TERRAMASTER F4-424 Pro NAS Storage - 4Bay Core i3-N305 8-Core 8-Thread CPU, 16GB DDR5 RAM, 2.5GbE Port x 2, Network Attached Storage Peak Performance for Business (Diskless)

I had a smaller NAS box from Seagate but needed something bigger. This had the added advantage that it can run Unraid as the native OS - you just swap the onboard USB stick and voila.So far this has been rock solid and a great addition to my home network. Happily runs Plex and various other dockers with ease whilst backing up everything and anything I need it to.Sits under the stairs and can’t hear a thing.

I recently purchased the TERRAMASTER F4-424 Pro NAS Storage. As someone who has been building my own PCs and servers for about thirty-five years (starting from the then newly released 80386SX with 4MB RAM), I have a sensitivity to specifications and performance, honed over the years as computer power has transformed. I bought this NAS because it seemed to offer good value and specifications, which anything less would have caused me anxiety.Performance:The Core i3-N305 8-Core 8-Thread CPU, coupled with 32GB of DDR5 RAM, generally delivers good speed and responsiveness. I encountered two occasions during setup where it seemed to get into a tizzy and hung at 100% CPU for some minutes. However, after leaving it alone for about 5 to 10 minutes, it resumed normal operation. This didn’t seem to be related to disk access as the disks were on low usage and quiet at that time.Storage and Flexibility:With 4 bays, the F4-424 Pro offers the storage capacity I needed, provided I used large HDDs. I needed over 35TB of data storage at home. I chose Toshiba MG series 18TB Enterprise Internal Hard Drives (MG09ACA18TE) for their low power consumption, quiet operation, and great value per TB. I considered SSD and NVMe solutions, but HDDs were the only cost-effective option. The HDDs 5-year warranty and heavy workload capability going far beyond my needs, sealed the deal, and purchasing from Amazon gave me peace of mind. Installing these disks into this NAS was easy, and they are very quiet in operation. I don’t hear them when they are just spinning away. I started with three HDDs and then added an extra drive, so the RAID had to rebuild - it took about two days. You could hear it much of the time, but it was manageable, and it didn’t affect my work even though I am about five feet away from the NAS. The setup process was straightforward, and the flexibility to use different types of drives is a significant advantage, though I opted for four of the same.Efficiency:I considered repurposing one of my old PCs, equipped with a Gold-rated PSU and Ryzen 5600 CPU, for NAS use. However, after measuring power consumption, I found it significantly higher compared to a dedicated NAS, even with this PCs still having just NVMe drives and no added HDDs. The TERRAMASTER F4-424 Pro, in contrast, is much more power-efficient, making it a more suitable solution for a home environment. It is plugged into a true sinewave UPS, showing a current draw of 15W, typically 23W, and occasionally peaking at about 53W. When the HDDs perform their periodic head movements, the consumption jumps to 23W, all of which is far lower than the PC so for 24/7/365 operation, I wanted efficiently and it is also a smart looking little NAS.Brand Comparison:I considered well-known brands such as Synology but could not justify paying all that money for such low-powered and outdated hardware. Of course, you are paying for the software, and the best hardware without usable software is useless. I was and remain slightly nervous about choosing TerraMaster, and I have experienced a few software issues. However, after formatting the disks into a single RAID configuration, setting up shares, and allocating storage to family members, I am happy with its performance. Most of the storage is dedicated to a PLEX server to digitise my physical library, making access much easier.Build Quality:The build quality of the TERRAMASTER F4-424 Pro is excellent. It feels sturdy and well-constructed, giving me confidence in its durability. The cooling system has been efficient, keeping the drives and CPU at optimal temperatures and never being audible.Value for Money:Given its high-end specifications and performance, the F4-424 Pro offers good value for money. The key question is whether the software meets your needs.Conclusion:Overall, I recommend the TERRAMASTER F4-424 Pro NAS for its performance, flexibility, and value. I am keeping faith in TERRAMASTER that they will continue to develop the software and provide the hardware with the software it deserves. It works well enough for my current needs, but it would be nice to have more apps to consider and not worry about potential reliability issues. Several Apps are still in beta release state. So cautious recommendation.

Very easy to set up, this NAS has loads of functionality which is on par with much more expensive models by other manufacturers. The four bays provide plenty of storage capacity, and the dual RJ45 ports provide blazing fast connectivity, expecially if bonded. The NAS makes little-to no noise, and you can really only hear it when it is spinning the drives fast while executing resource-hungry tasks (media indexing if loads new files are added etc.) It barely ever skips a beat, thanks to a fairly powerful processor and 32GB of ram.

As an IT engineer with over three decades of experience, I regret buying the TERRAMASTER F4-424 NAS Storage 4Bay.I wanted to give the newcomer a try because every company deserves a chance in this crowded space.Yet, I regret that decision.Now, I wish I had opted for a Synology, QNPA or an Austor, Lockerstor 4 Gen 2 AS6704T.Yes, all those brands are more expensive, but in these regards you get what you pay for.It is important to understand that you’re not only paying for the hardware but also the bespoke software, built on top of flavour of Linux, that acts as your portal into the hardware.The OS is instrumental in relation to every single function of the NAS and TerraMaster call this their TOS. And, while impressive, it’s painful too! Even TOS6, currently in beta, isn’t much better!CUSTOMER SUPPORTLet’s start with customer support.The team at TerraMaster is helpful. They’ve always been on hand when I needed to reach out and they directed me to resources to help me troubleshoot my own issues.However, most of the troubleshooting steps are level 1, e.g. “have you tried turning it on and off again!”Or worse, “You’re going to have to reinstall the OS!”Anything more complicated requires escalation. This will then involve an engineer who can remotely access the NAS.That’s pretty standard in this space. But because of the time differences, and qualified engineers not being on hand, there was a delay.They have an active forum with many experienced IT guys who frequent there. I sometimes wondered who was leading who, as many people who knew their stuff encountered all kinds of problems. The buck often stopped with TerraMaster. And, following up on threads on Reddit, etc. others had similar experiences with this company.Again, the TerraMaster team was always friendly, supportive, and helpful. They just might not solve your problem in a timely manner. You really need to be your own IT expert.CONFIGURATIONI spent weeks configuring my NAS and troubleshooting errors. I encountered to get this to a great standard.I could have spent most of my time Quality Assuring their product. As a result, I would have provided copious amounts of feedback. This would have been in relation to bug reports, feature request and nice to haves.Yet, all I wanted was to get certain functions working.I managed, but it took considerable effort and some work around.I had it configured and worked well.The fan was in auto mode, and would perform well to keep the HDDs at a reasonable temperature.Then...HARDWARE FAILURE... the fan failed without warning.The only way I knew was because of a repeating and annoying beep. Annoying for good reason, as the hot temperature cooked my HDDs.With the fan failing, I had to set the fans manually.I put up with this for many weeks.I couldn’t bring myself to return the unit for a replacement, given the amount of effort I had gone to.Then, the tipping point arrived.NETWORKOne night, I powered down the NAS from the iOS mobile device. This was the first time I have ever done that.Now, this may be a coincidence, but since that moment, I could not reconnect to the NAS.I spent several days rebuilding my entire network. I even purchased a new router.Everything connected but the TerraMaster NAS.I could even see the NAS on the network, but it would not connect, period.The only solution was to reinstall the OS and even though I had back ups of my installs etc. I was not willing to do that.The failing fan was bad enough.The lack of network connectivity was the final nail.CONCLUSIONOverall, I am going to give this drive three stars.If you have some basic storage needs, this drive may benefit you. It certainly is budget friendly and the customer team will help you out if you get stuck.However, a NAS is much more than a ‘DAS’. The NAS should last longer than a year and be one of the most reliable devices connected to your network. If it’s not, you’re short-changing yourself.As a result, the TerraMaster left me short-changed and for my specific needs and even basic needs; it was simply not good enough.I hope this review was helpful.

After my F4-210 TNAS failing in a strange way, I bit the bullet & bought a new one.Great item, easy to configure, even after messaging Terramaster help Desk and being told that I would have to reformat the old F4-210 HDD's meaning I'd loose all the data on them 😞I had numbered the drives so installed them in the same order & switched on. After initial start up I let it initialize, after a good while it was up, and the best thing it still had "ALL" my films, music & documents, safe & sound. 😁Great item.