Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie

(Fixed) ZyXEL NSA320 Installation/Configuration Issues

  • 21-04-2013 10:19am
    #1
    Registered Users Posts: 1,757 ✭✭✭


    I had four spare HDDs (about 3TB total) lying around so I decided to put them to some use and ordered a switch and two ZyXEL NSA320 NAS drives. I have had nothing but issues with them.

    I only got one of them actually initialised while the other never stays online long enough to get past changing the admin password. Now, it sometimes sees the drives, sometime not. Most of the time I can see them in the utility but their status is unreachable or down.

    Right now I can only see one of the drives in the utility and its status is currently unreachable. Despite all this, both can be pinged and accessing directly via the router works great but you can only initialise the drive through the software.

    I have tried:
    • Static IPs
    • DHCP IPs
    • Disconnected the first NAS Drive
    • Tried different HDDs in the NAS (Switched them over, Tried one at a time)
    • Upgraded to the newest firmware
    • Downgraded to an older firmware
    • Different Ethernet cables
    • Connected to different ports on a network switch and direct to the router

    I have also contacted the supplier Dabs.ie, and they have been useless. They don't give tech support to their products but want me to ring an English number which after three attempts to get a staff member I gave up!

    Any ideas to possible solutions or previous fixes, as I don’t want to go down the return route as I’d rather it just worked?! Plenty of similar issues on the net with same brand NAS drives and it seems quite common but I feel its not a hardware issue, but maybe a simple fix.

    250316.jpg

    250317.jpg


Comments

  • Registered Users Posts: 36,161 ✭✭✭✭ED E


    Ok, first off, have to commend you for a proper OP, you gave us plenty of info which so many people dont. o/


    If they can DHCP and be pinged, then we're probably looking at something higher up the food chain.

    Running the client software as Admin?
    Explicitly let it through the windows firewall?
    Running any security software?


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 1,307 ✭✭✭stephendevlin


    can you connect the ethernet directly to the PC/Laptop and run the software?


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,757 ✭✭✭Deliverance XXV


    Thanks :)

    Found the issue. After reading back on my post (sometimes its better to read the issue) all the issues seemed to point at the software. I downloaded the newest version. Uninstalled the old Utility Software, ran CCleaner to rid the computer of any unused dlls/files. Installed the new software and rebooted the computer. Now it works. Absolutely no errors and it completely flies through the installation.

    I wrote the above in detail as I know how much of a bitch it is to read half-assed updated forum posts when looking for solutions. I will also edit the post title to something more descriptive for future forum/Google users.


  • Registered Users Posts: 10,434 ✭✭✭✭28064212


    To prevent possible further issues, have you given the two NASs different names? They default to NSA320, so make sure they're not both set to the same or you will get problems

    Boardsie Enhancement Suite - a browser extension to make using post-migration Boards on desktop a better experience (includes full-width display, keyboard shortcuts, and a dark mode setting)



  • Registered Users Posts: 1,757 ✭✭✭Deliverance XXV


    28064212 wrote: »
    To prevent possible further issues, have you given the two NASs different names? They default to NSA320, so make sure they're not both set to the same or you will get problems

    Originally I had NSA320 and NSA320-1 so they weren't conflicting but they are now something a little more descriptive!


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users Posts: 678 ✭✭✭m4r10


    I might post here, although it's a bit unrelated to the OP. I want to buy a NSA320, but want to use 2 x 3TB drives and don't know if they'll work as everywhere I looked the maximum quoted is 4TB (that is 2 x 2TB).


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,757 ✭✭✭Deliverance XXV


    m4r10 wrote: »
    I might post here, although it's a bit unrelated to the OP. I want to buy a NSA320, but want to use 2 x 3TB drives and don't know if they'll work as everywhere I looked the maximum quoted is 4TB (that is 2 x 2TB).

    It does support some 3TB drives (presumably with the most up-to-date firmware and software) - Here's the supported list of hard drives (See Compatibility List tab): http://www.zyxel.com/products_services/nsa320.shtml?t=p


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,496 ✭✭✭GerardKeating


    m4r10 wrote: »
    I might post here, although it's a bit unrelated to the OP. I want to buy a NSA320, but want to use 2 x 3TB drives and don't know if they'll work as everywhere I looked the maximum quoted is 4TB (that is 2 x 2TB).

    According to the ZyXEL site, the 3TB drives are support with the latest firmware.

    The NSA325 supports them also.

    There seems to be an issue with the NSA325 firmware (not sure about the NSA320). It can no longer register new machines with Dropbox, but this will be sorted in the next release.


  • Registered Users Posts: 678 ✭✭✭m4r10


    Thanks guys, I did find the compatibility list myself last night, but it was too late to modify the post. I already have a 310, but I guess I'll be better off with the added extra space from the 320.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 177 ✭✭AndyJB


    Hi,
    Sorry to hijack the OPs post....

    I recently installed a NSA320 myself. All was well for the first few days but recently the CPU usage is constantly at almost 100% and its responding very slowly.

    I've set-up the device as follows:

    2 x 1 TB disks
    Using RAID1
    Connected via ethernet 10/100 to my router.
    I'm only using about 5.5%ish of the disk space.
    Attached screen shot gives some details.

    I called zyxel support, they installed the latest firmware (beta) version for me, but no joy. They've promised to call me as a follow-up later today. The media centre is running and looks like its finished indexing. I had Polkast running, but that's now removed and I rebooted unit for good measure.

    Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

    Enjoy the bank holiday weekend, lets hope the sun stays out.

    Regards
    AJB


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users Posts: 10,434 ✭✭✭✭28064212


    Disable the media server and see if that fixes it. It'll at least allow you to isolate the problem.

    If you're comfortable using linux and PuTTy, you could open up the NSA's telnet backdoor. Follow only the instructions under either 4.40 or 4.60 firmware, depending on which you're on. Then use PuTTy to connect to the box's ip address through Telnet, port 23. Username is root, password is the admin one you use to login to the server screen with the CPU information. This will give you access to a linux command line, and then you could run the "top" command to find out what processes are using the CPU.

    Be careful with this method, it is possible to screw things up if you're not sure what you're doing

    Boardsie Enhancement Suite - a browser extension to make using post-migration Boards on desktop a better experience (includes full-width display, keyboard shortcuts, and a dark mode setting)



  • Closed Accounts Posts: 177 ✭✭AndyJB


    28064212 wrote: »
    Disable the media server and see if that fixes it. It'll at least allow you to isolate the problem.

    If you're comfortable using linux and PuTTy, you could open up the NSA's telnet backdoor. Follow only the instructions under either 4.40 or 4.60 firmware, depending on which you're on. Then use PuTTy to connect to the box's ip address through Telnet, port 23. Username is root, password is the admin one you use to login to the server screen with the CPU information. This will give you access to a linux command line, and then you could run the "top" command to find out what processes are using the CPU.

    Be careful with this method, it is possible to screw things up if you're not sure what you're doing

    Cheers 28064212! Stopped the Media centre as you suggested & CPU has dropped way back to teens/early 20's. I can do without the MD for the moment.

    I'll not venture into the "backdoor" process just yet. Found a button that gives top 10 CPU users on device and their %. The top process is called Python, taking most of the CPU time.

    Thanks again for your help. If/when support bell me back I'll post their comments / suggestions about what to do with the Media Centre hogging the CPU.

    Have a great weekend!
    AJB


  • Registered Users Posts: 10,434 ✭✭✭✭28064212


    Still seems high. I have the 325, and CPU is rarely above 5% unless it's actively doing something. Run down the list of stuff under "Applications" on the left and turn off anything you're not using. FTP server is fine to leave on, but I'd disable everything else, and make sure all Packages are Disabled or Uninstalled.

    Python is an engine that other applications run on, so not very enlightening by itself. I didn't think it was installed by default on the NSAs (although it may have been added with the 4.6 firmware)

    Boardsie Enhancement Suite - a browser extension to make using post-migration Boards on desktop a better experience (includes full-width display, keyboard shortcuts, and a dark mode setting)



  • Closed Accounts Posts: 177 ✭✭AndyJB


    28064212 wrote: »
    Still seems high. I have the 325, and CPU is rarely above 5% unless it's actively doing something. Run down the list of stuff under "Applications" on the left and turn off anything you're not using. FTP server is fine to leave on, but I'd disable everything else, and make sure all Packages are Disabled or Uninstalled.

    Python is an engine that other applications run on, so not very enlightening by itself. I didn't think it was installed by default on the NSAs (although it may have been added with the 4.6 firmware)

    Morning,
    Only package running is SMART, a disk monitor. There doesn't appear to be a way to disable/remove. I just might do a system reset , if I can find the button!!!! I'll have another look after the weekend.

    Needless to say support never rang me back!

    Thanks again.
    Have a great bank holiday weekend.
    AJB


  • Registered Users Posts: 55 ✭✭mdabar


    Hi, quite the same story here :-/

    I have the NSA320 with the booting programmed every day, so I don't pay attention normally to some details, just that it's working and I can access to upload and download my stuff.
    However today I wanted to check something on the config, and I was very surprised to see the CPU at 100% (normally is much lower even streaming movies), and the process taking almost everything was Python (related to databases it seems)
    I have been reading different forums, mainly in Forums Nas-Central (I cannot paste links yet)

    But I've followed some of the advices, and my NAS is still at 100%.

    My points:

    - It's true that I have changed recently the IP a few times. I'm with UPC and lately internet is working very bad, disconnecting, far from the promised speed,... so often I restart the router, and sometimes I get a new IP address.
    - Each time that I restart the router, I have to access router config, unmark-save-mark-save the uPNP option, and then go to the NSA320 config and update the uPNP option too (just disable, apply and enable again). If I don't do that, the NAS is note reachable from outside my home.
    -I disabled Twonky and enabled it again after a few minutes, so it rebuilt again the media database taking 100% for a while, but when finished, the Python process appeared again at 100%.
    - Tried to reboot, but the same, everytime 100%.
    - Last, I have waited a long while, and finally the HDD went into sleep mode, and the LED was blinking... but checked the processes and still 100%!!!

    At the end, I have turn it off and will wait for a while to at least reduce the temperature, wihch was already near 60ºC :-/

    Ideas? advices? thanks


  • Registered Users Posts: 4,751 ✭✭✭Ste-


    What programs have you isntalled that python is using ?
    Could it be something that the database perhaps Plex is struggling on a near corrupt media file ?


  • Registered Users Posts: 55 ✭✭mdabar


    Ste- wrote: »
    What programs have you isntalled that python is using ?
    Could it be something that the database perhaps Plex is struggling on a near corrupt media file ?

    I have FFP installed, but as media server, just Twonky. It wasn't at 100% before, that's why I found it so weird.

    I have tried killing the process, but after some minutes, it comes again.


  • Registered Users Posts: 10,434 ✭✭✭✭28064212


    mdabar wrote: »
    I have FFP installed, but as media server, just Twonky. It wasn't at 100% before, that's why I found it so weird.

    I have tried killing the process, but after some minutes, it comes again.
    If you have FFP installed, ssh into the box and run the command:
    top -c -d 1
    
    (Press 'q' to quit it). This will tell you the full command that is using all your cpu, not just that it's python.

    Boardsie Enhancement Suite - a browser extension to make using post-migration Boards on desktop a better experience (includes full-width display, keyboard shortcuts, and a dark mode setting)



  • Registered Users Posts: 55 ✭✭mdabar


    28064212 wrote: »
    If you have FFP installed, ssh into the box and run the command:
    top -c -d 1
    
    (Press 'q' to quit it). This will tell you the full command that is using all your cpu, not just that it's python.

    I finally used the Tweaks package to disable that process taking so much CPU, and looks to be solved :-)
    Thanks!


  • Registered Users Posts: 678 ✭✭✭m4r10


    Anybody has issues with no-ip site? I can't seem to get access to my Zyxel through the no-ip address.


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users Posts: 4,751 ✭✭✭Ste-


    m4r10 wrote: »
    Anybody has issues with no-ip site? I can't seem to get access to my Zyxel through the no-ip address.

    Just checked an old entry I had with subsonic for no-ip and it's working.
    Gave up on no-ip and went with duckdns. you have to install it on the machine but it's hadny enough.


  • Registered Users Posts: 55 ✭✭mdabar


    For me it's working fine.

    Just keep in mind. Each time I reboot/reset my router, I have to access router config disable uPnP, save, enable again, and then access the NAS config and do the same with uPnP for HTTP access.

    In the No-IP site, I just have to be sure that the IP address is the correct one, and then is working.

    Pros: for me it's eassier to remember my domain than a IP address
    Cons: it's not really dynamic IP, I have to enter my IP manually, in other NAS I've seen just configuring the DynamicDNS service with user/pass and it takes it automatically.


  • Registered Users Posts: 678 ✭✭✭m4r10


    Something must've messed up my router settings as both Zyxel and ip camera not working through noip. I'll have a look into it over the weekend. You don't realise how much you miss these things only when they're gone :rolleyes:


  • Registered Users Posts: 58 ✭✭martinosullivan


    28064212 wrote: »
    Disable the media server and see if that fixes it. It'll at least allow you to isolate the problem.

    If you're comfortable using linux and PuTTy, you could open up the NSA's telnet backdoor. Follow only the instructions under either 4.40 or 4.60 firmware, depending on which you're on. Then use PuTTy to connect to the box's ip address through Telnet, port 23. Username is root, password is the admin one you use to login to the server screen with the CPU information. This will give you access to a linux command line, and then you could run the "top" command to find out what processes are using the CPU.

    Be careful with this method, it is possible to screw things up if you're not sure what you're doing


    Command line access is grate, I can now move files around by telnetting into the box and letting the box do all the work freeing up my computer for more important stuff.

    Considering I got this unit from someone who was going to bin it, I am very happy.


Advertisement