Unofficial ReadyNAS Guides

I’ve explained some of the differences in ReadyNAS Duo v2 – A beta tester’s review

To put it simply the v2 has a different CPU, different firmware, different add-ons, different feature set etc. The Duo v1 has an Infrant Sparc CPU whereas the v2 has an ARM CPU. A detailed comparison can be found in the Comparison Charts.

They are very different products and as the RAID format is different you cannot migrate disks across from the v1 to the v2 or vice versa so being able to tell the difference between the two can be quite important.

It can be confusing trying to tell which unit you have.

Firstly note that all Duo and NV+ systems purchased before Nov 13th 2011 will be v1 units.

Secondly note that the v1 units are typically advertised for sale as e.g. ReadyNAS Duo (without the v1) in the name and typically with a model number such as RND2000-100 (diskless Duo v1 unit) whereas the v2 units are advertised as e.g. ReadyNAS Duo v2 (with the v2 in the name) and typically with a model number such as RND2000-200 (diskless Duo v2 unit).

Thirdly and here’s where it gets confusing note that v1 units may have stickers on them saying e.g. RND2000 v2 or even RND4000 v3. Ignore these. These are not the way to tell whether you have a v1 or v2 unit. These stickers when on v1 units typically represent a minor hardware change. This information would be useful for NetGear diagnosing faulty units returned to them in exchange for a replacement, but does not effect the user experience.

If the system is running normally, there are few different ways you can check

1. In RAIDar if you have the v2, the model will show as e.g. “ReadyNAS Duo v2″. If you have the v1, there will be no v2 in the model name. Also in the info (far right) column you will see the RAIDiator firmware version. If you have the v1 the NAS will be running RAIDiator 4.1.x firmware or earlier. If you have the v2 the NAS will be running RAIDiator 5.3.x firmware.

2. Like in RAIDar, the model name and RAIDiator firmware version will be shown in the web-admin interface. However it’s easy to tell the systems apart as their web-interfaces look very different. The v1 interface is shown here: http://www.readynas.com/simulators/frontview/ (note if it’s a NV+ v1 and running really old firmware i.e. RAIDiator 3.x, you’ll see an even older web-interface with Infrant not NetGear mentioned as shown in the RAIDiator v3 User Guide found here: http://www.readynas.com/docs), whereas the v2 interface is shown in the software manual for the v2 (http://www.readynas.com/docs)

Now if the system is not running or if you prefer you can look at the physical hardware itself.

Here are some key differences (there may be more):

i. The easiest way to tell is that the v1 units will show ReadyNAS Duo or ReadyNAS NV+ on the bottom right hand side of the front of the unit whereas the v2 units will indicate it’s a v2 on the front i.e. ReadyNAS Duo v2 or ReadyNAS NV+ v2. Also the NV+ v1 has a silverly colour, and the Duo v1 has a metallic black colour, whereas the Duo v2 and NV+ v2 have a metallic dark grey colour.

ii. Some, but not all v1 units have drive trays with a circular button (known to get stuck sometimes: http://www.readynas.com/kb/faq/hardware/how_can_i_release_a_stuck_disk_tray). If the NAS has trays with a circular button then it is most likely a v1. Newer v1 units and all v2 units ship with drive trays with a rectangular button.

iii. Duo v1 – rear layout

1. Exhaust fan

2. Kensington lock

3. Reset button

4. USB 2.0 ports

5. 1-gigabit Ethernet port with LED status indicators

6. Power adapter socket

vs Duo v2 rear layout

1. Exhaust fan

2. Kensington lock

3. Reset button

4. USB 3.0 ports (with distinctive blue USB 3.0 colour as shown in the diagram above)

5. 1-gigabit Ethernet port with LED status indicators

6. Power adapter socket

iv.) Similarly with the NV+ v1

1. Reset button

2. USB 2.0 ports

3. 1-gigabit Ethernet port with LED status indicators

4. Exhaust fan

5. Power cable socket

6. Kensington lock

and the NV+ v2

1. Reset button

2. USB 3.0 ports (with distinctive blue USB 3.0 colour as shown in the diagram above)

3. Power cable socket

4. 1-gigabit Ethernet port with LED status indicators

5. Exhaust fan

6. Cable clip

7. Kensington lock

NB: the images above are from the NetGear manuals for the units. They are presented together here for convenience to illustrate the physical difference between the two units.