I think we got your point(s).

It's not just a dumb RAID array. It comes with some software built in that allows you to do things like stream music and other files, automate backups, etc.

Most decent NAS devices offer similar functionality. It's all the rage now to build these more capable NAS devices that act a bit more like a dedicated server than just a dumb box of drives so, it's not all that special (or extra-competitively priced), in that regard.

But, you might have missed the point of some of our responses, which was:

It's still a pretty dumb box compared to just taking say, an old Dell Dimension 2400 (of which there are like, 50,000,000,000,000 available in the world, at about $100 - max - ferrinstance, I have four or five of them stacked up in my small company's computer room, right now...) that ALREADY has XP Pro on it (which can function just fine as a server for small LANs).

Or throwing FreeNAS, Ubuntu Apache, WHS or any other free or almost-free server packages on it.

Plus, you're keeping a bunch of lead, cadmium, etc. from going into a landfill somewhere.

Just buy a couple of cheap big drives, slap 'em in and you're there. And the resulting machine is not only cheaper (and better for the environment), but it can do WAAAAAAY more than any dedicated NAS can.


It's just a question of how much does any individual want to do, to save time, money or effort on their part.