NETGEAR ReadyNAS NVX

The ReadyNAS NVX is NETGEAR's latest entry to the field of network attached storage, a fairly powerful, four bay, bring your own drives system, intended to replace their older NV+ model.  The NV+ was a great array in its time, well suited for those with lower end needs, and it's good to be able to say that the NVX is certainly a worthy successor.

Powered by a 1.06 GHz Intel processer and shipping with 1 GB RAM, the ReadyNAS NVX can also be upgraded further to a full 4 GB of RAM, though doing so requires more than a little work to get at it.  Still, the option to upgrade should the factory model not meet your processing needs is nice.

For more on the ReadyNAS NVX, including specifications and a discussion of field performance, please scroll down.

As with just about every NAS array, RAID is a primary concern for the ReadyNAS NVX.  Though the NVX doesn't offer every RAID configuration out there, most users will be able to find one that suits their current needs.  Specifically, RAID 0, 1, 5, and of course JBOD are all supported.

Unfortunately, for whatever reason, eSATA ports aren't included in the NVX, so external backup speeds tend to suffer a bit.  For the most part, backup was independently tested to range from the low 20's to the high 20's in MB/s, varying slightly by individual RAID configuration and across different machines.  Not lightning fast, but still decent speeds considering that the transfer is being performed over a USB port.

Hardware specifications follow, taken from the NETGEAR website:

General

• NETGEAR RAIDiator Operating System
• Setup Wizard and easy browser-based interface
• Intel® advanced embedded processor
• 1 GB DDR2 SODIMM
• 4 SATA II channels
• Two 10/100/1000 Ethernet ports with load balancing and failover
• 3 USB 2.0 ports

RAID

• X-RAID2 automatic online expansion for single volumes
• Multiple volume support for RAID 0, 1, 5
• Background sync and SmartSync resume
• Life Support mode
• Hot swap disks
• Hot spare disk support

Volumes

• Advanced volume management (Flex-RAID)
• Journaled file system
• User and group quotas

Network Protocols

• CIFS/SMB for Windows®
• AFP 3.1 for Mac OS 9/X
• NFS v2 / v3 for Linux and UNIX
• HTTP/S for web browsers
• FTP/S
• rsync and secure rsync
• WebDAV
• Print Sharing
• UPnP
• iSCSI target support for Windows, Mac and UNIX/Linux initiators

Network Security Models

• Shares
• Local users
• Active Directory/Windows Domain support
• Encrypted network logins
• Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)

Network Services

• DHCP or static IP address assignment
• DHCP Server
• WINS Server
• NTP server synchronization
• VLAN and LACP support for load balancing and failover

System Management

• Performance tuning options
• Device health status
• System configuration backup and restore
• Email alerts and event logs
• Network UPS monitoring
• SNMP

Backup Schema

• Client backup target using CIFS, NFS, FTP or HTTPS
• Integrated Backup Manager for full and incremental ReadyNAS backups
• Snapshot for point-in-time backups of the ReadyNAS system
• Backup to/from USB disks
• Remote backup to CIFS, NFS, FTP and HTTPS targets
• Remote backup to another ReadyNAS via rsync and secure rsync
• System configuration backup and restore
• Multi-system cloning

Included Backup Software

• CDP (continues data protection) backup software for Windows and Macintosh clients
• Replication to another ReadyNAS system
• ReadyNAS Vault online backup with subscription option

Supported USB Devices

• Programmable, one-touch, one-demand backup button
• External USB hard drives (support for FAT32, Ext2, Ext3, and NTFS)
• Printers (see Web site for the latest list)
• Flash devices with camera auto-copy
• UPS with monitoring and auto-shutdown

Power-saving Options

• Disk spin-down
• Power-on schedule
• Wake-on-LAN

Supported Web Browsers

• Internet Explorer® 7.0+
• Opera 9.5+; Safari 2.0+
• Mozilla Firefox® 2.0+

Languages

• Management UI: English, German, French, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Russian
• File Names: Unicode

Electrical

• 200W server-rated AC power supply
• Input: 100-240 VAC, 50/60Hz

Power Consumption

• 70W typical (with 4 x 1 TB disks)

Thermal

• Software-controlled 92mm chassis cooling fan
• Fan failure alert
• High temperature email alert with auto-shutdown option

Operating Environmental

• 0° - 40° C (32° - 104° F)
• 20-80% humidity (non-condensing)
• FCC, UL, CE, C-Tick, KCC, VCCI, RoHS compliance

Physical

• LCD display
• Kensington® lock slot
• Easy carry handle
• Dimension: 200 H x 132 W x 222 D mm (7.9 H x 5.2 W x 8.7 D in)
• Weight: 4.6 kg (10 lb) without disks

Optional Spare Parts

• Hot swappable SATA disk tray
• 92mm chassis fan

Available Configurations

• RNDX4410, 4TB with 4 X 1 TB disks
• RNDX4210, 2TB with 2 X 1 TB disks

Warranty

• NETGEAR 5-year Warranty**

ProSupport Service Packs Available

• OnCall 24x7, Category 3
  • PMB0333
• XPressHW, Category 3
  • PRR0333-100