HP (Hewlett-Packard) MediaSmart EX475 Server

HP EX475 Media Smart Server

Strengths: Compact, Attractive Appearance, Centralized Storage & Backup.

Weakness: Took a while for me to install and learn to use.

All in all, I am very pleased with the EX475. I have built my desktop system around HP with a first class printer/fax/copier/scanner, a HP desktop computer, and now a backup storage device for automated backup of my valuable business and personal data. Would recommend for a user seeking peace of mind with regard to ensuring valuable data is protected.

By geofsoares - Dec 22, 2008

Not totally reliable as a backup server yet

Strengths: Simple, easy to set up and configure Super small and sweet

Weakness: Blew up my backups for no explained reasoned so it is still a new product

I just finished setting this great new little server up for my home network and things were going great. Installation was a snap and easy and as you install software on each new machine on the network it adds them to the automatic backup routine. That is where it blew up today after working great four days. I had six systems in our household set up over the last few days and as promised the...
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I just finished setting this great new little server up for my home network and things were going great. Installation was a snap and easy and as you install software on each new machine on the network it adds them to the automatic backup routine. That is where it blew up today after working great four days. I had six systems in our household set up over the last few days and as promised the server automatically was backing them up at night. Love it.... until today a big red warning popped up saying Network Health Critical and the Backup Server Was Not Running. I clicked on the link to how to fix and went through the steps and it did not fix it so I called HP Support. Here I learned the only fix was to click on the DELETE ALL backups button in backup settings and reset the backup server process. I said what???? There is no reason this just popped up on my screen it stopped working and the only resolution is to wipe out all my backups of the six computers. I was shocked and said that it is impossible to rely on this product then as my backup system and that is a major feature of the server. He acknowledged I was right and said he understands an upcoming update of the software will make it more reliable..... Great so don't buy this and think it will give you a reliable backup. Keep your existing backup routine until at least the first update in software after July 10th! Otherwise, I love this thing. Having a simple photo webserver and internet access to my files is super. Of course you have to sign up for a web address for an extra $10 a year and then be the manager and set up access accounts for all you want to be able to get to your files or photos or photo albums. Oh year, if you want to get directly to your computer my docs files you must be running Vista Ultimate or Business or XP Pro which I never new until I bought the machine. That’s Ok because I set up a filed folder on the server for my user account and called it My Documents and think keep in synced with the My Docs folder on my computer. I can access that folder from the internet when travelling. So this is a great new tool for us with home or small business networks, but it is new and still has a bug in the backup area so that feature is not reliable yet. Otherwise, having one terabyte of data available to everyone in the house and over the net when I want it is fantastic. So not a five star yet but I would buy it again even without the automatic system backup feature that blew up today for no apparent reason.

By thehortons - Jul 10, 2008

A good version 1.0 of a Windows Home Server

Pros: 1. Works well with my other computers running Vista Home Premium 64-bit, XP Media Center, XP Pro and XP Home Edition 2. Numerous mods and plug-ins available 3. Easy to add additional storage 4. Initial setup and network configuring was very easy - practically click and go 5. Automatic backup of PC's and reminder pop-ups when a PC hasn't been backed up recently. 6. Gigabit Ethernet...
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Pros: 1. Works well with my other computers running Vista Home Premium 64-bit, XP Media Center, XP Pro and XP Home Edition 2. Numerous mods and plug-ins available 3. Easy to add additional storage 4. Initial setup and network configuring was very easy - practically click and go 5. Automatic backup of PC's and reminder pop-ups when a PC hasn't been backed up recently. 6. Gigabit Ethernet connection 7. Good looking system. Small footprint. Compact design. 8. Auto recovery of failed PC. Recovering my alien laptop after it crashed was a simple matter of popping in the recovery CD and booting up the laptop. 9. Much more stable than any desktop version of Windows. To date I've not had a single operating system problem. 10. Free trial web connect and anti-virus software. Free web address provided by HP for one year. Cons: 1. Needs more memory. Like most posts I've read I replaced the 512MB memory with a 2GB. Once you have 2GB of memory installed you'll realize just how painfully slow it ran with only 512MB of memory 2. Faster processor would be nice. While I had my system disassembled to upgrade the memory I upgraded the processor to a 2.6 GHz AMD 1640 processor. 3. Bigger hard drive needed. The EX475 model comes with 2 500GB hard drives leaving you with only 2 open bays. The EX475 should have the option of being configured with 1 1TB hard drive to free up an additional drive bay. 4. More drive bays needed - expansion box needed. When I got my system I added 3 750GB hard drives. I'm already running short on available free space. A larger model with 6 or 8 drive bays would be a nice option, or an expansion box that connects to the server through its eSATA port 5. Drives can only be configured as storage space or for backups - not both. One of the 750GB drives in my server is configured for backups. It's down to 12% free space already! 6. Power usage. If this box is meant to be on 24/7/365 it needs to be able to draw very little power when not in use. 7. No access to BIOS. Since there are no video, mouse or keyboard connections accessing the BIOS configuration is not possible. 8. Backing up more than one PC at a time can really bog down the network, the PC's and the server. 9. Backups fail when all the free space on the drive is used up. The server maintains multiple backup copies. When the backup that is currently running uses up all the free space on the drive it fails. It should delete the oldest backups so as to create enough free space for the backup to complete successfully. This may be just a matter of setting a configuration parameter 10. No un-delete. Deleted files need to be restored. A trash bin would make much more sense. 11. Expensive server software. Your ISP usually provides free anti-virus software for your PC (Comcast provides McAfee), but doesn't provide home server software. 12. Doesn't come with a TV tuner card for DVR capability "in the box". Comments: I'm really pleased with how well this system performs, its design, setup and ease of use. I've had no problems with it to date (got mine back in Aug of '08) and continually find more uses for it. I can access my files, music and videos from work (sorry boss). Once the hardware upgrades mentioned above are in place accessing files is almost as fast as if they were on the local machine. Recovering from a laptop crash was quick and painless. When I ordered my EX470 I also bought 3 750GB drives to go in it. They are already over half filled. I'm waiting for the new 1.5TB drives to become a bit more stable before buying 4 of them and replacing all the drives in the server. What HP needs to do now is sell an expansion box using the same computer case and power supply as their server that connects to the server via its eSATA port. A different approach would be to come out with a "tower" version of this case that uses the same size footprint but is similar in height to a mid-size tower case with room for 6 - 8 drives. I've recovered files I inadvertently deleted and revive a crashed laptop. I've stored all my videos, photos, tax returns and other valuable documents on it. I give this server a 4 star rating due to the fact that it comes with only 512MB of RAM, the inability to access the BIOS and the need for addition drive bays. If these things are not an issue for you then you can consider the review of this system as having a 5 star rating. If you're on the fence or are considering getting a home server get this system. You'll be glad you did.

By HL304 on HPBazaarVoice - Dec 17, 2008

Awesome

Easy to set up. Works like a charm had my system backed up in no time. Also works well in streaming data to my game consoles. I am truly impress with the unit.

By D4saken1 on HPBazaarVoice - Dec 12, 2008

Wish it had synchronized back up

Music and photos backed up from all the family laptops to the shared folder lists all the dups and trips; really wish it would synchronized the file back up or be more clear how to do this if it does

By JJJake on HPBazaarVoice - Nov 30, 2008