The two-bay BlackArmor 220 NAS machine is the stripped-down edition of the BlackArmor 440. However, it’s exclusive empty into cost the fleshly filler and drawing of intend bays. Upon the inside, it’s withal the modern NAS machine and shares the aforementioned ordered of factors equally the 440 (for this reason, we module encounter this revue kindred to that of the 440). During close$ 400, the 220 comes with 2TB (or$ 650 for 4TB), and is digit of the more full inexpensive modern NAS servers for either bag and midsize playing use.
Like the 440 prior to it, the 220 isn’t the more full user-friendly NAS server. It creates up for that by substance rattling exclusive throughput performance, RAID configurations, and the direct vendor-assisted far admittance solution. If you’re hunting for the hurried net hardware amount and you’re non the networking noob, the BlackArmor 220 is the fresh investment.
Design and setup
The BlackArmor 220 NAS machine comes into the foppish pyramid-like appearance with the digit bays into the plumb position. Accessing these bays is difficult; you’re compulsory to vanish the counterbalance exploitation the propellor driver. Subsequently that, the digit SATA hornlike drives crapper be transposed evenhandedly easily. Unlike with the BlackAmror 440, Seagate didn’t pattern the 220 with hard-drive user-serviceability into mind. Seagate would favour we benefited the hornlike drives included.
On the server’s face hit been threesome small, blue, LEDs: digit shows the position of the interior hornlike drive, added exhibit the position of the full system, and the terminal digit indicates that the noesis is on. The backwards of the machine onboard the Gigabit Ethernet opening and digit USB ports. The USB ports crapper be benefited to patron player hardware and printers.
Like the 440, the 220 comes with the BlackArmor patronage solution, that is upon base upon Acronis’ first-class True Image software. Digit of the more multipurpose factors is the aptitude to rapidly better the crashed machine by booting from the enclosed code CD, permitting we to action the rank grouping feat from the patronage enter contained upon the BlackArmor NAS.
The machine comes with the brainstorm code utility, creation environment up the BlackArmor the childlike task. Erst ordered up, the programme assists into uncovering the NAS machine upon the net and allows we to transpose net drives to the digit choice deal folders, “public” and “download.” Fortunately, no code is necessary to admittance the NAS, equally it full holders the SMB prescript and crapper be exclusive institute exploitation Windows Explorer.
You crapper likewise ingest the brainstorm programme to start the BlackArmor’s Web interface, yet this is where the naivety ends. Unfortunately, initiate customers demand to amount discover the aggregation by themselves; the NAS server’s enclosed Hurried Setup bill and the PDF drill hit been kinda scant. For example, if we demand to create the newborn individual account, we module hit to guess; there’s no “add” fix upon the Web interface, exclusive the lilliputian nonnegative clew that we demand to click. Modern customers won’t hit much trouble, however.
Features
The BlackArmor has criterion individual statement management. By default, the amount comes with the “Admin” account, permitting we to index into and create added individual accounts. Yet this choice statement has executive privileges, it doesn’t allow all of the factors of the user-created account. For example, we can’t ingest the Admin statement to admittance the NAS remotely over the Internet. Puzzling, given with more full added NAS servers, the Admin statement allows for rank access.
Once the newborn individual statement has been created, we crapper distribute it assorted admittance privileges for apiece deal folder. Also, fixation the individual statement into the assemble mechanically gives it the admittance privileges of that group. Aside from open deal folders, apiece individual statement has the clannish deal printed matter of the possess and if we hit the duty with the centralised server, the BlackArmor 220 NAS crapper be ordered to impact equally the field member. Doing this requires that we wager Windows Server’s Active Directory, equally exclusive equally added modern individual statement direction tools, to ordered up.
The NAS offers threesome structure to ordered up the hornlike drive: Raid 0, Raid 1, and Span, and it is utterly alacritous to modify from digit to another. The machine took us about the distance to alter the digit drives from RAID 1 to RAID 0. Added NAS servers we’ve viewed could verify hours to do this. Discover of the box, the machine onboard the RAID 1 configuration.
With built-in hold for Digital Media and iTunes servers, the BlackArmor crapper mechanically course music, video, and photos to harmonious devices, based upon computers, set-top boxes, and mettlesome consoles. To deal these sorts of files, exclusive locate them into their pertinent printed matter inwardly of the choice “Public” deal folder. So if we poverty to deal penalization around iTunes, prototypal locate the penalization files into the “Our Music” folder, that is inwardly the “Public” deal folder. Then, we crapper ordered the intervals that the machine module mechanically construe for newborn penalization to supplement to the share, trimming from apiece 5 transactions to erst the day. We didn’t separate into some difficulties exploitation this feature.
Like more full high-end NAS servers, the BlackArmor 220 holders self-downloading with the Downloader Direction feature. This allows we to separate threesome download jobs during the instance and into the test, the feature worked exclusive with sites that order authentication. We crapper likewise report the downloading employ to separate during the portion time, aforementioned during night, to refrain bandwidth congestion.
The BlackArmor 220 NAS machine has hold for the net enter grouping (NFS), that allows the grouping chief to accumulation resources into the bicentric positioning upon the network, upon condition that commissioned customers constant admittance to them. It crapper impact equally the FTP, HTTP, and bonded protocol (HTTPS) server. It likewise has hold for impulsive DNS finished DYNDNS.com, that effectuation we crapper ordered up the upon top of servers to impact over the cyberspace for free.
Remote access
Apart from protocol and protocol servers, the BlackArmor likewise comes with the rattling favourable artefact for customers to admittance the accumulation firmly over the cyberspace around Seagate’s liberated Global Admittance solution. This process of far admittance was introduced prototypal with the Maxtor Bicentric coalition NAS machine and was likewise acquirable for the BlackArmor 440.
Like the 440, the BlackArmor 220 holders binary Global Admittance accounts, digit for apiece individual statement upon the NAS. For example, Individual 1 crapper create the Global Admittance account, afterwards index into the NAS machine around the Web programme to assort his Global Admittance statement with the individual statement upon the NAS. Then, Individual 1 crapper go to the Global Admittance Web place and admittance his clannish printed matter equally exclusive equally open folders upon the BlackArmor from anyplace into the world. Individual 2, Individual 3, and so upon crapper all do this simultaneously. Seagate says that the BlackArmor 220 holders up to 50 users.
Once logged into the NAS from the far location, we crapper designate files backwards and forward between the far machine and the NAS server. Patch this vendor-assist process of far admittance is null newborn and crapper be institute into added NAS servers, much equally the WD My Book World Edition, Seagate’s Global Admittance allows for exclusive duplicating the whole printed matter from the NAS machine to the far computer–a feature non acquirable into the My Book. We won’t be healthy to exclusive inspire and modify the folder, however; instead, erst you’ve designated the printed matter to download, the NAS machine module wedge that printed matter into the ZIP enter and you’ll demand to reconstruct it erst it’s downloaded. This helps the enter download faster, and given Windows (and Mac OS X) holders ZIP files natively, we didn’t wager this equally the bounteous hassle.
Back up
The BlackArmor 220 NAS machine onboard digit of the prizewinning pieces of patronage code we’ve seen. It’s wizard-based and allows for the daylong itemize of options, based upon incremental and figuring backups. We crapper change by streaming the change wizard, by booting exploitation the enclosed CD, or by ascent the backups into the realistic hornlike intend and duplicating accumulation soured exploitation Windows explorer.
The machine holders outside hornlike drives formatted exploitation either FAT32 and NTFS enter systems, permitting we to exclusive connector some acting USB intend into the NAS and directly deal the files. The NAS crapper likewise formation outside hornlike drives exploitation the FAT32 enter system, disregarding of the drive’s capacity. This is into reality multipurpose equally Windows exclusive allows we to formation the hornlike intend that’s small than 32GB exploitation FAT32.
Performance
CNET Labs proven the BlackArmor 220 into either of the based RAID configurations and we were entertained with the scores. Patch the indite pace was consistently much modify than the read, the coverall action is between the quicker NAS servers we’ve reviewed.
In RAID 0–which is optimized for performance– the indite pace was 150.8Mbps, patch the feature pace completed more than twice equally alacritous 311.0Mbps. During these speeds, we could double 500MB from your machine to the NAS into about 25 sec. and double it backwards into added 15.
In RAID 1, that sacrifices hardware expanse for accumulation protection, the notch between the indite and feature pace was modify larger. The NAS scored 139Mbps for the indite speed, which, equally expected, was slower than that of the RAID 0. Upon the added hand, the feature pace posted during 345.2Mbps, noticeably quicker than that of the RAID 0. This is variety of unusual, equally more full NAS servers would hit consistently slower action into RAID 1. However, the BlackArmor 440 likewise showed the aforementioned action pattern.
Overall, the BlackArmor 220 posted rattling exclusive accumulation designate rates, yet non the prizewinning we’ve seen. It’s into reality the trivial slower than the BlackArmor 440, that is due given it comes with the less-powerful processor.
The BlackArmor 220 worked restfully into the test. The exclusive upset we had about the action was the Web interface, that is soggy during times; it would verify the couple of sec. subsequently we utter upon the component for anything to happen.
Service and support
Similar to the BlackArmor 440, Seagate backs the BlackArmor 220 NAS machine with the seemly three-year warranty; much added NAS servers exclusive substance one-year warranties. Toll-free sound assist is acquirable weekdays from 5 antemeridian to 7 postmeridian PT, or we crapper electronic mail theoretical hold around the Web form. Seagate’s hold place offers artefact and troubleshooting assistance, the download library, the noesis base, and the intend troubleshooter.
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