Software

Once you unpack the NAS, the wisest thing to do is to put the bundled software disc into an optical drive to install the necessary software. Also make sure to take a good look at the quick installation guide. You will find all modules or application packages to enhance the usability of the N5550 on the same disc. We will look at them later on in this review.


The Thecus Backup Utility is included on the aforementioned installation CD. With it, you can create backup tasks that will automate the whole procedure.


The installation CD also includes the full user's manual. You had better copy it to a convenient location since you will probably need it.

Quick Installation Guide

The quick installation guide will show you what you have to do once you unpack the NAS. This includes the installation of the HDDs and network cable connection(s), and the execution of the Thecus Setup Wizard program.


The other steps guide through what you have to do after the Setup Wizard has finished configuring the NAS.

Initial Setup

Once the NAS is powered on and connected to the network, the Thecus Setup Wizard will find its IP on the network. The next steps will ask you for the default password, which is "admin". You can now set all network options. Here, we should stress that NAS servers highly prefer a fixed IP and DHCP.


Make sure to change the default administrator password, or your data won't be safe! Once the NAS has gone through all its configuration steps, you will be asked whether you want to setup another device. The Thecus Setup Wizard is especially useful to novice users because it easily allows them to complete the initial setup phase of the NAS, but it lacks the features and capabilities of similar programs by the competition. It, for example, cannot check if the NAS has the latest firmware installed. Nor can it install an up-to-date version if the user wants the update. Its configuration options are also very basic: You cannot set network or cloud-based network shares up. Our test PC also uses large fonts because of the extra-high resolution we run, and, as you can see from the above screenshots, the Thecus program interface wasn't displaying properly, which could be avoided given contemporary programming techniques.