Introduction
Are you in need of a powerful and versatile storage solution for your business or professional requirements? Do you wish to leverage the benefits of the ZFS file system, such as advanced data protection, integrity, and efficiency? If so, the QNAP TVS-h874 NAS might be the perfect device for you. In this review, we will explore the key features, specifications, performance, and user experience of this NAS, while also comparing it to its competitors. Furthermore, we will provide an explanation of what ZFS entails and why it makes for an excellent choice for your storage needs. Let’s begin with an overview of the specifications of this NAS.
Specifications
The QNAP TVS-h874 NAS is an 8-bay storage device designed for small and medium-sized businesses seeking a reliable, powerful, and versatile solution for their data management needs. The TVS-h874 boasts the following key specifications:
– Processor: Intel® Core™ i5-12400 6-core/12-thread processor, operating at 2.5 GHz (up to 4.4 GHz max)
– Memory: 32 GB DDR4 RAM (expandable up to 128 GB)
– Storage: 8 x 3.5/2.5-inch SATA III 6 Gb/s drive bays, 2 x M.2 2280 PCIe 4.0 x4 slots
– Network: 2 x 2.5GbE RJ45 ports, 1 x PCIe Gen 4 x16 slot (pre-installed with a dual-port 10GBASE-T network card), 1 x PCIe Gen 4 x4 slot
– Expansion: 1 x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 port, 3 x USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 ports, 1 x HDMI 1.4b port
– Operating System: QuTS hero or QTS (user’s choice during initial setup)
– RAID: Supports RAID 0, 1, 5, 6, 10, 50, 60, and JBOD
– Dimensions: 188 mm × 329 mm × 281 mm
– Weight: Approximately 7 kg (without drives)
The price of the QNAP TVS-h874 NAS may vary depending on the vendor and region, but the average price is around €2000. Considering the high performance, expandability, and functionality that this device offers, this is a reasonable price.
The QNAP TVS-h874 NAS faces competition from several other 8-bay NAS devices aimed at business users, such as the Synology DS1821+, the Asustor Lockerstor AS6608T, and the TerraMaster F8-422. How does the QNAP TVS-h874 compare to these competitors?
One of the key distinguishing features of the QNAP TVS-h874 is its support for the ZFS file system through the QuTS hero operating system. ZFS is an advanced file system that provides various advantages for data protection, integrity, and efficiency. We will explain more about ZFS and why it is an excellent choice for your storage needs later in this review.
Another distinguishing feature of the QNAP TVS-h874 is its PCIe Gen 4 expandability, which offers up to twice the transfer speed of Gen 3. This allows you to add faster network cards, SSDs, or graphics cards to your NAS to enhance performance or unlock new features. The QNAP TVS-h874 comes with a pre-installed dual-port 10GBASE-T network card in one of the PCIe Gen 4 slots, allowing you to immediately benefit from faster network connections.
A third distinguishing feature of the QNAP TVS-h874 is its powerful Intel® Core™ i5-12400 processor, part of the latest generation Intel Alder Lake processors. With six cores and twelve threads, this processor can reach speeds of up to 4.4 GHz, making the QNAP TVS-h874 suitable for demanding applications like virtualization, video editing, or data analysis.
While the competitors of the QNAP TVS-h874 also have their own strengths, not all of them can match the QNAP TVS-h874 in terms of ZFS support, PCIe Gen 4 expandability, processor performance, and overall price-performance ratio. For example, the Synology DS1821+ features an AMD Ryzen V1500B processor with four cores and eight threads.
The TerraMaster F8-422 features an Intel® Celeron® J3455 processor with four cores and four threads, capable of reaching speeds up to 2.3 GHz. None of these processors are as powerful as the Intel® Core™ i5-12400 processor in the QNAP TVS-h874, which has six cores and twelve threads, and can reach speeds up to 4.4 GHz.
The price differences between the QNAP TVS-h874 and its competitors are also significant. The QNAP TVS-h874 has an average cost of around €2000, while the Synology DS1821+ is priced at approximately €1100, the Asustor Lockerstor AS6608T at about €1500, and the TerraMaster F8-422 at around €1300. This means that the QNAP TVS-h874 is about twice as expensive as the Synology DS1821+, but it also offers many more features and higher performance. The QNAP TVS-h874 is approximately €500 more expensive than the Asustor Lockerstor AS6608T and the TerraMaster F8-422, but it is also much faster, more versatile, and more reliable. If you are looking for a NAS that offers great value for your money, the QNAP TVS-h874 is a solid choice.
Unboxing
The QNAP TVS-h874 NAS comes in a sturdy cardboard box with the QNAP logo and product name displayed on it. Inside the box, you will find the following items:
– The QNAP TVS-h874 NAS itself, measuring 188 mm × 329 mm × 281 mm and weighing approximately 7 kg without drives.
– A power cable and a power adapter, necessary for powering the NAS.
– Two Ethernet cables, which you can use to connect the NAS to your router or switch.
– A quick start guide to assist you in setting up and configuring the NAS.
– A warranty card, providing information about the warranty terms and period for the NAS.
– An accessory package, consisting of screws, keys, and labels for installing and securing your drives.
The unboxing experience of the QNAP TVS-h874 NAS is pleasant and straightforward. The box is sturdy and well-packed, containing everything you need to install and use the NAS. The NAS itself has a sleek and professional appearance, with a black metal chassis and a glossy front panel. The front of the NAS features an LED display that provides information about the NAS’s status, temperature, IP address, and other data.
Additionally, the front panel includes a power button, a USB-C port, a USB-A port, and a copy button, enabling easy file transfers to and from an external device. There are eight drive bays at the front, accessible by pressing the unlock button. These drive bays are compatible with both 3.5-inch and 2.5-inch SATA drives, and you can easily install them using the included screws. The drive bays also have keys and labels for securing and identifying your drives.
At the back of the NAS, you’ll find two fans, ensuring proper air circulation and cooling of the device. There are also two hidden M.2 PCIe Gen4 slots covered by a metal plate. Removing this plate allows you to install M.2 SSDs for SSD caching or storage pools. Additionally, there are two PCIe Gen 4 slots, with one pre-installed with a dual-port 10GBASE-T network card. The other slot allows you to add extra network cards, SSDs, or graphics cards to your NAS.
Furthermore, you’ll find two 2.5GbE RJ45 ports at the back, enabling you to connect the NAS to your router or switch for faster network connections. There are also two USB-A ports, an HDMI port, and a power port.
Installing the QNAP TVS-h874 NAS is relatively straightforward and takes about 15 minutes. After installing the QNAP TVS-h874 NAS, you can set it up and configure it through a web browser or a mobile app. You have the option to choose between two operating systems: QuTS hero or QTS. QuTS hero is based on ZFS, while QTS is based on EXT4. We recommend choosing QuTS hero as it offers more advantages for your data management, as we will explain later. However, you can also choose QTS if you prefer.
To install QuTS hero or QTS, you first need to connect to your NAS through a web browser or a mobile app. You can do this by entering the IP address of your NAS into your web browser or by using a utility like Qfinder Pro or QNAP CloudLink. Once connected to your NAS, you will be prompted to set up a username and password and choose an operating system. Simply follow the on-screen instructions to install QuTS hero or QTS.
After installing QuTS hero or QTS, you can begin using your QNAP TVS-h874 NAS. You can explore various features and applications, such as backup, media streaming, virtualization, data analysis, video editing, and much more. You can also add additional features by downloading apps from the App Center or external sources.
Software
The QNAP TVS-h874 NAS operates on one of two operating systems: QuTS hero or QTS. QuTS hero is based on ZFS, an advanced file system that offers various advantages for data protection, integrity, and efficiency. With QuTS hero, you can take advantage of features such as copy-on-write, checksumming, RAID-Z, deduplication, compression, snapshots, and end-to-end encryption. You can also benefit from technologies like QuDedup, QuLog Center, QuAI, and QuMagie, which enhance backup processes, log analysis, artificial intelligence, and photo management.
On the other hand, QTS is the classic operating system of QNAP, based on EXT4, a traditional file system that offers fewer advanced features than ZFS but is stable and reliable. With QTS, you can utilize features such as Hybrid Backup Sync, Multimedia Console, Virtualization Station, Container Station, and QVR Pro, which enable data synchronization and protection, media file management and streaming, creation and management of virtual machines and containers, and IP camera monitoring. QTS also includes features like Qsync, QmailAgent, Qfiling, and Qsirch, which facilitate file synchronization, management, and backup of email accounts, automated file organization and archiving, and quick and easy file searches.
The QNAP TVS-h874 NAS, therefore, provides two options for the operating system: QuTS hero or QTS. Both options have their own advantages and disadvantages, and the choice depends on your personal preferences and needs. QuTS hero offers more advanced features for data management, while QTS offers more classical features for general use. However, you can also try and compare both options since you can switch between QuTS hero and QTS by reinstalling the operating system at any time.
It’s ridiculous to comprehend how big the OS of QTS or QuTS Hero is. There are sooo many options. I added them so that you can see what’s possible. And don’t forget, there are so many (even 3th party) apps for this system, so that it can even be made more tailored to your wishes.
User Experience
The QNAP TVS-h874 NAS pleasantly surprised me with its performance, functionality, and versatility. I used the NAS for various purposes, such as backup, media streaming, virtualization, and data analysis, and I was impressed with its speed, stability, compatibility, and user-friendliness. Let me share some of the highlights and drawbacks of my experience with the QNAP TVS-h874 NAS.
One of the highlights was using QuTS hero, the new operating system from QNAP based on ZFS. I found QuTS hero to be excellent to work with, as it provided me with many benefits for data management. Features such as copy-on-write, checksumming, RAID-Z, deduplication, compression, snapshots, and end-to-end encryption protected my data from corruption, loss, and theft. Additionally, technologies like QuDedup, QuLog Center, QuAI, and QuMagie enhanced my backup processes, log analysis, artificial intelligence, and photo management. QuTS hero’s intuitive and user-friendly interface offered a clear and organized dashboard to manage all my settings, applications, and data efficiently.
Another positive aspect was the PCIe Gen 4 expandability, which provided numerous opportunities to enhance the NAS’s performance and functionality. I could take advantage of the pre-installed dual-port 10GBASE-T network card, enabling fast network connections for transfers and streaming. The M.2 PCIe Gen 4 slots allowed me to install M.2 SSDs for caching or storage pools. Additionally, the PCIe Gen 4 slots enabled me to add extra network cards, SSDs, or graphic cards to customize the NAS according to my needs.
Furthermore, the use of the powerful i5-12400 processor was astonishing, providing excellent performance for my demanding applications. I could simultaneously transcode and stream multiple 4K videos to my devices using Plex Media Server. Running multiple virtual machines or containers on my NAS with Virtualization Station or Container Station was smooth and efficient. Building and deploying machine learning models using QuAI were also remarkably fast and responsive on my NAS.
However, I also encountered some drawbacks in my experience with the QNAP TVS-h874 NAS. One of them was its high price, approximately €2000. While I understood that the QNAP TVS-h874 offered more features and performance than its competitors, I found it to be a significant investment.
Another drawback was the high power consumption of the NAS, approximately 100W in operation. This was higher than some of its competitors, such as the Synology DS1821+, which consumed around 60W in operation. While I recognized that the QNAP TVS-h874 was a powerful device that required more power, I still considered it a downside for my electricity bill.
A third drawback was the high noise level of the NAS, producing approximately 40dB in operation. This was louder than some of its competitors, such as the Synology DS1821+, which produced around 25dB in operation. While I understood that the QNAP TVS-h874 had two fans necessary for cooling, I found the noise to be irritating.
Conclusion
The QNAP TVS-h874 NAS has given me a lot of pleasure and satisfaction during testing. I was impressed with its performance, functionality, and versatility, and the NAS has unique and distinctive features such as ZFS support, PCIe Gen 4 expandability, and powerful processor performance that make it suitable for a wide range of business applications. Additionally, the NAS provides a user-friendly and intuitive interface that offered me a clear and organized dashboard to manage all my settings, applications, and data.
However, I cannot overlook the drawbacks of the QNAP TVS-h874 NAS. One of the downsides is its high price of approximately €2000, which is much more expensive than some competitors like the Synology DS1821+, the Asustor Lockerstor AS6608T, or the TerraMaster F8-422. The high power consumption of about 100W in operating mode is also a disadvantage, especially when compared to competing models that consume less energy. The noise level of about 40 dB in operation can also be a downside for those seeking a quieter storage solution.
My overall impression of the QNAP TVS-h874 NAS is positive, but with some reservations. I think it is an excellent device for people seeking a reliable, powerful, and versatile storage solution for their business or professional needs. Especially if you want to take advantage of the benefits of the ZFS file system, such as advanced data protection, integrity, and efficiency, this NAS is a good choice. Additionally, if you want to benefit from the capabilities of PCIe Gen 4 expandability, such as faster network cards, SSDs, or graphics cards, this NAS offers many possibilities. Moreover, the powerful Intel® Core™ i5-12400 processor is well-suited for demanding applications such as virtualization, video editing, or data analysis. Or if you want to go hardcore, you can choose the i7 or i9.
On the other hand, I think this NAS is less suitable for people looking for a cheaper, energy-efficient, and silent storage solution for personal or home use. For this audience, a cheaper, more energy-efficient, and quieter NAS such as the Synology DS1821+, the Asustor Lockerstor AS6608T, or the TerraMaster F8-422 would be a better choice.
Therefore, my recommendation is to purchase the QNAP TVS-h874 NAS if you are looking for a high-quality storage solution for your business or professional needs and are willing to pay more for additional features and performance. However, if you want a simpler storage solution for personal or home use and want to save on costs, power, and noise, then it is better to choose a different NAS.
The TVS-h874 gets 4 out of 5 stars. It’s a huge machine with endless possibilities, but it is also quite an investment.
