The ReadyNAS NV+ by NETGEAR is a compact and affordable four-bay Network Attached Storage (NAS) device that can easily handle the storage needs of a home or small office. It’s an ideal storage solution for small offices or work groups with limited IT resources that require networked expandable RAID storage and advanced “server” features such as print and media servers, system monitoring with email alerts, and integrated backup management capabilities.
Case Design
Starting from the outside and working our way in, the first noticeable part of the ReadyNAS NV is of course the case design. It is built out of a sturdy aluminum and despite its diskless design; it still weighs in at a hefty 10 pounds. To be honest, we like the feel of the heavier and sturdier case. It feels more rugged and stable than the flimsy plastic most NAS systems are built out of. The aluminum case is built with a few air vents all around to allow air to flow freely through the front facing fan onto the hard drives and out of the case. The metal also allows for excess heat to be expelled by contact onto the case and away from the drives. Both good cooling features.
Atop the case is an LCD monitor that shops the device’s IP address and the status of the hard drives inside. This helps make networking super easy, as well as administrating and checking on the health and wellness of the drives inside.
Hot Swapping
The ReadyNAS is a diskless NAS that features 4 drive bays, all hot swappable. Hot swapping is a term used to mean not having to shut down a system to replace or exchange hard drives that are in use. Hot swapping is great if you have to have a system that’s on 24/7 and can’t take it down to do repairs. If you have the device set to one of the 3 RAID modes (RAID makes redundant backups on other drives to make data more secure in the event of a drive failure) it supports and one of your installed drives fails, pulling the failed drive out and putting a new one in to join the existing RAID is quite simple.
Bonus Features
The ReadyNAS has quite a few tricks up its sleeve when it comes to special features, including, but not limited to, a bittorrent client, a photo slideshow application, UPnP (Universal Plug and Play), and a built in web server to host web pages.
Wrap-Up
We really have nothing but praise for the ReadyNAS NV 4 bay diskless NAS. It’s a little more advanced than some of the other products on the market and it’ll take a little know how to get everything up and running smoothly, but we don’t think there’s much reason not to look at this product especially if you’re considering buying one for your home or office needs.
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