| QNAP TS-879U-RP 10GbE NAS Server |
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Reviews -
Featured Reviews: Network
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| Written by Bruce Normann |
| Monday, 19 March 2012 |
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Page 3 of 10
QNAP TS-879U-RP NAS Hardware Specifications
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CPU
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Dual-core Intel® CoreTM i3-2120 Processor (3.3 GHz)
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DRAM
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2 GB DDR3 RAM (Expandable RAM, up to 4 GB)
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Flash Memory
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512MB DOM
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HDD Form Factor
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Accepts 2.5" or 3.5" SATA
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HDD Tray
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8 x Hot-swappable
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LAN Port
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2x Gigabit RJ-45 Ethernet port
(Optional dual-port 10 Gb and 1 Gb network card are supported)
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LED Indicators
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10 GbE, Status, LAN, eSATA, plus hard drive trays
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USB
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4 x USB 2.0 port (Back)
2 x USB 3.0 port (Back)
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eSATA
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2 x eSATA port (Back)
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Expansion Slot
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2 x PCI Express 2.0 x8 lane (for network and storage expansion)
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LCD Panel
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Mono-LCD display with backlight
Enter / Select button for configuration
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Dimensions
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88 (H) x 439 (W) x 520 (D) mm
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Weight
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Net weight: 12.52 kg/27.61 lb.
Gross weight: 20.76 kg/45.78 lb
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Sound Level (dB)
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Standby: 54.6 dB
In operation: 54.6 dB (with 8 x 1TB HDD installed)
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Power Consumption (W)
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Sleep mode: 68W
In Operation: 130W (with 8 x 1 TB HDD installed)
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Temperature
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0~40°C
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Humidity
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0~95% R.H.
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Power Supply (2x Redundant)
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Dual Inputs: 100-240V AC, 47-63Hz, Output: 300W
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Secure Design
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K-lock security slot for theft prevention
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VGA
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Reserved for system maintenance
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Fan
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3 x smart cooling fan (60 mm x 38mm, 12V DC, PWM type)
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This follow-up review is all about performance, so let's move right into the testing phase.
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Comments
So, I would be happy to use the QNAP TS-879U-RP to test some SSD makers' new enterprise-class drives, and run them hard, in a realistic test case. But, just stuffing some consumer grade devices in the NAS to push it closer to 10Gbps throughput doesn't really do much for me.... I "get" why QNAP tested it that way, but I also think it would have been useful for them to publish additional test results with enterprise-class HDDs.
Use the SSD so you need to understand the physical limitations inherent in the product, it is obvious that no one ever use this product with SSDs, but the fact remains that with the HDD will never get to know the limits of the Qnap as well as any 'NAS or other product that has or needs to introduce SATA mass storage.
You CAN set up multiple iSCSI targets and/or multiple LUNs one one device, but they would all reside on one physical RAID volume.
RAID 10 (0r RAID 20)is usually best for database applications. RAID 5 can be slower in Write operations. Do you have the ability to set the system up in a test environment? I would strongly encourage that, so you can try the different configurations.
Details here: #qnap.com/static/landing/10gbe_en.html
Did I inspire them...? LOL
I got more than 450MB/s in ACTUAL real-world throughput, which is slightly more than the USB-IF expects the USB 3.0 connection to handle, so I would say that using USB instead of Ethernet would throttle the bandwidth somewhat. Of course, you lose all the advantages of having the device sitting directly on the network, which is a major feature of this and any other NAS.
In case of simultaneous streaming what total throughput can I expect... could the NAS handle 2x450 + 100 MB/s = 1000 MB/s? That should be supported by 8 high end disks but I do not know if the processor can handle a RAID5 encoding/decoding at this rate...
Last question: is it possible to wire the NAS with two 1 Gbe cables to the switch and handle two 100 MB/s streams from two different computers? Is it seamless - I mean would the computers all see a single disk or is it more complex to aggregate?
Your best bet would be to get a 10GbE switch, like the one I mentioned from Cisco, in the review. That way, all your workstations can get the bandwidth they need, and you have the bandwidth for future expansion.
Given this situation I think that the 10Gbe switch + many 10Gbe adapters is overkilling... I thought USB 3.0 would be very well suited to this kind of unsymmetric and non simulataneous access scenario. Where do you exactly see a problem? Do you think that the hybrid mode cannot work in practice or were you only saying the NAS cannot handle two USB 3.0 streams at 450 MB/s?
My main issue is that all the software for this, and most NAS devices, is designed and optimized to work in an Ethernet environment, not an ad-hoc USB network. The capabilities while connected via USB will be severly restricted. Upload and download, via a couple of built-in scripts, that's all.
FWIW, I'm never been impressed by the performance of USB with external drives. I guess I should test this one before I pull it apart...
Note: If you ever get the chance to test dual USB 3.0 transfer from two different computers ... :)
Thanks a lot for your help!
have such a box installed as ESXI 5.1 storage. Monday this week, the ESXI 5.1 freezed about 15 times after installing a additional RAID0 with 2 Samsung 830 512GB SSDs. Box is attached by 2* 10Gbit Intel X520 DA2.
Stopped to access this DataStore seams to fix the problem.
Support of QNAP always recommands to reset the box to the factory setup. Not very helpful.