Software test drive
Initial setup
On the previous page we noted that the N1200 had a small amount of flash memory, but we didn't know how much. We can safely say that it's not enough to hold the N1200's OS, thanks to the interesting way in which we had to setup the device.
The setup utility, which can detect and configure Thecus devices regardless of their network configuration, formats the disk installed into the N1200 and at the same time uploads a binary image to it. Evidently, the flash memory on the N1200 is just for bootstrapping and basic functionality, while the full OS needs installing to hard disk, where, of course, capacity is not an issue. It's a clever move that cuts costs with seemingly no disadvantages. In fact, it should make it easier to upgrade, or fix it if something goes wrong.
Setup takes about 10 minutes or so, depending on the hard disk installed in the system. After a reboot, the N1200 is ready to use.
Admin
The web admin interface is exactly the same format as with previous Thecus products, just with a new colour scheme.
File sharing for Windows and Apple operating systems are supported. Strangely, there's no NFS for the Unix/Linux crew. FTP is there, of course, as is the aforementioned Mediabolic media server. Also present is an iTunes server, something we've seen in the past, on the Thecus N2100.
To save leaving the PC on all night, the N1200 can run scheduled FTP, HTTP and BitTorrent downloads.
The N1200 will download on demand, or when scheduled, and will only use as much bandwidth as you want, although the bandwidth choices are limited to a drop-down menu rather than an input box.
The Mediabolic setup is fairly simple. Just tell it which folders you want control points and players to have access to. We didn't have any hardware players, so we tested audio and video playback using a basic toolset created by Intel. The server was detected instantly, and we were able to point files to our player software/video renderer without any trouble. The only thing that users must ensure is that files are in a format that the player can handle... we had trouble with some more exotically encoded files, for example.
We've mentioned the lack of NFS support, but if Thecus doesn't add support itself, then somebody else could well create a module for the system. There's a Thecus Wiki dedicated to things such as this, but right now it's rather limited in content, with no N1200 material on there just yet. Other additions like a SSH server have been added to firmwares for other Thecus products, so with the modules interface, expanding the product's functionality should now be even easier.
Gallery
For non-admin and anonymous users, the N1200 has a web disk, photo gallery and music browser.
Content can be uploaded using the web interface, but it's more cumbersome than dragging and dropping over FTP or a Windows share, but it's a necessary means of access to the device, and one that functions well enough.
