MakeUseOf » storage

Secure Your Files: 3 Encrypted Dropbox Alternatives

Chris Hoffman — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 21:30:34 +0000

Dropbox brought cloud-based file synchronization and storage to the masses, but it’s been hindered by high-profile security problems. While Dropbox once claimed that its employees were unable to access your files, they now claim only that employees aren’t allowed to view your files. In June 2011, Dropbox left the door wide open and anyone could log into any account without knowing its password for nearly four hours.

Sure, if you only use Dropbox to share the latest lolcat pictures with your friends, security doesn’t matter. But you’re taking a risk by storing sensitive data in Dropbox. Fortunately, you have another option — an alternative service that secures your files with local encryption and decryption. The encryption keeps your files private, outwitting hackers and preventing rogue employees from snooping around.

Most services, including Dropbox, claim to offer some form of encryption. These services transfer your files over an encrypted connection and store them in an encrypted form. Some services even advertise this as “military-grade encryption.” The problem is that the service itself can decrypt your files without your help. Alternatives like SpiderOak, Wuala and TeamDrive encrypt your files on your own computer before sending them over the Internet; the service only gets a blob of unreadable, encrypted data.

SpiderOak

SpiderOak brands itself as a secure online backup service. It generates encryption keys from the password you provide; your SpiderOak password never even leaves your computer. Even SpiderOak’s employees can’t access your files.

Unlike Dropbox, SpiderOak doesn’t have its own sync folder — instead, you can customize the folders SpiderOak uses. SpiderOak offers to back up common categories of files by default, but you can also click the “Advanced” button and select specific folders. SpiderOak watches the selected folders and automatically updates your SpiderOak account with any new or changed files.
Somewhat confusingly, backups and synchronization are separate functions in SpiderOak. After backing up files on the Back Up tab, you have to click the Sync tab and create a new sync. If you create a backup without creating a sync, SpiderOak just backs up your files online and doesn’t synchronize them to your other computers.

Like Dropbox, SpiderOak offers 2 GB of free space. You can get an additional gigabyte for each friend you refer, up to a total of 50 GB.

Wuala

Wuala, a service from data storage manufacturing company LaCie, has similar security. Wuala also encrypts your files locally and never sends your password over the network.
Wuala appears as a network drive after you install it. The drive works just like your Dropbox folder — any files added to it are automatically backed up to your Wuala account and synchronized to your other computers.

Wuala also includes a desktop application for managing your files. It only synchronizes files on the Wuala drive by default, but you can synchronize another folder by clicking the New menu button on the toolbar and selecting Sync.

Wuala includes 2 GB of free space, but you can get up to 5 GB total. Just click the File menu in Wuala and select Invite People You Know; each friend you invite scores you another 250 MB.

TeamDrive

TeamDrive is focused on secure collaboration, but you can also use it to synchronize files between your own devices. TeamDrive uses “spaces,” folders that it backs up online and synchronizes between devices. You can click the Create button on the TeamDrive window’s toolbar to create a new space.

TeamDrive automatically “invites” your other devices when you create a new space, giving the devices permission to access the space. Just sign in to TeamDrive on other computers to access your files. You can also invite other people to a space, which gives them access to the space’s files. Each space is stored in an encrypted form online; only devices you invite can decrypt and access the space’s files.

TeamDrive also includes 2 GB of free storage space. Unlike SpiderOak and Wuala, it doesn’t have a referral program, so that’s all you get unless you’re willing to shell out for more.

Conclusion

As with all software, there’s an element of trust involved. You’re still typing your password into the app, so you’re trusting the service to behave as promised. If you’re worried about this, you can encrypt sensitive files yourself instead of relying on your sync program.
You can also continue using Dropbox if you prefer it; just encrypt your sensitive files before adding them to your Dropbox folder. Many programs can encrypt files, but you’ll have to decrypt them before reading them. Encrypting and decrypting your own files can be a hassle, so this solution works best for backups you don’t access very often.

4 Ways To Optimize Your Dropbox Experience

Danny Stieben — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 16:00:58 +0000

It can’t be denied. We at MakeUseOf, along with most of the world, still love Dropbox dearly. It’s the synchronization tool of choice because it simply works like you expect it to.

However, using just the basics of the software may make you miss out on some useful stuff that could make your life even easier. I know, I know, it’s hard to fathom the idea that life could get even better, but just listen (or to be more accurate, read).

Bandwidth Limits and Pausing

File synchronization is great, right? Well, not when it’s trying to update almost 2GB worth of data all at once and in the process sucks on all of your bandwidth, leaving you unable to do any kind of web surfing whatsoever. Worse yet, what if you need to do some time-sensitive work? Well, Dropbox gives you a solution to the said problem.

You can set bandwidth limits and even pause the synchronization. By default, the download portion of synchronization doesn’t have a limit while the upload portion is set to be limited “automatically”. If that doesn’t seem to be working for you, you can always manually set limits yourself, especially when it comes to downloading. This way, you can still be synchronizing while doing your precious work.

On the other hand, if you want to speed up synchronization, you can also enable LAN Sync, which will update information between computers on the same network. This should be plenty faster than going through Dropbox’s servers.

The pause feature also exists to, you know, pause the service. Technically you could also just exit Dropbox, but logically speaking you just want to pause it, not exit it, right?

Get More Space with .EDU Email Address

Are you lucky enough to be a student, faculty member, or more with an .edu email address? If so, Dropbox would like to make your educational experience even easier. While Dropbox lets you refer people to the service for a gift of 256MB of free space per referral up to a maximum of 8GB of extra space (10GB total for a free account), those who verify that they have an .edu email address can refer people to the service for a gift of 512MB of free space per referral up to a maximum of 16GB of extra space (18GB total for a free account).

If you have already referred people in the past before you verify your .edu email address, the previous referrals will be upgraded to the 512MB size.

You can verify your .edu email address by going to this page, entering in your email address, and clicking on the verification link that will be sent to that address.

Consolidate to a Local “Dropbox Server”

If you’re tired of having to update all your data on each computer, why not consolidate the number of computers that poll Dropbox for updates? You could easily dedicate one computer to synchronizing with Dropbox, and then connect from your other computers to that one via Shared Folders or any other method you prefer. This way, less computers need to be constantly updated, less computers need to run the software, and less computers will have to store the data that is being synchronized with Dropbox.

This is very helpful if say you have a Pro account that syncs 100GB of data, as you’ll take up 100GB on one computer, instead of 100GB on every single one. Imagine what you could put on those other computers with 100GB of free space!

Use Dropbox’s Web Interface

I know this may be a very simple tip that automatically brings out the “duh” response, but some people still need to be reminded about it. Dropbox offers very excellent web tools to upload and download files, as well as change anything else that you normally can without a browser. Just because you may be on a computer that doesn’t have Dropbox installed doesn’t mean that you can’t access your data. However, with the website, you can be anywhere in the world, on any computer, and get the exact files that you need.

Conclusion

Dropbox is still my number one synchronization tool and will stay that way for the foreseeable future. With these tips, you can make your Dropbox experience even better and love it that much more. However, things can get really interesting if you start using it in very unique ways.

How do you use Dropbox? Any other tips you’d like to add to this article? Let us know in the comments!

How To Use Your Extra Google Mail Storage Space With GMail Drive [Windows]

Tina Sieber — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 22:31:08 +0000

Google Mail offers 7,641MB or roughly 7.5GB of free storage space for your emails. That’s a lot of space for emails and chances are, you will never really need it all. Don’t you wonder how you can actually make use of it?

GMail Drive is a tool for Windows (XP through 7) that allows you to access your Google Mail storage space. Once installed, GMail Drive will appear as a device on your Computer, much like an external drive. In this article, I will show you the simple setup and explain how GMail Drive works.

How Do I Know How Much Space I Have Left On Google Mail?

Log into your Google Mail account and check the bottom left corner of your inbox. I have been using Google Mail for just over 7 years, there are more than 60,000 emails in my archive, many of which contain attachments, and yet I’m only using 38% of its full capacity.

If you’ve been sending and receiving a lot more mail and realize that you don’t have enough space to make good use of it, why not set up an additional account to use with GMail Drive?

How Can I Use GMail Drive?

You can download it from MajorGeeks. Unpack the ZIP archive, run the setup file, and then go to > Start > Computer to see all connected drives. GMail Drive should be listed under > Other. When you double-click it, you will be asked to log into GMail Drive using your Google account information.

Once you’re logged in, you can drag and drop files to your new network drive and use it to back up documents. You will subsequently be able to access these documents from any computer with an Internet connection, either by logging into your Google Mail account via the web interface or by installing GMail Drive on the respective computer.

How Does GMail Drive Work?

GMail Drive is a Shell Namespace Extension for Windows. It creates a virtual filesystem for your Google Mail account to give you direct access to your account through Windows Explorer.

When you drag and drop files to your GMail Drive, the tool creates an email with the respective file as an attachment. So GMail Drive is not very convenient if you download your Google Mail through POP. You can still set Google Mail to store all your mail online, but a copy of the file will be downloaded to your computer.

In any case, I would recommend to set up a filter to automatically remove all emails created by GMail Drive from your inbox and archive them or sort them into a specific folder. To create a filter, open one of the emails, then go to > More > Filter messages like these and enter > GMAILFS: into the subject field of your filter. Then proceed to define what GMail should do with these emails.

What Else Do I Need To Know?

GMail Drive has a few limitations that you should be aware of:

File names should be less than 65 characters long.
The file size limit corresponds to the maximum size of attachments for mails sent with Google Mail. Presently, this is 25MB.
Since files are stored as email attachments in your personal email account, you cannot share these files directly with your friends, unless you grant them access to the respective account.

Given these limitations, GMail Drive may not quite be what you’re looking for. In that case, have a look at these alternatives:

So what do you think of GMail Drive? Is it useful or past its prime?

Is Windows Home Server The Most Reliable Backup & File Server?

James Bruce — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 19:01:30 +0000

Windows Home Server is one of those obscure Microsoft products that you never knew you needed. It’s rock solid reliable, simple to manage with a familiar Windows interface, and my personal choice for a home file server and backup solution. Let me explain what it is and what it can do for you.

What Is Windows Home Server?

Based upon Windows Small Business Server 2008, Windows Home Server is a consumer-focused server operating system with Windows 7 at the core. It’s been hardened on the security front, slimmed down on the desktop features, and performs a variety of tasks that can really simplify your home computing life. It’s designed to be left alone in a cupboard, constantly on and working, but you can still run a lot of regular Windows software if you want. Full remote access is provided so you can log in and manage your server from any client in the house (or over the Internet).

In hardware terms, if it runs Windows 7 relatively well it will run WHS2011 just fine too, though if you’re building your own machine I’d suggest skimping on the graphics card and getting more memory instead.

Cost – & The Alternatives

Before I start introducing you to features, let me say upfront that Windows Home Server 2011 costs $49.99 if you purchase an OEM license – which means you’ll have to build the computer yourself that you plan to install it on. Legally, you shouldn’t buy OEM versions if you’re installing it onto an existing computer, but I’ve also heard it said that simply changing one of the cables or upgrading the memory classifies you as a “system builder” and therefore qualifies as OEM.

If you’re interested in purchasing a complete, ready built home server computer (usually with a wonderfully small form factor), check out the hardware section of the Microsoft site. The HP MediaSmart is a popular choice, and costs from $400 to $1,000 on Amazon. Of course, there are free alternatives that handle all the features that Windows Home Server can, and possibly more – but personally I find the complete package that Home Servers offers to be more reliable and less of an effort to maintain.

Amahi Linux is the most feature rich alternative, but the file duplication options aren’t quite there yet.
FreeNAS is a solid fileserver / router linux distro, definitely for advanced users only. I plan to write an updated article on it, but for now we covered it once before in 2009.
We regularly cover backup solutions.
You could “roll your own server” with Ubuntu Linux, which could run on older hardware too.

That said and done, let’s look at the features provided by Windows Home Server 2011.

Automated Backups

One of the main concerns of home users is how to implement a decent backup system. For me, this means full data backup, as well a bootable system backup so I can be up and running again soon. If you have more than a few PCs in your house, managing all those backups becomes a constant mess of USB drives and various free apps to handle bootable partitions and…..well let’s just say it’s just a big hassle that I don’t need. WHS handles backing up all your PCs and data with such simplicity, it’s hard to believe it’s a Microsoft product.

Once connected to the server, your computer will be set to back up automatically. That’s it. You can view all the connected PCs from the WHS dashboard and adjust settings for backup frequency or when to delete old backups, but the defaults are fine and it all just works.

In the event of a catastrophic drive failure on that machine, you need only change the drive for a working one, and boot from the supplied WHS recovery CD. All your data and system will then be restored in just a few clicks, over the network, from either the most recent backup set or any archived sets.

File Server

With full user access control, WHS is the most reliable file server I’ve used yet. It also gives you the option to backup those file shares, of course.

Yes, you could just share some folders from any Windows 7 PC, but as anyone with home networking experience knows, the results don’t always work as expected. It’s difficult to set up fine-grained access control without a central user server.

Media Sharing

As well as a secure file store for your media, WHS also allows to share your media with any standard DLNA device – the Xbox 360 for instance. Not limited to your home network only either, you can access your media remotely too over the internet – to show relatives a slideshow for example. You can also upload files to your server which is useful if you’re out on a long holiday.

Admittedly, movie streaming isn’t a feature I use often and various codecs can present a problem.

One minor useful feature for me is the ability to automatically archive shows and movies from your Windows Media Center (another fantastic Microsoft product I highlighted last week). This means you can keep all your media centralised and avoid having to put huge drives into your living room HTPC.

It’s Windows 7!

One of the problems with customised Linux distros is the fact that an entire computer is given over to the task, and all other little Windows apps I like to run suddenly need Linux alternatives. Not so with Windows Home Server, as it’s still a functional Windows environment. However, Home Server doesn’t run some of the more advanced Windows components and isn’t suitable for gaming, for instance. Media Center is noticeably absent.

I do hope you consider using Windows Home Server to handle your homes file and backup needs, but there will always be free alternatives if you’re prepared to put in the time and effort to make it all work. If you have any questions about Home Server I’d be happy to answer them in the comments, or as ever feel free to share your own choice for home backup and file servers – I’d especially like to hear of any complete solutions that are relatively easy to set up. In the coming weeks, I’ll highlight some of the add-ins (plugins?) available for WHS2011 too, that add even more functionality to your server.

How To Turn Local Storage Into A Personal Online Drive With HomePipe

Ryan Dube — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 21:31:13 +0000

When it comes to storage “in the cloud”, I have to admit that I never really jumped onto the bandwagon. Maybe it’ll be another one of those technologies, like each evolution of Windows, that I just take longer to adopt than most other people. Or maybe it’ll flop – who knows.

The one thing I don’t really like about a cloud storage solution, like Dropbox, is the fact that the architecture includes the online storage of your files. Yes, it can sync up with your laptops, desktops and mobile devices, but what if you really aren’t comfortable having those files stored somewhere other than your local PC?

For people that are a little bit wary about such a setup, I have an alternative for you. Instead of syncing your files with the online storage space that you’ve purchased and have to pay for, what if you could simply turn your local storage – like a USB stick, a directory on your computer, or a portable hard drive – into a storage unit in the “cloud”?

Turning Your Local Drive Into An Online Drive

What you’ll basically be doing is assigning part of your drive (or your entire USB memory card, if you like) to serve up files and media via the Internet. The perfect service for this is an application Kaly covered briefly called HomePipe. In this article, I’d like to cover the application in a lot more detail, and show you how you can configure your own cloud storage network with this software. You’ll never have to buy another gigabyte of online storage again.

The beauty of this program is that you can install agents anywhere and everywhere you like. If you own a Linux computer, a Mac and a Windows desktop – you can install an agent on each of them and create an entire network of online storage – sharing out a directory from each device. When you install the agent, you’ll see that HopePipe will block your computer from “sleeping” so that it can continuously serve up the files to your new online drive in the “cloud”.

You’ll see that the free version of the software allows for 10 “uses”. A use is basically a connection session. So, for free you can hook up to your cloud and use it for as long as you like – so long as you do not disconnect or go idle from the connection for longer than 30 minutes. If you do, you’ll have used up a single connection. For occasional users, this solution is a perfect way to access all of your systems from anywhere there’s an Internet connection. If you need to use it more often, there’s also a plan for under $25 a year, unlimited – which is nearly free!

When you click on “configure shared folders“, you’ll have a chance to configure which folders on your local PC you want to share out to your personal online drive in the cloud.

Once you’ve created the “hosted” drive with the local agents, you can access those drives anywhere on the web. Just log in at HomePipe and you’ll have instant access to all of your “online” storage. The beauty here is that you don’t have to pay extra for additional online drive space. Your drive space is only limited by the actual drive space of your local drive. Of course, the drawback is that you’ll need to leave these systems running all the time if you want to access them on the Internet. For people like me that leave their systems running all the time anyway, this isn’t a concern.

As you can see on the right side of the screen, you can easily upload and download files to and from your virtual online drive, and you can even instantly upload any of the photos you have directly to your Facebook account. Uploading files from your local machine to your “online” virtual storage drive is as simple as browsing to the local files and uploading them. This is one of the easiest ways to transfer files to any of your computers right over the Internet – no FTP or complicated remote logins required.

Clicking on “Settings“, at the top of your dashboard, you can see how many times you’ve accessed your online drive, and how many sessions you have left for the month.

Don’t forget, you also have access to the mobile HomePipe app as well – for either iPhone or Android phones. This app gives you access to your virtual online drive right from your mobile device. When you open HomePipe on your mobile phone, you’ll see all of the drives that you’ve added to your virtual cloud, as well as the local storage of your phone.

Exploring your virtual online drive (which is essentially exploring your remote drive), is as easy as using Explorer. Remember, all of this takes place right over the Internet. When you upload a file to the online drive, you’re basically uploading it to your remote system.

I love this setup, because it combines the concept of “cloud computing” with the safety and security of keeping those files stored on your own machines – not some server located who-knows-where. Only people with the password to your HomePipe account will have access to your files – no one else.

So give HomePipe a shot and try different setups, like hosting a portable USB drive to your new cloud network, or mounting your Android SD card and sharing that out to the cloud. You can be as creative as you want when you build your cloud network – it’s completely up to you!

Do you prefer this setup over traditional cloud computing? What do you like or dislike about it? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!

3 Cool Ways To Use SD Memory Cards

Matt Smith — Fri, 20 May 2011 15:31:33 +0000

SD memory cards are one of the most common forms of mobile storage, but they also tend to be very specific in their purpose. They’re great when used with devices like smartphones and cameras because their thin profile and high storage capacity makes it possible to keep these devices slim. On their own however, these cards tend to be less useful than USB thumb drives and portable hard drives.

That doesn’t have to be the case though. There are quite a few cool ways to re-purpose old SD memory cards and drag some extra life out of them.

Convert To A USB Drive

The reason why SD cards can be a bit unwieldy is simply the format. These memory cards come in many different sizes, which fit into different slots on a computer. Some computers have support for many types of memory cards, but some don’t support any cards at all. Desktop computers are particularly bad about this.

Fortunately, you can side-step any such compatibility issues by simply turning your SD card into a USB drive. It doesn’t require any fancy tricks, just an SD card to USB adapter that’s compatible with the card you have. You’ll find these at local and online electronics retailers with a typical price tag of around $10.

Once you have converted the SD card to a USB drive, a world of possibilities opens up. You can load mobile applications, use the drive for encrypted storage, and do anything else you could do with a USB thumb drive. That’s not to say some of these options aren’t available on stock SD memory cards, but converting the card to USB makes it possible to use it with a wider variety of PCs and programs.

Create A Boot Drive

SD cards are quick, so they make a good candidate for a boot drive. Not every computer will present you with the option of booting from an SD card (you’ll have to check your BIOS) but if the option is available, your SD card could become the host of an alternative operating system.

It’s possible to run Windows (with WinToFlash) or Mac OS X off a SD card, but both of these operating systems require a fair amount of space, so it’s unlikely an older memory card will be able to accommodate them. A Linux variant is always a good option, and one of the easier programs for installing to your memory card is UNetBootin. It’s possible to install an OS to not only an SD card that’s by itself, but also an SD card that is in another device. I can boot Linux on my PC off my HTC Thunderbolt phone, for example.

Of course, if your computer is having trouble booting off the SD card, you can always just slap it into a USB adapter as suggested above. That should make your memory card bootable by most PCs.

Geek Accessories

Like USB thumb drives, SD memory cards are a great candidate for wearable data storage because they’re small, they’re lightweight, and they’re durable. In fact, a card is often smaller and lighter than a thumb drive, so it’s really the best choice.

There are many different ways to convert an SD card to something wearable or pocket-able. Perhaps the best option is a necklace lanyard or holder. This lets you keep you keep the card accessible at all times, but the card remains out of the way and safe from danger, and can also be hidden beneath your shirt or jacket easily (hey, a 32GB card isn’t cheap).

Alternatively, you can forego the wearable option and just go with a keychain or wallet option. Although less visible and accessible, these options may be more practical, and often can hold multiple cards at once.

Conclusion

There are many other ways to use SD cards, but I’ve focused on methods that actually keep the cards usable. Recreating the Mona Lisa with memory cards might be geek-cool, but probably isn’t practical.

Feel free to leave comments with your own ideas of cool ways to use SD cards.

Network Attached Storage (NAS) Mega Giveaway

Jackson Chung — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 16:00:03 +0000

In case you’re looking for the four NAS reviews we’ve featured over the past week, here’s a quick round-up.

Plus, we’ll be giving each and every review unit in this mega giveaway so you could walk away with a new, very expensive toy!

Data Robotics Drobo FS NAS Review and Giveaway

Synology DS411j NAS Review and Giveaway

Netgear ReadyNAS Ultra 4 Review and Giveaway

QNAP TS-419P+ Turbo NAS Review and Giveaway

So there you go. Over thousands of dollars worth of network attached storage up for grabs. Spread the word to your friends about this awesome site. We give away cool gear.

QNAP TS-419P+ Turbo NAS Review and Giveaway

Jackson Chung — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 16:00:24 +0000

Yesterday, we looked at Netgear’s ReadyNAS Ultra 4 and were impressed with its throughput performance. The day before, we loved how Synology’s DS411j and its gorgeous GUI stole the limelight. And before that, we were all taken with the Drobo FS and its ease of use. So today, how about we feature a NAS that does all of this collectively?

The device that we’ll be looking at today is the QNAP TS-419P+ Turbo NAS. It’s only available as a diskless system and priced at $599, it isn’t exactly cheap. However, if you were thinking about getting a NAS, you really should read this article because this particular model could be just what you were looking for. Not to mention, we will be giving the review unit away.

So hop in.

The QNAP TS-419P+ is targeted towards prosumers and features 4 hot-swappable drive bays, a Marvell 6282 1.6 GHZ processor, 512 MB DDR2 memory, dual gigabit ethernet ports, 4 USB ports, 2 eSATA ports and a whole lot of mojo. Did you notice the eSATA and dual ethernet ports? That’s what gives the TS-419P+ the advantage over the other NAS devices we’ve reviewed over the past 3 days.

At the front, it sports the 4 aforementioned drive bays, a USB port and a corresponding backup button for easy one-touch backup, a LCD panel and 2 control buttons. The LCD panel allows you to check its status, IP address, and administer the system — either power it down or perform a restart. It sports a brushed aluminium body, which is very classy indeed.

At the back, is where the magic happens. You’ll find 2 eSATA ports, which was not available on the other 3 NAS devices we reviewed. Plus, it’s got 1 more USB port than the Netgear ReadyNAS Ultra 4. Along with that, and perhaps the most interesting part of the QNAP is the dual ethernet interface, which supports network teaming. We spoke about network teaming yesterday in the Netgear ReadyNAS Ultra 4 review (where sadly, it is not supported) but in case you missed it, here’s a quick recap. Teaming or trunking is the ability to combine 2 network interfaces together, resulting in a single, faster connection to the router. There are various modes of network teaming and here’s what the TS-419P+ supports:

Balance-rr (Round-Robin)
Active Backup
Balance XOR
Broadcast
IEEE 802.3ad
Balance-tlb (Adaptive Transmit Load Balancing)
Balance-alb (Adaptive Load Balancing)

So far, things are looking good for the TS-419P+. Its hardware specs are enough to please any prosumer.

Installation/Detection

Since the TS-419P+ is a diskless system, you must first have your own hard drives. Currently, the largest capacity drive that the device is able to accommodate is 2 TB. View the complete compatibility list here.

To install the drives, simply remove the drive trays from the bays at the front and screw the drives onto the trays. Push them back into the device and power it on.

Like all NAS devices, the QNAP TS-419P+ comes with its own dashboard/detection application on a CD called QNAP Finder which is cross platform. You may also download it from their website. Once the application is installed, it will automatically detect any QNAP NAS devices on your network and assist you in logging into the web-based GUI.

Clicking on Configure will begin the initiation process.

Initialising the drives is a 6-step process where you will be asked to set a name for the device, an administrative password, the time zone, the services you require, and finally, the RAID array configuration. The TS-419P+ is capable of RAID 0, 1, 5, 6, 5+ hot spare; and JBOD. It also supports the newer EXT4 file system. After customising the device to your preference, it takes roughly about 15 minutes for the entire system to be online and ready for use.

Logging into the administration web-based AJAX GUI is simple if you know the device’s IP address. Open a browser of your choice and type in its IP address. If not, use the QNAP Finder to locate your device, then click on Connect.

Like the Synology, QNAP’s web interface is pretty good although it doesn’t support multi-tasking. The GUI is easy to manoeuvre and quite responsive. It also provides an easy, one-touch solution to enable various functions like Apple Time Machine support, a file server, web server, backup server, iTunes server, print server, media centre, torrent download centre, webcam surveillance support, the list goes on.

The TS-419P+ also has several advanced options like UPS support and power management, among others. In addition to that, the system allows for even more features like a Twonkymedia server, Squeezebox server, PS3 media server, Joomla and WordPress installations via its QPKG system.

Expansion

With its hot-swappable front access drive bays, the TS-419P+ could not be easier to upgrade or expand. Plus, the system supports on-the-fly RAID level migration. This means that upgrading from a 2-disk to 4-disk system is a walk in the park.

Management

Every setting imaginable is easily accessible from the GUI; from the RAID array configuration, access management, disk quota distribution and file services to backup settings. There is also a built-in search function to allow you to easily find the setting that you’re looking for.

The GUI also provides a means to keep an eye on the system, displaying vital information like the system and hard disk temperatures, and their S.M.A.R.T. statuses.

Conclusion

The QNAP TS-419P+ is, in every aspect, quite capable. With features like network teaming and on-the-fly RAID migration, a geek couldn’t ask for more.

QNAP TS-419P+ Turbo NAS may be purchased from online retailers like Newegg at $569.99. But we’re giving this one away. If you’d like to get your hands on it, here’s what you need to do.

How do I become a winner?

It’s simple, just follow the instructions.

STEP 1
Join our Facebook page by clicking the Like button or you can follow us on Twitter, if you prefer. If you’re already following us, you may skip this step.
If you can’t see the fanbox, click on this link.

STEP 2
Here’s our giveaway form. Please fill it in accurately. Be sure to enter your real name and email address so that we can get in touch if you are chosen as a winner. Click here if you can’t view the form.

STEP 2

Here’s our giveaway form. Please fill it in accurately. Be sure to enter your real name and email address so that we can get in touch if you are chosen as a winner. Click here if you can’t view the form.

STEP 3
You’re almost done. Now, all that’s left to do is to share the post. There are 2 options to choose from or you can do both!
Like it on Facebook	Or share it on Twitter Tweet
And that’s it! You’re done!

Giveaway eligibility
You must be a fan of our Facebook page to enter;
Individuals who are over the age of 18. If you are under 18, get your parents to participate on your behalf;
Individuals who reside in a country embargoed by the United States; Belgium, Norway, Sweden, or India are not permitted to enter.

This giveaway begins now and ends Friday, February 18th at 2100hrs PST. The winners will be selected at random and announced via email.

Spread the word to your friends and have fun!

MakeUseOf would like to thank QNAP for their generosity while participating in this giveaway. Interesting in sponsoring? We’d love to hear from you. Get in touch with us via email.

Netgear ReadyNAS Ultra 4 Review and Giveaway

Jackson Chung — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 16:00:36 +0000

Yesterday, we reviewed Synology’s DS411j and were greatly impressed by its intuitive GUI. And while the DS411j is mostly geared towards average home users, the NAS device that we will be looking at today is targeted at power users who demand higher performance over ease-of-use.

Netgear’s ReadyNAS Ultra 4 is available in both diskless ($699.99) and 2 x 2 TB ($999.99) configurations. We received a diskless unit from Netgear and will be taking a closer look at almost every aspect of the NAS shortly. We’ll also be giving away the review unit so stick around.

At $699.99 for the diskless unit, it’s exactly the same price as Data Robotic’s Drobo FS. And even though the Drobo FS can accommodate 5 disks as opposed to the ReadyNAS Ultra 4′s four disk array, the ReadyNAS has several features pulling it ahead.

Even though the ReadyNAS Ultra 4 is the slimmest of all the NAS devices featured in this mega giveaway, it is also the heaviest — weight at 10.35 lbs (almost 5 kg) without any disks installed. Its weight is mainly attributed to its solid metal construction.

At the front, you’ll find the usual suspects: a power button, and several activity indicator lights, a USB port and backup button, a backup status light, a metal grill and finally, a OLED panel display at the bottom.

The front metal grill swings open to reveal the 4 hot-swappable drive array (max 8 TB) and drive trays that lock into place via a latch. This allows for easy access to drives without any tools required other than a screwdriver to attach the drive onto the metal drive tray.

The very first thing you’ll notice at the back is a large metal handle. I assume they had to include it because the ReadyNAS Ultra 4 is just so darn heavy. There are 2 USB 2.0 ports which can be connected to UPS devices, printers, etc (no eSATA interfaces to be found), a system reset button, 2 gigabit ethernet ports, a fan grill, a power inlet and Kensington lock port.

If you’re wondering why it has 2 ethernet ports, I’ll try my best to explain without introducing too much jargon. In most NAS devices that feature 2 ethernet ports, they can be teamed together resulting in one connection to the router. This increases the link speed beyond the limits of a single, regular connection and also provides redundancy in case a connection fails. However, the ReadyNAS Ultra 4 does not have this feature. Instead, the 2 ethernet ports allow you to connect to 2 different subnet groups so that the NAS can be accessed from 2 different locations.

Utimately, if you’re a home user, you’ll most likely only be using one of the 2 network interfaces.

The ReadyNAS Ultra 4 features a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom single-core with 1 GB DDR SODIMM upgradeable memory.

Installation/Detection

Installation of the ReadyNAS Ultra 4 involves plugging the power and network cable into the device and powering it on. The NAS will automatically negotiate for an IP address. Before you can start using it though, you will have to configure the device like we did in the previous reviews.

Netgear provides a desktop utility cleverly named RAIDar. Once the NAS obtains an IP address, RAIDar will automatically detect it.

On initial setup, you’ll have the option to choose between Netgear’s X-RAID2 (comparable to Synology’s Hybrid RAID and Drobo’s BeyondRAID technology) which provides single disk redundancy and auto-expanding RAID capabilities; or you could manually configure it to RAID levels 0, 1, or 5. It does not support non-RAID configurations like JBOD.

Expansion

The ReadyNAS Ultra 4 accessible, hot-swappable front drive array coupled with X-RAID2 technology makes it pretty easy to upgrade. While the system is powered on, remove the lowest capacity drive for a larger one and wait for the data to redistribute. Depending on the amount of data stored, the redistribution process could take up to 10 hours and is indicated by the front OLED display. Allow that to complete before swapping another drive from the array because X-RAID2 only provides 1 disk redundancy. Luckily, the process transparent so you can go about using the NAS simultaneously.

Management

Like most Netgear products, the ReadyNAS Ultra 4 is managed via a web interface.

Unfortunately, it utilises an archaic frames interface as opposed to an AJAX GUI like the one used by Synology. As a result, jumping back and forth between settings isn’t easy. The lack of a GUI also means that it is quite unintuitive.

The ReadyNAS Ultra 4 doesn’t come installed with much. You’ll get a DLNA media streamer, TiVo support, power scheduler, support for external USB hard drives, printers and webcams, UPS support, among others. But where the ReadyNAS really shines is its backup functionality.

This device is able to backup to and from almost anywhere. You could backup any folder from a computer, enable Time Machine on Apple computers or using the Backup button on the ReadyNAS unit. It is also capable of backing up to attached USB drives, networked shares and other ReadyNAS devices on the network. Every ReadyNAS Ultra 4 also comes 2 GB of ReadyNAS Vault Online Backup, free for 2 years.

Conclusion

The ReadyNAS Ultra 4 may not be for everyone, especially considering the fact that it isn’t easy to manage. However, once you have the system up and running, it’s pretty rewarding. The ReadyNAS Ultra 4 beat most of the home/prosumer NAS devices on the market with its astounding throughput performance, as shown in a CNET review. Plus, it comes with a 3-year warranty.

We’re giving away this review unit without any drives. If you’re keen to get your hands on it, here’s how.

How do I become a winner?

It’s simple, just follow the instructions.

STEP 1
Join our Facebook page by clicking the Like button or you can follow us on Twitter, if you prefer. If you’re already following us, you may skip this step.
If you can’t see the fanbox, click on this link.

STEP 2
Here’s our giveaway form. Please fill it in accurately. Be sure to enter your real name and email address so that we can get in touch if you are chosen as a winner. Click here if you can’t view the form.

STEP 2

STEP 3
You’re almost done. Now, all that’s left to do is to share the post. There are 2 options to choose from or you can do both!
Like it on Facebook	Or share it on Twitter Tweet
And that’s it! You’re done!

This giveaway begins now and ends Friday, February 18th at 2100hrs PST. The winners will be selected at random and announced via email.

Spread the word to your friends and have fun!

MakeUseOf would like to thank Netgear for their generosity while participating in this giveaway. Interesting in sponsoring? We’d love to hear from you. Get in touch with us via email.

Synology DS411j NAS Review and Giveaway

Jackson Chung — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 16:00:26 +0000

Yesterday, we looked at the Drobo FS. While that network-attached storage (NAS) looked easy to upgrade and practically future-proof, it didn’t come with an intuitive GUI.

Synology’s DiskStation 411j (DS411j) NAS is a whole different beast and what it lacks in style, it makes up with functionality. If you were planning to buy a NAS for your home, I’ll tell you whether or not the DS411j is the right choice for you. Plus, we’ll be giving this review unit away, bundled with 4 TB of storage.

Jumping right in.

The most attractive feature about the DS411j is its price. At $359.99 for a diskless system, while the version with 4 x 1 TB drives preinstalled goes for $769.99, it’s significantly cheaper than most of its competitors. If you’re a techy DIY-er, you would instinctively opt for the diskless system, buy your own hard drives and come up with a 10 TB NAS for about $759.99. And that would be the option I’d choose, I’ll tell you why in a minute.

The DS411j is shorter but wider than the Drobo FS. It’s got a plastic front panel, fitted with a large, round power button, and indicators for network connectivity and hard disk activity. It also has a couple of cooling vents at the top and bottom.

The styling sort of falls short at the back and you’ll find two honeycomb fan grills, a power inlet, a gigabit ethernet interface and two USB 2.0 ports. Interestingly, the NAS accepts USB wireless dongles — so you won’t need to physically connect it to a router. Here’s a full list of wireless dongles that it is compatible with.

As you can see from the image below, there are 4 protruding thumbscrews which attaches the rear panel to the body. Unscrew them and the panel, along with the fans flip downwards; allowing you to remove the top enclosure and reveal its innards. It’s powered by a 1.2 GHz processor and has 128 MB of DDR2 memory which is not upgradeable — however, these stats won’t mean much if you’re just a casual user.

Inside, you’ll find a 4-drive array. Each drive is attached to a plastic drive tray and screwed to the chassis. The drive tray is able to hold both 2.5″ and 3.5″ SATA drives. So here’s where you ask yourself if you are capable enough to perform an upgrade on this system, if necessary. Not to mention, if a drive fails, it won’t be an easy task replacing it if you’re not fond of screws. Personally, I didn’t have an easy time screwing one of the thumbscrews back on.

Installation/Detection

Before you can start enjoying the DS411j, it needs to be initialised. Synology provides a startup disk and some quick start instructions that are very easy to follow. A desktop client (Win/Mac) detects the unconfigured DS411j on the network and guides you to format the drives and install the operating system dubbed DSM.

Depending on the when you purchase the NAS, you may have to download the latest version of DSM from Synology, which is slightly over 100 MB.

The system takes about 10 minutes to initialise so you may want to make some coffee.

Once that is done, the Synology Assistant will detect the NAS and provide you with its IP address so that you are able to log in from any browser. Or just double click on the device on the list.

And you’ll be greeted by the login screen. The default username is ‘admin’ and the password was set during initialisation (which was not pictured).

As you can see, the DSM is pretty cool and looks like a Web OS. It’s truly the highlight of the product and in all honesty, blows every other GUI away with its multitasking capabilities. It’s that good. But at this point, we’re not out of the woods yet. There is still some configuration to perform.

Firstly, the drives have to be combined using RAID. The easy way to go about this is to choose Synology Hybrid RAID, which natively provides 1 disk redundancy, allows up to 12 GB of storage and the flexibility of expanding to a larger total volume size when a new hard disk is inserted into the array. Otherwise, you could manually configure the drives by selecting any RAID-protected volume types (2-4 way RAID 1, RAID 10, RAID 5, RAID 5+Spare, and RAID 6) as well as volume types without data protection (Basic, JBOD, and RAID 0).

As you can clearly see, the process isn’t very difficult and even someone without any computing knowledge will be able to set this system up in no time, thanks to the intuitive DSM.

When that is done, a new network share will be available. Using the DSM, you’re able to set the share’s access privileges and add new shares easily.

These network shares are completely cross platform and you have the option of enabling/disabling Windows or Mac support at any time by accessing the control panel.

Expansion

Depending on the RAID configuration selected, expanding the system can be a breeze or slightly more tricky. If you went the Synology Hybrid RAID route, then expanding is a mere disk exchange — swap out the lowest capacity disk for a larger one. Unfortunately, the disks are not hot-swappable, which means that you’ll need to power down the NAS before attempting to perform the upgrade — that’s mostly attributed to the fact that the body needs to be unscrewed before you’re able to reach the drives.

Management

Going back to the highlight of the device, DSM provides a simple, one-click solution for just about everything. Need a torrent client? Click and you’re set. Need a DLNA media server? Click and you’re set. Need an iTunes server? Yes, just click and you’re set. This is what I love most about the DS411j and all Synology NAS products.

The DSM also provides you with a convenient way of monitoring the system’s disk usage, operating temperature, memory usage and other finer details via the Resource Monitor and Storage Manager.

Other great features include a power schedule which allows you to set power on/off times, a file browser with archiving/unarchiving capabilities, remote backup, Time Machine support and remote internet access to the NAS so that you can connect to it from just about anywhere and control your torrent downloads.

A complete list of features is available on the DS411j product page.

Conclusion

Although the DS411j doesn’t look the part, it is in every way quite capable. If you can get past the fact that inserting drives into the array isn’t a piece of cake, the DS411j is a full-featured, brilliant product that’s well worth your money.

Purchase it online from any authorised reseller.

We’re giving this DS411j review unit away, along with the 4 TB of storage that it comes bundled with. Are you interested?

How do I become a winner?

It’s simple, just follow the instructions.

STEP 1
Join our Facebook page by clicking the Like button or you can follow us on Twitter, if you prefer. If you’re already following us, you may skip this step.
If you can’t see the fanbox, click on this link.

STEP 2
Here’s our giveaway form. Please fill it in accurately. Be sure to enter your real name and email address so that we can get in touch if you are chosen as a winner. Click here if you can’t view the form.

STEP 2

STEP 3
You’re almost done. Now, all that’s left to do is to share the post. There are 2 options to choose from or you can do both!
Like it on Facebook	Or share it on Twitter Tweet
And that’s it! You’re done!

This giveaway begins now and ends Friday, February 18th at 2100hrs PST. The winners will be selected at random and announced via email.

Spread the word to your friends and have fun!

MakeUseOf would like to thank Synology for their generosity while participating in this giveaway. Interesting in sponsoring? We’d love to hear from you. Get in touch with us via email.