A Mac-friendly NAS server that's
actually fun to use
Network-attached storage (NAS) may not be
the sexiest hardware purchase, but for serving up media content or sharing
files across a network, such investments can be a godsend. Asustor's
Apple-friendly NAS lineup combines attractive hardware powered by dual-core
Intel Atom processors with its own innovative ADM (Asustor Data Master)
operating system for cross-platform support across Mac, Windows, and Linux.
While each model can work with a single
hard drive or SSD, the advantage of network-attached storage comes when
combining multiple drives into a RAID. Installing four 2TB drives and using the
default RAID 5 netted us just under 6TB of space after formatting; the
additional 2TB is used for protection against a single drive failure. It's easy
to hot-swap in a new drive even a larger-capacity drive and the NAS will
synchronize data with the replacement.
Asustor
AS-606T
Asustor did a remarkable job of keeping
everything simple. After connecting to your network via Ethernet or the
optional USB Wi-Fi dongle, a small LCD panel guides you through formatting and
then displays the IP address you'll use to access the unit.
Logging in from any modern browser presents
an iOS style row of finger friendly icons, perfect for computers as well as the
iPad. Tap the App Central icon to download more than 80 free and open-source
apps to make the NAS do all sorts of amazing things, including hosting
websites, posting photo galleries, starting a Word Press or Drupal blog, and
serving media. There's also an app to manage external devices plugged into any
of the four USB 2.0, two USB 3.0, and two eSATA ports, all with support for
HFS+ Mac-formatted volumes. File Manager allows users to copy, move, or delete
files and folders from the NAS, and even create file-sharing links for those
outside the network. The NAS even has an HDMI port for connecting to your HDTV
and watching content via the Boxee app, no network required.
Network-attached
storage (NAS) may not be the sexiest hardware purchase, but for serving up
media content or sharing files across a network, such investments can be a
godsend
Shared folders can be mounted on any Mac
via AFP or CIFS/ SMB through your local network, where they appear as volumes
on the desktop in the same way external drives do. NFS, FTP, WebDAV, and Rsync
options are also available, and with a few clicks, the NAS can even be set up
to host Time Machine backups for multiple users.
With a Gigabit Ethernet-equipped Mac on
your network, the NAS can push data at up to 125MBps; this can be doubled via
link aggregation by using an 802.3ad-compatible switch with the included dual
Ethernet ports. Using Blackmagic Speed Test on our 15-inch MacBook Pro with
Retina Display, we frequently clocked upwards of lOOMBps on both reads and
writes, so Finder-based transfers felt almost as fast as they do with local
storage. Transfers via 802.11n Wi-Fi are slower, but still quite usable for all
but the largest files.
Our
six-bay AS-606T retails for $890, but the AS lineup starts at $495 for the
two-bay AS-602T.
The bottom line. Coming from an aging
D-Link DNS-323, the Asustor AS-606T was like a breath of fresh air. With a
sleek, web-based interface, out-of-the*box compatibility and companion apps for
Mac and iOS, this NAS is a real winner.
|
ASUSTOR
AS-606T specs
·
Website: www.asustor.com
·
Price: $890 (two-bay. four-bay. and eight-bay
models also available)
·
Requirements: 0$ X 10.4 or later, one or more
supported 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch internal SATA 11/111 hard drives or SSDs.
Gigabit Ethernet (for fastest data transfer)
·
(+) Simple, desktop-style Ul offers intuitive
access from any web browser. Attractive, easy to use hardware with LCD
screen. USB 3.0 and unique HDMI connectivity. Cloud 10 makes logging into
server painless, even when outside of the local network.
·
(-) Wi-Fi requires separate USB dongle. No
option to hide invisible files when browsing in File Explorer app. Intel Atom
processor too underpowered for Plex Media Server transcoded 720p and higher
media
|
