Storage decision...

[Hothersale]

I'm looking to attach some storage to my RT-N66U, primarily for wireless media streaming and possibly for automated backups. I don't want to spend a lot of money -- less than $200 -- so my options are limited. I'm torn between getting a simple USB drive vs. spending a bit more to get a very basic NAS. I'm leaning toward a cheap single drive NAS, but I'm not sure what sort of advantages it will have over a USB drive combined with the router's built-in utilities. Advice and opinions much appreciated!

[RMerlin]

A real NAS will have far better performance than a USB disk attached to the router. A USB disk on the router will top at around 12-14 MB/s, while a cheap NAS might give you 40-50 MB/s over gigabit. If you intend to store large backups (such as disk images), a USB disk on the router might make those backups be quite slow.

I have limited experiences with those cheaper NAS, as I usually deal with more expensive products from QNAP (which are excellent). You could look at the products from WD - I haven't heard much negative reviews about them so far, so maybe someone who owns one might chip in. The Seagate one (GoFlex Home) however was a headache the one time I configured one for a customer, so I don't recommend them.

I had a few customers with LaCie, and they all died within 2-3 years of light use Usually the power supply that dies on them.

If for you having the speed limited to 12 MB/s isn't a problem, then a USB disk would be your cheapest solution. For larger amounts of data however, go with a NAS.

[Hothersale]

Thanks, RMerlin. A 2TB WD My Book Live NAS is indeed what I'm considering. For about the same price, I can get a svelte little 2TB USB 3.0 WD My Passport drive, which would be a lot easier to load initially. I'm just not 100% sure that the router would provide enough juice to power it.

I've got 10 client devices in my house, but only one of them is wired, so most of the time my wireless speed would be the bottleneck, I think. I'm getting about 40Mbps throughput on my un-wired computers, but that's still significantly less than 12MBps. Hmmm....

[RMerlin]

Also don't forget about simultaneous access. For example, you might have a PC pushing a backup at the same time someone else is trying to stream a video file.

Personally I would go with the WD NAS for your particular needs.

[escape2]

Originally Posted by RMerlin

A real NAS will have far better performance than a USB disk attached to the router. A USB disk on the router will top at around 12-14 MB/s, while a cheap NAS might give you 40-50 MB/s over gigabit.

Agreed.

Although a cheap NAS may not even give him 40-50 MB/s. I have a very cheap Buffalo LinkStation NAS with gigabit ethernet port, and it can't transfer faster than about 10-12 MB/s due to a weak internal CPU. I am looking to upgrade to an entry level Synology NAS (maybe DS112 or DS112+ if I can find it) which should do about 50 MB/s without issues.

However, the OP has a point - if he's accessing the resources over wi-fi, then the wi-fi speed is going to be his bottleneck anyway.

[RMerlin]

Originally Posted by escape2

Agreed.

Although a cheap NAS may not even give him 40-50 MB/s. I have a very cheap Buffalo LinkStation NAS with gigabit ethernet port, and it can't transfer faster than about 10-12 MB/s due to a weak internal CPU. I am looking to upgrade to an entry level Synology NAS (maybe DS112 or DS112+ if I can find it) which should do about 50 MB/s without issues.

That's true. Best is to check if Tim has posted any benchmark of those entry level NAS.

Personally, considering a NAS should last you quite a few years, I think it's worth spending a bit more on a quality NAS. An entry level QNAP will give you better performance and features. Plus, these are usually upgradable, while low-end solutions tend not to be, so once you fill them up, you end up having to buy a new NAS.

But I understand that for some people budget can still be a factor.

Originally Posted by escape2

However, the OP has a point - if he's accessing the resources over wi-fi, then the wi-fi speed is going to be his bottleneck anyway.

Assuming only one person at a time accesses it. If the desktop is pushing a backup at the same time a wifi client is streaming a video, they will split that disk throughput between the two of them.

[jerry6]

NAS is the way to go , just picked up another Thecus 4100 for $277.00 , throw 4 2tb drives in it and good for a few years , so far no problems streaming video to 3 or 4 computers