Synology DS712+ vs. Netgear Pro2 vs. ??? for small business- HELP!!!

[eyal8r]

I am quickly trying to decide between the Synology DS712+ and the Netgear Pro2.

I am setting up a small office where we need a 'cloud' to store all the Client PC files so all employees can access them. At most we'll have around 10 client machines, some tablets/phones, etc. I'm looking at 2-bay, but am open to 4-bay. However, for now, 2-3TB total cloud space is all we need (so, (2) 2TB or 3TB drives in Mirror is perfect).

We're setting up a Gigabit Network, with Netgear Pro 8 Port Switch, Netgear's newest AC router. Mostly will be doing read/write to the space. Possibly, but not very likely or often will be using iTunes or Streaming Media- again, that is not the main function, if ever.

The BIG KEY FACTORS ARE:
1) SPEED
2) Ability to Access Cloud from outside the LAN network- I want to easily connect to the space from home
3) Reliability

I'll probably be building a server for backup at a later date. Speed is the key factor here. I want the fastest access read/write times I can get. 2 Giga Ports are important, and I believe the rest of our network hardware will support link teaming (is that what it's called?).

What do you guys recommend? Or, is there another option I'm not considering for the <$600 price range?

BTW- side question, but related too- I have a WHS at home. Is it possible, once this NAS is setup on the office network, to use my WHS 2011 machine at home to backup both the NAS AND those Client PCs at the office?

Thank you!!!

 

[thiggins]

The two products are equal enough in performance in RAID 1 that you are not going to be able to see a difference.

Note that working on files directly on a server will always be significantly slower than working with them locally due to network overhead.

I haven't used remote access for either product. But ReadyNAS Remote looks simpler to set up.

Synology's EzCloud is just a gussied-up dynamic DNS client, which might require router port forwarding.

If you can get an rsync server like Delta Copy Server running on your WHS machine, you can use rsync to back up from either NAS.

 

[stevech]

Independent of Synology's EZcloud, their remote access to files via a browser (HTTP or HTTPS), with upload and download of folders/files, is very easy.

 

[thiggins]

Independent of Synology's EZcloud, their remote access to files via a browser (HTTP or HTTPS), with upload and download of folders/files, is very easy.

As long as you forward the appropriate ports through your router's firewall and configure a dynamic DNS client or otherwise keep track of your WAN IP.

 

[stevech]

true.
I am guilty of having done port-forwarding for so many years, it's trivial to me. Not so for a newbie.

Synology et al can automate port forwarding setup if you enable and use "plug n play", if I'm not mistaken. Because of security issues, I think it's most often disabled.

 

[RoDiesel]

I'm also interested into this 2 products, especially because they offer the possibility to upgrade the amount of RAM. Still, I'm looking at other products, like Synology DS212(+) or 213, Qnap TS-259 (Pro etc.) that doesn't allow to upgrade the internal RAM. USB3 or eSATA are not that important for me.

Does the amount of RAM makes a great difference in the overall performance of the NAS?
Comparing two CPUs (Atom), one single core at 2 GHz and the other dual core (HT or not), is there a big difference in the performance of the NAS?
Also, link aggregation is a good option to have (I have bought a managed switch that is capable of trunking ports).

I intend to use the NAS as a file server (network drive for up to 10 users), DLNA, BT, back-ups .. The worst case scenario that I can anticipate is 4 users playing simultaneous HD (1080p) movies.
DLNA is very important and I have a lot of photos and movies (almost 1 TB) to store on the NAS. All of them need to be able to view/play on computers/TVs.
As a separate story, should I be concerned about the slow speed of Synology NASes when creating thumbnails for the photos? Qnap is also slow or is a Synology only problem?
Also, I'll have a IP camera that will record (24/7) images (on movement only).

Can you give me some advice about what features of the NAS to consider as very important in this scenario?

 

[thiggins]

RAM size primarily helps for smaller file sizes for caching, if the NAS OS supports write and read caching.

CPU power is the largest factor in performance. OS tuning is the next most important. The NAS Finder lets you filter results for single and dual-core NASes. You can find some and compare performance results. You will find dual-core somewhat better than
single core.

Uncompressed 1080p HD streams need between 20-40 Mbps each (2.5 to 5 MB/s). Even lower-end NASes can support this for four streams. Use this chart and check the throughput.

 

[RoDiesel]

Thanks for the info. I'm almost sold for the Synology DS 712+ because I can upgrade the ram and has link aggregation. The possibility to add more drives later is also a good point.
The only real concern is related to the slow thumbnail generation issue. Is this a specific problem for the Syno, or Qnaps also are slow on this? DLNA is very important to me and I need to be able to update and browse pictures (lots of them) as easy (and fast) as possible.

 

[thiggins]

Processes like thumbnail generation and transcoding are not strong suits of any NAS. They are given lower priority because handling files is job #1

 

[stevech]

Opinion, and you can compare using the on-line demos: Synology or QNAP far superior choice over Netgear or and of the like-kind consumer oriented vendors.

 

[RoDiesel]

Yes, I understand that Synology and Qnap are both superior to other NAS products. As a matter of fact, after reading a few pages on the Internet, I decided to chose a product from one or the other.
What I need now is to be certain that Synology (712+) is a better option vs. Qnap 259 Pro (+) for my case. This implies high use of the DLNA service (including thumbnail generation, play movies, view photos etc.) in addition to file handling.

 

[stevech]

I'd try the two vendors' on line demos and decide on features they have which you will need. Don't get hung up on which one has 3MB/s more than the other according to some testing.