Tag: Thecus

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Thecus Adds NAS With UPS Inside | SmallNetBuilder

From the horse’s mouth

Thecus

Press Release

N5810PRO 5-bay NAS Product Page

My Comments

A common issue with running a network-attached storage is making sure that the data is intact even if things go wrong with the AC power. This is something that can easily go wrong in regional and rural areas where there is a combination of overhead power lines and overgrowing trees and it just takes a tree or branch to fall down for the power to go out, or if your premises has ageing electrical infrastructure.

Typically this will involve the use of an uninterruptable power supply which effectively is a battery bank for your computer device, giving it a bit of time to properly shut down if the power fails. These are separate devices that you have to buy and plug your NAS into and most of them have the ability to signal to the NAS to appropriately write back the data and properly shut down when the power is out.

But Thecus has solved this problem with the N5810PRO which is a 5-bay small-business NAS that has an integrated uninterruptable power supply. This battery bank provides enough power to cause the NAS to write back all of data to its five disks and properly shut down, but you don’t have to have a separate device to achieve this.

It also has the other expectations of a small-business desktop NAS such as server functionality for a wide variety of tasks alongside even a server-side implementation of McAfee’s anti-virus software. As well, there are the 5 Ethernet ports which allow for serving 5 different physical networks or providing a “fat-pipe” from a suitably-equipped switch. Oh yeah, it also supports SMB/CIFS, DLNA, iTunes for the file transfer and can run multiple RAID volumes across the five disks.

But could I see the integration of a battery backup / UPS function in a NAS become a product differentiator? This could be more so with “small-business” models and the battery capacity could be a product differentiator in itself especially if the goal is to provide long-run failsafe operation.

 Thecus NAS server ( Network attached storage ) | Unbeatable Protection with Thecus® Battery Backup Module

Product Page

My Comments

Most of us who run a network-attached storage device will realise that these devices will need to have constant power supply in order to keep the data safe. The common solution that we would take would be to connect the NAS’s AC power supply through an uninterruptible power supply. These devices have a built-in battery to provide enough power to allow for an orderly shutdown of the device or allow the device to run longer through a short outage.

Now Thecus have taken a cue from a common security-system design practice. This is where an alarm system has an integrated battery that is maintained by the system’s power supply. It is so that the alarm system can continue to protect the premises if there is a power outage.

They have extended this concept by providing an optional battery-backup module for the N4200 “muscle-NAS” unit as an alternative to a UPS setup, with the battery allowing enough power for an orderly shutdown or completion of firmware installation. This can also cater for power outages including situations where the device may be accidentally unplugged and may be enough for most home and small-business environments.  If the NAS is used with an UPS, it could allow a larger safety margin for the data through the provision of “dual-layered” battery backup arrangement.

The concept may be worth it for equipment that is used in the home or by small businesses and would be a must for places where the power supply is likely to be unreliable. It also is another example where the manufacturers are racing to build the best example of a top-end network-attached storage device for the home or small business in a similar way to what Ford, GM and Chrysler were doing in the late 60s and early 70s with the “muscle cars”.