Entered CNET Catalog: 09/15/2004
SKU: DNS-120
Manufacturer: D-Link Systems Inc.
Manufacturer description
Easily share files on the network! The D-Link Express EtherNetwork DNS-120 Network Storage Adapter connects USB drives to the network, and provides authorized users access to their files. You can connect up to two standalone USB hard drives or flash drives and instantly have access to all stored files. The DNS-120 Network Storage Adapter can be configured so that your USB 1.1 or USB 2.0 drives are accessible over the Internet, making it convenient to access your files, even when you're away. With its built-in backup function, schedule full or incremental backups of important information on the network. You can set up PC-to-drive or drive-to-drive backups. Either way, an extra copy of your data remains on the USB drive connected to the DNS-120 and ready to take on the road at anytime. The DNS-120 Network Storage Adapter does not require you to reboot the system when adding USB drives to the network, thus eliminating downtime. You can also prevent any data loss by safely removing the USB drives using the "Disconnect" button on the back of the DNS-120. Through plug and play setup, installing the DNS-120 Network Storage Adapter into your network has never been easier. Simply connect the DNS-120 to a Fast Ethernet port on your network router or switch, and plug in USB hard drives or flash drives. Additional setup options can be configured using the built-in Web-based admin utility including firmware upgrade, user account management, folder management, scheduled downloads, and DHCP/ manual network settings. Using the Easy Search utility, discover all DNS-120 units on the network and easily create shortcuts to their USB drives. The DNS-120 Network Storage Adapter is a fast, simple, and cost-effective way to connect and share storage on the network.User opinions
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User Rating: 
9/10
Great File Server - I use it to for accessing music and files at or away from home.
Pros: It's easy to manage and set up the FTP server.
Cons: You must use FAT for read & write access
User Rating: 
1/10
Not for those who value their data
Pros: Pretty leds on front of box.
Cons: Immature product, infantile tech support.
User Rating: 
5/10
Nice box. Curious omissions.
Pros: Cheap. Low power. Small.
Cons: speed, administration, file system support.
So, one DNS-120 ($79), one a 2.5" usb II disk enclosure ($17), one 40GB drive from dead laptop (priceless) and I have a low-power file server for under $100. Don't even need an external power supply for the drive.
Good news:
It's fast enough to use as the home for our itunes music library streaming to PCs throughout the house.
Email tech support is pretty fast, <24 hr. While the first guy was clueless, the second level support was OK.
Surprises:
1) I plugged in the 80GB ext3 external drive previously connected to my Redhat file server/space heater. Nothin but a blinky yellow light on the front. On second attempt, tech support confirms ext3 isn't supported.
2) Dramatically slower than the Redhat file server. Maybe four times as slow on file copies to/from from my laptop. Expanding folders hierarchy thru windows explorer - painful.
3) Very limited admin. Defrag - no. Create folder - no. Move files from folder to folder - no. Format partition - no. ext3 partitions - no (oops, already said that).
Summary:
Nice start. Product capabilities are not well thought out, but may improve with later firmware.
Windows backup was writing merrily along to the reformatted 80GB drive - until it suddenly reported an error and stopped, 2GB into a 9GB backup. It looks like the FAT32 file system renders this thing unusable for backup purposes. Make that original 5 rating a 2.
User Rating: 
4/10
Works but is VERY SLOW!
Pros: Network attached storage, low cost of ownership
Cons: Transfers data VERY SLOW, 10/100 - yeah right
Firmware Date : 2004/12/28
However, I can't find any details as of this review to tell me anything about this F/W version.
I connected a SimpleTech High-Speed USB 2.0 250GB 7200 External drive and transfered a 4.5Gig file accross my 10/100 Switch. The transfer took 80 minutes. The same transfer via USB 2.0 was 6 minutes. Another transfer of the same file from one PC to another via the 10/100 switch took 14 minutes.
If you have no other options this NAS adapter works. Just make sure you allow plenty of time for your transfers.
It does not read NTFS but I was able to use Partition Manager which allowed me to convert the drive to a single FAT32 partition.
User Rating: 1/10
Beware - it erased my hard drive
Pros: none - a disaster
Cons: It erased my hard drive
A disaster - don't buy it.
User Rating: 
7/10
Overall good product but needs more features
Pros: Able to centralize my data on the network for pictures, videos, and music. Had to format the 250gb drive as on large FAT32 partition in-order for it to be able to write to the drive. I also have a 180gb NTFS drive attached to it but it only can read th
Cons: No utility to partition the drive. Had to use Disk Manager software that came with my hard drive. Make sure you remove the drive over lay otherwise you can not see the drives on the network. Would be nice if the FTP Server software allowed you to see
User Rating: 
2/10
Disappointed in D-Link
Pros: Easy to get out of the box. Should be easy to repack for a refund.
Cons: Does not support NTFS. Appears to require a 10MB connection to the network. User interface is poor and the documentation is also lacking. This product does not meet my expectations from D-Link.
User Rating: 
3/10
Doesn't Work Well With My Maxtor
Pros: It was extremely easy to setup (didn't work well once setup though).
Cons: With my Maxtor 200GB One Touch, the transfer speed is comparable to being connected over something below a 56K modem line on my wireless network. The support is totally moronic.
User Rating: 4/10
Fatally Flawed drive support
Pros: Nice design, Good interface.
Cons: Without NTFS there is no point in using this. You can't even buy a drive small enough for a single partition FAT32 anymore. What were they thinking?
User Rating: 1/10
Great concept--this isn't the solution
Pros: Promises to provide a cost-effective NAS solution.
Cons: Klunky menus, difficulty to get to work and poor technical support. The promise of NAS is low maintenance appliance. Gave up getting this to work after several hours and exhausting the tech support path, (they recommended I try different units until I got
User Rating: 3/10
BEWARE! DOES NOT WORK with NTFS drives!
Pros: Easy web-based set up; allows you to swap out drives without shutting down the device; small form factor.
Cons: DOES NOT WORK WITH NTFS FORMATTED HDD!! So forget being able to use this as a form of NAS with your Windows external harddrives. If you believe their tech support people, this was an untested corner case, but I find this hard to swallow. This problem i
