Linksys Storage Link for USB 2.0 Disk Drives NSLU2

Average customer rating: 3.5

Unimpressive
does what it's supposed to and more
A great little "roll your own" NAS solution!
it works!
What a disappointment!!

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Linksys Storage Link for USB 2.0 Disk Drives NSLU2

Manufacturer: Linksys
Product Group: CE
Binding: Electronics
ASIN: B0001FSCZO

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Product Description

Linksys NSLU2 Network Storage Link for USB 2.0 Disk Drives addresses a key problem that occurs in most office LAN environments. As workgroup needs evolve for increased datastorage demands along with emergent technologies, increasing the storage capacity of your network becomes vital. With the availability of many accessory hard drives, it is possible to increase storage without overhauling your entire network and the NSLU2 makes it possible with greater ease than you might have imagined. Now you can quickly and easily add gigabytes of storage space onto your network with the Network Storage Link from Linksys. This tiny network appliance connects USB 2.0 hard drives directly to your Ethernet network. You can connect up to two stand-alone USB disk drives of any size, and access them from anywhere on your network. You can even plug a USB flash disk into the Network Storage Link, for a convenient way of accessing your portable data files. The Network Storage Link can also be set up so that your storage devices are accessible from the Internet -- files can be easily downloaded via your web browser. Your files can be available publicly, or create password-protected accounts for authorized users. Installation of the Network Storage Link is simple -- just plug it directly into your 10/100 Ethernet network, and attach your USB 2.0 hard drives or flash disk. It can self-configure to your network via DHCP or you can use the built-in utility to manually configure it. With the speedy USB 2.0 interface, you'll get quick response times with even your largest files.

Customer Reviews:

Unimpressive.......2007-06-02

As delivered, the NSLU2 worked right out of the box. I plugged in a 500GB USB 2.0 drive. delivered with the NSLU2, ran the setup utility, and all was OK.

Then I tried to modify a few things, such as the default password (a typical security step). It does not allow modification of user settings unless the attached hard drive is formatted as EXT3 rather than NTFS. However, other modifications such as assigning a new device name or a fixed IP address worked OK. Since I don't plan to make the disk storage visible on the Internet, security not a major issue.

Then I tried to attach a second NTFS-formatted drive. The NLSU2 reported it as "not formatted". When I unplugged the first drive, the NLSU2 reported the second drive as NTFS-formatted. Documentation and on-line help from Linksys were not helpful. I have yet to figure out what to do to attach a second drive, although one 500GB drive is enough for the forseeable future.

So, the current verdict is that the NSLU2 is usable for what I intended: network backup storage for multiple home PCs. But I'm not impressed with it.

does what it's supposed to and more.......2007-05-15

This is my 2nd NLSU2. I got the first one to share files at home using a USB drive I had. It wasn't till after it arrived that I found out that the firmware can be hacked and upgraded. I got the 2nd one to hack and play with. Void's the warranty.

Basic setup took about 5 minutes.

Yes, for full secured shared folders you need to reformat the drive to an EXT3 linux format but you can leave the drive as FAT32 and it's visible on the network, but no security.

A great little "roll your own" NAS solution!.......2007-04-30

If you're looking at adding more storage to your computer network, there exist many solutions that let you do so. The Linksys NSLU2 is just another method of doing so, but it has an interesting twist. Unlike many solutions that bundle their own drives, the NSLU2 features two USB ports to which you can attach external USB hard drives of almost any size or type. This means you can pick the types of hard drives that best fit your needs. You can also pick the brand of drive that you like the best.

Linksys suggests using Maxtor drives with the NSLU2. I wouldn't give a Maxtor drive to my worst enemy. I selected a LaCie "Porsche" designed enclosure with a 250GB Samsung drive inside to start with. Later on, I added a Western Digital "My Book" 250GB hard drive. Both work well, but to head off any potential problems, I hooked both drives up to a computer and deleted the manufacturer supplied partitions, so the NSLU2 would be starting with a "clean slate". While configuring the unit, I set it to use a static IP address (a good idea, so the unit doesn't "move around" on your network).

After getting the drives formatted, I was able to quickly start storing things on them. Connecting to the drives from a Windows or Macintosh computer is easy to do. Once connected, I started moving files across to the device. It never hiccuped once, and I transferred everything from huge (32+ GB) NTBackup files down to smaller files, like Word documents. I transferred a little over 140GB worth of backup files and another 2GB or so of smaller files in a few hours time.

Being as it is built around a miniature Linux operating system, alternative firmware solutions have been written to extend the functionality of the NSLU2 beyond what Linksys provides. Even though the Linksys firmware isn't lacking in options for file access, you may wish to do things that aren't provided, such as sharing music over your network.

So far I am very impressed with the NSLU2. It seems to be very stable, reasonably fast and it took well to being used by several computers at once. The only slowdown I noticed with several computers transferring data to it at once was with the web interface. The pages took a few seconds to fully appear. I have not yet had to reboot or reset it. Later on I may connect it to a small UPS to keep it running during power outages.

I have only a few complaints--the Linksys web interface suffers in places from poor localization and doesn't always render properly. Some of the settings are strangely placed and you are prompted for the administration password more than once in some cases. I also would have liked to see two more USB ports provided, so as to allow for attachment or more drives.

All things considered, I think the NSLU2 is a great little solution and certainly deserves your consideration if you're looking at adding storage to your network. It may not be geared for the less experienced computer user, but this product will most likely delight people who want to customize their network attached storage solution and don't mind tinkering with it a little to do so.

it works!.......2007-04-19

The setup is simple. I use a Western Digital My Book with the NSLU2 and it works fine. All the PCs on network mapped it correctly as a network drive - just make sure that NSLU2 and all the PCs share the same workgroup name. I didn't reformat the drive into EXT 3 format so wasn't able to set any kind of Read-Write permission or even change the default password - it will only let me change the default port. As a result, I will definitely not run the network drive 24/7 and hence the 3 star rating.

What a disappointment!!.......2007-04-11

I had high hopes to replace my old computer being used as a "file server" with this device. It is unreliable, clunky to set up and keep up. It needs to be hard booted almost daily to get it to work.

When the Linksys Storage Link is working- the speed is great, transferring MP3s, Videos and large files with better speeds then the computer.

Overall - the Linksys Storage Link is not wroth buying. Maybe- just maybe they will have a firmware update in the future that will make the re-boots un-needed and the whole device useful. Until then - I am keeping my files on the computer, and this device on the shelf.

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