Synology DS710+

For remote users, Synology has included an EZ-Internet firewall setup wizard, and you can create port forwarding rules for inbound remote access. Permissions for remote users can also be set to control what sort of file and administration access each user has.

NAS drives are perfect as backup stations and the DS710+ has many options here too – you can schedule backups to and from external eSATA and USB devices, plus Synology’s Replicator 3 software allows schedule workstation backup, which can even backup new and modified files on the fly in Sync mode.

Also on the extensive feature list is the Surveillance Station 4 software which you can use to record feeds from connected IP cameras.

A full complement of media storage and streaming options are also here. You can set up the device as a humble FTP/HTTP server to access your media from anywhere on the internet, and also (via LAN) stream your audio and video to any DLNA/UPnP enabled device including a PS3 or Xbox 360, with support for all the latest formats (support for new formats can be had via firmware updates).

For testing, the unit we received came with two high-performance 1TB Western Digital Black 7,200RPM drives configured in RAID1 (mirrored). Connecting to the DS710+ via a Gigabit Ethernet router, I could punch through read speeds of 114Mbytes/s and write speeds of 113Mbytes/s, which is almost as fast as a Gigabit connection can handle, so stellar performance there.

Overall, the D S710+ is probably a bit pricey for home use, but it has a solid feature set and great performance for the office.