Intel SS4200-E: PC-Based NAS Evaluated

[MBinder]

Intel's Celeron-based SS4200-E is the company's latest effort to clinch market share in the SOHO storage space. Is it enough to usurp more established incumbents?

Intel SS4200-E: PC-Based NAS Evaluated : Read more

 

[slomo4sho]

A HTPC type build is still the best low cost high performance option.

Thanks for the write up

 

[gwolfman]

Very interesting. What if you replaced the horrible PSU with one of the picoPSUs made by minibox (if I'm not mistaken) or miniPSUs that are available. http://www.mini-box.com/picoPSU-120-power-kit?sc=8&category=981 OR http://www.mini-box.com/PW-200M-DC-DC-power-supply?sc=8&category=981 I have one of those running my mini-itx server and works flawlessly, cool, efficiently, and it's 100% silent!

 

[malveaux]

Lol,

$400, no drives, just the `chasis.'

It's a PC folks. Just build a cheaper PC with better components. It'll do more. And cost less.

What a joke, intel.

Cheesr,

 

[KITH]

malveaux, people might find added value in a nice, quiet, compact case that has easy setup and a warranty as well as customer support.

spending time on purchasing, assembling, and configuring a custom device might not be an option or a at least not a better option.

 

[malveaux]

Kith,

I understand that. Some people would rather have a box that hums and plugs in and just `works.' They won't want nor need to know how or why it works. They won't be able to troubleshoot it hardware-wise themselves, nor know a damn thing about it. They are still required however to plug in their own hard drives and configure the RAID if they wish it. There are markgets for NAS. But it's getting to be silly how many home-target NAS are being pushed out there that cost a ridiculous amount of money for what is essentially a computer that needs HDD's. For that cost, you might as well build your own computer. Or just take any old computer, but gigabit lan in it, fill with HDD's and run FreeNas. All problems solved on the cheap.

Support? Laughable. You'll talk to someone in Duabi or New Dheli or whereever, they'll tell you to unplug it, reset your router, plug it back in, push the power button and wait for it to re-connect. They can't help you with HARD DRIVE problems which is the SOLE purpose of the thing--to serve from HDD's.

I'm all for an attractive easy headless case with built in parts for HDD's. But for $400 and higher for this thing? Please. Any fool reading this website can NewEgg the parts needed, child's play, and have a NICE looking little microatx box housing the SAME capacity and function for less money. The issue with that? Requires a little elbow greace to assemble? Are these the same people who can't change their own tire? ... Probably. There went my whole argument.

 

[Guest]

very very very IMPORTANT!!!!!
already build an ss4200-ee with 4x1TB hdd, but it went down after 2 weeks.after changing the hardware the data was not recoverd cause the firmware of the ss4200-ee is not similar in another same ss4200-ee
now i have to wait 1 month for the nas to come back from egypt where intel repairs those nas in the middel east
for those who r intrested into building a nas, think of software raid not hardware.

 

[Guest]

I really don't understand any of these NAS devices. I have an dual core socket 939 motherboard with 3 4-disk RAID 5 arrays (Linux software RAID) and a bunch of single disks, and I can get 40 MB/sec from the single disks over my gigabit network, and faster from the RAIDs. I have the drives in a bunch of Silverstone CFP51 4-drive bays.

Total cost for a cheap case, 4 of the CFP51s, PCI and PCIe controllers, motherboard, CPU and 4 GBs of RAM is probably $7-800, ready to hold 16 hard drives, and considerably faster.

 

[malveaux]

claude,

Exactly my point. Since that machine has EVERY piece of hardware SOLDERED to it, you can't just replace ONE part if it breaks. You replace the WHOLE thing. And that's NOt including your HDD's, which they don't help you with, that's just the chasis and the board that has the SOLDERED OS in place, with ZERO input points for changing that.

Support is not possible with a unit like this. Meaningful support, that is. Support that is, "oh sorry to hear that, want to ship it over sears to me? $200 dolla? OOps! It no work, buy new one. BAI!"

 

[V3NOM]

^what the cheese.

 

[Taracta]

The real issue with this device is the SIZE! For just holding four (4) drives it is HUGE! Properly built this case could hold 2 to 3 times (8 - 12)as much drives.

You can also get this product without an OS (EMC software) and use Home Server as the OS.

 

[kutark]

Ok, so, maybe i'm missing something, or maybe its the fact that i havent paid attention to NAS since my highschool days back when i was taking a CISCO CCNA course, but is there a specific reason this NAS doesn't have an ethernet port? Am i missing something?

Also, for the prices i've found online, you can build a low cost HTPC, granted you will only have space for 2 HDD's instead of 4, but the computer will be much much more useful overall, and could serve dual purpose as you could connect it to an LCD TV for presentations in a SOHO environment, or for media viewing, etc.

 

[kutark]

Also, just because this brought back memories. Back in my senior year, in 2000-2001. We were able to take a tour of the Oracle secondary HQ in Colo Springs. Keep in mind this was late 2000. They had a 100 TB NAS system that was all on SCSI fiber channel. They had 2x DS3 connections to their main HQ in Cali, where they had 2x OC3's going out to the internet. I still think the thing that was the coolest was the fire suppression system, which basically gave you 10 seconds to get out of the room at which point it sealed the room and vacuumed all of the air out (cool!). Anyways, reminiscing.

 

[cl_spdhax1]

[citation][nom]Kutark[/nom]Also, just because this brought back memories. Back in my senior year, in 2000-2001. We were able to take a tour of the Oracle secondary HQ in Colo Springs. Keep in mind this was late 2000. They had a 100 TB NAS system that was all on SCSI fiber channel. They had 2x DS3 connections to their main HQ in Cali, where they had 2x OC3's going out to the internet. I still think the thing that was the coolest was the fire suppression system, which basically gave you 10 seconds to get out of the room at which point it sealed the room and vacuumed all of the air out (cool!). Anyways, reminiscing.[/citation]

a sad death for fat people

 

[Guest]

I purchased one and love it. The thing to keep in mind with a lot of these NAS's is they often have GigE and SATA 300 IO, but are crippled with dinky CPU's that rate-limit you to 10-20MBPS. My own benchmark: I am writing at 50MBps in RAID1 (using Linux PartImage to NAS SMB mount), and that is because this NAS doesn't cheap out on the CPU.

Can you build your own box for cheaper? I think it'll be a close call. This thing is on buy.com right now for

 

[arpado]

Hi,

I have a new Intel Entry Storage System SS4200-E. I have addes one disk in the slot marked as number one. Switching the system on it appears to never got to the "ready" stage. The blue power light keeps flashing for ever and ever. I have left it on for more than ten hours with no change. Also tried to do a hardware reset useing the reset button on the back.

Software cannot connect to the device, and a ipscan has not revealed the device on the network, but the network device has connection.. so theres someting wrong with the device.. any tips?

 

[Guest]

Hello Anyone,
Same thing for me I cannot make a combination that will make this device work. Continual "Blue Power" light flashing..
I have a new Intel Entry Storage System SS4200-E. I have addes one disk in the slot marked as number one. Switching the system on it appears to never got to the "ready" stage. The blue power light keeps flashing for ever and ever. I have left it on for more than ten hours with no change. Also tried to do a hardware reset useing the reset button on the back.

Software cannot connect to the device, and a ipscan has not revealed the device on the network, but the network device has connection.. so theres someting wrong with the device.. any tips?