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In-depth Review of the HP X510 Data Vault Windows Home Server

Andrew Edney

-

Oct 27, 2009

HP have released a number of Windows Home Servers over the last 2 years since Windows Home Server was launched. Now comes a Windows Home Server from HP that is aimed at the business user instead of the home user.

SPECIFICATIONS

The X510 Data Vault Specification is as follows:

Processor : Intel Pentium Dual Core 2.5Ghz

Memory : 2GB DDR2

Capacity included : either 1 TB, 1.5 TB or 2 TB depending on the model

Open Bays : 2 or 3 depending on the model

Ports : 4 USB and 1 eSATA

Dimensions (inches) : 5.5 x 9.8 x 9.2

And those of you out there that want to use the eSATA port as a port multiplier will be happy to hear that HP have re-enabled it after the EX48x series only allowed connection of a single eSATA drive to the port! Good job HP, again, good listening to your customers feedback.

THE OBLIGITORY BOX SHOT

For those of you out there that love the shots of the box – yes, you know who you are, here it is. You will notice that the X510 box is a plain brown affair, instead of the usual black with coloured graphics. Personally I think this is more to do with businesses expecting plain packaging and not pretty colours and graphics.

WHATS IN THE BOX?

The contents of the box are very well packaged, you can simply lift out the X510 without any fuss. The box itself contains the X510, an Ethernet cable, a power cable, 3 software DVDs and the usual HP Setup Poster to get you going.

A LOOK AT THE X510 DATA VAULT

The X510 has the same look and feel as the previous HP MediaSmart servers – its small, sleek, a nice shiny black and it opens at the front to review the 4 disk drive bays.

INSTALLING THE SOFTWARE

Installing the software is just the same as on any other Windows Home Server – you just install the software on one of your network connected computers and just follow the steps. For those of you who like screenshots, here is a step by step through the installation process.

CONFIGURING YOUR WINDOWS HOME SERVER

As with the installation, the configuration steps are just the same – just walk through the questions and you will be ready to go. Notice that the default name for the X510 is HPSTORAGE. Again, here are the screenshot walkthroughs for those of you who are interested.

STARTING YOUR WINDOWS HOME SERVER FOR THE FIRST TIME

The first time you launch the Windows Home Server Connector the software will check to see if there are any HP specific updates that you might need. Given that the X510 has only been available a couple of weeks it was a bit of a surprise to see an update already.

THE WINDOWS HOME SERVER CONSOLE

This is where things get interesting and are different to what HP have done in the past. You will notice a whole new look and feel to the HP elements of the Windows Home Server Console including a Tour option that enables you to click on elements to see what they are and do. I really like this new look and feel and in my opinion will make it so much easier for those new users to get to grips with the Home Server in no time at all.

THE USUAL WINDOWS HOME SERVER CONSOLE STUFF

And here are the screenshots of the usual Windows Home Server Console elements.

HP DATA VAULT 3.0 UPDATE 1

I noticed that the Windows Home Server Connector software did not automatically update with the HP Data Vault 3.0 Update 1 package. I also noticed that I had a connection error with the HP Media Collector, but the Home Network Health information screen had advised me that the version of the software installed on my computer wasn’t compatible with the server and that I should uninstall and reinstall – which I did and it corrected the problem. For those of you interested, my computer OS is the 64-bit version of Windows 7 Ultimate. This is the same issue I had with the HP MediaSmart EX495, but then as they are pretty much the same bit of kit it is not surprising.

CONCLUSION

So, what do I think? Well, regular readers will know that I am a big fan of the HP MediaSmart Servers and the X510 is no exception. Yeah, I know that is the same thing I wrote about the EX495 for you eagle eyed readers, but it is in essence the same device, only aimed at businesses.

It is really quiet – now of course it only has a single drive in it out of the box but if you were to add some of the green quiet drives to it, this should help keep the noise down.

It is really good to see the eSATA port re-enabled as a port multiplier – so well done HP!

The new look and feel in the Windows Home Server is very intuitive and it is very easy to find what you are looking for. I know I am used to the console having used Windows Home Server now for nearly 3 years, but I honestly believe HP have done a lot to make it easier for those new users to find what they are looking for and also to guide them through doing whatever it is that they need to do.

So, why would you buy the X510 and not the EX495? Well for a start, if you were in the UK, you cannot get the EX495 but you can buy the X510. So there is probably the single biggest reason for buying it!

The software and hardware is exactly the same, the only difference is the Data Vault tab instead of the MediaSmart tab.

Basically this is a great Windows Home Server and you really can’t go wrong buying one!

List pricing for the UK is as follows:

(1 TB) £419.79

(2 TB) £516.34

(3 TB) £599.95

For the US market the prices are starting from $699 for the 1 TB and peaking at $999 for the 3 TB model.

Review of the Xtreamer Cooler – the XSC

Reviews
Tech

Andrew Edney

-

Oct 27, 2009

7

Regular readers will know that I am a big fan (no pun intended) of the Xtreamer media streamer. Take a look at the following articles for a review of the Xtreamer and other things:

https://moviesgamesandtech.com/2009/09/13/review-of-the-xtreamer/

https://moviesgamesandtech.com/2009/09/29/xtreamer-media-streamer-firmware-update-available/

Well a constant complaint from people about the Xtreamer is the noise that the fan makes. While I didn’t think it was that bad, I could also understand why people were not happy.

So step in Tranquil PC here in the UK, who are the UK distributor for the Xtreamer, and they have developed a cooler for the Xtreamer, called the XSC, that makes the Xtreamer silent, YES, silent!

Mine arrived today in a little tiny box and contains the cooler, a small thing of paste and the instructions.

Make sure you read all the instructions before beginning, it only takes a moment!

The first task is to remove the side of the Xtreamer. This involves using a small flat head screwdriver or a knife and gently prying off the side. It took me a few minutes to do this, and in fact I actually slipped and scratched the side of my Xtreamer, that will teach me!

Then you just pry off the existing heatsink to reveal the chip underneath.

This is where the instructions are a little off. What do I mean? Well, there is a diagram of the heatsink which shows it as a square – well as you can see above its not, so people might be confused.

The next job is to put some paste on the chip and spread it. Again, the instructions are not very clear as they state “apply a small amount… to the top of the chip…. it will spread out when the XSC is fitted, so spread it out over the surface…”. I get what they meant but one part of the sentence says it will be spread out for you and the other says to do it yourself. Again, not a big deal but not as clear as it could be for those users who are not sure.

Then its just a case of fitting the cooler on the side and you are done.

One important thing to note, when you switch on the Xtreamer for the first time after fitting the cooler, make sure you go to the Settings menu and turn OFF the fan, otherwise it will still be on.

FINAL THOUGHTS

It was very easy to fit, only really took a few moments, and more importantly it works!

It costs a whole £10.43 (plus VAT) and can be ordered from here.

So what are you waiting for? If you own an Xtreamer, get one of these today.

Review of the Powermat Wireless Charging System

Reviews
Tech

Andrew Edney

-

Oct 25, 2009

7

Earlier this week I went along to the UK press launch of the Powermat wireless charging system. Now I saw this at CES in Las Vegas back in January of this year, but now it is finally coming out.

Using wireless energy transfer, Powermat pairs an ultra-thin mat with a receiver that connects to your device. All you then have to do is place your device on the Powermat and it will begin charging. You can charge up to three devices at the same time on the Powermat and the same amount of power is used for three devices as is for one device. And even better is that the devices are charged at the same speed they would have been with their own charges, and in fact sometimes even faster! So for those of us with multiple devices that always seem to be needing a charge both quickly and at the same time this is a great feature.

As you can see from the third picture above, the iPhone receiver when attached to the iPhone really doesn’t make it much bigger, and it also acts as a protective case, and it only adds a little bit of extra weight. Although you don’t have to leave it on the iPhone all the time if you don’t want to!

You can add a fourth device for charging via a USB cable as well.

There are two different versions of the Powermat – the Powermat Home and Office and the Powermat Portable. The Powermat Portable folds up to be less than 10cm by 10cm by 3.5cm making it very small and easy to carry around with you – and it even comes with a cool carry case that is magnetically sealed! The case also contains three different plug ends for the power cable which means you can use it in other countries without the need of buying another adaptor – so well done Powermat!

As I mentioned earlier, you use a receiver for the device you want to charge. Currently there are receivers for the iPhone, iPods, Blackberry and Nintendo DS Lite and DSi devices. There is also something called the Powermat Powercube which comes with 8 different tips including mini USB connectors that connect to devices such as Nokia and Sony Ericsson mobile phones and even the PSP!

So How Does it Work?

For those of you who might want to know exactly how the Powermat works carry on reading.

Inductive coupling transfers energy via a magnetic field from a charging circuit inside the mat to another charge circuit in the receiver which is embedded in, or attached to, the device. The uniqueness of the Powermat technology lies in its intelligent power management features.

When the mat and the device are in immediate proximity, an RFID “handshake process” evokes to identify:

if there is a valid connection between the mat and the device
the amount of power required, and its existing level of stored batter power
which component in the mat should be activated to transfer the required power.

Then and only then does the transfer of electricity begin.

The connection is monitored at all times and the power transmission will cease once the connection is broken.

Final Thoughts

I love the Powermat, it works very well, is small and is very easy to use.

I like the reassuring sound you get when you place a device on the mat, plus that slight pull as the magnets kick in!

A nice feature of the mat is the charging lights. When you place a device on the mat, a light comes on to show it is connected and charging, when the charging is complete the light goes off. Nothing revolutionary here but its a nice feature that shows you quickly and easily the charging status of any of the devices on the mat.

Price wise the charging receivers are on par with that of a charger for the device in question.

If you travel a lot, and carry a few devices around with you then this is certainly a must for you. Mine is going to go with me from now on.

Pricing an Availability

Here in the UK the range of Powermat products will be launched next week on the 30th October and will be available from The Carphone Warehouse, Amazon and John Lewis, with more retailers expected later on.

Pricing is as follows:

Home and Office Powermat	£69.99
Portable Powermat	£79.99
Powercube including 8 tips (micro USB, Nokia 2mm, SE, Samsung, LG, Nintendo DS Lite, Nintendo DSi, Sony PSP)	£29.99
Apple iPhone	£34.99
Apple iPod Touch	£34.99
Apple Dock	£34.99
Blackberry Bold	£29.99
Blackberry Curve 8900, 8300, 8310, 8320, 8330, 8350i	£29.99
Blackberry Pearl 8110, 8120, 8130	£29.99
Nintendo DS and DSi	£29.99

You can also buy this in the US – both the Home and Office Powermat and the Portable Powermat retail for $99.99 from Amazon.

Review of the ASUS SDR-08D1S-U Portable External DVD Rewriter

Andrew Edney

-

Oct 24, 2009

1

ASUS produce a lot of laptops, netbooks and various other bits of kit, and now they have released a new portable external DVD rewriter known as the SDR-08D1S-U (quite a mouthful).

External DVD rewriters are really useful if your computer doesn’t have a DVD drive. Most desktop computers have one, but most netbooks (in fact you could pretty much say ALL netbooks) don’t have one and if you have a Windows Home Server from someone like Acer or HP then you won’t have a DVD drive either. This can often cause problems when it comes to installing new software, backing up your files, or even just watching movies and listening to music.

WHATS IN THE BOX?

The box is quite small and is very well packaged. It contains the drive, a stand, a software DVD, some instructions and a USB cable for connecting to your computer. The cable has two USB connectors on it in case your computer doesn’t provide enough power from a single USB port to power the drive, but on the desktop, notebook and netbook I tried the drive on a single USB port was sufficient. This is certainly better than having to carry around another power supply!

It comes in either black or white – in the case of this review I have the black one!

There is a stand that comes in the box to fit to the drive – it is just a simple case of removing a rubber cover from the back of the drive and then just slotting in the stand. It certainly makes it look nice and takes up less room than having it laying on it’s side.

SPECIFICATIONS

Write Speed
DVD-R? 8X
DVD-RW? 6X
DVD+R? 8X
DVD+RW? 8X
DVD+R(DL)? 6X
DVD-R (DL)? 6X
CD-R? 24X
CD-RW? 16X
DVD-RAM? 5X

Read Speed
DVD-R(Single): 8 X max.
DVD-RW(single): 8 X max.
DVD+R(Single): 8 X max.
DVD+RW(single): 8 X max.
DVD-R(DL): 6 X max.
DVD+R(DL): 6 X max.
DVD-ROM (Single): 8 X max.
DVD-ROM (Dual): 8 X max.
CD-ROM: 24 X max.
CD-RW: 24 X max.
CD-R: 24 X max.

Access time
DVD: 160 MS
CD: 140 MS

Writing Mode
DVD-R & DVD-R(DL)? DAO(Disc-At-Once)/Incremental Recording (Multi-Border Recording)
DVD-RW & DVD-RW (DL)? DAO(Disc-At-Once)/Restricted Overwriting/Incremental Recording (Multi-Border Recording)
DVD+R & DVD+R (DL)? Sequential Recording (Multi-Session Recording)
DVD+RW & DVD+RW (DL)? Random Recording
CD-R/RW? DAO(Disc-At-Once)/TAO(Track-At-Once)/SAO(Session-At-Once)/Packet Recording (Multi-Session Recording)

O/S Compatibility
Windows 2000
Windows NT
XP compatible
Vista compatible

Interface
USB2.0

Data Buffer
2 MB

Bundle Software
Cyberlink

Disc Formats
Write: DVD+/-RW,DVD+/-R,CD-R,CD-RW,DVD-RAM
Read: DVD-ROM,DVD+/-RW,DVD+/-R,Photo CD,Video CD,CD-DA,CD-Extra,CD-Text,CD-R,CD-RW,DVD-RAM

Disc Diameters
12cm/8cm

MTBF
60,000 Power On Hours
Operating Duty Cycle (Read) 10 % POH
Operating Duty Cycle (Write) 2 % POH

MTTR
30 Minutes

Mounting Orientation
Vertical and Horizontal ? +5 ° ~ -5 °?

Dimension (W x H x D)
156.4×140.8×21 mm (W x D x H)

Weight
412 g

Power Requirements
DC+5V ±5%,DC+12V ±10 %

Temperature
Operating: 0? to 40?
Storage: -30? to 60?

Humidity
Operating: 15% ~ 85% (Non-condensing)
Storage: 10% ~ 90% (Non-condensing)

Vibration
Operating: 0.2 G peak (at 10~500 Hz)
Storage: 1 G peak (at 10~500 Hz)

CYBERLINK DVD SUITE

The software that comes with the unit doesn’t need to be installed if you just wanted to use it as either a reader or if you want to use other software to write to it, however the software is good, and includes a firmware updater and also some software to increase the performance of the USB connection.

Choosing to update the firmware was easy – although at this time the drive ships with the latest available firmware so there was nothing to update, but you get the idea of how easy it is!

The ASUS Turbo Engine software is designed to increase the performance between the computer and the drive. It is easy to install and only took a few moments – although I will be honest I have yet to notice any real difference, but that is not to say there isn’t any!

FINAL THOUGHTS

I have to say that I really love this drive. It is small, light, looks great, and works exactly as you would expect! I am in the process of writing a book on Netbooks at the moment so this is certainly a must have bit of kit for anyone with a netbook or anyone thinking of buying a netbook. The addition of a vertical stand really adds to the look.

The button on the drive tray is sturdy and only takes a light touch to open, which is nice – I have used other drives that you had to push so hard on the button that you thought you might break it!

It is very quiet as well, although this will depend on what media you are using, what speed, etc.

My only complaint of the whole thing is the length of the USB cable that is provided. It is very short – which was fine when I was using it on my netbook, but when I wanted to plug it into my desktop I found that I had to balance the drive on the top of it, which is under my desk! That said it would be easy to go and buy a longer cable, so it isn’t a showstopper.

The inclusion of disc encryption software is certainly a welcome addition!

It retails in the UK for around £50 and in the US for around $70 so the pricing is fairly consistent.

My Windows 7 Book is Out and Another Giveaway

Andrew Edney

-

Oct 24, 2009

4

My Windows 7 book – Windows 7 Tweaks, Tips and Tricks is now available on Amazon and in all good bookshops.

It is published by Bernard Babani Publishing here in the UK and is a pocket sized full colour book on getting that little bit more out of Windows 7 and also telling you about some of the features of Windows 7.

It retails here in the UK for £6.99 but I figured that it was time for another one of our giveaways and so I am giving away 3 copies of the book.

At least this way I know that 3 people will actually have it 🙂

So, to win a copy of the book, all you have to do is go to our forums and in the giveaways section, leave a comment saying why you would like a copy of the book and where in the world you are. Click here to be taken straight to the forum.

And you can enter wherever you live, I will post the books to anywhere! The closing date for the giveaway is midnight on 31st October, so the winners will be announced on the site on Sunday 1st November.

Good luck.

Sky Player Icon Appears on Media Center

Microsoft

Andrew Edney

-

Oct 22, 2009

0

Further to my post yesterday about the Sky Player announcement at the UK Windows 7 launch I was at, I just noticed that on my Media Center under TV I now have a Sky Player icon that says Coming Soon. Cool 🙂

Cloudberry Backup for Windows Home Server Beta Now On

Windows Home Server

Andrew Edney

-

Oct 22, 2009

3

A few weeks ago I posted that Cloudberry were looking for beta testers for their new Cloudberry Backup for Windows Home Server add-in.

Well today is the day that the beta is launched! I’ve just downloaded it and will be using it over the weekend.

If you do download the beta, please give the guys feedback and comments – that is after all the whole point of a beta program.

CloudBerry Online Backup for Windows Home Server provides a powerful Backup and Restore program designed to leverage Amazon S3 storage to make your disaster recovery plan simple, reliable, and affordable.

CloudBerry Online Backup for WHS is currently available in BETA. You are welcome to sign-up for beta here

Windows Home Server is a great way to protect your data. However you are still vulnerable to physical disk failures and inadvertent deletions. As a result your data might be lost forever. CloudBerry Backup for Windows Home Server provides you with another level of protection by copying your data to secure online storage powered by Amazon S3

Features:

Easy installation and configuration
Seemlesly integrates with WHS control panel
Default backup plan is designed to quickly start WHS data backup
Scheduling capabilities
Data encryption
Data retention schedule
Secure online storage
Data versioning
Differential backup
The ability to restore to a particular date
Backup verification

Coming soon

Virtual Disk – expose Amazon S3 storage as a local disk on your computer
Storage costs estimates
Web interface access your backup storage everywhere
FTP support
Alerting notifications
Azure Blob Storage support
Sun Cloud Storage Service support

Benefits:

Backup and Restore Wizards make this service user friendly
Strong data encryption protects your data from unauthorized access
Data compression reduces the size of your backups
Scheduling capabilities automate the backup process
Backups are available for recovery 24/7
Intuitive interface provides easy file and folder selection capabilities
No proprietary storage format. You can access your files using other Amazon S3 tools.

Xtreamer Silent Cooler Out Next Week

Tech

Andrew Edney

-

Oct 21, 2009

0

As we reported a couple of weeks ago, Tranquil PC here in the UK is releasing a cooler for the Xtreamer media device that makes it silent.

Well, the cooler will star shipping from next Monday so order yours now!

To order, click here.

We will have ours early next week so watch out for a review and video!

Sky Player for Windows Media Center Announcement

Microsoft

Andrew Edney

-

Oct 21, 2009

9

At the UK launch of Windows 7, Microsoft today announced a major partnership with Sky to add Sky Player, Sky’s online TV service, to Windows Media Center in Windows 7, creating a new and exciting way to watch live and on-demand TV from Sky on a PC.

TV on a PC is part of Microsoft’s multi-screen entertainment strategy which, in addition to Sky Player in Windows 7, sees Microsoft and Sky working together to bring Sky Player to the TV screen via Xbox LIVE. Sky Player in Windows 7 will bring a wide range of live and on-demand entertainment programmes to the Windows platform.

The service will give Windows 7 users access to a wide range of high-quality live and on-demand pay TV currently on Sky Player, which includes the latest blockbuster movies, live action sports, must see entertainment, programming dedicated to kids, music, the arts and thought provoking documentaries.

For existing Sky TV customers, Sky Player in Windows 7 offers another way to view their Sky TV, in addition to their set top box. For new customers, Sky Player in Windows 7 will offer a wide range of live channels and on-demand content via a number of different packages through a monthly subscription.

Windows 7 enables audiences with a broadband Internet connection to watch TV from Sky on a PC. In addition to offering digital music, photos and personal videos all in one place, Windows 7 makes it easier to discover great TV, sports and movies from Sky straight from the PC desktop, via a new desktop gadget. Users can also browse programme galleries or search for shows using keywords.

Ashley Highfield, Managing Director and Vice President Consumer & Online, Microsoft UK, comments: “The way UK consumers interact with TV is changing. Audiences now want to consume great quality TV anywhere and at any time and are demanding a lot more from their TV experience. With the launch of Windows 7 and through partners such as Sky, we are making new things possible and delivering TV to British viewers the way they want it.”

Griff Parry, Director of On Demand, BSkyB adds: “We are committed to giving our customers more choice and flexibility in how they access Sky content. Sky Player in Windows 7 offers yet another innovative and attractive way through which to access a wide range of live and on-demand TV. Whether it’s an existing customer looking to get even more from their Sky subscription, or someone connecting with Sky for the first time through their PC, everyone can enjoy a high-quality online TV experience through Windows 7.”

Sky Player currently has 24 live streaming TV channels and provides a comprehensive on-demand library which includes 500 movies to download at anytime from Sky Movies and thousands of programmes spanning entertainment, sport documentaries, kids, culture and news.

Windows Media Center in Windows 7 gives user’s access to broadband and broadcast TV in one place. With the simple addition of an inexpensive TV tuner*, Windows 7 can function like a Digital Video Recorder (DVR), so audiences can also watch and record broadcast TV on their PC. A new integrated programme guide makes it easy to view available broadcast and internet TV channels in one place and with keyword search and Turbo Scroll it is quick and easy to look for and discover shows up to two weeks in advance.

Windows Media Center is included in Windows 7 Home Premium, Ultimate, Professional and Enterprise.

To watch Sky Player with Windows 7 you need an effective broadband connection of 2Mbit/s or more.

*UK TV License may be required for certain functionality.

About Sky Player

Sky Player TV was launched in December 2008 as a dedicated online subscription TV service, providing an alternative way to subscribe to Sky TV, without the need to subscribe to an existing TV-based service. It built upon the success of Sky Player, which launched in 2006 as a bonus service for Sky’s Direct-to-Home (DTH) customer base, allowing Sky customers to access live channels and on-demand content via their computers. It currently provides access to channel brands such as Sky Sports, Sky Movies, Sky News, The History Channel, National Geographic, the BBC, G.O.L.D, Eden, MTV ONE, ESPN, Sky1, Disney Channel and Nickelodeon, among others.

Non– Sky TV customers will require a monthly subscription which starts at £15 per month to Sky Player’s Base Entertainment Pack, customers who want watch Sky Sports 1, 2, 3, ESPN and Sky Movie channels will be able to add these channels to their Base Entertainment Pack for an additional cost. In addition to the live channels, customers will also have access to on-demand programmes from channels they subscribe to.

Customers with Sky Multiroom or Sky Broadband Unlimited subscriptions are additionally able to access live channels for no extra charge. Customers who do not have subscriptions to Sky Broadband Unlimited or Sky Multiroom are still able to access the live channels by taking an online Sky Player multiroom subscription for £5 per month.

ENTERTAINMENT PACK CHANNELS:

G.O.L.D., Sky Real Lives, Sky Arts 1, MTV ONE, Sky Sports News, British Eurosport

ESPN Classic, Sky News, National Geographic, Nat Geo Wild, History, Eden, Cartoon Network, Boomerang, Nickelodeon, Disney Channel, Nick Jr

SPORT PACK CHANNELS:

Sky Sports 1, Sky Sports 2, Sky Sports 3, Sky Sports XTRA + All sports video on demand programmes

MOVIES PACK CHANNELS:

Sky Movies Screen 1 and Screen 2 + Hundreds of movies from these channels to watch on demand.

ESPN can be added to any pack for additional cost.

Internet only subscription:

Pack	Channels	Cost per month	Total cost with ESPN
Entertainment Pack	G.O.L.D., Sky Real Lives, Sky Arts 1, MTV ONE, Sky Sports News, British Eurosport ESPN Classic, Sky News, National Geographic, Nat Geo Wild, History, Eden, Cartoon Network, Boomerang, Nickelodeon, Disney Channel, Nick Jr	£15	£27
Sport
Entertainment Pack + Single Sports Channel	Entertainment pack + Sky Sports Xtra and the choice of either Sky Sports 1 or Sky Sports	£25	£34
Entertainment Pack + Dual Sports Channels	Entertainment pack + Sky Sports 1, Sky Sports 2, Sky Sports 3, Sky Sports Xtra	£34	£43
Movies
Entertainment Pack + Single Movies Channel	Entertainment pack + Sky Movies Screen 1 or Sky Movies Screen 2	£24	£36
Entertainment Pack + Dual Movies Channels	Entertainment pack + Sky Movies Screen 1 and Sky Movies Screen 2	£32	£44
Sport & Movies
Entertainment Pack + Single Movies Channel + Single Sports channel	Entertainment pack + Sky Movies Screen 1 or Sky Movies Screen 2 and the choice of either Sky Sports 1 or Sky Sports 2, with Sky Sports Extra	£33	£42
Entertainment Pack + Dual Sports Channels + Single Movies Channel	Entertainment pack + Sky Sports 1, Sky Sports 2, Sky Sports 3, Sky Sports Xtra and Sky Movies Screen 1 or Sky Movies Screen 2	£38	£47
Entertainment Pack + Dual Movies Channels + Single Sports Channel	Entertainment pack + Sky Movies Screen 1 and Sky Movies Screen 2 and Sky Movies Screen 1 or Sky Movies Screen 2	£38	£47
Full channel pack – including all sports and movie channels	Entertainment pack + Sky Sports 1, Sky Sports 2, Sky Sports 3, Sky Sports Xtra and Sky Movies Screen 1 & Sky Movies Screen 2	£41	£50

Exclusive Review of the Lenovo IdeaCentre D400 Windows Home Server

Andrew Edney

-

Oct 19, 2009

17

This morning a nice box from Lenovo arrived containing the new Lenovo IdeaCentre D400 Windows Home Server.

We posted the unboxing shots here and so I won’t repost them all now, but go and have a look at them if you haven’t seen them yet.

SPECIFICATION

There are two different models of the D400, the 3013-1AU and the 3013-1BU. The only difference between the two is the 1AU comes with 1TB of storage and the 1BU comes with 2TB.

The rest of the specifications they both share:

PROCESSOR : Intel Atom 230 Processor (1.60GHz 533MHz 512KB)

MEMORY : 1GB capable of supporting up to 2GB

GRAPHICS : Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950

DRIVE BAYS : 4 SATA drive bays on the front

CHIPSET : Intel 945GC Express Chipset

FRONT PORTS : One USB 2.0 with a USB copy button for the Easy USB transfer function

REAR PORTS : Four USB 2.0, one eSATA, one Ethernet

POWER SUPPLY : 200 watts

DIMENSIONS : 200mm x 208.6mm x 212mm

COLOUR : Black bezel

WHATS IN THE BOX?

Apart from the D400 itself, there is a manual, an installation poster, a power cable, Ethernet cable and the usual 3 software DVDs.

It’s interesting to note that there is a mistake on the installation poster – it shows a screenshot from the Server Recovery DVD instead of the Client Installation DVD – but no real harm done.

INSTALLING AND CONFIGURING THE D400

Like most Windows Home Servers, it is just a simple case of connecting up the D400 and popping the Client Installation DVD into a computer on your network and then following the steps to install the software.

Here are the usual installation screenshots for those of you who might be interested:

When you first launch the Windows Home Server Console you will be asked for the password for the Hardware Health and Performance Monitor Service.

The first screen you will see is the Lenovo Home Server tab which gives you a single page view of the status of your Windows Home Server.

There are a couple of other Settings tabs specific to the D400:

Out of the box, the D400 comes preinstalled with Windows Home Server Power Pack 1, so as Power Pack 2 has been out for a while now, and Power Pack 3 should be here soonish you will want to update your Home Server first. This is just a case of going to Settings button and clicking Update and waiting while all the update download and install for you.

HARDWARE HEALTH AND PERFORMANCE MONITOR

You can use the Hardware Health and Performance Monitor settings page to set a refresh interval for monitoring data, configure performance threshold settings, specify email destinations to which alerts should be sent when temperature, voltage, and fan speed abnormality is detected or the pre-configured threshold is exceeded.

IP CONFIGURATION

The IP Configuration settings page allows you to view the home server’s current IP configuration settings or change the IP configuration manually. This is a nice feature that saves you from having to use Remote Desktop to get access to these kind of changes.

OTHER SOFTWARE

The D400 also comes with two other pieces of software that need to be installed if you want to use them. These are the LightsOut client utility and the Lenovo Home Server Easy Access Utility.

Lights Out is an application that was developed by a fellow WHS MVP, Martin Rothschink that allows you to set the home server into suspend mode or wake the system at a chosen time with the aid of a calendar event.

The default Uptime screen displays a chart showing recorded uptimes in the home server, such as when a backup took place, which home computer was active, or when the home server woke up from
sleep mode.

The Lenovo Home Server Easy Access utility is a piece of software you install on your client computers that enables you do use a one-click file copy from your computer directly to your Home Server.

The software that comes on the Client DVD doesn’t work with 64 bit Windows but you are pointed to the Lenovo website for an updated version.

So, 5 minutes later I have downloaded and installed a version of the software that works fine on my 64bit Windows machine.

You will see a new icon on your desktop called Lenovo Home Server EasyAccess.

When your first double-click on it you will be asked about connecting to the server.

In the Computer view on your computer, you will now see your home server listed under Network Locations.

If you double-click on this you are taken to a list of all your shared folders, so this saves you the effort of having to double-click on the Shared Folders icon or from the task tray.

Now if you highlight some files on your computer, right-click to bring up the context menu you can now click on Upload to HOMESERVER (or whatever you home server is called), and then select the folder to copy them straight to your home server.

This feature is great – and will save a lot of time if you do a lot of copying!

ONE-TOUCH USB BACKUP

The USB backup button on the front panel allows you to backup data from a USB storage device to the home server. Windows Home Server copies all files into the Publics shared folder first then classifies the files according to media type into their corresponding shared folders, namely Music, Videos, Photos. When Windows Home Server cannot determine file type, the file is automatically stored into the Others folder.

So all you have to do is plug in a USB hard drive and press the USB backup button on the front of the D400 to begin (it will now be glowing blue). If you have a lot of hard drives that are not external USB drives you should consider buying an adaptor, they can be very useful.

I did a little test and was very impressed with the results, and it was quite quick. This is much easier that plugging in a drive to your WHS, and then having to map drives and manually copy files over.

THOUGHTS AND CONCLUSION

So Lenovo have gone with the low powered Atom 230 Processor which is a single-core 64 bit processor. While this is not as powerful as the processor on the new HP MediaSmart EX49x series, it should certainly get the job done.

The D400 looks very similar to the Acer Aspire H340 in that is a black cube. It does have a semi transparent door which makes it look a little retro.

It is not the quietest home server on the market, so you might want to think carefully about where you place it. That being said, it certainly isn’t the loudest device I have ever had running either.

The Easy USB file transfer button on the front of the D400 is a nice touch – just plug in your USB drive and press the button and it will copy the contents to your Windows Home Server. Now this isn’t exactly a new feature, the Acer Aspire H340 does the same thing, but it is nice to see it being used again as it can really save time if you do a lot of data importing this way.

The Lenovo Home Server EasyAccess client software is great – it is very easy to install and use and it will really save a lot of time if you do a lot of uploading to your home server, which I am sure you will do, because that is one of the reasons for having a home server.

So do I like the D400? The answer is yes, I do. It doesn’t have all the media capabilities of the new EX49x series from HP, but if you are looking for a good, solid Windows Home Server with some great features, you really should take a look at the D400.

The D400 3013 1AU retails for $499 and the 3013 1BU retails for $599, No news yet on release dates or prices for anywhere other than the US so watch this space.

First Look at the Lenovo IdeaCenter D400 Windows Home Server

Andrew Edney

-

Oct 19, 2009

3

A lovely box arrived this morning from Lenovo – the IdeaCenter D400 Windows Home Server. Don’t you just love Mondays!

The IdeaCenter D400 has an Intel Atom 230 Processor, comes with a 1GB of Memory, and either 1TB or 2TBs of storage depending on which of the two models you go for.

I’m going to start looking at the review shortly but for now take a look at the unboxing shots and at the unit itself.

Windows Media Center Connector and Recording TV to Windows Home Server on a Friday night

Timothy Daleo

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Oct 19, 2009

23

Tonight I will be showing you some options for setting up TV signal, recording TV and storing TV programs with Windows Media Center (WMC) and your Windows Home Server. Since Friday TV sucks I will be using Sunday programming.

Background

This article started out with one purpose: To show how to record TV programs on my Vista PC and then move the shows to WHS.

Thursday night is a great night for TV. We have Survivor on CBS, Flash Forward on ABC, and the NBC comedy shows. My problem is that my trusty MOXI cable DVR can only record two channels at once. Bummer.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Charter and Moxi since I can set recordings and view the menu over the internet. The quality is top-notch too. I also added a 250 GB Seagate to expand the recording storage but I am still limited to only two channels recording at the same time!

In addition, my wife likes to record the Jade Channel and there is no way I can currently record FOUR channels at once. Love Exchange? Really dear? I am not recording that. Sorry.

So herein lies the dilemma. How do I record three or even four channels all at the same time? I could get a second MOXI box for the office, and pay an extra $20 a month, but I would not be able to watch it on the 50”. If I record them somewhere else, how do I get the shows to view on the 50” Plasma in the living room? I have the Dell Studio Hybrid HTPC networked and connected via HDMI but I do not have a TV tuner on that PC. I do have WMC on the Hybrid so if I could get the show to the server then I could watch from there.

Mental note: Internet sites like Hulu sometimes have HD programming but between the delay in posting new shows and the commercials I would like to try and record in-house. In addition, a lot of the HD shows are not played in true HD.

My solution? Record HD signals over the AIR on my office WMC Vista PC and let Windows Home Server store the TV shows so I can watch them on any PC in the house!

Viva WHS. Seriously.

Equipment Needed

Windows Media Center PC
2 Beers (optional as always)
Installed TV Tuner Card or USB TV Tuner (Mine is a Pinnacle HD Pro Stick)
Power Pack Three Beta WHS Upgrade

I wrote a few weeks ago about the upgrade to the WHS Power Pack Three Beta. You need the Power Pack Beta for the TV Archive function of WHS. You can find that article at:

https://moviesgamesandtech.com/2009/10/05/installing-power-pack-3-on-windows-home-server-on-a-friday-night/

I love WMC. I think eventually I will use it for all of my media. Back in May I wrote about how to add your DVDs to your Windows Media Center. If you do not already have your favorite DVDs stored on your server I would suggest reading it at:

https://moviesgamesandtech.com/2009/05/11/adding-your-dvd-library-to-a-windows-media-center-pc-with-windows-home-server-on-a-friday-night/

Enough of the links. Lets set this pig on fire.

Installation of the WHS WMC Connector

The installation of the WMC Connector is very simple. Find the file in your start menu.

Once you have clicked on the Windows Media Center Connector installation is quite simple. Click on Next.

Enter the password for your WHS and then click on Next.

Once the connector has been updated you just need to click on Done and restart your system.

Now that WHS is configured for TV archive and storage we need to figure out the best way to find TV signal!

Cable or Antenna?

I have done a lot of research over the last two weeks and I have been frustrated at the information that is out there regarding connecting your direct cable line to a Vista WMC PC. Most of us know that when you plug your cable coax directly to a TV you get the basic cable channels (usually 2-99) and NO HD signals. To get HD you need a HD cable box from your service provider. Your cable provider MIGHT be different but I doubt it. I use Charter and I love the HD signal but I can only get HD signals with their equipment. Of course their equipment is not made to interact with Windows. Crap.

I am not going to go into any detail about the different signal types. There is ATSC and clear QAM and your TV Tuner should be able to read both. Also remember that Digital does not mean HD.

Cable to the PC TV Tuner

As a test for signal quality I will hook up the cable coax directly to the TV Tuner. The STB (set top box) I rent is a Explorer 4250HDC and has every channel including HD, a program guide and music channels. I will disconnect the coax from my Charter HD STB (currently connected to the hanging Dell 24” via HDMI as shown below) and plug it into the WMC Vista PC. I am going to skip the actual WMC setup screens for brevity.

When you connect your cable coax to the TV Tuner of your PC, and set up is complete, you only get the basic 2-99 channels and only in standard definition.

You get a crappy picture like this:

I cropped but did not change the aspect ratio.

When you connect your PC TV Tuner to an HD antenna over the AIR (shown out of order below for comparison purposes) you get this picture:

Look at what a difference HD makes!

Besides, when you use the cable coax connection and the Microsoft TV Guide they do not sync:

Does this look like Formula One Racing to you? I think NOT.

What do I do? Connect with my cable and get standard crappy picture or connect over AIR and get only a few network TV channels but in HD?

CABLECARD you ask?

Ah, the mysterious and all elusive CableCard. My service provider supports it (and will install it) but I cannot find any equipment for sale that uses it. I spent the better part of a week looking for any TV Tuner that can support a CableCard. I found out that ATI makes an external unit but I cannot find it for sale anywhere. I also see that Dell and HP both have it in system manuals but I cannot find any actual hardware for sale on their sites.

The CableCard would seem to solve my issue of HD on a PC with a cable coax connection. I would love to hear from anyone that has had any luck with a CableCard setup.

I have made my decision: Antenna and HD

I have decided to connect an antenna to my WMC Vista PC and get the HD over AIR signal. Since I want to record ABC Flash Forward, I want the best picture possible. Watching that show requires detailed pause screens. They better not screw it up like they did Lost. Anyway. Recording Flash Forward is the whole point of this project anyway.

Viva HD. Viva ABC. Viva MGD. Viva WHS. Seriously.

Antenna Selection

Good luck with this on your own. This is where the beer comes in. You may want to check with the following website before you spend a lot on an antenna:

http://www.antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.aspx

I am sorry but I did not include pictures of the unboxing of the antennas!

Antenna #1 – Came with the Pinnacle TV Tuner. Big magnet base. Does not work well.

Antenna #2 – $10 from Meritline. Works ok but flimsy and ugly.

Antenna #3 – Bought from Home Depot for $56, mounted it outside, ran the cable inside and it worked for crap. Returned it. Flippers.

Antenna #4 – Bought at Big Lots for $19 and it works the best but only when leaning against the window of the office.

I live in Azusa up near the mountains so my signal in not line of sight. Your signal strength will vary and WMC has a nice interface to show you the signal strength of each station as you go through the AIR antenna set up process.

Again, I am going to skip the actual WMC setup for the antenna for brevity. If anyone really wants to see that process please post in the comments section and I will see if I have enough beer to do it again. Seriously.

So, the HD signal with antenna is a great picture. I only get CBS, NBC and KTLA (WB). All of the other channels have low signal strength. Looks like I am not recording Flash Forward. Crap. Seriously.

I must admit I am happy with the three stations I do get. Very nice.

Dude, you should not get into a helicopter with Rabbit. Well ok, the pilot is pretty hot. She will make your eyes pop out. Or pop in.

After you have determined your signal strength and connection you are ready to start recording. I use the Side Bar Web Guide for most of the scheduled recording. It is easy and does not require WMC to be open.

Once you have a few programs recorded you will start to see your menu fill up. This is the past week of my recorded shows.

John Juanda is great. SNL is kinda funny. Make it so Number One. Russell is hilarious. And is she gonna bang everyone on the show?

Remember that these are only the shows I am recording on the PC. MOXI still has the full HD menu so without a CableCard I will always have to use MOXI.

Windows Media Center storage on your PC

My Studio 540 Desktop main drive is only 500GB so although I have space for 38 hours of HD shows I want to get it to the server so I can watch it on the 50”.

How do I know I have 38 hours? Curious what space your PC has? Right mouse click and choose Settings.

Once in Settings select TV>Recorder>Recorder Storage

Mental note: I could only get WMC to record to local attached drives and NOT mapped drives.

Windows Media Center on Windows Home Server

Ok, so I am finally getting around to the WHS feature. From within WMC scroll to Home Server and select tv archive.

Mental note: The console view is pretty cool. Check it out. You can see info about your WHS without using the WHS Console.

Once in the WMC Home Server tv archive you can tell WHS which shows you want to have moved to the Recorded TV folder. I left one show unchecked since I watch that in the office and do not need it on the server.

Each night at midnight WHS transfers the recorded shows for that day into the Recorded TV folder on your WHS. You can see in the folder below that Poker After Dark was not moved. The latest SNL was not moved either since it was in the middle of recording when midnight rolled around.

Mental note: I changed my Backup time to 3:00 AM to avoid any issues.

On my PC the only shows in the local Recorded TV folder are the Poker After Dark programs. I was watching one while I was writing this article so it only shows one Poker program in the screen shot above.

There are other archive options in the WMC WHS so if you wanted to have WHS move only certain shows you could check the boxes of each show individually.

In addition, you can have WHS move ALL of the shows.

There is also a cool log that tells you what was moved and when.

Mental note: To any Microsoft people out there reading this; when I want to MUTE the WMC I just want to mute WMC and not the whole PC!

Conclusion

Overall I am very happy with WMC and the WHS Power Pack Beta update. Everything works as promised and the whole setup is very easy to use.

My only complaints are with the HD signal and with the lack of CableCard hardware. Even the best antenna still gets interrupted once in a while and in my area some channels signals are not even available. I would really like to hear from anyone successful with a CableCard hardware setup.

In addition I know there is a OEM TV version of WMC that some manufacturers ship so I would like to hear about that. Does Windows 7 incorporate the TV version?

See you next Friday night,

Timothy Daleo

PerfectDisk 10 for Windows Home Server Giveaway – The Winners

Windows Home Server

Andrew Edney

-

Oct 18, 2009

8

The generous folks over at Raxco have given us 7 full licences for PerfectDisk 10 for Windows Home Server Family Pack to giveaway to you lucky readers. Yes, its been a little while since we did a giveaway here at Using Windows Home Server, but they are back!

Why 7 copies you may ask? Well, PerfectDisk 10 is the first disk defragmenter certified by Microsoft for Windows 7 – way to go guys!

The Windows Home Server Family Pack gives you 1 licence for your Windows Home Server and 10 licences for your computers at home – so it is great combination.

We reviewed PerfectDisk 10 back in March, so go remind yourself all about it and why you need it by clicking here.

So, we have now completed the 7 days of giveaways and without further ado here are the winners picked at random:

Chris Kenney

Homeservershow

Cujobark

Dave Marchant

Heaphus

Welchwerks

Oguime

Congratulations guys, you should be hearing from Raxco shortly with your licence information and download instructions.

For everyone else, thank you for entering and stay tuned for more giveaways shortly.

Using Your Own Domain Name with Windows Home Server

Andrew Edney

-

Oct 17, 2009

5

A few days ago, Richard, one of our readers asked a question about using his own domain name with Windows Home Server instead of either the TZO.com or the Homeserver.com address.

The following day Richard posted a follow up:

If like me you already have your own registered domain name most providers will set up a sub domain and DNS routing against it free of charge. This will not affect any existing services such as web sites on your main domain name.

I managed to get my personal sub domain working with my Home Server by tricking the console into saving the details without buying any addition services as follows:

1. Open the console and select remote access.

2. Select “TZO.COM custom domain name”.

3. Selected “Transfer my custom domain name to TZO.COM” (you will need to add a name and email address) 4. Enter your custom domain name when requested and click transfer.

5. Click Finnish and quit TZO.COM web site when transferred.

The custom domain and IP info is now cashed in your Home Server and no costs incurred.

Remember to configure port forwarding on your router correctly before you start.

Click here for our article on configuring port forwarding on your router.

So thanks for that Richard, I am sure other people will find that useful.