Wednesday, August 26th 2020
QNAP Introduces the TS-x73AU Rackmount NAS Series
QNAP Systems Inc, a leading computing, networking, and storage solution innovator, unveiled the rackmount TS-x73AU NAS Series with high-performance and energy-efficient AMD Ryzen Embedded V1000 series V1500B 4-core/8-thread, 2.2 GHz processors.
With dual-port 2.5 GbE transmission and the ability to natively host virtual machines and containers while performing as an all-in-one server protected by key snapshot and backup technologies, the Ryzen CPU-powered TS-x73AU Series meets the most-demanding needs of enterprises. With PCIe expansion, additional functions can be added to the TS-x73AU Series (including 10 GbE, M.2 SSD caching or Fibre Channel support). The TS-x73AU Series is available in 8, 12 and 16-bay models with single and redundant power supply options.
"The TS-x73AU is QNAP's first SMB NAS that adopts high-performance 'Zen'-core AMD Ryzen embedded processors," said Jason Hsu, Product Manager of QNAP. "With flexible I/O expandability and versatile QTS applications for backup/sync, cloud gateways, virtualization, surveillance and security management, the TS-x73AU is a supremely cost-effective NAS solution for SMBs with budget limitations working within varied multi-tasking environments."
"We are excited to see QNAP utilize the powerful AMD Ryzen Embedded V1000 processor series to support its new series of NAS systems," said Surya Hotha, senior director, Embedded Product Marketing, AMD. "This system showcases that the Ryzen Embedded ecosystem is continuing to grow with new platforms and systems that take advantage of the flexible I/O and performance capabilities of the processor."
The TS-x73AU supports AES-NI encryption, SATA 6 Gb/s drives and up to 32 GB dual-channel DDR4 RAM. With one PCIe Gen3 x8 or two PCIe Gen3 x4 slots, expansion cards can be installed in the TS-x73AU to enhance core functionality. If high-speed networking is required, a 5 GbE/10 GbE network card can be installed. Users with VMware ESXi servers can install a QXG-10G2SF-CX4 PCIe 10 GbE Adapter with Mellanox ConnectX-4 embedded to add iSER (iSCSI Extension for RDMA) support. M.2 SSD caching can be added by using a QM2 card to accelerate IOPS performance. Graphics processing or GPU-intensive applications can be enabled by installing a graphics card. Users with Fibre Channel infrastructure can install a QNAP 16 Gb Fibre Channel card to use the TS-x73AU as a SAN storage device.
The TS-x73AU Series supports advanced business features to optimize management efficiency while ensuring continuous operation and security, including local/remote/cloud backup, Google G Suite and Microsoft 365 backup and cloud storage gateways. Block-based snapshots ensure data protection and instant restoration, and can help users protect their data from encryption-based virus threats. As storage demands grow, the TS-x73AU can be expanded by connecting a QNAP SAS, PCIe to SATA or USB storage expansion enclosure or by using VJBOD to utilize the unused storage capacity of other QNAP NAS.
Key Specifications
Source:
QNAP
With dual-port 2.5 GbE transmission and the ability to natively host virtual machines and containers while performing as an all-in-one server protected by key snapshot and backup technologies, the Ryzen CPU-powered TS-x73AU Series meets the most-demanding needs of enterprises. With PCIe expansion, additional functions can be added to the TS-x73AU Series (including 10 GbE, M.2 SSD caching or Fibre Channel support). The TS-x73AU Series is available in 8, 12 and 16-bay models with single and redundant power supply options.
"We are excited to see QNAP utilize the powerful AMD Ryzen Embedded V1000 processor series to support its new series of NAS systems," said Surya Hotha, senior director, Embedded Product Marketing, AMD. "This system showcases that the Ryzen Embedded ecosystem is continuing to grow with new platforms and systems that take advantage of the flexible I/O and performance capabilities of the processor."
The TS-x73AU supports AES-NI encryption, SATA 6 Gb/s drives and up to 32 GB dual-channel DDR4 RAM. With one PCIe Gen3 x8 or two PCIe Gen3 x4 slots, expansion cards can be installed in the TS-x73AU to enhance core functionality. If high-speed networking is required, a 5 GbE/10 GbE network card can be installed. Users with VMware ESXi servers can install a QXG-10G2SF-CX4 PCIe 10 GbE Adapter with Mellanox ConnectX-4 embedded to add iSER (iSCSI Extension for RDMA) support. M.2 SSD caching can be added by using a QM2 card to accelerate IOPS performance. Graphics processing or GPU-intensive applications can be enabled by installing a graphics card. Users with Fibre Channel infrastructure can install a QNAP 16 Gb Fibre Channel card to use the TS-x73AU as a SAN storage device.
The TS-x73AU Series supports advanced business features to optimize management efficiency while ensuring continuous operation and security, including local/remote/cloud backup, Google G Suite and Microsoft 365 backup and cloud storage gateways. Block-based snapshots ensure data protection and instant restoration, and can help users protect their data from encryption-based virus threats. As storage demands grow, the TS-x73AU can be expanded by connecting a QNAP SAS, PCIe to SATA or USB storage expansion enclosure or by using VJBOD to utilize the unused storage capacity of other QNAP NAS.
Key Specifications
- AMD Ryzen Embedded V1500B (4-core/8-thread, 2.2 GHz)
- 2x DDR4 UDIMM RAM slots (dual channel - supports up to 32 GB)
- hot-swappable 3.5-inch SATA 6 Gbps drive bays
- 3x USB 3.2 Gen 2 10 Gbps ports (1 x Type-A, 2x Type-C)
- 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 5 Gbps port (Type A)
- TS-873AU-RP-4G: 2U, 8 drive bays, 4 GB DDR4 memory, 300 W redundant PSU, 1x PCIe Gen 3 x8 slot
- TS-1273AU-RP-8G: 2U, 12 drive bays, 8 GB DDR4 memory, 300 WW redundant PSU, 2x PCle Gen 3 x4 slots
- TS-1673AU-RP-16G: 3U, 16 drive bays, 16 GB DDR4 memory, 550 W redundant PSU, 2x PCle Gen 3 x4 slots
- TS-873AU-4G: 2U, 8 drive bays, 4 GB DDR4 memory, 250 W single PSU, 1x PCIe Gen 3 x8 slot
4 Comments on QNAP Introduces the TS-x73AU Rackmount NAS Series
From bhphotovideo:
$1949 for 2U 8-bay model (TS-873AU-RP-4G)
$2199 for 2U 12-bay model (TS-1273AU-RP-8G)
$2699 for 3U 16-bay model (TS-1673AU-RP-16G)
One could easily build their own for less. QNAP QTS isn't as polished as Synology DSM so I highly doubt anyone specifically wants the QNAP OS. QNAP may also have some security related issues if the OS and software aren't kept up to date but that is likely true of any such device.
Asustor has some interesting Enterprise solutions as well. Like the Asustor AS7010T
which uses an i3, has PCIe expansion and 10 bays for about $1600 USD.
Another option is to buy some older enterprise hardware such as a Dell Poweredge or HPe.
Also, there is the option of just repurposing some older hardware.
I recently revived some old hardware (which was a quasi economy buy even back then):
Intel Prentium G3258 (2c/2t)
Asus Z97-A Motherboard
8GB DDR3
Antec 900 case
Slapped in 2x 256GB SATA SSDs, a couple of controller cards, a GTX 950, Mellanox 10GbE NIC, 3x Rosewill RSV-SATA-Cage-34 Hot-Swap (backplane) 12 external bays and it was good to go.
The CPU could be upgraded to something like a Intel Core i5-4670 from eBay for around ~$50 if need be,......
Even if someone can't source hardware from work they can probably find enterprise level hardware on eBay and other reputable places. I bought four Mellanox 10GbE SFP+ NICs off of Amazon for about ~$25 each IIRC (but that was a while ago). While I don't necessarily recommend buying some of the older 10GbE SFP+ Switches from eBay one can find a lot of good hardware beyond that.
The downside, if you buy a server or enterprise switch, is that they can be extremely loud as well as use more power then retail hardware. This can be mitigated in some cases though. Also as you said, no warranty and no direct technical support. However, spare parts shouldn't be difficult to find and as this hardware propagates there may be a user base willing to help.