Synology RackStation RS2211+ review

Synology provides some of the best IP camera recording features with the Surveillance Station 5 improved to support IE, Firefox and Google Chrome. A search tool finds your IP cameras on the network and it supports scheduled recordings and motion detection too.

Backup features are reasonable, although the bundled Data Replicator 3 is now looking a bit dated. However, the appliance offers scheduled backups of local data to external USB devices, other Synology appliances or Rsync compatible servers and integrates with Amazon's S3 remote backup service.

Synology's Time Backup provides a simple snapshot service that allows multiple file copies to be retained.

Snapshots are handled by the Time Backup add-on package which has finally come out of beta testing. This automates snapshots of selected folders to another volume on the appliance or external device. A file version history is viewed from the Timeline screen where you can select one and restore it to its original location or a new destination.

The RS2211+ scores highly over rival rack mount NAS appliances from Thecus, QNap and Netgear which don't have any worthwhile expansion capabilities. Synology's Infiniband link is a single point of failure but it clearly has no impact on performance and the high maximum capacity makes the RS2211+ a far better choice for SMBs.

So what's our verdict?

Verdict

Synology’s RS2211+ is very good value when stacked up against similar rack appliances from Thecus, Qnap and Netgear. Its superior expansion potential makes it a better choice for businesses with big plans for the future and our tests show the Infiniband connection has no detrimental impact on performance. Synology also packs in plenty of features and offers some of the best IP SAN features in this class.

Chassis: 2U rack CPU: 1.8GHz Intel Atom D525 Memory: 1GB DDR2 expandable to 3GB Storage: 10 x 3.5in.or 2.5in SATA hard disk hot-swap bays RAID: Software managed Array support: RAID 0, 1, 5, 6, Hybrid, hot-spare and JBODs Network: 2 x Gigabit Ethernet Other ports: 4 x USB2, Infiniband Management: Web browser Software: Synology Assistant, Download Redirector and Data Replicator 3 Options: RX1211, £864; RS2211RP+, £1,514; RX1211RP, £1,328 (all ex VAT)