Re: AMA - Ask Us Anything About ReadyNAS and You Could Win a ReadyNAS 214!

freakofneek · ‎2017-07-27

How does this fair for a media server?

Astrosrule · ‎2017-07-27

This thing looks like a beast. Love the specs on this. Simple question... does it come in other colors?

Thank you.

douglas_cheung · ‎2017-07-27

@Astrosrule wrote:

This thing looks like a beast. Love the specs on this. Simple question... does it come in other colors?

Thank you.

Which model are you talking about?

RN212/214 are jet back; RN422/424/426/428 got a very modern industrial design; RN520s/620s have a beautiful brush metal facade. The 420s/520s/620s all have a front panel LCD for you to see your IP address, and many other life stats... and a five-point touch button designed by a kung-fu master (paraphrasing from "Kill Bill").

But... each model has only one color... (I can sell you stickies to dress it up. 🙂 )

douglas_cheung · ‎2017-07-27

@freakofneek wrote:

How does this fair for a media server?

With the exception of not having a HDMI interface, you have everything you would need.

ReadyNAS works very well with Plex. All you need to do is to run Plex from your mobile device, and project it up to a Chrome Cast. The HDMI cable is so passe. You don't need another humming device in your living room next to the TV. Keep the NAS in your study.

SystemCrash · ‎2017-07-27

Is it possible to run a full-blown website on there? If so that'd be great!

voodoogts · ‎2017-07-27

Thanks for answering all my question. Product sounds promising !

aks · ‎2017-07-28

I have an older unit (several older units actually), a ReadyNAS NV+ v2, and they all have worked pretty well for my needs using the build-in ReadyDLNA service: stream music around the house to multiple speakers (Bose Soundtouch) and stream shows/movies to my TV (Panasonic). All work flawlessly in my experience. So the RN214 will accomplish basic media serving easily given it is a step up in terms of performance relative to NV+ v2.

You might also be interested in transcoding, however I personally store the original files compatible formats to the target player devices so don't need transcoding. The RN214 has sufficient performance to transcode, but I am not familiar with exactly how many concurrent streams can be handled - I would assume only one. Note, I believe you will need a separate media server that supports transcoding such as Plex for this, as I do not believe the RN has this capability built in (to ReadyDLNA or other built-in app/service)

aggieman12 · ‎2017-07-28

Does Netgear intend to simulate third party add-on development or create its own updated ecosystem of apps? I love your hardware but it falls a bit behind in some respects.

OOM-9 · ‎2017-07-28

@SystemCrash wrote:
Is it possible to run a full-blown website on there? If so that'd be great!

The unit is running apache on the backend, and there are interaces that allow you to have a full-blown website.

For the most controll, there are some extensions in the app sdk to help for some of the more advanced web services.

@aggieman12 wrote:

Does Netgear intend to simulate third party add-on development or create its own updated ecosystem of apps? I love your hardware but it falls a bit behind in some respects.

The overview page for apps is here.

The development stuff can be found on our github. We have VirtualBox option for development and SDK inforamtion to help interface with our API. The application core component is based on debian's deb packages, and you can use debian's package documentation.

LiverpoolLee · ‎2017-07-29

How often would you expect to see any firmware updates, if any at all, and is there a roll back/troubleshoot feature in case anything goes pear shaped???
Thanks 🙂

aks · ‎2017-07-29

@LiverpoolLee wrote:
How often would you expect to see any firmware updates, if any at all, and is there a roll back/troubleshoot feature in case anything goes pear shaped???
Thanks 🙂

The ReadyNAS Firmware Release Notes section gives some hints to release frequency, but I have observed typically every few months for active units. Rollback is not quite so easy, and sometimes not even possible. You need to ensure you have good backups.

Miklos · ‎2017-07-29

What is the best and also safest method to gradually upgrade the disks to larger capacity ones in the RN214?

Currently I have 4x2TB in RAID 5 using X-RAID. I am starting to run out of disk space (still managing) but I guess the upgrade would be unavoidable soon... I have just upgraded to the latest 6.8.0-RC1 firmware.

Thanks in advance,

Miklos

Tofu87m · ‎2017-07-29

How does this model compare to the qnap 451+ as far as streaming plex and capturing and streaming gameplay to places like twitch, YouTube, ect

calistakallie · ‎2017-07-29

When resetting the router should I unplug it and for how long? Does this actually help if the internet is running slow, to reset the router? Thank you!

William10a · ‎2017-07-29

@calistakallie wrote:
When resetting the router should I unplug it and for how long? Does this actually help if the internet is running slow, to reset the router? Thank you!

No just push the reset button for around 10 seconds normal and it may or may not help with a slow internet depands o the cause of the problem if the isp is the cause it will not but if a router setting is the and you can not clear it you may tooreset the router and reset it up.

The only time you need to reset the router and disconnect the power from it is a 30-30-30 reset.

aks · ‎2017-07-29

@Miklos wrote:
What is the best and also safest method to gradually upgrade the disks to larger capacity ones in the RN214?
Currently I have 4x2TB in RAID 5 using X-RAID. I am starting to run out of disk space (still managing) but I guess the upgrade would be unavoidable soon... I have just upgraded to the latest 6.8.0-RC1 firmware.

Do a full backup first... then you can either:

swap each disk for a new one but only one disk at a time, and wait for it to complete resync (will take several hours each disk)
or swap all disks at once and restore the backup - I am pretty sure this will in fact be faster, and also safer (you will still have all you data in tact on the old disks)

aks · ‎2017-07-29

@Tofu87m wrote:
How does this model compare to the qnap 451+ as far as streaming plex and capturing and streaming gameplay to places like twitch, YouTube, ect

The QNAP TS451+ has an Intel based chipset which is perhaps similar to the ReadyNAS 314 or the newer 400 series, also on price about the same. ReadyNAS 214 has an ARM based chipset more like the TS431+, specs and price also similar.

For streaming, I think the answer is much simpler: can the RN214 stream content and even transcode, and the answer is yes it can.

If you want to know which has more processing performance, then the answer is also pretty easy in this comparison, and that is the QNAP TS451+. However, I think you need to consider what you are trying to achieve and figure out the best NAS for the task. With your current question I think they can both do that task quite easily.

Venctin · ‎2017-07-29

How much electricty does the RN214 use for someone who is constantly streaming 1080p video?

@BretD wrote:
We are hosting an extended 4 week Ask Me Anything AMA for the NETGEAR ReadyNAS line of products and we would love to answer your ReadyNAS questions. Best of all, posting your question below enters you in a sweepstake to win a ReadyNAS 214 with 4x 2-terabyte hard drives.

Learn more about NETGEAR ReadyNAS products for Home and ReadyNAS for Small & Medium businesses.
Sweepstakes rules and alternative means of entry:
How to ask a question and enter:
In the discussion thread below post a question for our ReadyNAS team about ReadyNAS products.
During the Questions & Answers and entry period: 7/26/2017 – 8/28/2017 a ReadyNAS rep will visit this thread and answer relevant questions Monday-Friday.
After the Q&A is finished one lucky respondent will be chosen at random to receive a ReadyNAS 214!
We look forward to your questions.
Good Luck

Register to post your question

LARRI2008714 · ‎2017-07-29

Can I hookup my wireless printer to this device? Can I sync pictures taken on my phone to automatically store a copy? Is this limited to specific operating systems?

crapweasle518 · ‎2017-07-29

Is a VPN included or do I have to sign up with an outside company?

Hellcatkitty · ‎2017-07-29

What is the warrenty info on the ReadyNAS 214? thanks

samulel · ‎2017-07-30

1.Does this Ready NAS Can also be used has SAN for mounting the LUN on the Various Platform like WIN,LINUX, CITRIX for centralized backup and storage.

2.What kind of raid level can be used , if two disk goes down how can recover the data.Does it store the parity bit on the other to recover it.

3.Is that possible to increase the RAM size , Does it have any extra slot to do that.

aks · ‎2017-07-30

@Hellcatkitty wrote:
What is the warrenty info on the ReadyNAS 214? thanks

The chassis has 3 year warranty according to the Netgear website technical specs for RN214. However, this may be region specific, in the UK you get 3 years.

fluffybunnyuk · ‎2017-07-30

I thought i'd ask this:

Can netgear recommend a suitable most likely non-netgear nas that comes with free support from the parent company? Being told constantly to open up a pay-as-u-go support request gets on my nerves almost as much as moderators asking unsolved posts to mark them as resolved...

fluffybunnyuk · ‎2017-07-30

d i hope i win... the irony...