Re: 526 looks sweet!

vrspectre · ‎2016-09-01

I just saw the announcment for the 526!! Looks freaking sweet. Thank goodness christmas is around the corner. I think Santa will be giving me a nice little treat this year. 🙂 Then, I just need to upgrade my home network to 10G and i'll be set!!

mdgm-ntgr · ‎2016-09-01

Yes, it's a great new product. The 10Gbit ports are backwards compatible with 1Gbit ports so if you need to do the NAS first then a 10Gbit network later you can.

StephenB · ‎2016-09-02

I like the industrial design of the new desktop units, and the processor uplifts. 10gb network makes sense, since the 500 series is almost always network limited.

If only there were inexpensive 10gb switches out there.

dschwartzer · ‎2016-09-02

If you are interested in reading an initial review of the new RN526X, you can check it out at http://appletechtalk.com.

StephenB · ‎2016-09-02

@dschwartzer wrote:

If you are interested in reading an initial review of the new RN526X, you can check it out at http://appletechtalk.com.

Thx. I missed the bluetooth dongle (apparently there's an app that can manage the NAS via bluetooth as a backup to accessing the web ui over ethernet).

Nice idea.

JBDragon1 · ‎2016-09-02

Looks like another great NAS. I just got my ReadyNAS 516 about 4 months ago, USED so I got it about half price then what Amazon is currantly charging for a new one. It's been working great for a Plex server and handling transcoding, though I did try a 4K video to 1080P and it choked on it. It's also running PlexPL and some other software and it's been great. I have 5 3TB drives in in. It uses the same ECC memory as this new 526, though it's expandable on this new one. Though you can also expand on the 516 if you wanted, just not supported.

Getting all that software off my power hungrey PC is nice. I can use it for gaming and whatnot and not have it tied up. The Bluetooth dongle sounds interesting. I wonder if older NAS units could support that feature? Plug in the dongle and use the software that isn't out yet?

mdgm-ntgr · ‎2016-09-02

The RN516 could be upgraded (unsupported) to have a more powerful CPU such as what we used in the RN716X. This does have an advanced level of difficulty though.

Whilst the RN526X uses 4GB ECC like the RN516 did, the RN526X uses the newer and better DDR4 spec. So it is different memory. We are using a different motherboard and different CPU generation. The CPU in the RN526X is more powerful than the one we used in the RN516.

Running Plex would be a great home use case for the RN526X. The RN626X is also worth considering. The RN626X has a quad-core CPU and is a much more affordable option than the RN716X was for a prosumer.

I suspect most users won't upgrade the RAM on the RN526X due to the level of difficulty involved and also because 4GB should be plenty for most.

The Bluetooth dongle is included with the new desktop units. We won't be selling those for older units. I don't think we plan to support using them with older units either. I think the reasons why will become obvious at a later date.

JBDragon1 · ‎2016-09-04

I actually have the 716 Intel CPU used, the Intel Xeon E3-1265 V2 2.50Ghz on order to install in my 516 along with 16 gig's of the ECC memory to pop into it. It'll take a bit to get the thing all apart to gain access, but why not, I like doing things like this. I hope it turns out OK in the end. It's a $300 upgrade for the CPU and Memory. Going from 2 to 4 cores should be nice. Hopefully I'll have in done in a couple weeks.

I got my USED 516 for half the price of a new one. There's no warentey. So Upgrades won't screw that up.

Ya, the 626 would make a really nice unit also. The same 2 ot 4 core option. The 716 was just crazy expensive. So I'm glad this one isn't out of the world price wise. I'll get my 4 cores in this 516 though. I don't need 10gigabit ethernet either. Not going to max out 1 gigabit doing a number of video streams. I did wire my house with Cat6 cable when I got it, and it's been great. I am using a Managed switch and have the 2 gigabit ports on the 516 linked for what it's worth.

jhagg · ‎2016-09-13

JBDragon1 let us know how the upgrade works out, take pics!

JBDragon1 · ‎2016-09-13

I'll do that. I'm hoping this coming weekend I'll have a chance to get to it. I'm working on a backing up right now. Though for some reason the NAS is not seeing this 3TB HDD when it had no problem with the new 8TB HDD I used to back most of it up. I have to figure out what's happening.

NASguru · ‎2016-10-19

@JBDragon1 wrote:
I'll do that. I'm hoping this coming weekend I'll have a chance to get to it. I'm working on a backing up right now. Though for some reason the NAS is not seeing this 3TB HDD when it had no problem with the new 8TB HDD I used to back most of it up. I have to figure out what's happening.

Well, how did the upgrades go? I'm curious unless you posted your results in another thread and I missed it.

JBDragon1 · ‎2016-10-23

Ya, I did it and it went great! It's now basically a 716 without the 10 gigbit ports, which for my Network, I don't care about. You can find the link here:

https://community.netgear.com/t5/ReadyNAS-Hardware-Compatibility/How-to-Upgrade-the-CPU-and-RAM-in-a...

It went easyier then I thought it would, and it's made a really nice Improvment overall. If you have a 516 and want to get some more performance out of it, more life then buying a new NAS, this is a solution.

mdgm-ntgr · ‎2016-10-23

Nice.

I've got the RN626X which is a bit faster than the RN716X and it's very powerful.

NASguru · ‎2016-10-24

@JBDragon1 wrote:
Ya, I did it and it went great! It's now basically a 716 without the 10 gigbit ports, which for my Network, I don't care about. You can find the link here:

https://community.netgear.com/t5/ReadyNAS-Hardware-Compatibility/How-to-Upgrade-the-CPU-and-RAM-in-a...

It went easyier then I thought it would, and it's made a really nice Improvment overall. If you have a 516 and want to get some more performance out of it, more life then buying a new NAS, this is a solution.

I eventually saw it as well and you did an excellent job presenting the steps. There's no arguing the results either given the price difference between the 516 & 716. However, I elected to go the 626X route for simplicity and to keep from having to void the warranty on a new NAS. That said, I would have done this as well if I had a used or out of warranty 516 and the time to shop around and complete the build. I would be curious though on your thoughts of upgrading the CPU/etc on the 626 if you ever get the chance to look into that model.

NASguru · ‎2016-10-24

@mdgm wrote:
Nice.

I've got the RN626X which is a bit faster than the RN716X and it's very powerful.

That's the route I'm going to take. You're the first person I heard that has a 626, but than again you're a forum moderator. Care to make a contribution to the following thread I created? https://community.netgear.com/t5/Using-your-ReadyNAS/Any-626s-in-the-wild-yet-Love-it-Hate-it-Let-us...

It may help others make a decision as well and justify going to the new platforms earlier than later.

mdgm-ntgr · ‎2016-10-24

Sure, I just replied there. The RN626X is a nice step up over the RN526X. I know I am biased but the extra is great value for money imo.

NASguru · ‎2016-10-25

@mdgm wrote:
Sure, I just replied there. The RN626X is a nice step up over the RN526X. I know I am biased but the extra is great value for money imo.

I agree and saw your post. Again, I appreciate the feeback either way.

JBDragon1 · ‎2016-10-28

You can't go wrong with the 626. It'll be a while before I go and upgrade again unless something happens with my 516. It's a little out of my price range. In a couple years maybe I can buy a USED one for a good price like I did with the 516. That's how I do things these days. I don't need the latest and greatest in everything. A few years old and can save a bundle as I'm not in a rush is a good thing. At that point, if I can upgrade the CPU for that one, I would. It's really about what the BIOS and hardware will allow. That's stuff that can be hard to figure out when you don't build the system and the manufacture likes to keep secrets. I'm sure not a hacker. That's the hard part. Swaping parts like a CPU or adding some memory into slots is simple as long as you know what parts you can use.

NASguru · ‎2016-10-29

@JBDragon1 wrote:
You can't go wrong with the 626. It'll be a while before I go and upgrade again unless something happens with my 516. It's a little out of my price range. In a couple years maybe I can buy a USED one for a good price like I did with the 516. That's how I do things these days. I don't need the latest and greatest in everything. A few years old and can save a bundle as I'm not in a rush is a good thing. At that point, if I can upgrade the CPU for that one, I would. It's really about what the BIOS and hardware will allow. That's stuff that can be hard to figure out when you don't build the system and the manufacture likes to keep secrets. I'm sure not a hacker. That's the hard part. Swaping parts like a CPU or adding some memory into slots is simple as long as you know what parts you can use.

Agreed, I don't necessarily need the latest and greatest either but also don't want to have to do a forklift upgrade every X years. I stretched my Ultra 4 Plus for almost 6 years so in some aspect I got my monies worth out of it. I also manged to find the 626 on Amazon for below it's MSRP price of $1,800 and placed my order. I'll begin migrating all my data over this week and testing it out. I'm hoping to get at least 6-7 years out of this model if not more depending on the CPU upgradability. Again, I appreciate the feedback and I'll return the favor by posting a review of the 626 once I have put it through it's paces.

JBDragon1 · ‎2016-10-29

I get it. A NAS should last for a number of years. If not like you're going to run more and more power hungry games on it for example. If you got a ressonable price for you for the 626, great. That's all that matters. I look forward to your review on it. Someone that actually owns it and is using it daily.

Are you going to make use of the 10Gigbit ports on it?

NASguru · ‎2016-10-30

@JBDragon1 wrote:

Are you going to make use of the 10Gigbit ports on it?

I will eventually but not right now. My entire house is wired for GigE so I'm not in too much of a hurry as it meets my needs for now. Although, 10G would sure be nice when transferring large data between 2 NAS. It will certainly come in handy when I have to migrate from the 626 to it's replacement and especially since the size of my data never seems to get smaller.

StephenB · ‎2016-10-31

@NASguru wrote:

...My entire house is wired for GigE so I'm not in too much of a hurry as it meets my needs for now.

10GBASE-T runs over cat-6, so the wiring probably isn't an issue. The challenge is the cost of the switches and client NICs.

However, even if the clients are all gigabit, 10 gbe should give better multi-user performance than LACP. I do have an 8-port 10GBASE-T switch, and I am planning to test this with the 526X.

NASguru · ‎2016-10-31

@StephenB wrote:
@NASguru wrote:
...My entire house is wired for GigE so I'm not in too much of a hurry as it meets my needs for now.
10GBASE-T runs over cat-6, so the wiring probably isn't an issue. The challenge is the cost of the switches and client NICs.

However, even if the clients are all gigabit, 10 gbe should give better multi-user performance than LACP. I do have an 8-port 10GBASE-T switch, and I am planning to test this with the 526X.

Nice, I like to see the before and after results in throughput.