Synology DS211j as NAS and Squeezeserver
As someone PM'ed me with a request on my thoughts I decided to post a few comments regarding my recent experiences with the DS211j in case others are considering its use as a home NAS / media server. I struggled to find much online about it before taking the plunge.
I currently have a single Hitachi 1Tb drive installed which I will augment with a second at some point.
I bought the box to carry out 2 functions :
I am non-Techy, so don't expect lots of stats.
Squeezebox server
I had been worried that the DS211j would be sluggish as a Squeezebox server due its low powered hardware, I am happy to report these concerns were groundless and I haven't encountered any issues so far and the package installed flawlessly and menus work snappily. The BBC iPlayer plugins also work fine which came as a great relief. Only slight criticism is that the current Synology package is older (7.5.1) than the current Logitech one (7.5.2) so if you have more than one server in your house the devices have to reflash themselves each time they change.
Backup software
I am using the provided 'Replicator' software to back up my RAID to the DS211j which works pretty well so far, is easy to set up and isn't too resource hungry.
General use
The web interface / OS is very nice, far superior to the clunky and amateurish kind of thing you tend to encounter on other network products (routers / access points and the like). Early days yet but seems very easy to use.
In normal use with Squeezebox server running and active the CPU load is around 60%, memory use fluctuates from 50% upwards depending on activity with squeezebox server being the largest user.
I have been pleasantly surprised at the speed of files transfers. The NAS is connected via a gigabit switch to two PC's, during transfers the Network monitor is reporting 6500 kb/s - I have no idea whether this is good or not, but it certainly seems very satisfactory in use.
Minor Gripes
One slight surprise is the noise levels, although by no means noisy, the fan runs constantly and in a quiet room is noticeable - I wouldn't have this in a living room, it would annoy me, but in my office with other PC's running it is no issue.
I also think that the LED's on the front are unnecessarily annoying, particularly the very bright blue power one - I shall probably tape over them all soon.
Installation couldn't have been more straightforward and is hardly worth mentioning, everything is in the box (apart from the bare Hitachi 1 Tb hard drive which I bought separately).
So far, so good - a happy user, would recommend!
Chunks
As someone PM'ed me with a request on my thoughts I decided to post a few comments regarding my recent experiences with the DS211j in case others are considering its use as a home NAS / media server. I struggled to find much online about it before taking the plunge.
I currently have a single Hitachi 1Tb drive installed which I will augment with a second at some point.
I bought the box to carry out 2 functions :
- a backup NAS for a RAID on my main PC and home network server
- a low power squeezebox server.
I am non-Techy, so don't expect lots of stats.
Squeezebox server
I had been worried that the DS211j would be sluggish as a Squeezebox server due its low powered hardware, I am happy to report these concerns were groundless and I haven't encountered any issues so far and the package installed flawlessly and menus work snappily. The BBC iPlayer plugins also work fine which came as a great relief. Only slight criticism is that the current Synology package is older (7.5.1) than the current Logitech one (7.5.2) so if you have more than one server in your house the devices have to reflash themselves each time they change.
Backup software
I am using the provided 'Replicator' software to back up my RAID to the DS211j which works pretty well so far, is easy to set up and isn't too resource hungry.
General use
The web interface / OS is very nice, far superior to the clunky and amateurish kind of thing you tend to encounter on other network products (routers / access points and the like). Early days yet but seems very easy to use.
In normal use with Squeezebox server running and active the CPU load is around 60%, memory use fluctuates from 50% upwards depending on activity with squeezebox server being the largest user.
I have been pleasantly surprised at the speed of files transfers. The NAS is connected via a gigabit switch to two PC's, during transfers the Network monitor is reporting 6500 kb/s - I have no idea whether this is good or not, but it certainly seems very satisfactory in use.
Minor Gripes
One slight surprise is the noise levels, although by no means noisy, the fan runs constantly and in a quiet room is noticeable - I wouldn't have this in a living room, it would annoy me, but in my office with other PC's running it is no issue.
I also think that the LED's on the front are unnecessarily annoying, particularly the very bright blue power one - I shall probably tape over them all soon.
Installation couldn't have been more straightforward and is hardly worth mentioning, everything is in the box (apart from the bare Hitachi 1 Tb hard drive which I bought separately).
So far, so good - a happy user, would recommend!
Chunks
