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    usb router with multiple external drive support

    Discussion in 'Networking and Wireless' started by kofighter, Nov 28, 2010.

  1. kofighter

    kofighter Notebook Enthusiast

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    looking for a router that will allow multiple external drives connect as well as, if possible, multiple users accessing read/write to one drive at a time.

    this router will be linked to 2 macs and 2 windows
     
    kofighter, Nov 28, 2010
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  2. downloads

    downloads No, Dee Dee, no! Super Moderator

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    I think you may want to consider a real NAS at this point. Even the cheapest one will be faster and more functional than a router forced to handle two drivers at the same time.
     
    downloads, Nov 29, 2010
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  3. leslieann

    leslieann Notebook Deity

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    With the router you would be bottlenecked at the USB port no matter what you do. Add a second drive and you will be cutting that in half again. The only way I can even see doing it is that you would need an expensive router that is capable of DD-WRT (which will slow the router down) and then setup everything in SSH. It may even have to boot from one of the drives due to the added software, which is possible with it, however you will be further slowing down your router.

    After all this, your reboot times would be terrible, and you would be bogging it down quite a bit, making it not only a horrible router, but your transfer rates will be absolutely pathetic, and your power drain will be as high as any NAS.

    Your best bet is to buy or build a NAS.
    You can get cheap driveless NAS for around $130, these would run circles around your router idea. Or you can spend a lot, around $300 for a nicer NAS, which will run rings around the cheap NAS. The last alternative is to build a low powered file server from spare parts. For about $100 you can buy a SFF P4 on Ebay, put a 1tb drive in it, and get speeds of high end NAS for half the cost, power usage is similar to either NAS.
     
    leslieann, Nov 29, 2010
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