The Professional's Source
800.606.6969 / 212.444.6615
Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet
- Price: $584.00
- Free Shipping (USA)
- In Stock
- B&H # DRDRDS4A21
- Mfr# DRDS4A21
Product Highlights
- 5-Bay Desktop HD NAS Enclosure
- Holds 5x 3.5" SATA HDDs (not included)
- Holds 1x mSATA SSD (not included)
- Gigabit Ethernet Port, Cable Included
- Mixed Drive Size Utilization
- Thin Provisioning
- Hot Swappable
- BeyondRAID Features
- Mac and Windows Compatible
The Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet is the optimal solution for small network needs. It features 5 carrier-less, tool-less drive bays that can hold anywhere from a single 200GB to 4TB drives in each bay, for a total maximum capacity of 20TB (drives sold separately). The 3.5" SATA II/III drives can be of mixed capacity, spindle speed and/or cache size, which makes replacing and hot-swapping drives a breeze. It also accommodates one mSATA solid state drive for quick access to any program you need, and allows you to keep the five 3.5" drive bays open for business.
Other features of the Drobo 5N that will command your attention are the features in the proprietary BeyondRAID technology of this unit. BeyondRAID supports RAID 1, 5, and 6 modes (single and dual redundancy for one to four or more drives), but additionally includes Thin Provisioning (the ability to swap a smaller drive with a larger one) Automatic Protection Levels (which uses the best algorithm to protect from drive failure depending on the number of drives that are inserted, without any user configuration) and many more.
Passing all of that data through a USB 3.0 port may be effective, but transmitting over a Gigabit Ethernet 10/100/100MBps port allows you to easily connect to your network without the hassle of transferring, moving a drive, and transferring again. It also keeps the form factor down to a desktop square, convenient for offices short on space. And with the new large, tuned variable-speed cooling fan, it's much quieter than previous Drobos.
When considering consolidating your data, you have to look at cost, space and reliability. Many solutions can offer extras you don't need, and many more don't reach far enough to protect your assets. The Drobo 5N offers you expandability, security and design efficiency.
- Data Protection and Expandability Made Simple
- Built on award-winning BeyondRAID technology with single- or dual-drive redundancy, Drobo 5N protects your data without any user interaction, even in the event of multiple drive failures. Drives can be added or hot-swapped on-the-fly for storage expansion with zero downtime. If you're running low on space, the lights on the front tell you what to do. Just add a drive in an empty bay or remove a smaller drive and replace it with a larger one.
- High-Speed Connectivity
- The Drobo 5N is equipped with a single Gigabit Ethernet port for network connectivity and connects directly to your network to make sharing your data easy. Just plug it into any switch or wireless router and you're ready to go. You can even connect the Drobo 5N directly to the Ethernet port on your computer without having to configure any settings.
- Capacity AND Performance
- Data-Aware Tiering technology, usually reserved for business-class storage solutions, is also available in this networked Drobo. It intelligently uses the high-performance SSDs to accelerate performance of the storage array, allowing applications such as Adobe Lightroom and Apple iPhoto or iTunes fast access to data. To keep capacity of the Drobo at a maximum, the Drobo Accelerator Bay accepts an industry-standard mSATA SSD, leaving all five 3.5" drives bays available for high-capacity HDDs. If getting the fastest performance possible is your thing, you can also load up every drive bay with SSDs. Drobo gives you the flexibility to choose.
- Power Protecting Your Critical Data
- Drobo doesn't just protect you from a drive failure, but also from potential data loss after a power outage. Often found only in arrays that cost tens of thousands of dollars, Drobo 5D includes a battery that protects all data in memory, or cache, that is, data on its way to the drives. When power spontaneously goes away, the battery keeps the Drobo alive long enough for the data to be written to non-volatile storage, ensuring your important information is safe. This battery recharges itself and is designed to last for the life of the product.
- Designed for You
- Drobo devices have always been space efficient and the Drobo 5N is no exception. It was designed from the ground up to provide very high capacity without taking up a lot of your valuable desk space. It is compact because of Drobo's unique carrierless drive-bay design, allowing drives to be installed very close to each other. Drobo 5N is also significantly quieter than previous-generation Drobos due to its large, tuned variable-speed cooling fan. You can even configure Drobo to spin down drives when they're not in use to further reduce noise and save energy.
| Capacity | 0-20TB (Drives not included) |
| Array Type | Desktop external |
| Bays | 5 |
| Drive Types Supported |
SATA II/III, mSATA Drives of mixed capacity, spindle speed, and/or cache can be used. |
| RAID | BeyondRAID |
| Desktop/Rackmount | Desktop |
| Status Indicator |
• Drive bay indicator lights • Capacity gauge • Status lights |
| Input and Output Connectors | 1 x Gigabit Ethernet port |
| Fan | Single, fixed, variable speed cooling fan |
| Security | Kensington Lock Port for Security (lock not included) |
| System Requirements |
•Mac OS X 10.7.x Lion
•Mac OS X 10.8.x Mountain Lion •Windows 7 SP1 32 and 64 bit •Windows 8 32 and 64 bit |
| Electrical Requirements |
AC Input - 100-240VAC~2A, 50-60Hz DC Output - 12V, 12.5A, 150W max |
| Environmental Requirements | Not specified by manufacturer |
| Dimensions (WxHxD) | 5.9 x 7.3 x 10.3" / 150.3 x 185.4 x 262.3mm |
| Weight | 8.5 lb (without hard drives, power supply, or packaging) |
REVIEW SNAPSHOT®
by PowerReviews(based on 17 reviews)
Ratings Distribution
94%
of respondents would recommend this to a friend.
Pros
- Easy to set up (13)
- Compact (10)
- Accurate (5)
- Quiet (3)
Cons
Best Uses
- Reviewer Profile:
- Avid do-it-yourselfer (8), Professional (6)
- Primary use:
- Personal (11), Business (6)
Most Liked Positive Review
Well Designed and Good for Most Media.
Really fantastic build quality for a product that is on the upper end of the hard drive price spectrum if feels worthy of it. I mean really well build. I started to use the ...Read complete review
Really fantastic build quality for a product that is on the upper end of the hard drive price spectrum if feels worthy of it. I mean really well build. I started to use the Drobo 5N to back up files which it worked very well. Later, after moving my Aperture Library (26,000 Photos), the system became rather slugish and had issues allowing me to open the aperture library.
So I returned to for a 5D which I will be reviewing shortly.
Overall good for smaller files and backing up large media. But not super for streaming.
Used with:
- MacBook Pro Retina
- 2 - 2TB WD RED Drives
- Apple Time Capsule
VS
Most Liked Negative Review
Nearly Perfect Minus Major Setup Flaw
This should be a 5 star product, but I'm taking off one point each for a flawed setup bug and the proprietary RAID implementation that at some point will come back to bite:
<...Read complete review
This should be a 5 star product, but I'm taking off one point each for a flawed setup bug and the proprietary RAID implementation that at some point will come back to bite:
SETUP BUG: I had such high hopes for the 5N when I pulled it out of the box, but 3 hours later I was pulling my hair out in frustration and convinced I had a defect. It turned out to not be a defect. Instead, I realized I had managed to zero right in on a flaw in the setup process from the start. This is not mentioned on the quick start card or the instructions, so I'll try to save you the hassle: When turning on your 5N for the first time, LEAVE IT ALONE for a good 20 minutes. Don't click anything in the Drobo Control Panel. I found that as soon as I clicked another section in the control panel, I would get nothing but "Drobo detected an internal problem" errors. Of course every time I did a hard reset I would go right back to the same place on the control panel to see if I was still getting the error, so I was in an endless loop of hitting on this bug. I went back and forth with tech support on this until finally they provided the missing instruction: "Await completion of the initialization process, which can take up to 20 minutes." Once I did that, it worked beautifully.
PROPRIETARY RAID: This is an issue I read more and more about while researching my previous issue. After some thought, I came to the understanding that one day the Drobo hardware will fail. When it does, I won't be able to access any of my data until I purchase a replacement unit and transfer the drives over. This is because Drobo uses a proprietary RAID system that only their hardware can interpret. I have always used standard RAID and Greyhole systems in the past with the comfort of knowing that I can get at my data in many other ways if the hardware fails. Not so with Drobo. With Drobo, the choice is to keep a spare Drobo on hand in anticipation, or be without my data while scrambling to get a replacement unit. Let's just hope Drobo still makes the 5N or a compatible unit when this dreaded day comes, and sure as the sun will rise, the day will come when the Drobo hardware fails.
REVIEWS
Reviewed by 17 customers
Sort by
Displaying reviews 1-17
Pros
- Compact
- Easy To Manage
- Easy To Set Up
- Fast
- Highly Compatible
Cons
Best Uses
- High Volume
- Home
- Small Networks
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
Unpack, plugin and install Drobo client. Done, it is that easy. Preview your photo is no longer have to wait any more, they all come up instantly.
- Primary use:
- Personal
- Computer Platform:
- PC
Pros
- Compact
- Easy To Manage
- Easy To Set Up
- Fast
- Highly Compatible
Cons
- Price
Best Uses
- High Volume
- Home
- Sensitive Materials
- Small Networks
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
I used this to migrate 5 drives from my tower to my network stack. My PC is now much cooler with the hot drives moved away from my intake fans. It took awhile to move the disks 1 by one and migrate the data over the network but I knew it would going into this. You cannot just throw populated disks into a drobo as it uses its own file system and wipes all drives that are inserted into it.
- Primary use:
- Personal
- Computer Platform:
- PC
Pros
- Accurate
- Build quality
- Expandable
- Quiet
- Well Designed
Cons
- Media File Storge
- Set-up
- Video Streaming
Best Uses
- Back Up
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
Really fantastic build quality for a product that is on the upper end of the hard drive price spectrum if feels worthy of it. I mean really well build. I started to use the Drobo 5N to back up files which it worked very well. Later, after moving my Aperture Library (26,000 Photos), the system became rather slugish and had issues allowing me to open the aperture library.
So I returned to for a 5D which I will be reviewing shortly.
Overall good for smaller files and backing up large media. But not super for streaming.
Used with:
- MacBook Pro Retina
- 2 - 2TB WD RED Drives
- Apple Time Capsule
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
- Reliable
Cons
- Proprietary
- Setup
Best Uses
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
This should be a 5 star product, but I'm taking off one point each for a flawed setup bug and the proprietary RAID implementation that at some point will come back to bite:
SETUP BUG: I had such high hopes for the 5N when I pulled it out of the box, but 3 hours later I was pulling my hair out in frustration and convinced I had a defect. It turned out to not be a defect. Instead, I realized I had managed to zero right in on a flaw in the setup process from the start. This is not mentioned on the quick start card or the instructions, so I'll try to save you the hassle: When turning on your 5N for the first time, LEAVE IT ALONE for a good 20 minutes. Don't click anything in the Drobo Control Panel. I found that as soon as I clicked another section in the control panel, I would get nothing but "Drobo detected an internal problem" errors. Of course every time I did a hard reset I would go right back to the same place on the control panel to see if I was still getting the error, so I was in an endless loop of hitting on this bug. I went back and forth with tech support on this until finally they provided the missing instruction: "Await completion of the initialization process, which can take up to 20 minutes." Once I did that, it worked beautifully.
PROPRIETARY RAID: This is an issue I read more and more about while researching my previous issue. After some thought, I came to the understanding that one day the Drobo hardware will fail. When it does, I won't be able to access any of my data until I purchase a replacement unit and transfer the drives over. This is because Drobo uses a proprietary RAID system that only their hardware can interpret. I have always used standard RAID and Greyhole systems in the past with the comfort of knowing that I can get at my data in many other ways if the hardware fails. Not so with Drobo. With Drobo, the choice is to keep a spare Drobo on hand in anticipation, or be without my data while scrambling to get a replacement unit. Let's just hope Drobo still makes the 5N or a compatible unit when this dreaded day comes, and sure as the sun will rise, the day will come when the Drobo hardware fails.
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
- Accurate
- Easy To Set Up
- Speeds Easy Build Qua
Cons
- Features
Best Uses
- Databackup
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
Decent speeds, getting throughput about 80 Mb's read and write, iops performance is just above that of a one standard 7200 rpm drive. I just use for media storage, settings up shares works well and is very simple. Not many features on this NAS just file storage. I am however able to run a couple VM"s off this there are not speedy but work well enough.
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
- Accurate
- Compact
- Easy To Set Up
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
I currently have my Drobo NAS running straight to my computer but will soon connect it to a router so i have access to it no matter where i am.
Good things:
extremely compact
stylish
easy to use / setup (i set it up having no experience at all with this type of thing)
The lights tell you if it is running properly and also if it is not; the light indicates what is wrong.
It is very quiet when it is running
Bad:
There is only 1 port which is the Ethernet port. Would be better if it had a few more ports (e.g usb, hdmi, etc).
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
Cons
- Faulty
- Noisy
- Slow
- Unreliable
Best Uses
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
This product was such a huge letdown. It is extremely picky on which hard drives it will use and if you are able to get a working set of drives, the transfer speeds are extremely slow. After a few days of use, there is a loud rattle noise that comes from the unit. It appears to be an issue with the hard drives are not tightly seated in the tray-less bays, so they vibrate and rattle the plastic tray-less dividers and holding button. Drobo support is horrible and is not able to provide any useful support. I traded my Drobo unit for a Synology and am very pleased.
- Primary use:
- Business
- Similar:
- Synology
Pros
- Accurate
- Compact
- Easy To Set Up
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
I used this for a Dr's office to replace a large HP Proliant server that was only used for file storage. Don't misunderstand the fact that I'm a datacenter guy and like all other enterprice class servers, the old unit was big, noisy and generated a lot of heat. The DROBO is a fantastic unit for small office and homes because it makes almost no noise whatsoever, takes up alsmot no room, performs well and is the easiest thing I have ever had to manage. Turn it on, plug in the drives and go, setup is about 20 to 30 minutes for the average person.
The most important features to this product (in my opinion) is the flexible "Beyond RAID" system (adding drives is as simple as plugging it in) and the internal battery backup. For what you get, it's a well priced product. I've installed about 20 of the FS series boxes and this is not much different, just faster. :o)
- Primary use:
- Business
- Similar:
- DROBO FS
Pros
- Accurate
- Compact
- Easy To Set Up
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
This is my third Drobo and by far the best. I tried it with my green WD and it wouldn't work so I went to Drobo's site and they confirmed that it would probably have problems so I used some black WD I had and they initialized right away. Within 30 minutes I was up and going. The speed is amazing and I don't have to run a server to share files with all my different computers that have different operating systems.I would recommend it.
- Primary use:
- Business
Pros
- Cost effective
- Easy To Set Up
Cons
Best Uses
- Photo Library Back Up
- Time Machine
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
I replaced a Drobo 4 bay 2nd gen FW800 + Mac Mini combo solution for network Time Machine and photo archive backup with this 2 weeks ago.The Ethernet interface is so much faster than the old set up it's laughable. Drobo Dashboard improvements are substantial and make setting up multiple user accounts for TM use on multiple machines in the house a breeze. This is so much better than having to maintain yet another Mac on the network (SW updates every week, etc) and is very cost effective as well. Using a Crucial 64GB mSATA accelerator on it, TM backups are really, really fast.
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
- Compact
- Discreet
- Easy To Set Up
Cons
Best Uses
- Recording
- Safety
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
Great easy to use NAS. Upgraded from the Drobo FS and this version is enhanced in many ways. Much faster!
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
- Compact
- Easy To Set Up
Cons
Best Uses
- Early Warning
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
I've had the Drobo 4-bay for over a year and it's worked with no troubles so when I needed more storage I moved up to the 5N. Similarly, it's bordering on idiot-proof raid-style storage which is idea for techno-illiterate. In the few weeks I've had it it's worked well and given no issues while opening up 10TB of storage space in addition to backup.
Definitely recommended for anyone who is in need of large storage and doesn't want to deal with complicated technology.
- Primary use:
- Business
Pros
- Compact
- Easy To Set Up
Cons
Best Uses
- Early Warning
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
I've had the Drobo 4-bay for over a year and it's worked with no troubles so when I needed more storage I moved up to the 5N. Similarly, it's bordering on idiot-proof raid-style storage which is idea for techno-illiterate. In the few weeks I've had it it's worked well and given no issues while opening up 10TB of storage space in addition to backup.
Definitely recommended for anyone who is in need of large storage and doesn't want to deal with complicated technology.
- Primary use:
- Business
- Similar:
- Drobo 4-Bay
Pros
- Easy To Set Up
- Versatile
Cons
Best Uses
- Shared Data Storage
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
With all out data stored on the Drobo 5N NAS it doesn't matter who needs the data or where they are in the house. An iPad can look up recipes in the kitchen as well at Lightroom processing pictures on the desktop. Additionally, the drive failure protection gives piece of mind.
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
I have a small Graphic Design business and I purchased the Drobo to backup all of my work as well as my harddrive that has my photos, movies and music on it.
It took alittle bit to set it up with time machine. But it seems to be working just fine. I just set it up so we will see. I will monitor it and will let you know if I come across any issues.
I am looking forward to the redundant backup system. I have never had a Drobo before.
- Primary use:
- Business
Pros
- Compact
- Discreet
- Easy To Set Up
- Quiet
Cons
Best Uses
- Photography Storage
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
UPDATE after 2 weeks use.
Drobo 5N is a Great Network Addressable Storage (NAS) unit for Photographers. I Pre-ordered with B&H Photo and received the product early. The Drobo 5N is a great solution for NAS. I purchased 3 WD Red 2TB SATA drives from B&H Photo and they shipped them together. The RAID 5 configuration results in 3.6TB usable as stated.
I have been using the Drobo for over two weeks with my Photographs. I backed up my 1.5TB of photos to the Drobo with very good sustained performance over 300MB/sec with peak performance near 500Mb/sec. Over a 1Gb/sec Ethernet that is excellent.
The Drobo 5N is fast enough to edit and save photos directly.
The Unit is very Quiet even when backing up files. When standby it makes no ambient noise.
The Drobo 5N comes with a 6ft CAT6 Cable, I recommend you get a longer CAT6 and be sue to use CAT6 for all your network cables inline with the unit.
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
- Compact
- Easy To Set Up
- Great Nas For Photos
- Great Value
- Quiet
Cons
- Inadequate Setup Document
Best Uses
- Photography Backup
- Photography Storage
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
Drobo 5N is a Great Network Addressable Storage (NAS) unit for Photographers. I Pre-ordered with B&H Photo and received the product early. The Drobo 5N is a great solution for NAS. I purchased 3 WD Red 2TB SATA drives from B&H Photo and they shipped them together. The RAID 5 configuration results in 3.6TB usable as stated. Performance is great. Setup was very good. The Drobo Dashborad is a great tool. Only reason I did not give 5 Stars is the documentation said set takes about 15 minutes to setup, but took over 2 hours. Nothing in their online information describes the Red Flashing LEDs and Red indicator on the dashboard. But based on experice with other brands of NAS I expected it take even more than 2 hours. If Drobo updates their documentation, I'll update my rating to 5 Stars.
- Primary use:
- Personal
- Recommended:
- Western Digital Red SATA Hard Disks
Displaying reviews 1-17
REVIEW SNAPSHOT®
by PowerReviews(based on 17 reviews)
Ratings Distribution
94%
of respondents would recommend this to a friend.
Pros
- Easy to set up (13)
- Compact (10)
- Accurate (5)
- Quiet (3)
Cons
Best Uses
- Reviewer Profile:
- Avid do-it-yourselfer (8), Professional (6)
- Primary use:
- Personal (11), Business (6)
Most Liked Positive Review
Well Designed and Good for Most Media.
Really fantastic build quality for a product that is on the upper end of the hard drive price spectrum if feels worthy of it. I mean really well build. I started to use the ...Read complete review
Really fantastic build quality for a product that is on the upper end of the hard drive price spectrum if feels worthy of it. I mean really well build. I started to use the Drobo 5N to back up files which it worked very well. Later, after moving my Aperture Library (26,000 Photos), the system became rather slugish and had issues allowing me to open the aperture library.
So I returned to for a 5D which I will be reviewing shortly.
Overall good for smaller files and backing up large media. But not super for streaming.
Used with:
- MacBook Pro Retina
- 2 - 2TB WD RED Drives
- Apple Time Capsule
VS
Most Liked Negative Review
Nearly Perfect Minus Major Setup Flaw
This should be a 5 star product, but I'm taking off one point each for a flawed setup bug and the proprietary RAID implementation that at some point will come back to bite:
<...Read complete review
This should be a 5 star product, but I'm taking off one point each for a flawed setup bug and the proprietary RAID implementation that at some point will come back to bite:
SETUP BUG: I had such high hopes for the 5N when I pulled it out of the box, but 3 hours later I was pulling my hair out in frustration and convinced I had a defect. It turned out to not be a defect. Instead, I realized I had managed to zero right in on a flaw in the setup process from the start. This is not mentioned on the quick start card or the instructions, so I'll try to save you the hassle: When turning on your 5N for the first time, LEAVE IT ALONE for a good 20 minutes. Don't click anything in the Drobo Control Panel. I found that as soon as I clicked another section in the control panel, I would get nothing but "Drobo detected an internal problem" errors. Of course every time I did a hard reset I would go right back to the same place on the control panel to see if I was still getting the error, so I was in an endless loop of hitting on this bug. I went back and forth with tech support on this until finally they provided the missing instruction: "Await completion of the initialization process, which can take up to 20 minutes." Once I did that, it worked beautifully.
PROPRIETARY RAID: This is an issue I read more and more about while researching my previous issue. After some thought, I came to the understanding that one day the Drobo hardware will fail. When it does, I won't be able to access any of my data until I purchase a replacement unit and transfer the drives over. This is because Drobo uses a proprietary RAID system that only their hardware can interpret. I have always used standard RAID and Greyhole systems in the past with the comfort of knowing that I can get at my data in many other ways if the hardware fails. Not so with Drobo. With Drobo, the choice is to keep a spare Drobo on hand in anticipation, or be without my data while scrambling to get a replacement unit. Let's just hope Drobo still makes the 5N or a compatible unit when this dreaded day comes, and sure as the sun will rise, the day will come when the Drobo hardware fails.
REVIEWS
Reviewed by 17 customers
Sort by
Displaying reviews 1-17
Pros
- Compact
- Easy To Manage
- Easy To Set Up
- Fast
- Highly Compatible
Cons
Best Uses
- High Volume
- Home
- Small Networks
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
Unpack, plugin and install Drobo client. Done, it is that easy. Preview your photo is no longer have to wait any more, they all come up instantly.
- Primary use:
- Personal
- Computer Platform:
- PC
Pros
- Compact
- Easy To Manage
- Easy To Set Up
- Fast
- Highly Compatible
Cons
- Price
Best Uses
- High Volume
- Home
- Sensitive Materials
- Small Networks
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
I used this to migrate 5 drives from my tower to my network stack. My PC is now much cooler with the hot drives moved away from my intake fans. It took awhile to move the disks 1 by one and migrate the data over the network but I knew it would going into this. You cannot just throw populated disks into a drobo as it uses its own file system and wipes all drives that are inserted into it.
- Primary use:
- Personal
- Computer Platform:
- PC
Pros
- Accurate
- Build quality
- Expandable
- Quiet
- Well Designed
Cons
- Media File Storge
- Set-up
- Video Streaming
Best Uses
- Back Up
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
Really fantastic build quality for a product that is on the upper end of the hard drive price spectrum if feels worthy of it. I mean really well build. I started to use the Drobo 5N to back up files which it worked very well. Later, after moving my Aperture Library (26,000 Photos), the system became rather slugish and had issues allowing me to open the aperture library.
So I returned to for a 5D which I will be reviewing shortly.
Overall good for smaller files and backing up large media. But not super for streaming.
Used with:
- MacBook Pro Retina
- 2 - 2TB WD RED Drives
- Apple Time Capsule
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
- Reliable
Cons
- Proprietary
- Setup
Best Uses
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
This should be a 5 star product, but I'm taking off one point each for a flawed setup bug and the proprietary RAID implementation that at some point will come back to bite:
SETUP BUG: I had such high hopes for the 5N when I pulled it out of the box, but 3 hours later I was pulling my hair out in frustration and convinced I had a defect. It turned out to not be a defect. Instead, I realized I had managed to zero right in on a flaw in the setup process from the start. This is not mentioned on the quick start card or the instructions, so I'll try to save you the hassle: When turning on your 5N for the first time, LEAVE IT ALONE for a good 20 minutes. Don't click anything in the Drobo Control Panel. I found that as soon as I clicked another section in the control panel, I would get nothing but "Drobo detected an internal problem" errors. Of course every time I did a hard reset I would go right back to the same place on the control panel to see if I was still getting the error, so I was in an endless loop of hitting on this bug. I went back and forth with tech support on this until finally they provided the missing instruction: "Await completion of the initialization process, which can take up to 20 minutes." Once I did that, it worked beautifully.
PROPRIETARY RAID: This is an issue I read more and more about while researching my previous issue. After some thought, I came to the understanding that one day the Drobo hardware will fail. When it does, I won't be able to access any of my data until I purchase a replacement unit and transfer the drives over. This is because Drobo uses a proprietary RAID system that only their hardware can interpret. I have always used standard RAID and Greyhole systems in the past with the comfort of knowing that I can get at my data in many other ways if the hardware fails. Not so with Drobo. With Drobo, the choice is to keep a spare Drobo on hand in anticipation, or be without my data while scrambling to get a replacement unit. Let's just hope Drobo still makes the 5N or a compatible unit when this dreaded day comes, and sure as the sun will rise, the day will come when the Drobo hardware fails.
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
- Accurate
- Easy To Set Up
- Speeds Easy Build Qua
Cons
- Features
Best Uses
- Databackup
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
Decent speeds, getting throughput about 80 Mb's read and write, iops performance is just above that of a one standard 7200 rpm drive. I just use for media storage, settings up shares works well and is very simple. Not many features on this NAS just file storage. I am however able to run a couple VM"s off this there are not speedy but work well enough.
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
- Accurate
- Compact
- Easy To Set Up
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
I currently have my Drobo NAS running straight to my computer but will soon connect it to a router so i have access to it no matter where i am.
Good things:
extremely compact
stylish
easy to use / setup (i set it up having no experience at all with this type of thing)
The lights tell you if it is running properly and also if it is not; the light indicates what is wrong.
It is very quiet when it is running
Bad:
There is only 1 port which is the Ethernet port. Would be better if it had a few more ports (e.g usb, hdmi, etc).
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
Cons
- Faulty
- Noisy
- Slow
- Unreliable
Best Uses
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
This product was such a huge letdown. It is extremely picky on which hard drives it will use and if you are able to get a working set of drives, the transfer speeds are extremely slow. After a few days of use, there is a loud rattle noise that comes from the unit. It appears to be an issue with the hard drives are not tightly seated in the tray-less bays, so they vibrate and rattle the plastic tray-less dividers and holding button. Drobo support is horrible and is not able to provide any useful support. I traded my Drobo unit for a Synology and am very pleased.
- Primary use:
- Business
- Similar:
- Synology
Pros
- Accurate
- Compact
- Easy To Set Up
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
I used this for a Dr's office to replace a large HP Proliant server that was only used for file storage. Don't misunderstand the fact that I'm a datacenter guy and like all other enterprice class servers, the old unit was big, noisy and generated a lot of heat. The DROBO is a fantastic unit for small office and homes because it makes almost no noise whatsoever, takes up alsmot no room, performs well and is the easiest thing I have ever had to manage. Turn it on, plug in the drives and go, setup is about 20 to 30 minutes for the average person.
The most important features to this product (in my opinion) is the flexible "Beyond RAID" system (adding drives is as simple as plugging it in) and the internal battery backup. For what you get, it's a well priced product. I've installed about 20 of the FS series boxes and this is not much different, just faster. :o)
- Primary use:
- Business
- Similar:
- DROBO FS
Pros
- Accurate
- Compact
- Easy To Set Up
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
This is my third Drobo and by far the best. I tried it with my green WD and it wouldn't work so I went to Drobo's site and they confirmed that it would probably have problems so I used some black WD I had and they initialized right away. Within 30 minutes I was up and going. The speed is amazing and I don't have to run a server to share files with all my different computers that have different operating systems.I would recommend it.
- Primary use:
- Business
Pros
- Cost effective
- Easy To Set Up
Cons
Best Uses
- Photo Library Back Up
- Time Machine
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
I replaced a Drobo 4 bay 2nd gen FW800 + Mac Mini combo solution for network Time Machine and photo archive backup with this 2 weeks ago.The Ethernet interface is so much faster than the old set up it's laughable. Drobo Dashboard improvements are substantial and make setting up multiple user accounts for TM use on multiple machines in the house a breeze. This is so much better than having to maintain yet another Mac on the network (SW updates every week, etc) and is very cost effective as well. Using a Crucial 64GB mSATA accelerator on it, TM backups are really, really fast.
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
- Compact
- Discreet
- Easy To Set Up
Cons
Best Uses
- Recording
- Safety
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
Great easy to use NAS. Upgraded from the Drobo FS and this version is enhanced in many ways. Much faster!
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
- Compact
- Easy To Set Up
Cons
Best Uses
- Early Warning
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
I've had the Drobo 4-bay for over a year and it's worked with no troubles so when I needed more storage I moved up to the 5N. Similarly, it's bordering on idiot-proof raid-style storage which is idea for techno-illiterate. In the few weeks I've had it it's worked well and given no issues while opening up 10TB of storage space in addition to backup.
Definitely recommended for anyone who is in need of large storage and doesn't want to deal with complicated technology.
- Primary use:
- Business
Pros
- Compact
- Easy To Set Up
Cons
Best Uses
- Early Warning
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
I've had the Drobo 4-bay for over a year and it's worked with no troubles so when I needed more storage I moved up to the 5N. Similarly, it's bordering on idiot-proof raid-style storage which is idea for techno-illiterate. In the few weeks I've had it it's worked well and given no issues while opening up 10TB of storage space in addition to backup.
Definitely recommended for anyone who is in need of large storage and doesn't want to deal with complicated technology.
- Primary use:
- Business
- Similar:
- Drobo 4-Bay
Pros
- Easy To Set Up
- Versatile
Cons
Best Uses
- Shared Data Storage
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
With all out data stored on the Drobo 5N NAS it doesn't matter who needs the data or where they are in the house. An iPad can look up recipes in the kitchen as well at Lightroom processing pictures on the desktop. Additionally, the drive failure protection gives piece of mind.
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
Cons
Best Uses
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
I have a small Graphic Design business and I purchased the Drobo to backup all of my work as well as my harddrive that has my photos, movies and music on it.
It took alittle bit to set it up with time machine. But it seems to be working just fine. I just set it up so we will see. I will monitor it and will let you know if I come across any issues.
I am looking forward to the redundant backup system. I have never had a Drobo before.
- Primary use:
- Business
Pros
- Compact
- Discreet
- Easy To Set Up
- Quiet
Cons
Best Uses
- Photography Storage
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
UPDATE after 2 weeks use.
Drobo 5N is a Great Network Addressable Storage (NAS) unit for Photographers. I Pre-ordered with B&H Photo and received the product early. The Drobo 5N is a great solution for NAS. I purchased 3 WD Red 2TB SATA drives from B&H Photo and they shipped them together. The RAID 5 configuration results in 3.6TB usable as stated.
I have been using the Drobo for over two weeks with my Photographs. I backed up my 1.5TB of photos to the Drobo with very good sustained performance over 300MB/sec with peak performance near 500Mb/sec. Over a 1Gb/sec Ethernet that is excellent.
The Drobo 5N is fast enough to edit and save photos directly.
The Unit is very Quiet even when backing up files. When standby it makes no ambient noise.
The Drobo 5N comes with a 6ft CAT6 Cable, I recommend you get a longer CAT6 and be sue to use CAT6 for all your network cables inline with the unit.
- Primary use:
- Personal
Pros
- Compact
- Easy To Set Up
- Great Nas For Photos
- Great Value
- Quiet
Cons
- Inadequate Setup Document
Best Uses
- Photography Backup
- Photography Storage
Comments about Drobo 5N 5-Bay NAS Storage Array with Gigabit Ethernet:
Drobo 5N is a Great Network Addressable Storage (NAS) unit for Photographers. I Pre-ordered with B&H Photo and received the product early. The Drobo 5N is a great solution for NAS. I purchased 3 WD Red 2TB SATA drives from B&H Photo and they shipped them together. The RAID 5 configuration results in 3.6TB usable as stated. Performance is great. Setup was very good. The Drobo Dashborad is a great tool. Only reason I did not give 5 Stars is the documentation said set takes about 15 minutes to setup, but took over 2 hours. Nothing in their online information describes the Red Flashing LEDs and Red indicator on the dashboard. But based on experice with other brands of NAS I expected it take even more than 2 hours. If Drobo updates their documentation, I'll update my rating to 5 Stars.
- Primary use:
- Personal
- Recommended:
- Western Digital Red SATA Hard Disks
Displaying reviews 1-17
Replacement Drives
Show more >
- Price: $199.00
- Price: $79.99
Cables & Adapters
Show more >
- Price: $4.09
Surge Protection
Show more >
- Price: $13.27
Warranties & Support
- Price: $169.00
WHY SHOP AT B&H
Make your online shopping trip personal with our online Live Chat representatives. You can easily reach an in-house expert while browsing our site for your shopping needs. We have the most highly-trained staff in the industry who are pros in their fields, and their professional expertise will help you get the most from your purchase.
Place your domestic order with us for shipment via any UPS, FedEx Economy, or FedEx Priority shipping methods by 4 PM ET Monday through Thursday or 11 AM ET Friday and your order will be shipped that day. Visit our Shipping Delivery Times page for further details. Delivery times are subject to payment verification.
We appreciate your purchase from us, and we understand that sometimes the products you buy don't turn out to be the right choice for you. We guarantee your peace of mind with our 30-day return policy. With no standard restocking fee and few restrictions, you'll enjoy a return process as easy as shopping with us. Please visit our Return Policy page for further details.
We've made iPhone and Android mobile apps available for your service and shopping convenience. Use filtered search to find and purchase almost any item we sell and ship worldwide. Download product manuals and guides for many popular items. See high-resolution product images in close-up detail. Manage wishlists and view order history. Visit our Mobile Apps page to download.
See sample Newsletter
Help
Company Information
B&H Resources
