Synology DS212J Diskless System DiskStation $184.99 with free shipping

Thanks, OP. I hate paying the tax but saving a few bucks vs Amazon is good.

Good deal...not as good as the one with the NeweggBusiness 15% code yesterday which I got for $169.99, but still good nonetheless.

Quote from yuugotserved : Newegg Synology DS212J Diskless System DiskStation $184.99 with code EMCNENG58 free shipping

Been looking for a 2 disk RAID 1 photo backup solution. I currently have x2 1 TB spinpoint discs that I would want to start with. Can they be 'hot swapped' out or painlessly automatically rebuilt by switching out to bigger drives once start running out of space?

Quote from yuugotserved : Synology DS212J Diskless System DiskStation

So, I have a couple questions.

I have an MvixBox that is on its last leg. That means I am pretty much in the market for something exactly like the DS212j.

Can I yank the drives out of my Mvix and put them in the DS212J and preserve the data?

Also, I have a TV that reads external hard drives for movies and such. Can I plug this into my network and into my TV so that it functions as a NAS on the network and simultaneously as an external hard drive for the TV? If not, is there such a device that behaves in such a way?

These are the things I need to know!

Quote from JasonFTW : Been looking for a 2 disk RAID 1 photo backup solution. I currently have x2 1 TB spinpoint discs that I would want to start with. Can they be 'hot swapped' out or painlessly automatically rebuilt by switching out to bigger drives once start running out of space?

This!!

Quote from JasonFTW : Been looking for a 2 disk RAID 1 photo backup solution. I currently have x2 1 TB spinpoint discs that I would want to start with. Can they be 'hot swapped' out or painlessly automatically rebuilt by switching out to bigger drives once start running out of space?

They can be swapped for bigger drives but NOT hot swapped.

i have one of these with 2x 2TB (hitachi $60 after MIR - the good old days) in a RAID1. make sure you update DSM to version 4 http://www.synology.com/dsm/index.php?lang=us. it's a great NAS enclosure. transfer speeds are faster than my terastation. easy to set up and the software (DSM) is easy to use. i wish DSM was available to use on any hardware, i'd use it instead of freenas. i think it's a good deal, i got mine from amazon for $200 w/ no tax. installing the drives are easy too.

you can check out my blog if you want to see more pics and stuff http://abbyandwin.net/blog/2012/0...enclosure/

I wish this this were the DS212 and not the "J". The "J" version does not get high marks in reviews around the web.

Quote from The.Walrus : So, I have a couple questions. I have an MvixBox that is on its last leg. That means I am pretty much in the market for something exactly like the DS212j. Can I yank the drives out of my Mvix and put them in the DS212J and preserve the data? Also, I have a TV that reads external hard drives for movies and such. Can I plug this into my network and into my TV so that it functions as a NAS on the network and simultaneously as an external hard drive for the TV? If not, is there such a device that behaves in such a way? These are the things I need to know!

i doubt you can do any of that. your Mvix and the ds212 run different OS. you can install new drives in the ds212j and transfer the files from your mvix. as far as using it as a usb enclosure i don't think it's possible either. the usb is for adding additional storage or printing device. of course i'm just speculating. i have this device at home but i'm not using it this way.

Quote from JasonFTW : Been looking for a 2 disk RAID 1 photo backup solution. I currently have x2 1 TB spinpoint discs that I would want to start with. Can they be 'hot swapped' out or painlessly automatically rebuilt by switching out to bigger drives once start running out of space?

i think the DS212 regular and + edition can hot swap.. the "J" is the budget version which doesnt have hot swap and some other features missing: USB 3.0, hardware encryption, etc

Quote from norazi : i think the DS212 regular and + edition can hot swap.. the "J" is the budget version which doesnt have hot swap and some other features missing: USB 3.0, hardware encryption, etc

Spot on. The "J" is the small office/home office version. Less features, less memory, slower CPU. Different case too if memory serves.

I have it and am more than satisfied. Transfer and read/write times are quite good for the price, and the software is really what differentiates the Synology units from its competitors.

Even with the lower specs, mine feeds all the various computers and media players in my home just fine. Has more than enough memory to run the couple additional apps/packages (VPN, couple others) that I want, and the slower CPU doesn't factor in much for my useage pattern. Now if you're hammering it with gigabit data transfers from multiple systems and cramming 10K disk drives in there, you should probably consider a higher end unit. But for average home or small office, the J series is a great solution.

See if you can find last years DS211J on sale somwhere if you want it even cheaper.

how is this for Torrents? My primary goal here is to no longer have my laptop running 24/7. I essentially would like to run this instead, and have it automatically unzip the file into its respective direcetory.

I also will be using this to stream 1080P MKV's over my network to my WDTV Live, and photos/music on my Xbox 360. I'm new to NAS so I'm still learning. I messed around with their on-line demo, and it seems REALLY intuitive. But, I just want to be sure before purchasing.