. or spend about 200 quid on their T7 barebones model (1 disc only though) and thow ubuntu server on that.