The status quo is exactly what it means – the middle road, the best compromise, the most fitting example. For years, NAS – Network Attached Storage – options have been limited to either the corporate markets with their multi-million budgets where a mid-level NAS setup would only put a small dent in their budgets, right down to the other end of the spectrum with cheap, no-brand hardisk containers that simply had an attached LAN port at one end.

                                              Although initially mistaken for an AVR, the DNS323 is actually a handsome device.

The D-Link DNS-323 is the first acceptable brand-name NAS device I’ve come across that boasts of an affordable price while giving the consumer everything that could possibly be of use in a home / small office setting. Firstly, the D-Link DNS-323 is as simple as it gets – taking into account most home-owner’s none – computer background, D-Link has made sure that installation of the (not included) drives is supremely easy -  simply slide up the front panel, slide in the SATA drive until it engages with the internal connectors, then slide down the front cover and power up the unit. Very lurid.

                                             Nothing too intimidating; a USB slot, power, and LAN port, an exhaust fan and release levers are what you'll find at the rear.

Installation onto a network is nearly as easy – connect the NAS to a router / switch / or directly to the computer with the included LAN cable, connect the power, and the device cleverly waits for a DHCP assigned IP address; if one is not forthcoming, the default IP is assigned to the device to facilitate instant access. The included CD-Rom is then used to install a simple utility that can be used to assign another IP to the device on your network, or to find the device and configure its settings.

Now for most users, the installation ends there and then, as a simple repository of data, that amount of setup is enough. Then again, the D-Link DNS-323 also caters to the intermediate crowd, with options for hardisk RAID configuration for security (backup through a mirroring array) or performance (combining two drives into one for extra performance in a striping array). Individual disks can also be supported, or even combining two dissimilar disks can be done using the utility.

                                             Slide up, slide in, slide down to install a SATA hardisk.

Of course, the inherent advantages of a NAS device are still present with the D-Link, peppered with some tasty extras. The DNS-323 is the perfect back-up device that can also be shared with many computers over a network, much like a networked printer can be used to accept multiple job requests from many computers on the same network. Speaking of printers, the DNS-323 can also act as a print server through its integrated USB connector, giving another reason for the typical home user with a non-network printer to buy into the DNS-323. Most of the other “extras” are software based, with emphasis on enabling the DNS-323 to serve as the storage central of a digital home – however cheesy the cliché sounds. With settings for uPnP sharing with other compatible devices over a network – think video streaming and media storage, an iTunes set-and-forget  music server, and the option to set up your own FTP server accessible over the internet, sharing files and media cannot be any easier with this device.

The most important bullet point though is the price point – at around P8800 for the device with this caliber of features and coming from a respected brand, the device is obviously targeted at home users and people who needs or will benefit from its capabilities but cannot pay nearly enterprise-level prices for a NAS. With the ease of use that this device emphasizes at this price point, it is hard not to recommend something that is basically a hardisk caddy, although it is admittedly a nice looking, very capable caddy that hits the exact center of the sweet spot for the home-user market.

                                             A quick rundown of the DNS-323's capabilities