New To The Charts: QNAP TS-459 Pro + Reviewed

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Tim Higgins

The QNAP TS-459 Pro + has been added to the NAS Charts.

The TS-459 Pro+ is a processor upgrade of the TS-459 Pro [reviewed] with a 1.8 GHz dual-core D525 Atom vs. a single-core 1.66 GHz D510. Pretty much everything else, including 1 GB RAM, 512 MB flash, dual Gigabit Ethernet ports, five USB 2.0 ports and two eSATA ports is the same.

I didn’t open the case to take a board photo, because my previous opening of the 459 Pro revealed key parts covered with heatsinks anyway.

QNAP TS-459 Pro +

QNAP TS-459 Pro +

The 459 Pro +’s noise rating is the same "medium-low" I gave to the Pro. This means you’ll hear it in a quiet room, but it’s not loud enough to be annoying / distracting.

Power consumption measured 45 W with four 1 TB SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3R HE103SJ 3.5" SATA drives QNAP supplied with the test sample spinning and a comparatively high 22 W with the drives spun down after a programmable idle period.

Tests were run with 3.3.6 Build 1110T updated firmware using our new test process. The Benchmark summary below gathers all the test results into one place for easy reference.

QNAP TS-459 Pro + Benchmark Summary

QNAP TS-459 Pro + Benchmark Summary

Windows File copy write with a four-drive RAID 0 array measured 104MB/s, dropping slightly to 98 MB/s for RAID 5. File copy read for RAID 0 was unusually similar to write at 103 MB/s, also dropping very slightly to 101 MB/s for RAID 5.

NASPT File Copy benchmarks yielded 130 MB/s write for RAID 0, dropping only slightly to 125 MB/s for RAID 5. 130 MB/s is actually faster than the 125 MB/s that a single Gigabit Ethernet link can theoretically support. So there must be some cache effects mixed into that result. At any rate, this is a new NAS Chart high.

The tougher NASPT Directory Copy tests yielded only 15 MB/s for RAID 5 write and read.

I’ve found that the Intel NASPT tests are a bit tougher to pass then my simple filecopy tests on some products. The LaCie 5big Network 2 had trouble running the Directory Copy To NAS tests due to its use of oplocks and limit on simultaneous connections.

I haven’t had problems with any previous QNAP NASes and NASPT. But this time, a close look at the benchmark summary chart above shows that the Office Productivity tests would not complete with a four-drive RAID 0 volume configured. Curiously, they ran just fine with a RAID 5 volume.

Backup speed to an attached USB drive maxed out at 24 MB/s for both FAT, EXT3 and NTFS-formatted volumes. Switching to an eSATA connection to our standard Iomega UltraMax Pro configured in RAID 0 yielded speedier results of 71, 66 and 86 MB/s for FAT, EXT3 and NTFS formats, respectively. Rsync network backup to the NAS testbed running Delta Copy produced a very respectable 40 MB/s.

iSCSI write and read to a 10 GB volume created on a RAID 5 array produced 82 MB/s and 77 MB/s, respectively.

For competitive comparison, check the RAID 5 File Copy Write and Read charts below, filtered for four-drive NASes. The 459 Pro + is the first D525-based NAS I’ve tested, so there are no direct comparisons. The closest other products tested with the new benchmark process (grey bars) are the Synology DS411+ and Cisco NSS324, which is really a QNAP TS-459 Pro.

RAID 5 File Copy Write Comparison

RAID 5 File Copy Write Comparison

For the large (1 GB) sequential files used in the File Copy test, the D525 provides a bit more performance oomph than the D510.

RAID 5 File Copy Read Comparison

RAID 5 File Copy Read Comparison

But when you get into the Directory Copy, Content Creation and Office Productivity NASPT tests that use lots of folders of smaller files, the difference pretty much disappears. Check the RAID 5 NASPT Directory Copy To NAS chart below to see what I mean.

RAID 5 NASPT Directory Copy Write Comparison

RAID 5 NASPT Directory Copy Write Comparison

So unless you’re mainly copying big media files, the Pro +’ premium price ($919 as I write this) may not be worth it. Synology’s DS411+ at a little over $600 could be a much better deal. Use the Price vs. Performance Charts to find a good deal.

I’ll be doing a QNAP Feature review soon, like the Synology one I recently posted. In the meantime, you can use QNAP’s online demo to check out the features yourself. Please use the NAS Charts to further explore and compare the TS-459 Pro +’ performance.

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