Software

You will have to load the bundled software disc into the drive of a client PC after installing the HDDs into the NAS and connecting all cables (power and network). Asustor suggests reading through the Quick Start Guide first, and we agree with them. You will also find the complete User Guide on the same disc, so feel free to take a look at it as well.


We decided to include a couple screenshots of the Backup Plan application before moving on to the Control Center application. It does as its name suggests, allowing you to create a backup plan or restore from a backup file.

Initial Setup

The time has come for Asustor's Control Center to be installed. This application will not only find the NAS on your network, but will also allow for its effortless and quick configuration. We highly recommend picking the Custom Setup option since it allows you set the RAID level that suits your needs best. We were also prompted to download and install the newest version of this program since the version on the bundled disc wasn't the most recent one.


The first step of the initialization process asks you to make sure each tray has an HDD installed, and not to power the NAS down or remove the aforementioned disk. You will then be prompted to download a fresh version of ADM off the net, or manually install one you already have. If you have access to the internet, we highly recommend installing ADM off the net. The initial configuration begins after you have done so, and you will be asked whether you'd like to one-click setup everything instead of doing so manually. We chose the manually setup option since we like to be in control of everything.


You will now be asked to pick an admin password. You will then configure the time and network settings and pick the RAID configuration that suit your needs. There are RAID levels, but you can also configure your disks in JBOD (Just a Bunch of Disks) or pick to run everything off a single disk.


We started the second part of the initialization process after setting the RAID level. Configuring RAID didn't take long, and we were then quickly prompted to register our NAS to obtain an Asustor ID, which allows us to download additional applications for the device.


You will now be redirected to the login page, where you have to input your credentials to proceed to the administration interface.