Test Methodology
Network Storage Configurations |
|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Synology DS115 |
|||||||
| CPU | 1.30GHz Marvell Armada CP (dual-core) |
2.00GHz Intel Celeron J1900 (quad-core, 2MB cache) |
0.80GHz Marvell Armada 375 88F6720 (dual-core) |
1.20GHz Mindspeed Comcerto C2200 (dual-core) |
1.00GHz APM 86491 SoC (single-core, 256KB L2 cache) |
1.86GHz Intel Atom D2550 (dual-core, 1MB cache) |
0.65GHz Mindspeed Comcerto C2000 (dual-core) |
| Memory | 512MB DDR3 |
8GB DDR3L |
512MB DDR3 |
512MB DDR3 |
1GB DDR3 |
2GB DDR3 |
256MB DDR3 |
| Disk Drives | 4x 1TB Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003 (included) |
4x 4TB WD Red WD40EFRX (optional) |
1x 4TB WD Red WD40EFRX (optional) |
4x 4TB WD Red WD40EFRX (optional) |
4x 4TB WD Red WD40EFRX (optional) |
5x 1TB Samsung HD103SJ (optional) |
1x 2TB WD Red WD20EFRX (included) |
| RAID Mode | RAID 5 |
RAID 5 |
N/A |
RAID 5 |
RAID 5 |
RAID 5 |
N/A |
| Network Connection | Gigabit Ethernet |
Gigabit Ethernet |
Gigabit Ethernet |
Gigabit Ethernet |
Gigabit Ethernet |
Gigabit Ethernet |
Gigabit Ethernet |
| Current Price (inc. VAT) | £460 |
£580 |
£125 |
£265 |
£220 |
£350 |
£110 |
Test Client |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| Hardware Components | HEXUS Review | Product Page | |
| Processor | Intel Core i7-4770K (quad-core, up to 3.900GHz) | June 2013 | Intel.com |
| CPU Cooler | Noctua NH-D15 | April 2014 | Noctua.at |
| Motherboard | Asus Z97-A | May 2014 | Asus.com |
| Memory | 4GB Corsair Vengeance LP (1x4GB) DDR3 @ 1,600MHz | August 2011 | Corsair.com |
| Power Supply | Corsair AX760i | - | Corsair.com |
| Storage Device | Crucial M500 240GB SSD | July 2013 | Crucial.com |
| Chassis | Corsair Graphite Series 600T | October 2010 | Corsair.com |
| Monitor | Philips Brilliance 4K Ultra HD LED (288P6LJEB/00) | - | Philips.co.uk |
| Operating system | Windows 8.1 (64-bit) | October 2012 | Microsoft.com |
Benchmarks |
|---|
| File Copy Test (8.83GB) Intel NAS Performance Toolkit v1.7.1 Power Consumption |
Notes
All of our comparison NAS servers are tested using a single Gigabit Ethernet link with Jumbo frames disabled, and are connected to our client machine and network via a Netgear GS108 switch.
Taking a look at a basic usage scenario, our file copy test involves moving a mixed assortment of files totalling 8.83GB in size from our client to the NAS. The result is recorded in MB/s.
Our second benchmark - NAS Performance Toolkit, developed by Intel - is a file-system exerciser specifically designed to provide performance comparisons between NAS devices. Intel's utility focuses on user-level performance using real-world workload traces gathered from typical digital home applications such as HD video playback and record. Intel NASPT reproduces the file-system traffic observed in various traces onto a chosen storage device and records performance in MB/s.
Last but not least, we measure NAS power draw during three states; under load, idle and standby mode if applicable.
Readers should note that our usual hard drives - 1TB Samsung HD103SJs - have bitten the dust. 4TB WD Red hard drives (model WD40EFRX) have been introduced as a replacement and these drives will be used in all future NAS reviews. The Qnap TS-453 Pro, Synology DS115, Synology DS414j and Thecus N4310 are the first units to be tested with the revised WD Red configuration.
We've kept benchmark results from multi-bay NAS units, but of course it's the single-bay comparison we're interested in seeing: Synology DS115 vs. WD My Cloud. The hardware suggests that the former will be comfortably quicker, so let's see if the benchmarks concur.
