by Jeff Bouton — Monday, July 07, 2008

Thecus N5200BR NAS Server

Introduction and Product Specifications

As digital media increases in popularity, so will the demand for larger storage options, whether in the form of increased hard drives capacities or through the use of expandable network storage devices. The last time we broached the topic of NAS was with our article on two impressive SOHO units from QNAP. While not industrial strength solutions, both QNAP models offered a balance of hardware and software features that made them excellent solutions for both home and small business users. However, with the TS-101 being a single drive solution and the TS-201 being a two-drive option, they are limited when it comes to ease of expansion and growth in a user's storage needs. This is where the Thecus N5200BR NAS Server steps in.

The Thecus N5200BR NAS Server targets end-users with more demanding network storage needs. To offer a more universal solution, Thecus designed the N5200BR with five SATA II bays supporting numerous RAID options, an LED status read-out, router capabilities and a host of other features to make it a serious contender for home users and in the commercial environment where a highly configurable NAS unit is a must. On the surface, the Thecus N5200BR looks to have what it takes to fit a wide variety of NAS needs. In the pages ahead, we'll look below the surface to ascertain the strengths and weaknesses of the Thecus N5200BR NAS Server, with a goal of providing a complete and clear picture of what a unit like this can deliver.

Thecus N5200BR NAS Server

Specifications and Features

HDDs
5 x 3.5" SATA II HDD, Hot-swappable

eSATA port
1 x eSATA connector for capacity expansion

USB ports
2 x USB A type (Host mode)
1 x USB B type (Client mode)

Ethernet ports
N5200 RouStorTM :
1 x Gigabit RJ-45 Connector
4 port Gigabit switch

LCD Control Panel
For basic configurations and status display

Network File Protocols
Microsoft Networks (CIFS/SMB)
Apple Filing Protocol (AFP 3)
Network File System (NFS v3)
File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP)
Secure Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTPs)

Authentication
Microsoft NT Domain Controller (PDC)*
Microsoft Active Directory Authentication (AD)*

Network Client Type
Microsoft Windows NT/2000/XP/2003
Unix/Linux/BSD
MAC OS X, OS 9, OS 8.6

Network Configuration
Fixed IP Address
Dynamic IP Address

Disk Management
Power Management (Disk idle spin-down)
Disk Status Monitoring (S.M.A.R.T.)

RAID
RAID 0, 1, 5, 6, 10, and JBOD
Auto Rebuild
Hot Swappable
Hot Spare
Disk Roaming
RAID Level Migration
RAID Expansion
Disk Capacity Supported :
80/120/160/200/250/300/400/500/750/1000 GB

Folder Management
Share Folder Level Permission
File Level Permission
Public Folder
Quota Management
Share Folder Quota Control

Backup
Thecus Backup Utility (Microsoft Windows XP/2000 /MAC OS X)
Thecus Nsync

System Management
Web GUI
Multilingual Support (English, French, German, Italian, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Spanish)
Event Notification
Email Notification
Buzzer Notification
LCD

Supported USB Devices
USB Printer
External HDD/Flash disk
USB IEEE 802.11 b/g dongle w/ AP mode support **

Setup Utility
Windows 2000 / XP / 2003
MAC OS X

Safety and Environment
CE, FCC, BSMI, C-Tick, RoHS Compliant

Dimension
230 x 190 x 230 mm (H x W x D)

Physical
Lockable Disk Tray

Operating Environment
0 - 40 C
20 – 85
Relative Humidity (non-condensing)

Power Supply
Server-rated AC Power Supply
100/220VAC, 50/60 Hz, Auto detect

*PDC/AD support: Works as a client member in an Microsoft NT 4.0 domain/Active Directory domain, allowing the N5200 to utilize the domain users and groups setting for authentication to the system and authorization to the share folders.

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Tags: NAS, server, Enterprise, Thecus, serve, 520