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Qnap TS-559 Pro+: Familiar Network Storage With A New CPU

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It’s a good idea to use two CPU cores to speed up multiple drives in RAID 5 or 6 arrays and it’s even better to increase clock speeds. We put Qnap's TS-559 Pro+ with an Atom D525 dual-core CPU to the test: is it any faster than devices with Atom D510?

A Glance At The Software And Specifications

As with the housing, Qnap's software displays no weaknesses and demonstrates what a modern NAS device can do. A detailed discussion of its functionality is beyond the scope of this article, but we’ll provide a quick summary: the functions leave almost nothing to be desired. Experienced users should accomplish the rapid configuration through a Web browser in a few minutes.

For inexperienced users, the Web interface of a new TS-559 Pro+ presents an installation wizard that guides the user in six steps through the initial configuration. The name of the NAS server and the IP address are entered here along with indications of which network, file, multimedia, and Web server services are to be activated. The Qnap TS-559 Pro+ accommodates heterogeneous networks and supports access to AppleTalk and NFS via SMB/CIFS. Network users can access content over an iTunes or UPnP multimedia server and Web presence is enabled by the integrated LAMP servers (Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP). The decision whether or not to activate only the Apache server or the MySQL server is left to the user.

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The firmware supports RAID 0, 1, 5, and 6, of which the latter two can be operated with a spare drive in a hot-swap configuration. For professionals and businesses, it is possible to integrate the Qnap TS-559 Pro+ with a network as an iSCSI device. The TS-559 Pro+ supports the virtualization solutions VMware vSphere (ESX/ESXi 4.0 and higher), Citrix XenServer (5.6), and Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V.

If you want to test the administrative interface before buying the device, we recommend taking a look at the live demo provided by Qnap. There you can use your own data to try out the system prior to purchasing it, including the administration interface, the Web file manager, as well as the download and multimedia stations.

Brief overview of specifications

ProcessorIntel Atom D525 1.8 GHz dual core processor
RAM1 GB DDR2 RAM
Flash-Drive512 MB DOM
Hard Drive5 x 2.5/3.5" SATA
HDD BaysFive bays, connectable with hot-swap capability
RAID ModesRAID 0, 1, 5, 5 + hot-swap, 6, 6 + hotswap
File Systemext3, ext4 (internal hard drives)ext3, ext4, NTFS, FAT32, HFS+ (external hard drives)
LAN Connections2 x gigabit Ethernet
USB5 x USB 2.0 (front: 1; rear: 4)
eSATA2 x eSATA (rear)
LCD DisplayMono-LCD-Display with Enter-/Select-buttons for initial configuration
Dimensions185 mm (H) x 210 mm (W) x 235 mm (D)
WeightEmpty housing: 5.1 kg (11.25 lbs)
OtherVGA connection
FanTemperature-controlled fan, 120 mm
32 Comments Comment from the forums
  • hmp_goose 25 May 2011 12:56
    I remember a time when teh Internet was going to have hyperlinks embedded in articles for clowns like me to look stuff up with.

    C'mon! I'm a knuckle-dragging FPS-player: I don't know what "SMB/CIFS protocols" stands for, let alone good for! Isn't there at lest a related article?
    Reply
  • barmaley 25 May 2011 14:17
    Ok, I don't get it. Can someone explain to me why this $1000 device that comes with no storage is better than a $500 Linux box you can build yourself that will do everything this does and more plus it will come with tons of storage too...
    Reply
  • 25 May 2011 14:35
    Did you do Gbit Link Aggregation for the tests? Seeing as it has 2 of'em?
    Reply
  • sharpless78 25 May 2011 15:10
    barmaleyOk, I don't get it. Can someone explain to me why this $1000 device that comes with no storage is better than a $500 Linux box you can build yourself that will do everything this does and more plus it will come with tons of storage too...
    Ease of use. Very few users have the time, will and knowledge to build a NAS.
    Reply
  • aaron88_7 25 May 2011 18:33
    barmaleyOk, I don't get it. Can someone explain to me why this $1000 device that comes with no storage is better than a $500 Linux box you can build yourself that will do everything this does and more plus it will come with tons of storage too...First off, it isn't better than a $500 Linux box. Linux requires Linux knowledge and you have to provide the software you need yourself - that costs small businesses money. This also offers failover and load balancing with its dual NIC card that you wouldn't have in a $500 Linux box.

    The main thing is ease of installation. You don't need a highly technical person to get this box up and running and quickly backing up your companies data, whereas a Linux machine will require additional staff that a small business normally would not have on hand and have to pay to come onsite.

    For $1000 I'd like one just to play around with myself, though it clearly is not targeted for home users.
    Reply
  • aaron88_7 25 May 2011 18:36
    Oops, I meant to write this is better than a $500 Linux box
    Reply
  • dealcorn 25 May 2011 18:58
    I am not aware of any 5 bay hot swap itx case that could be used as a basis for a diy project with comparable functionality. Chenbro can get you to 4 at the cost of no pcie support. No pcie means no esata with a supermicro atom itx board.

    There are ways to go with ATX cases, but that is not really comparable.
    Reply
  • radiumburn 25 May 2011 19:00
    but with that $500 linux box you will force yourself to learn something.. and in the end isn't it all about the pursuit of knowledge! haha well I admin a few linux servers so I'd save the cash and make my own for myself/work instead. On that note if you want I will make them for $999 and free shipping with initial phone setup!!! save a dollar!
    Reply
  • a-nano-moose 25 May 2011 20:02
    How can you compare them when you are using different hard drives than the earlier tests?
    Reply
  • cknobman 25 May 2011 20:11
    Sharpless78Ease of use. Very few users have the time, will and knowledge to build a NAS.
    A NAS is a computer. Heck you can even build a PC put Windows 7/XP Home edition on it and turn it into a NAS all for ~$500 (and thats even with 2tb storage in raid 1, heck that is what I have done and it works great and I am even using a low power AMD CPU that is powerful enough to actually be useful rather than a pathetic atom cpu).

    There is no ease of use factor or amount of time on earth that is worth $500+ dollars.
    Reply