This topic has been marked solved and closed to new posts due to inactivity. We hope you'll join the conversation by posting to an open topic or starting a new one.
Hi, Since updating to firmware 6.9.1 on my ReadyNAS 202, a windows security dialogue box pops up prompting me to enter Network password. This has never happened before, are there any reasons for this or fixes I can try? Thank you.
I currently have an 8 port Netgear FS208v2 fast switch and a 5 Port D-Link DES-1008D fast switch. Should I replace the 8 port with a Gigabit switch which currently serves the ReadyNAS and the Router and leave the 5 port without any real problems or should i replace both with say a 16 port gigabit switch? What Gigabit switch would you suggest?
You should replace both. Gigabit took over from fast ethernet some years ago.
If the switches are co-located, then a 16 port switch would give the best performance. If they aren't, then two 8 port switches would do. Which switch makes sense depends on your bonding mode, so more on that below.
I have a combination of CAT 5 & CAT 5e cables between 5 computers, a printer, a router and the ReadyNAS 202, is this sufficent?
You should be using CAT 5e or better with gigabit, so I suggest replacing the CAT 5 runs. There's no need to replace the CAT 5e. CAT-6A would be a good replacement for the CAT 5 (and likely about the same price as CAT 5e).
Since your PCs are gigabit, the only time bonding improves performance is when you have more than one PC accessing the NAS at the same time. Even then, the gains are often modest. So the first question here is whether you need bonding at all.
The RN202 can deliver about 100 megabytes/sec on a gigabit link, which generally is enough performance for a home system w/o bonding.
As far as 16 port switches:
An unmanaged GS316 has a street price around $55 (Amazon US pricing). With this switch you can use the TLB and ALB modes (though some users do find that they misbehave).
A GS116Ev2 smart switch has a street price around $150. This switch would let you use static LAG (round robin).
A GS716Tv3 has a street price around $200. This switch lets you use either static LAG or LACP.
Personally I don't think paying the $100-$150 price premium to get more bonding modes is a good value for most home users.
You might have been using guest credentials before - Windows is tightening up on that.
Whatever the reason, the fix is to open the Windows Credential Manager on the PC. Delete any existing credentials for the NAS first (both IP address and hostname).
If you access the NAS by its hostname, then create a windows credential for the hostname - using the username/password of a NAS account. The NAS admin account will work for this.
If you access the NAS by its IP address, then create a windows credential for that also.
We work through windows explorer to access the files on the ReadyNAS 202. FW v 6.9.0 made the saving of the files VERY slow and when v 6.9.1 came out, i was hoping this was going to fix it but not only is saving files VERY slow now, the: "enter network password" has added to the problem.
At the moment the work around is either of the following options:
DNS was a shot in the dark, I suspected it because I changed ISP
Maybe i am missing something but it seems like youre a little alarmed but, yes we have been accessing the files through windows explorer for a very long time without any issues.
Maybe i am missing something but it seems like youre a little alarmed but, yes we have been accessing the files through windows explorer for a very long time without any issues.
Not sure which Stephen you meant.... but I'm not particularly alarmed. You raised two issues - password prompts and write speed.
The two approaches to the password problem are to either (a) Create NAS accounts that use the same credentials as the user's Windows logon or (b) add NAS credentials into the Windows credential manager on each PC. Both prevent guest access, which is becoming more problematic as Microsoft tightens up security.
On the NAS write speed I suggested a specific benchmark. If you want us to pursue it further, it would be helpful if you used it, and provided results. I followed up on confirming SMB access, since your work-around explicitly accessed the NAS via the web browser - which I found (find) confusing.
Disk issues can also reduce NAS performance, so it might be useful to look in the logs for evidence of frequent volume syncs, reallocated sectors, etc. The file system might also need maintenance (running defrag and balance).
Are you getting this on reads also? If you are, then check your ethernet connection speeds and make sure the entire path is gigabit. This speed generally means there is a fast ethernet (100 mbit) connection on the path.
Not sure how to answer your network question but I think the following info is what you need:
Not really. I need to know what speed it has negotiated, and also the speed that the NAS has negotiated. Also if they aren't connected to the same router or switch, I need to know the speed that is used along the full connection path between the PC and the NAS.
In Windows 10, you should be able to open Network Status, and then click on the Ethernet link on the left of the page. That will open up a control panel window that shows all the ethernet NICs (likely just the realtek in your case). If you click on the NIC icon, it should show you the actual connection speed.
In the NAS, just click on the Network tab in the web UI. There's a bandwidth line under the NIC icon, and that shows the current speed.
I booted up my computer this morning and couldn't get into the server through the mapped network drive 😞
Reverted back to the old school method of restarting and then reastarting again and then it worked 🙂
I am very puzzled???
Mapped drives sometimes don't survive a PC reboot, even if you have them set up as persistent.
You can generally remount them without needing the reboot. I usually use CMD for this:
net use * /delete
net use t: \\nas-ip-address\data /user:admin nas-admin-password
for instance should remount the NAS data volume as drive letter T. If the credential manager is already set up for the NAS admin account you can omit the /user:admin nas-admin-password part.
I figured out the problem with accessing the server from all the PCs: DHCP which was by default my D-Link DSL-G225. From the device webpage I changed the DNS settings to googles: 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4. No more restarts, waiting, credentials, etc... The issue was definately from changing ADSL to Fibre and obviously the new Fibre router was not managing the IP addresses very well.
I have windows 7 but I am sure it's pretty much the same as 10 in the respect of the NIC. The Realtek is running at 100 Mbps. I checked the Server Web UI and clicked on Network but there is no bandwidth line under the NIC icon? Maybe it is because I have bonded the adapters and I have currently got it set to Round Robin. As per my first issue: the DNS, I think the speed issue came with getting the new Fibre Router, but I have checked the spec of both the ADSL & Fibre routers and they are both IEEE 802.11n/g/b. I think I also need to mention that when the ADSL was set up in the past, i had both Ethernet cables from the 202RN plugged into the router and now I have a Netgear FS208v2 unmanaged switch, of which both cables were plugged into the this switch. I experimented by plugging the two cables into the router but the speed is still slow.
now I have a Netgear FS208v2 unmanaged switch, of which both cables were plugged into the this switch.
This is a 100 mbit switch ("fast" ethernet), so that is certainly part of the puzzle. You can't get more than 11 MB/sec over fast ethernet. You should replace it with a gigabit switch (which are inexpensive).
I realize your write speeds are slower than 11 MB/sec, but the network speed might still be contributing to the slowdown.
Maybe it is because I have bonded the adapters and I have currently got it set to Round Robin.
Also disable that bond and disconnect the second ethernet cable, at least for now. Round-robin requires switch support to work properly (you need a switch that lets you set up a static lag). Your switch (and almost certainly your router) don't support that. The performance impact of using it anyway might well depend on the equipment (so it might not have had the same effect with your old router as it does now).
Thank you so much for all your help with resolving my PC issues.
I currently have an 8 port Netgear FS208v2 fast switch and a 5 Port D-Link DES-1008D fast switch. Should I replace the 8 port with a Gigabit switch which currently serves the ReadyNAS and the Router and leave the 5 port without any real problems or should i replace both with say a 16 port gigabit switch? What Gigabit switch would you suggest?
I currently have an 8 port Netgear FS208v2 fast switch and a 5 Port D-Link DES-1008D fast switch. Should I replace the 8 port with a Gigabit switch which currently serves the ReadyNAS and the Router and leave the 5 port without any real problems or should i replace both with say a 16 port gigabit switch? What Gigabit switch would you suggest?
You should replace both. Gigabit took over from fast ethernet some years ago.
If the switches are co-located, then a 16 port switch would give the best performance. If they aren't, then two 8 port switches would do. Which switch makes sense depends on your bonding mode, so more on that below.
I have a combination of CAT 5 & CAT 5e cables between 5 computers, a printer, a router and the ReadyNAS 202, is this sufficent?
You should be using CAT 5e or better with gigabit, so I suggest replacing the CAT 5 runs. There's no need to replace the CAT 5e. CAT-6A would be a good replacement for the CAT 5 (and likely about the same price as CAT 5e).
Since your PCs are gigabit, the only time bonding improves performance is when you have more than one PC accessing the NAS at the same time. Even then, the gains are often modest. So the first question here is whether you need bonding at all.
The RN202 can deliver about 100 megabytes/sec on a gigabit link, which generally is enough performance for a home system w/o bonding.
As far as 16 port switches:
An unmanaged GS316 has a street price around $55 (Amazon US pricing). With this switch you can use the TLB and ALB modes (though some users do find that they misbehave).
A GS116Ev2 smart switch has a street price around $150. This switch would let you use static LAG (round robin).
A GS716Tv3 has a street price around $200. This switch lets you use either static LAG or LACP.
Personally I don't think paying the $100-$150 price premium to get more bonding modes is a good value for most home users.
Again, thank you for your invaluable advice and help.
On your recommendation I have ordered the GS316 switch and I will be measuring my cable lengths to replace the CAT 5 with CAT 6A and the other cables that cant reach the new 16 port switch i will also replace with CAT 6A.
I am reporting back after setting up my new GS316 switch:
Unfortunately saving is still taking very long.
I downloaded CrystalDisk 6.0.0 and I ran 3 tests on a folder on the server and the results are shown on the attached image (please note that only my PC was on and connected to the server through the switch)
