Is it possible to use a ReadyNAS Duo v2 as Direct Attached Storage (DAS)

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Rustie- wrote:

I need to know if it is possible to use a ReadyNAS Duo v2 just as a Direct Attached Storage (DAS) device as opposed to a NAS. 

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No, you can't.  If you were to get a new NAS, you could repurpose your old Duo as a backup device (using rsync backup jobs).

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Rustie- wrote:

 I can log onto it through the IP address over the inernet so I can view the files stored on it but I can no longer save files to it making it pretty useless. 

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I am assuming you mean "over your home network", and not "over the internet".

What firmware are you running?

You should be able to store files also - I am suspecting you have a credentials issue on the PC.  Can you try running the command prompt on the Windows PC, and entering

net use * /delete /y
net use t: \\nas-ip-address\C /user:admin nas-admin-password

using the real NAS IP address and admin password of course.  Be careful on the typing (the spaces and the slash directions matter).

The first command will terminate any open network sessions, the second attempts to map the NAS data volume to drive letter T.  Note this won't work if the NAS is still using the default admin password.

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Rustie- wrote:

... from what I have read on various forums trying to find a solution I understand that Microsoft have stopped supporting the SMB1 file sharing protocol recently due to security vunerabilities. ...

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This is not correct. The effecive vunerabilities for SMB 1.0 on Windows and Linux/SAMBA were fixed essentially almost before the big noise whent through the media years ago.

SMB 1.0 transport protocol and the NetBIOS name resolution and discovery is still readily available on the latest Windows 10 system builds. 

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Rustie- wrote:

As the Duo v2 uses this protocol and presumably, because Netgear have also stopped supporting this system becasue let's face it it is getting a bit old, I can no longer see my device as a drive within file explorer.

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The the Duo v2 was discontinued in 2013.  Netgear ended firmware updates for both models in 2017 (similar to Microsoft ending support for Windows 7). Netgear released a firmware update back in 2017 also for your NAS addressing the CVE-2017-7494 vulnerability which allowed to access and write to any shared folders even if the users wasn't authorized.

The "big" vulnerability was fixed on both Windows and SAMBA source code - and deployed https://kb.netgear.com/000038792/RAIDiator-Version-4-1-16-Sparc. Still, and shared folder legally accessible on a NAS, a Windows PC or Server, on a business class storage systems, ... can be encrypted by malware. Dropping SMB 1.0 does not change a s**t. 

I won't talk of the fact that SMB1 isn’t modern or efficient - many features have made it to the higher protocol versions. Some would (massively) help on these underpowered NAS system like yours - however, it has never happened. Other features are simply out of scope, like protocol signing or encryption

Enabling the CIFS/SMB 1.0 feature can be done in a very easy way on the Windows 10 systems: Just add/enable the CIFS/SMB 1.0 Client feature.

There are many legit reasons why users can and must continue using the SMB 1.0 [Items 1..3 stolen from a Microsoft blog, and extended:

1. You’re still running XP or WS2003 under a custom support agreement.
2. You have old management software that demands admins browse via the so-called ‘network' aka 'network neighbourhood’ master browser list.
3. You run old multi-function printers with old firmware in order to “scan to share”.
4. You operate legacy storage systems, legacy NAS models, ... only supporting SMB 1.0/CIFS.

FWIW - I've borrowed most of my reply from my own posts here in the community. 

So all you have to do is to enable the Windows [7,8,]10 feature (type: "feature" in the Windows search!) for the user friendly control, scroll down to "SMB 1.0/CIFS File Sharing" - required is only the  "SMB 1.0/CIFS Client". Let it rattle, reboot the WIndows system - and ta-taa your Duo v2 will be discovered again, and the file share access is back.

Send beer or money 8-)