Streaming performance on new Netgear ReadyNAS Ultra 6

[Nixlimited]

I recently purchased a Netgear ReadyNAS Ultra 6 and installed 3 WD 2 TB EADS drives (green power). I have the ReadyNAS hooked to a d-link 24 port gigabit router that is also new. The router, currently, is my U-Verse gateway, since I have had trouble setting up my better router behind it.

I am using a current gen Mac Mini connected to a plasma as a media streamer. The issue is, I am getting fairly poor streaming quality (video is not smooth) when streaming off my NAS. When the movie files are connected via USB external HD, the streaming is perfect. I have copied files to and from the NAS and I am getting phenomenal transfer rates using AFP so I don't think it's a throughput problem; however, I have tested using VLC and Plex and it does not appear to be the app that is the hang-up. Additionally, I have tried streaming both VIDEO_TS and mpeg-4 with similar results.

Am I missing something with the setup I need to tweak? Should I be using SMB or some other protocol rather than AFP? Could the U-verse gateway be the problem?

 

[claykin]

have you posted this info on the Readynas forums? I couldn't find anything.

What version of RAIDIATOR are you running on the Ultra?

Are your disks the WD20EADS? Check the disk compatibility page for info on this disk. http://www.readynas.com/?page_id=82

Here's a link to info on issues with 4Kb sector disks. Make sure this is not your issue. http://www.readynas.com/?p=3690

 

[thiggins]

Are you doing anything else on the NAS while you are trying to play files?

 

[Nixlimited]

have you posted this info on the Readynas forums? I couldn't find anything.

What version of RAIDIATOR are you running on the Ultra?

Are your disks the WD20EADS? Check the disk compatibility page for info on this disk. http://www.readynas.com/?page_id=82

Here's a link to info on issues with 4Kb sector disks. Make sure this is not your issue. http://www.readynas.com/?p=3690

Not yet.

Most recent version of RAIDIATOR 4.1.7 I believe.

Yes, WD20EADS, which is on the compatibility list and as of 4.1.7 are fully supported even with 4kb sector sizes.

I should add that my bulk read / write has been blazing. I was able to transfer my files over consistently at about 70 Mb/s. Read performance on file copies was also quite fast.

Are you doing anything else on the NAS while you are trying to play files?

Nope

 

[teknojnky]

4.1.x raidiator is for the SPARC devices (duo/nv+/etc)

4.2.x radiator is for the x86 devices (nvx/pro/ultra/rackmounts)

You want to be on 4.2.15 or .16 beta.

You might want to investigate the WD IDLE program, perhaps the streaming read rate is slow enough that the drive(s) might be trying to idle down then spin back up and affecting performance.

 

[Nixlimited]

4.1.x raidiator is for the SPARC devices (duo/nv+/etc)

4.2.x radiator is for the x86 devices (nvx/pro/ultra/rackmounts)

You want to be on 4.2.15 or .16 beta.

You might want to investigate the WD IDLE program, perhaps the streaming read rate is slow enough that the drive(s) might be trying to idle down then spin back up and affecting performance.

I just updated the firmware so I assume I am running 4.2.15 now. I will check later.

Interesting (re: idle). Is that an application or something? I did notice when monitoring the network throughput that the stream was very choppy, which concerned me. I set the disk spin-down in the NAS settings to 30 minutes to try and prevent any issues with that.

 

[claykin]

Post this issue on the Readynas forums in the PERFORMANCE section.

Consider trying CIFS protocol instead of AFP.

Do you have Jumbo Frames enabled. Maybe try swapping the setting on/off and see if this changes things...

 

[Nixlimited]

OK, will do.

 

[Nixlimited]

As an update, I directly connected the NAS to my Mac Mini and streaming is working perfectly. So, that narrows it down to my switch (highly unlikely) and my U-Verse Gateway router (likely).

The cool thing is I am actually able to connect the Mac Mini on the second LAN port on the Ultra 6, while still connected to the switch on the first. I actually tested and I am able to transfer full movie-size files to the NAS while streaming VIDEO_TS to the Mac Mini simultaneously.

 

[nadtz]

Hrmm, I've been trying to sort a similar issue I see only with large movie files (4+gb) while streaming, i'm fairly sure at this point my switch is the culprit, but don't yet have another switch to test with to confirm this, maybe i'll run to local big box and grab one just so I can see if that fixes this (and I need an 8 port switch anyway).