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Thursday March 29, 2007
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Hammer Storage, maker of massive external storage for desktops and servers, has announced that it plans to ship 2TB external drives in August, 2007. The myshare line of external storage from Hammer already has a 1.5TB external array available, but using new 1TB drives like the ones that Dell announced it would begin shipping with its systems, Hammer has taken the need for massive storage to a new level.
The myshare drives are network-attached storage, so they plug directly into your home network. Using the two USB ports on the back, a myshare drive can function as a print server for up to two home printers. The drive can also be configured as an FTP server and a Web server with or without HTTPS security, and it supports multiple methods of securing your files and administering the drive remotely. Additionally, the myshare can also e-mail you when changes are made or files are accessed, and it plays nice with Windows, MacOS, and Linux systems.
The drives look roughly like microwave ovens, and they're not exactly small, at 8 inches wide by 4 inches tall by 8 inches deep and weighing a bit over 5 pounds. If you're interested in one, start saving now: the 1TB myshare drives are just under $500, so expect the 2TB version to be significantly more expensive.
Via CrunchGear
Post by Alen Henry
Posted By:
Gearlog
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March 29, 2007 3:13 PM
How exactly has it taken the "need" for massive storage to a whole new level?
And just why are these things so damn big? It's not just Hammer. All the other NAS drives or enclosures I've seen are really boxy.
Anyone know why? For airflow between drives? Or are the added electronics involved really that bulky?
March 29, 2007 3:30 PM
Just a figure of speech, Matt - nothing more. :)
Actually, in one office I'm familiar with, the routine projects of many of the staff require several dozen terabytes of storage. Even their development database instances run more than 10TB of storage, and their production databases often need 20-30TB of usable disk space. I won't even get into the storage required for enterprise-wide backups, and the company is pretty small! Personally? I could definitely fill 2TB backing up my data, backing up my CD, cassette, and DVD collection, and so on. It looks like this 2TB array will be expensive though, so maybe only folks who have the disposable income and a genuine need might pick it up, like video editors or database admins.
You know, I really don't know why NAS devices tend to be so large. I would imagine it's airflow between drives, because the backplane circuitry and wiring generally isn't that large, but who knows. Interesting!
March 29, 2007 3:42 PM
Oh I totally see the need for this much storage and more, particularly if you're backing up your DVDs for a Media Center setup.
You can never have enough storage. I just wish so many of these things didn't look like toasters or microwaves.
They make PCs and Macs smaller than this...
March 29, 2007 3:56 PM
Ain't that the truth!I gotta admit, this is pretty huge! ;)
March 29, 2007 5:51 PM
The myshare NAS is not that big... 8 in x 8 in is about the size of my linksys router...
One of the reasons the capacities are so big on network storage is because of RAID. A 2 Drive NAS comes with Raid 1. Which, if you are not familiar with RAID 1, it makes a copy of your data onto each hard drive. If you utilize this feature you will only have 500 GBs of usable space on a 1 TB unit or 1 TB of space on a 2 TB unit.
I have been using a dual drive USB/FW combo that I plan to move all of my data to a myshare. I have about 300 GBs of data that I will mirror between the two drives.
The main reason I am looking to move to network storage is because of the ease of sharing features. As I have amassed more and more data, I have found that making it easily accessbile has been a feature that I really enjoy.
Anyways, at this price for a TB, I have not seen a better deal out there. Thus, I plan to pick one up.
March 31, 2007 12:16 AM
The picture above shows what looks like a coffee cup? NO? The Hammer looks pretty small to me. Is this box not also capable of RAID1 and RADI0?
This box looks pretty tight.