15.8.2016

I have found this NAS to be really excellent, and it has revolutionised the way I can organise my personal data. As a photographer it’s especially helpful for me in the organisation and safe storage of valuable images, but it’s just as useful for the burgeoning amount of data, media content and files that we all generate and need to store these days. This NAS is the latest iteration of a tried and tested series from WD, who make both professional and consumer grade NAS.For any readers who may be a little unsure about what an “NAS” might be, let me explain in simple terms: Network Access Storage is basically a box containing several large volume hard drives, which you can set up as your own private network server.It's a little more involved in reality, because it contains it's own quad core computer to handle and process the data (hence the cost of it), but you get the idea. So if you want one large volume in your home or office that multiple users, devices or rooms can access, storing files in one place for ease of sharing, then this is a device that could help you. As a media server it's perfect.This sort of arrangement is not only helpful for collaborative working but it can also save you money. Instead of, for example, a family of four all owning expensive laptops or tablets with large internal memory, they could all use less expensive, less power hungry devices because their bulky computer files could all be stored on the NAS. Chromebooks work on this principal.The really brilliant thing is that this device also operates as your own private “cloud” but without the monthly fees for large volume data. Connecting it to the internet allows access from anywhere on the planet, as long as you have an internet connection, and access can be encrypted to a very secure standard. The only thing you need to remember is that it needs to be connected and switched on .For my own setup the multi-user capability is not an issue, but the thing that really sells it for me is that it can also be used as a RAID backup for your important files. RAID stands for Redundant Array of Independent Disks, and essentially it means that the data you store on hard disc can be copied simultaneously onto two or more hard drives. So, if one drive fails you won’t lose the data on it because you have a mirror copy as backup. I’ve encountered hard disc failure myself, and it wasn’t whilst using a RAID setup unfortunately. So I know how soul destroying and disruptive such an event can be. For personal use, RAID is highly desirable, but for any business, even small ones, RAID is essential and if you don’t have one I recommend you buy one as soon as possible. A hard disc failure and loss of data could easily put you out of business over night, and leave you with a massive financial headache! Trust me, HMRC will not accept “hard drive failure” as a defence when they demand payment from you.Western Digital, the American company who make this device, is a Blue Chip computing brand, and one of the Worlds largest manufacturers of hard drives. So I trust the quality and integrity of this product, which is important when it comes to my personal data!The NAS unit itself is well made and robust. It’s also surprisingly small at 19 x 23 x 17cm. It’s a far cry from the big server boxes of just a few years ago, and it will easily sit out of the way unobtrusively on your desk top or a shelf.Functionality is excellent, and once you’ve set it up, which is simple even for a novice (luckily) it just works away in the background without a need for intervention. I particularly like the one touch backup feature, wherein I can plug my camera into the front mounted USB socket and presto – with one touch of the button it copies the files over. It’s worth buying a multi-port card reader to extend the accessibility of this valuable feature by the way.There are four bays provided, and it’s easy to swap out or upgrade the storage as and when you need. The box is fan cooled, but I find the fan noise to be pretty quiet on mine. And it’s worth remembering that a lot of offices actually use the white noise from fans as a way of providing a more pleasant work environment, by masking other more irritating and distracting intermittent sounds.SUMMARYThis is a very well made and dependable storage device, and one that will be helpful for both personal and business users. If you want full control of your own data, and don’t want to pay monthly fees to a server farm, your own cloud is an option to consider, and this device will deliver it. For my money though, it’s the RAID feature that makes this device an essential. I recommend it.As always, I will report back if any further developments occur with my device. If you don’t see an update then it’s still performing perfectly!

15.8.2019

I bought the My Cloud Pro 4100 on Prime day; as my home storage requirements had reached breaking point. I have been using a Netgear 4 disk NAS alongside a Drobo 5n on my home network; and had 6 different pocket disks that I had accumulated on my travels over the yaers. All in I had 10 years of personal photos; video and my iTunes downloads etc.Those two NAS devices were using random disks to make up the array; and between them they were full. Looking at the prices of disks it worked out cost competitive - the disks in the unit are WD NAS Red drives and amazon retail them for over 200 pounds each at the time I ordered the unit. So I ordered the MyCloud Pro.Arrived in a nice box; with clear instructions - which boil down to plug in network cable (included)and plug in power cable; then in a browser go to the devices name. Immediately I hit an issue; the WD Software just doesnt get on with Safari - the logon screen just spins and comes back saying its timed out. It works just fine with chrome though.Besides the safari problems the MyCloud software is defiantly lacking compared to Netgear's. The interface is easy to follow; and the settings gives you some great options. It is easy to create users and shares with permissions. There is an "App Store" to allow you to extend the systems features and it covers the basics - iTunes and DLNA which let you use the device as a stand alone media server for most situations. For off site backup to the cloud it offers an interface to Amazon S3 storage which is an affordable option for securely moving your data offsite.My Netgear NAS offers more app options (and a virus scanner); and the interface lets you explore the storage in the interface - which is great for deleting and moving things about without having to copy them over the network - which would have sped my migration from USB drives to the NAS had it been possible to move files in the UI from external to internal storage. . For a pro device I was surprised there was a database available in the App Store.For saving power there is a nice interface for changing the times its running - though it does make you do it day by day - its easy to get it to power down when you are at work and save some energy.Since setting it up I have spent the last month slowly moving 15Tb of data from my old storage over to the new one; and finally turned off my old storage this week (And I have a drawer of now empty pocket drives too.) Lightroom is figuring out my photo storage on a pc and look like it will be for some time. Opening files from it across my wired and wireless networks quickly load; and copying some iTunes content back to my laptop when taking it away from the weekend took minutes per Gb which was enough performance for what I want of it. Having 32Tb of storage setup as Raid 5 gives me good protection for my data when inevitably a disk fails; though its at the expense of storage - there is 23Tb of usable space - and I have used more than half already. Should a disk fail its easy to remove and replace them and there are clear indicator lights that will let you know there is an issue.The myCloud device itself is on a shelf gently humming as the fans ramp up on warm days. The DLNA playback has worked just fine with my TV; though using VLC to just connect to it as a disk is working nicely too.Getting a device with disks was a better choice for me than using spare / old disks as I have a clean start. It also worked out cheaper than buying the disks at the time I bought it. It should give me a couple of years to before its full at which point hopefully my home internet will have got beyond ADSL and opened up the chance to use online storage for all my needs.

15.8.2016

This review is for the WD 8TB model - WD 8TB My Cloud Pro PR4100 Professional Series 4-Bay Network Attached Storage - NAS - WDBNFA0080NBK-EESNEverything about this NAS (Network Attached Storage) offering from Western Digital is right at the top end of perfect for me. The 8TB model is perfectly set up for top end home or office use and with the option to set it up as a Plex Server it stepped into new levels for me versus my previous NAS set up. It runs its own operating system and the built-in video transcoding means you can run it directly as a media server to your smart TV (for example) or in my case,

15.1.2019

For those of you looking at purchasing a NAS, there are tonnes of guides out there for what exactly it is and does. So, I won't go into too much detail on this.Setting up was as simple as connecting it to power and to your router via an ethernet cable (all cables provided in the box) and following the instructions on the webpages it refers you to.I went for a 4 bay over a 2 bay because, at the time of purchase, I do not currently need 4 bays of storage - however, I see this as an investment over many years and therefore have paid extra for when I need to expand my storage. I would suggest you do the same, as it will save you time and money in the future!My primary use for this is as a Plex server.

13.8.2016

his is an impressive item with good build quality and highly effective user centred design: it might well change the way you use your home computer, and is a major step towards cloud computing at home. First of all, the most impressive element of this item is the storage which is an impressive 4TB: the drive is a hefty cube that whirrs impressively. Installation is blissfully quick with the item charged, plugged in, and connected in about 5 minutes. I have used this to transfer my set of MP4 video recordings collected over about 10 years into this storage, and what this in essence gives you is a cloud of your own, accessible from anywhere with an Internet connection.

19.8.2017

I'm really happy with my choice. It's expensive in comparison to other NAS however, when you start to compare to setting up a lower power consuming computing and attaching storage, the difference in cost is minimal with a lot more effort.Reason for my purchase was to centralise media and use as a plex media server. Works fantastically. I push content to my tvs which are Samsung with a plex media app. Transcoding can take place if the tv doesn't support it and not seen any issues. I've streamed up to 4k media content with no issues.The UI for accessing the PR2100 (My Cloud) is very easy to use. Shared folders accessible via my Mac. I've added my partner as a user so she has a partition and access.

27.6.2019

UI is simple to use and installation was reasonably straight forward. Product does make a racket however and it seems to do this all the time even when it isn’t reading or writing. I can only assume it’s organising its files or something. I originally planned to store it in the bedroom but it was very distracting so I’ve relocated it behind the TV in our lounge. I’m using it primarily as a PLEX server and so far it has been bullet proof; easily transcoding uncompressed blu ray rips to various clients around our home. Struggles a bit when it has to burn subtitles in, but I think this is more an issue of my client struggling rather than the actual server,

27.1.2017

Very easy to set up for home based cloud services. We have it set up in a cupboard that houses our tech in our sitting room, just below the TV. When it was first started the fan came on and it was a bit noisy but it soon settled down to a whisper and now we don't notice it at all. Moving our iTunes library and photos to the cloud took a while over LAN (which is to be expected), but now they are available from all our devices via the My Cloud and WDPhotos apps. It has plenty of room on it to allow us to scan our old negatives and photos and have somewhere safe and accessible to store and browse through them at our leisure.I would thoroughly recommend this version of the WD MyCloud series over the previous incarnations.

9.7.2019

I used to manage a Netgear NAS that was very complex. When the myCloud arrived it was completely different and very simple to run. Up and operating within a day... but I could not get any Win10 computers to access any protected shares.I think I know what I am doing, having wrestled the Netgear into submission over a couple of years, but I gave in and raised a support call. Within TWO HOURS a knowledgeable engineer had called me back and we had gone through the Win 10 settings and found the culprit (an SMB version mismatch). All is now working perfectly.An added bonus is that it is so quiet I have to keep looking to make sure it is on; the NetGear fan used to sound like it was readying for takeoff.A lot of money,

6.4.2019

My existing DL4100 failed during the night and it seems hardware failure of that model was is not unheard off.I was hoping that if I just transferred the four 4Tb WD Red drives that it may just see the data.And yes it did. It reported a foreign array and asked if I wanted to accept it and the four drive status lights then went blue from red.After making sure I had up to date backups of all the data I have it a factory restore and reformatted the array.I have also now upgraded it with 4 x 10Tb red drives. Very nice but very expensive.

22.12.2019

Once unpacked, it is easy to setup in which every RAID you wish, by default it is configured as RAiD 5. With the abundant apps available you can configure it for what ever purpose you desire. As most children these days love to watch endless movies I have sent this up do do just that. With the PLEX and DLNA configured, the children can watch whatever movie they wish in their own time. I would recommend upgrading the memory, as it would ease the processing when multiple movies are being watched at the same time.

30.4.2017

I have two 4TB drives in mine and have it set so that they mirror each other so that I don't lose my photographs etc if one of the drives fails. I have found the read and write speeds to be very fast and it's good to be able to access all of your data whilst out and about, I have now cancelled my Dropbox 1TB subscription that costs £79 per year and my wife also has access to store all of her data too. I've also used it to show photographs on the TV without any problems. Glad I invested in this NAS drive.

5.2.2020

I bought this with 3 4TB WD HDD to backup all my photos and videos as well as storing my Lightroom catalog in a centralised location. Also have my MacBook backup to it and have Plex running. All in all, suited my every need. The installation was simple. However I did encounter a problem when it auto updated itself and the NAS drive hang for a day! That was the only disappointment I had with it. It may become more of a problem down the line but for now, I gave it 4 stars.

26.2.2020

I have the NAS for over 1 month and there is no problem with it, so far. I am using it mostly for file storage (backup) and Plex server. It does the things very well. I can access my files over the internet on my phone or a computer using a web browser but the speed is a bit slow. As Plex server, the NAS is great on the same network but sometimes (seldom) there are problems with remote connections but I still don't regret buying the NAS. I would recommend it to others.

4.2.2020

The device is functioning as it is supposed to. There was some setup required, after that it is visible by all computers on the network. The unit came preconfigured for RAID 5, which means 25% of the capacity is used for redundancy, which is well worth it.There is also a cloud function, have not tested it yet.

Western Digital My Cloud PR2100 2Bay - Reviews

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