A Look Inside

Similar to the AS3304T, taking this NAS apart is easy. Remove the screws from the backside and slide off the side cover to unlock and detach it from the other half.


The two plastic parts of the cover and metallic chassis of the NAS hold the SATA expansion card and drive cage.


The mainboard is small, and a heatsink covers the CPU. There is no active cooling for the latter. Finally, the solder side of the mainboard looks empty.


The RAM modules are soldered to the mainboard, and there is no RAM slot, so you cannot upgrade the server's RAM.


The unit's flash memory is an embedded 8 GB MultiMediaCard (EMMC).


Two PKC46DY FETs by Nico Semiconductor are used by an equal number of phases.


Polymer caps are used for increased reliability.


The battery keeping the mainboard's BIOS settings intact.


The 2.5 Gbit Ethernet controller is a Realtek RTL8125B.


The mainboard uses a pair of flash memory ICs, both of which are provided by Macronix, the MX25L12873F and MX25L512E.


An ASMedia ASM1464 is the USB signal repeater.


An 24C08 Serial CMOS EEPROM.


This is an 8-bit microcontroller, the PIC16F1829 by Microchip.


The SATA expansion card for the four drives this NAS supports.


There is an ASMedia ASM1061 controller on the SATA expansion card. Since this card only takes power from the PCIe slot, some polymer caps are used to deal with transient loads.


The cooling fan is by Apistek (12 V, 0.58 A). It measures 120 mm across, and its model number is SAB4B2U-PFGE. It uses a double ball-bearing and will, as such, enjoy a long life under even harsh conditions. It won't be quiet, though, especially at high RPM.