ReadyNAS and NetGear Suck!!

The STBD3000100 is apparently a retail kit. However, since none of the listings that showed up in an internet search had photos of the drive much less the package, it's difficult to know what the actual drive is. Another example of the issue is with Hitachi. Their drive model HDS5C3030ALA630 which is "green" drive on the HCL list which I am very familiar with (I have 4 in service across 2 NAS units and 1 spare). The OEM drive model which is generally what you find on the HCL, but the drive is marketed under three different part numbers (PN). One of which is a retail kit and the other two are OEM models. Hitachi (unlike Seagate) uses an opaque silver anti-static bag with an outside label listing only the PN on the outside label and only the model number on the drive label itself.

The OEM models are listed on the HCL because the vast majority of users buy the OEM product. The difference between the retail kit and the OEM is that the retail kit generally includes screws (not usable in the ReadyNAS) and they used to have an SATA signal cable (not needed) and a molex to SATA power adapter (also not needed). So why pay more for a pretty box and parts you don't/can't use. When I got my first NAS some 5 years ago, Seagate had the same model numbers on the retail box kits and the OEM drives as they used the drive model. WD did not do that and Seagate has stopped. It makes it all but impossible for the retail customer to truly know what drive is included in the box, and I suspect that the reason the drive companies stopped using the model number on the outside is that as they change the models (not critical for solo drive installs in a PC) as long as the basic specs still match the retail box label (speed, size, etc) they can use the old box with a new drive.

Of course those of us who have been on the forums for a few years recall when WD made major changes in a drive without changing the model number and cause some havoc in RAID installations.

Technical support doesn't know when the HCL is updated, because I don't believe they do the updating. That I believe is done by the development staff which is a totally different area. The list has a long list of drives no longer produced, but the drives may still be in service in a ReadyNAS somewhere (I have four in service in that category) so they are still compatible so stay on the list.

I returned the green drives and picked up the STBD3000100 actual Model:ST3000DM001-9YN166. No surprise Also not on the list. I changed the drives and it still restarts itself even faster than it did before. It will only stay up for a few minutes now. I did another factory reset right back to rebooting and it now reports no volume. Funny thing is it will stay up fine if I remove the network cable. That was also the case with the green drives. No network and it doesn't restart. Once I plug the network back in it starts rebooting again.

Time for this piece of shit to go back in the box and get returned to Fry's. I want to wash my hands of this waste of desktop space.

What version of RAIDiator is on the unit? Are you able to try the 4.2.20 beta firmware?: http://www.readynas.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=51&t=57193

4.2.19. I probably could if it would stay up long enough to do an update. Now it is listing its address as 65.152.109.110 on the LCD when it clearly has an address of 192.168.1.3.

I think the problem is the power supply. It has been up all morning without the cable plugged in. Once it finishes the resync I will try the network cable again. I did a google search for linux rebooting when network plugged in. I didn't find much but one answer was the power supply can't power the nic so it shuts off. This could make sense because I can stop the rebooting by unplugging the network or removing one of the drives. It probably doesn't have the power to run 2 drives and the network cable. So one or the other prevents the device from rebooting.

How do I test the power supply or confirm it is the problem via logs?

Support really shouldn't write people off because their drives aren't on the HCL. They should at least do some basic troubleshooting. I payed for my hardware like everyone else and support is included in the price tag. I have seen many other post with brand new devices having faulty components. It seems Netgear needs to spend a little more time on ther QA process.

I will forever think twice before buying anything netgear again. This company may have some good products but customer service is key.

“Look after the customer and the business will take care of itself”
– Ray Kroc, founder of McDonald’s

From my recent experience I would look at what switches, routers and other gear you have on the network. I had a problem of the Ultra + locking up repeatedly and it turned out to be a router. The other 23 devices, including a ReadyNAS NV, had no problem with it but the Ultra+ baulked as soon as it was connected. As you say the system runs OK without the network cable I would look at what is on the other end and disconnect them one by one. If you can directly connect a PC (try two) to the Ultra and it remains up then that is likely to be your problem. Got to agree with you on Netgear support but with help from this Forum and a bit of detective work you should be able to sort it. Frustrating though!

I will say the Ultra+ is unreasonably susceptible to network anomalies though. :roll:

Is your IP address set as static (you assign the number) or is it provided by the router (the DHCP server)? From the low fourth digit, I would suspect that the router assigns the IP address. Most home networks are in the 192.168.1 subnet (Linksys and Netgear routers among others default to this range). What IP address is shown in RAIDar when the front panel shows 65.152.109.110?

On of the best diagnostic tools is to do a direct connection between the NAS and a PC. When the NAS cannot find a DHCP server, it will default to 192.168.168.168 if set to dynamic IP assignment. Most then manually set the PC to 192.168.168.169 (any address in the 192.168.168 subnet other than 168 will work). I was advised to use this when I was having network problems with my then new NVX 18 months ago and as a result determined that I had an incompatible 3rd party switch which was then replaced with the Netgear GS108 switch which solved the problem. Here are some instructions in further detail.

If you do not have any problems with the NAS while direct connected to the PC, then the problems are elsewhere in the network. I disagree with removing the devices one by one, I think you should go bask to a basic setup. If the direct connection works, then connect that same PC and the NAS to the router. If that works, then add back all the other devices one by one. When the problem returns, you have found the problem.

I returned the NAS to Fry's and picked up a new one. It has been up for a couple of hours without rebooting. I am pretty sure the power supply was faulty and caused the reboots.

The LCD still has the wrong address listed. I am using a Netgear WNR3500Lv2 and the NAS has a reservation. It obtains the correct address via DHCP. Doesn't matter if the IP is DHCP or static, the display still shows the wrong address. The address it displays belongs to Tech Valley Communications. Might be the ISP for Netgear. Maybe my NAS is home sick :)

I would suspect the value is hard coded somewhere by mistake. I am not sure if this started before or after I loaded the beta firmware.