Source: Tom's Guide | Keywords: media, server | Themes: Networking
- 1. The Triumph of Streaming Media
- 2. Introducing the HP EX475 MediaSmart server
- 3. Installation and Setup
- 4. Pros, Cons, and Reflections
- 5. For the LaCie Ethernet Disk mini – Home Edition, software makes the difference!
- 6. Introducing Axentra HipServ Home Server
5. For the LaCie Ethernet Disk mini – Home Edition, software makes the difference!
It’s always interesting to dig into a product like the LaCie Ethernet Disk mini – Home Edition when there’s more going on than meets the eye or expectations of a "typical product” are exceeded. In this particular case (pun intended), there is more hardware and a lot more software than you might expect as well. To all outward appearances, though, the LaCie Ethernet Disk mini – Home Edition is just another Ethernet-attached hard disk—a 500-GB hard disk in the model we reviewed—as the following photo shows.
Viewed from the front, a power-on/activity LED is the only active element on this network drive.
It’s All About the Architecture
Of course, attaching a drive directly to the network instead of to a PC via USB, eSATA, Firewire or whatever, takes a bit more capability inside the box. For the LaCie Ethernet Disk mini – Home Edition, this involves the Marvell Orion-based NAS hardware architecture that features a 400-MHz Marvell ARM processor and 32 MB of RAM, along with a Marvell Gigabit LAN controller that handles 10/100/1000 Ethernet connections via the unit’s RJ-45 connector. Essentially, this puts a small but capable low-powered dedicated PC to work inside the unassuming LaCie enclosure (see this LinuxDevices story for an interesting discussion of the Marvell ARM architecture and its capabilities). Seen from the rear, the LaCie Ethernet Disk mini – Home Edition disk shows off a bit more of its capabilities. That’s where you see (from top to bottom):
The rear of the LaCie Ethernet Disk mini – Home Edition is where its ports (such as they are) congregate.
- A sculpted exhaust port for the fan that cools the 500 GB drive inside
- A USB 2.0 port which, despite its appearance, only works to plug in an external drive to back up the contents of the LaCie device — it does NOT permit you to plug an additional drive or device to extend the storage space this system makes available to the network
- An RJ-45 port where the device attaches to the network (works with 10, 100 and 1000 Mbps Ethernet)
- A four-prong power connector where the AC adapter for the device plugs in (it’s a big device that’s about the same size as my Dell notebook’s AC adapter, rated at 4.2 A for 5 Volts, and 3.0 A for 12 volts (dimensions: 5.56" x 2.25" x 1.16"/ 141mm x 57mm x 30mm))
Table 2
LaCie Ethernet Disk mini – Home Edition/HipServ Home Server
| Item | Data/Remarks |
|---|---|
| CPU | Marvell 88F5182 ARM-compatible 400 MHz processor |
| RAM | 64 MB PC2-3200 (DDR2-400 MHz) |
| Network | Marvell 88E1116 10/100/1000 RJ-45 Ethernet (rear) |
| Drives | 1xSeagate 7200.10 SATA-300 500 GB hard disks |
| USB 2.0 | 1rear |
| eSATA port | none |
| Dimensions | 7.19" x 2.31" x 6.56"/ 183 mm x 59 mm x 167 mm |
| Weight | 3 lb 7 oz / 1.56 kg |
- Previous page Pros, Cons, and Reflections
- Next page Introducing Axentra HipServ Home Server
The review of the Mediasmart server was good but missed the mark, specifically in failing to mention the community of enthusiasts who continuously develop new software to expand the machine's capabilities. There is so much more to it than just backups and NAS!
The author also refers to the Mediasmart as having RAID, which it doesn't. It uses a somewhat different system of spanning multiple disks and making them appear as a single drive, but will make critical files redundant on multiple drives if a user wants.
Sure, it's an expensive machine, but like anything, there are deals to be found if one looks for it.
While this article is an interesting and informative read, it veered off course badly in its conclusion when the author stated “For those with home networks, we think the HP EX475 (or its less powerful and costly EX470 cousin) make sense only for those with lots of PCs and devices to manage”.
Every network, large or small, needs to provide a backup of important data. The HP MediaSmart Server does this often forgotten task automatically, through its daily backup of Client PC’s and Duplicate Folders on the server. The LaCie Ethernet Disk mini – Home Edition does not provide this capability, because it is an NAS, not a true Server, as evidenced by its lack of hard disk expansion, file redundancy, and Network Health monitoring, etc.
The old adage, “You get what you pay for” is never more true than when you compare the HP MediaSmart Server to the LaCie Ethernet Disk mini – Home Edition! There is no comparison, and the price reflects that.
While it might be convenient for basic Windows users to buy a solution like this from HP, an experienced user could get more mileage out of a low-end notebook computer with a decent hard drive and all of the hard disk expansion you might need with either USB, firewire, or eSATA drives externally. Several Linux-based server packages are available for media servers as well as Unison, rsync, or simple SMP or FTP for files and backup. Mac users can use Time Machine for a more elegant automatic backup. Mac & Linux users are not likely to want Windows Home Server packages.
Good article. I have a LaCie Ethernet Disk Mini Home Edition and I love it. The author made an error though when he said the LaCie has an embedded 900 MHz Marvell processor. In fact it only has a 400 MHz Marvell processor.
As well, Interlude in his comment above made an error when he said 'The LaCie Ethernet Disk mini – Home Edition does not provide this capability'. The desktop applications which come with the LaCie does provide a Windows and Mac application for automated backups of data on my PCs to the HipServ OS on the LaCie drive. Its based on rsync and it works really well for me. It does folder and file backups, but thats all I need. To boot, the LaCie device fully supports both the Mac and Windows which I love. The Windows Home Server does not provide this capability - Microsoft says Windows Home Server supports the Mac, but when you read the fine print it only supports the Mac if you install Vista on it. That is NOT supporting the Mac. As well, Interlude was incorrect when he said that the LaCie is not a true server - the LaCie drive runs HipServ which uses as its base the RedHat Linus Enterprise Server 4 OS. The same server OS that many banks around the world depend on.
The LaCie device even allows me to make a secondary backup to an attached USB hard drive through the HipServ MySafe feature. The LaCie may not have multiple drives, but it least that it will not corrupt my data... unlike the Windows Home Server does.