Conveniently centralize your files and access them from an internet-connected computer
500 GB hard drive, expands via 4 hard drive bays
Automatically backup and protect the digital memories on your home PCs running Windows XP and later operating systems
Stream photos, music and videos to PCs on your network or to your TV or stereo system
Powered by Microsoft Windows Home Server software and 1.8 GHz, 64-bit AMD Sempron processor
Rating: - Nice home server, but installation is VERY tricky
I already own an Infrant ReadyNAS, which has been running flawlessly for over a year. I needed a way to back up that box, so I thought this would be a good option. Plus, the PC backup sounded great. I spent the first 12 hours trying to get the WHS connector software to install. I must have uninstalled it and reinstalled it 5 times, along with restoring the server 3 times. The solution? YOU MUST NOT BE CONNECTED TO THE INTERNET DURING THE INSTALLATION OF THE CONNECTOR SOFTWARE. If you do, and you have DDNS enabled in your cable/dsl modem, you run a very high risk of associating a wrong IP address to the server name (like I did). At a very minimum, you need to make sure DDNS is disabled. Had M$ put this in the instructions in the first place, I would have saved a day of screwing around with installation problems. Once this was resolved, the box works great. The PC backup is the best feature, followed by the web sharing of your content. The configuration of this is very intuitive for anyone that has been around computers at all. Even novices should be able to figure it out, as HP has a wizard that guides you through the important parts of the setup.
I give the hardware 5 stars, and the WHS operating system 3 stars. It gets docked one star for the installation problem (happened on two different computers), and IT ALSO GETS DOCKED ONE STAR FOR A DATA CORRUPTION ISSUE that is a confirmed flaw in the operating system. Basically, if you use this to backup PC's and share files, you will be fine. If you have only one drive installed in it, you are immune to the flaw. If you edit files stored on this, and use any of Microsoft's other applications like Office, YOU WILL GET DATA CORRUPTION. This is a huge problem for Microsoft, and the WHS development team is scrambling for a fix. The bottom line is that you should never have only one copy of important files. Back them up to 2 or 3 different systems.
Follow-Up:
This item is getting shipped back, as the operating system is fatally flawed. I am getting data corruption issues just copying from one NAS device to this box. Unacceptable. I also cannot delete folders I create as "files are in use". Well, I know that is not the case, as I rebooted everything, and still get the error. This box is not ready for prime time.
Rating: - A terrible product
I bought this from amazon in November. This was a big mistake. I get error messages from the server at least every other day. After two months, there was a major software failure that required at least four hours of help by technical support to partially fix. A week later, I'm still not back up to functioning. The remote access never worked, despite help from tech support. I'm fairly tech savvy, but this server technology/software is clearly over the head of average users.
I'm very sorry I bought this and would advise others to avoid it.
Rating: - Simply great!
I was able to set it up in no time, and it backed up my two computers overnight without any setup other than installing the CD on my computers that the server came with.
Now I am moving all of my large files to the server since my computers were near their HD storage limits. Plus I am converting all of my DVD collection to Apple TV format (using CloneDVD Mobile) and storing them on the server which iTunes sees, and I am now watching my movies directly from my Apple TV device on my TV. Really cool!
However, the only problem is that I chose to have remote access, so it turns out that my really old router (6 yrs old) could not be configured to allow that. The cool part is that the HP server software tries to configure the router automatically, if you select the access remotely option. Since it did not work, I followed the instructions to change the router settings manually to make it work, but no good.
I will be buying a new wireless N router with Gigabit Ethernet to take advantage of the server's high speed Gigabit capabilities. The Apple TV is wireless N, so it is time to upgrade from my wireless B router anyway.
Oh, one more thing, the reason I bought the 500GB unit instead of the 1TB, is by the time I fill it up (est 6 months), the 750GB and the 1TB SATA HDs will be pretty cheap by then, so I'll save the difference in price for now.
**Update**
The remote issue was my cable internet service provider blocks port 80 (Cablevision in NJ), so I had to upgrade to the higher speed internet service they provide, for a fee of course...
Plus they said they offer support for setting up my home server, and website, so maybe I'll take them up on that for any issues that come my way.
Rating: - good concept ok product and poor support
wait until hp and microsoft get the bugs worked out. there are numerous bugs that effect hardware and software without solution. tech support is virtually non-existant.In many cases calls are routed to wrong department because they are unaware that they offer the product. The folks in India run you through the mill on each call, asking the same questions.Not all of the remote features of the product work. The hardware has many reported failures.
Hp blames microsoft software and microsoft is unresponsive as usual. Once they get the bugs out the product has great potential for muti-computer network storage, back-up and remote access.
HP EX470 MediaSmart Home Server (AMD Live, Windows Home Server, 500 GB Hard Drive) Reviews
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