NETGEAR ReadyNAS Ultra 2 Plus (Diskless) Network Attached Storage RNDP200U

• 2-bay DLNA Certified NAS System with anytime multimedia streaming features
• Maximum performance for cutting-edge prosumers (advanced home users/media enthusiasts)
• First NAS system to offer mobile access and streaming using Orb transcoding add-
• First NAS system to offer remote DLNA media streaming using Skifta media shifting add-on
• First NAS system to be certified TiVo Compatible, allowing users to extend the capacity of their TiVo
• DVRs by offloading non-protected content to their ReadyNAS for future playbacks (available in the US and Australia only)

I have been running this unit for about a month now without a hitch. I installed two Western Digital Caviar Green WD20EARX 2-TB drives in it. The drives formatted fully, initialized, and synced perfectly. The Memeo Backup Premium that ships with the unit is easy to use and keeps my data files backed up behind the scenes on all our PCs.

My recommendations for a hassle-free setup and installation are: 1) Install two new drives before turning on the unit. 2) Connect it to your network and plug it in. Allow it to take the time to completely start. 3) Install the included RAIDar software on one of your networked computers. 3) Allow RAIDar to automatically locate the device and then DON'T SKIP THE SETUP WIZARD with the RAIDar program and the Web-based system setup!! The unit will quickly format the first drive, but it will take several hours for it to sync the second drive initially. This is normal, so don't do anything else until this step is completed. 4) Once the unit is fully functioning, use the Web-based utility to update the unit to the latest firmware version. My unit arrived with firmware version 4.2.17. I had no problems updating it to the current 4.2.19; just follow the directions and don't interrupt the process.

I find the unit is very fast at transferring files and backups through my gigabit network. Even the energy-efficient "green" drives don't seem to slow it down. Seems like too many people get hung up about drive speed on these devices, when really the bottle neck is often your network throughput, not the drive's rotational speed or read/write speed. I even have the unit set to allow the drives to spin down after 15 minutes of non-use, and this doesn't seem to be a problem, at least not for backup. I can't speak about streaming media, as I have not tried that yet.)

The drive is sturdy and well-built. The only very minor negatives I can state are: 1) the power indicator light on the front of the unit (in the power switch) is just a bit too bright, but this doesn't really matter to me since I have the unit stored away in our network closet. 2) The two green drive indicator lights are a bit too dull and tiny to see easily.

I even connected an APC Back-UPS ES-750 battery backup unit to the device, using one of its USB connectors. The ReadyNAS recognized the UPS and allowed me to set the amount of battery reserve I will allow before the unit automatically shuts itself down in an orderly fashion.

The Web-based configuration utility allows you to control and monitor just about everything. You can even set up a daily schedule for turning the device on and off at various times. The utility shows information about the health of the drives, allows you to run diagnostic routines, and even calibrate the fan speed! It shows you the temperature of both drives as well as the CPU temperature and the system board temperature. You can set alerts that the system can send out to multiple e-mail addresses to notify you about drive problems and status.

I have used the drive to backup several computers on our network. I also used the open-source program, DriveImage XML, to create image files of our computers and store them on the ReadyNAS (for disaster recovery) without problems. This program works great with the ReadyNAS.

I haven't had the time to try out any of the streaming or file sharing features of the unit yet, but plan on installing the Logitech Squeezebox Server on it and will report back if I run into any problems with this or have any issues with streaming media in the future.

Until then, I believe this unit is an excellent network-attached storage device that can meet the needs of any home or small business user. I am very satisfied with it.

Buy NETGEAR ReadyNAS Ultra 2 Plus (Diskless) Network Attached Storage RNDP200U Now

I had bought a DLink 2 Bay DNS-321 with 800mhz Atom single core, 256mb and was annoyingly slow (8-12GM/sec on Gigabyte network). Upgraded to the Netgear -dualCore 1.6mhz, 1GB memory and am getting 5X speed in 40-45GB range it really is a great until WHEN you get it set up. Took twelve hours of "corrupted root" messages, getting the second drive to get recognized, and finally figuring out to delete the one disk volume and get a two disks running as RAID0 volume. Documentation is poor, unituitive, but most answers on Internet forums, Google searches. Unit is pricey but was worth the performance jump. Knocking off one star on documentation, but solid four stars for a sterling performer.

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This is the second ReadyNAS product I've owned. I had a ReadyNAS Duo with 2 750GB drives. Worked dependably for over 3 years hosting CDs for streaming to a Logitech Transporter Logitech Transporter® SE: Network Music Player (Black). I decided to upgrade to the Ultra Plus and 2TB drives to add my photo collection and TimeMachine backups.

Setting up the new environment using RAIDiator and Frontview was straight forward and hassle free. The old and new units are managed in an almost identical fashion so the interfaces were familiar. I updated the unit with the new Squeezebox software, set up TimeMachine and established preferred settings without issue. I consulted the documentation for each category to ensure that I was using the optimum settings according the the recommendations and my particular needs. The documentation was clear and comprehensive for both hardware and software. What I immediately noticed was the improved speed and lowered noise level of the NAS and drives (Western Digital Caviar Green 2 TB Desktop Hard Drive WD20EARX).

There was one status setting which confused me and for which I could find no documentation. I placed a ticket in to Netgear for clarification. Gotta say that the response was rapid and the technician was engaged, professional and knowledgeable. Impressed by Netgear support process and staff.

Think I may attempt to activate the PhotosII service and create photo albums the family could access. An interesting and creative stretch for me.

I've not used other NAS devices but this one gets my recommendation.

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I have been looking for a central storage unit to handle the backup of a Mac Mini, Macbook Pro and an iMac. This not only acts as a central backup for all three, it is an amazing media streamer. I am able to stream to my Roku using the Plex add on and can watch all my ripped movies and home movies on the Roku WITHOUT turning on a computer. Before the ReadyNAS I would have to trudge upstairs to my iMac that had all my movies on it and turn it on. Now I am always ready to watch a movie because the ReadyNAS is always running. It does not use much in the way off electricity. I measured 25 watts when running with two 5900rpm Seagate Green 2TB Barracuda drives.

Tivo integration is great, and automatically backs up any show i tag as "Keep until I Delete". Crazy storage that should last and last.

Prior to this I had a My Book Live 1TB, which was great but I needed redundancy in case a drive failed. This unit gives me that, and much more powerful streaming.

There is also a very active add-on community with a slew of apps for the ReadyNAS. Firmware updates are very active and constantly being improved.

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Been running this now for two months and it works perfectly. I don't load it much but I have played with a number of features and best of all there have been no problems! I had trouble initially with a pair of 2GB Hitachi deskstar drives ordered from Amazon. Both arrived non functional but i'm sure this was due to poor packaging + shipping to the northeast in the winter. So I went to Best buy and bought two 2GB Caviar drives for $99 each and they work great. I'm using the ReadyNas for my Adobe Lightroom photo store, a place to copy my Lightroom catalog backups to, and for everything else in the house like music, videos, and file storage. Haven't tried the included backup client software yet for the kids Pcs. Tried the Bit torrent and its nice to let the downloads run in the background at night when we shut our PCs down. But it is sometimes hard to find the torrent URL you want. Anyway, works great is really quit. Have it in the basement where the temp is constant 65 degrees-hope it lasts forever.