Broadberry CyberStore 424DSS review
This unified network storage product combines NAS, IP SAN and FC SAN operations and has great expansion potential. Dave Mitchell finds out if the affordable platform is the perfect all-rounder.
Broadberry’s hardware platform and the Open-E DSS software are a versatile combination which supports NAS, IP SAN and FC SAN operations straight from the box. It’s good value as licensing is only based on capacity and there’s room to grow with demand.

Storage Features
Replication is supported so any volume can be mirrored to another Open-E appliance. During creation you can schedule snapshots to another local volume for regular point in time backups. NAS shares can be designated as WORM volumes and any type of volume can be expanded on the fly into spare space.
For IP SAN configuration you enter a size for each target, assign a LUN and enable CHAP authentication if required. Thin provisioning has yet to be implemented in DSS but a valuable feature is iSCSI failover as two physical adapters can be bound into a single virtual adapter so if one fails, all traffic is routed over the active one.
It's just as easy to create NAS shares and for access control, you can apply local user and group lists, workgroup or AD authentication. HTTP and FTP access can be allowed or denied on each share and for the latter you can limit the number of connections and enforce encrypted transfers.
NAS shares can also have virus scanning applied as Open-E has the open source ClamAV engine ready and waiting. It can be set to regularly scan selected shares, quarantine infected files to another share and automatically download signature database updates.
Virus scans can be run on selected NAS shares and the appliance can look after its own backup jobs
The appliance also manages its own backup jobs where it secures selected volumes to a NAS share or a locally attached tape drive. Jobs can be scheduled regularly and can comprise full, incremental and differential backups. Open-E also provides embedded agents for popular backup products including Symantec's Backup Exec and CA's ARCserve.
Sign up today and you will receive a free copy of our Future Focus 2025 report - the leading guidance on AI, cybersecurity and other IT challenges as per 700+ senior executives
Dave is an IT consultant and freelance journalist specialising in hands-on reviews of computer networking products covering all market sectors from small businesses to enterprises. Founder of Binary Testing Ltd – the UK’s premier independent network testing laboratory - Dave has over 45 years of experience in the IT industry.
Dave has produced many thousands of in-depth business networking product reviews from his lab which have been reproduced globally. Writing for ITPro and its sister title, PC Pro, he covers all areas of business IT infrastructure, including servers, storage, network security, data protection, cloud, infrastructure and services.
-
A threat to Google’s dominance? The AI browser wars have begun – here are the top contenders vying for the crown
News Perplexity has unveiled its Comet browser while OpenAI is reportedly planning to follow suit
By Nicole Kobie Published
-
Ingram Micro cyber attack: IT distributor says system restoration underway – but some customers might have to wait for a return to normality
News Ingram Micro is gradually getting back on its feet after a recent cyber attack severely disrupted systems.
By Emma Woollacott Published
-
The UK government is working with Meta to create an AI engineering dream team to drive public sector adoption
News The Open-Source AI Fellowship will allow engineers to apply for a 12-month “tour of duty” with the government to develop AI tools for the public sector.
By Ross Kelly Published