System Settings Part#1

You can go to the NAS login page through Qfinder after the initial setup has finished. You can also directly type the IP address of the NAS into your browser, where you will be asked to type in the administrator’s password selected earlier. And there is the totally new interface of the QTS 4.0, waiting to impress you. It has, as you will see, nothing to do with the older QTS desktop, resembling the IOS or Android operating system instead. QNAP apparently decided that a windowed OS with multitasking capability is the way to go since the competition (Synology and Asustor) already does, making many users much more familiar with such interfaces.

QNAP's older firmware was easy enough to use, but many options were hidden inside menus, and it didn't allow you to customize its interface according to your needs. Well, those are old news now. The fresh QTS 4.0 OS allows customizations according to your needs. You can, for starters, move and rearrange icons on the desktop and have immediate access to basic administrative functions and logs. We found the new interface very nice and wonder why QNAP didn't take this huge step forward earlier. They may have had something in the making but sought to evaluate it fully first, before releasing it. You see, there is no room for a beta OS in a NAS device if you are a serious company.


The quick start guide will greet you the first time you log in. It welcomes you to QTS 4.0 and will help you understand and get familiar with the major functions of the NAS. Exploring some capabilities of your new NAS server, this is a good guided tour to take if you have never used a QNAP product before.


Administrative options will allow you to specify your email address, change the profile picture, set a wallpaper by picking an existing one or uploading yours, change the password, or configure several other miscellaneous options.


The dashboard will provide you with important information about the system, including HDD statistics. It is easy to follow and very well designed. The most important sections here are probably system and HDD health. The resource monitor is also quite important because it shows CPU-, RAM-, and bandwidth usage. Finally, the hardware section tracks HDD and system temperatures, and the fan's speed. The online user portion of it displays all currently connected users. If you want to disconnect or block a user or IP, you only have to click on the user and pick the action. Here, we should note that all the widgets of the dashboard can be dragged onto the desktop for easier monitoring. Also, the color of the dashboard will change based on the system's health status, giving you a quick way of figuring out whether everything is running smoothly.


You will probably click on the Control Panel icon first. This icon will give you access to System Settings, Privilege Settings, Network Services, and Applications. We will begin our tour by clicking on System Settings.


The General Settings group provides options related to system administration. You can change the server's name and the system port from here, alter the time settings, check codepage options and specify password rules. These options also allow you to set the login screen's style.