QNAP TS-264 NAS Review

The QNAP TS-264 NAS Drive Review

For those looking to transition from cloud-based platforms to a more compact private server, the QNAP TS-264 NAS is a highly desirable option for many. The latest release in QNAP’s flagship series of Prosumer/SMB hardware, the TS-264 represents the most advanced iteration of this product line to date. This is to be expected, as advancements in hardware technology continually drive improvements in power, performance, and efficiency. The TS-264 stands out in particular for its evolutionary design and mature approach to hardware engineering, making it a noteworthy NAS to consider. Historically, QNAP has been a pioneer in the NAS hardware market, offering cutting-edge technology at a competitive value. The TS-264 series is notable for its exceptional scalability, with architecture that is unmatched in the industry. Despite the comprehensive OS-level platform, services, and applications offered through QTS, QNAP faced challenges in Jan 2022 when they were targeted by ransomware attacks via discovered linux vulnerabilities, causing some concerns regarding platform security. However, with the latest release of QTS 5 and a large range of security improvements, safeguards, changes in system defaults and a more locked-down approach to platform management, QNAP aims to regain trust and move forward.

Highlights of the QNAP TS-264 NAS

• Intel N5105/N5095 Quad Core Celeron, 2021 Q2 Released Processor
• 8GB DDR4 Memory (Base model arrives with 8GB of DDR4 Memory, due to memory module shortages in production globally, which is soldered/fixed)
• 2.5GbE Network Ready (2x Ports)
• USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10Gb/s) Equipped
• SATA HDD/SSD Bays and RAID Support
• m.2 NVMe SSD Bays
• PCIe Upgrade Slot for Network/Storage Upgrades
• HDMI 2.1 (Updated since the HDMI 2.0 featured in the TS-464/TS-664 at their launch in Spring ’22)

QNAP TS-264 NAS Review – Quick Conclusion

The TS-264 boasts exceptional hardware for its tier in the NAS market, a strength that QNAP has consistently demonstrated. Even when looking back just 5 years, the level of hardware scalability and ease of upgradability offered by the TS-264 is impressive and remains largely unmatched in 2023. The 2-Bay NAS is a logical choice for those looking to move away from the limitations of subscription-based cloud services like Google, OneDrive, and Dropbox, and instead, opt for a more flexible and fully-featured private server. The TS-264 offers unbeatable value for the money in terms of hardware. In terms of software, the situation is less clear-cut. QTS 5 is a feature-rich operating system that can be accessed via a web browser, with multiple mobile and desktop clients, and hundreds of apps that can be easily installed. However, it can be a steep learning curve for some users, and its interface can be overwhelming. For those who desire a highly customizable system that can present data in various ways, and offers a wide range of third-party support, QNAP and QTS 5 offer unique services that are not available elsewhere. Keep in mind that setting up and customizing the system will require some time and effort.

SOFTWARE - 8/10

HARDWARE - 9/10

PERFORMANCE - 9/10

PRICE - 8/10

VALUE - 8/10

8.4

PROS

👍🏻Very compact chassis design, despite large storage potential
👍🏻A BIG jump in hardware and scale from the TS-253Be and TS-253D
👍🏻Easily one of the most hardware-packed SMB/Mid-range 2-Bay on the market
👍🏻8GB Memory in the base model will certainly appeal to some users looking at pimping this system out fully in terms of hardware upgrades and storage
👍🏻m.2 NVMe SSD Bays AND a PCIe Upgrade Slot (no need to choose one upgrade path)
👍🏻8x Included Camera Licenses
👍🏻Includes Anti-virus, Firewall Tool, VPN client tools, Malware Remover, network manager and Security Councilor Tool
👍🏻3 Different Container/VM tools that also feature image download centers
👍🏻10Gb/s (1,000MB/s) USB Ports will be incredibly useful
👍🏻Large range of expansion options in the TR/TL series in 2, 4, 6, 8 and 12 Bays
👍🏻HDMI 2.1 Support in the 2-Bay, whereas the 4/6-Bay still runs HDMI 2.0 (released in Spring \'22)

CONS

👎🏻The PCIe Slot is PCIe 3x2 and the M.2 SSD Bays are PCIe 3x1 (likely limitations of all this H/W on a Celeron+chipset
👎🏻Default 8GB of memory (again, down to global memory shortages) does increase the base price and is non-upgradable too
👎🏻The software can be a little inconsistent under excessive use and features a steeper learning curve than Synology

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QNAP TS-264 NAS Review – PACKAGING & ACCESSORIES

The accessories that the TS-264 NAS comes with are fairly standard, with the exception of one area that left me slightly disappointed. The NAS includes a setup manual, details on the 3-year hardware warranty, information about the warranty extension to 5 years, screws for 2.5/3.5″ drives, an ethernet cable (1x Cat 5e, which is suitable for this model as it lacks 10GbE), and an external PSU. All of these items are well packaged and standard for this type of device.

The 65W external PSU that comes with this 2-Bay NAS is a positive aspect of the system. Even though it’s not uncommon for a 2 HDD device to feature an internal PSU, I appreciate that QNAP has chosen to use an external model. This makes it easier to replace when needed, as it’s covered by the warranty and supported by numerous third-party alternatives. Additionally, it allows you to keep a spare on hand. QNAP reports power usage at 18.28W in standby mode and 29.08W in active use when the system is fully populated.

Overall the accessories that the QNAP TS-264 NAS includes are all fairly standard and certainly enough to get the system up and running (not including your HDD/SSD media of course). Let’s discuss the design of this NAS and what changes have been made on the TS-264 vs the TS-253D from 2.5yrs before.

QNAP TS-264 NAS Review – Design

The chassis of the QNAP TS-264 NAS is similar to that of the TS-253D and TS-253Be, featuring a plastic material that covers an internal aluminum metal framework. The arrangement of ports is largely unchanged, but the quality and number of ports have increased. The system uses a removable tray design, and it also features a lockable and slidable front panel. I like the choice of a copper/rose-gold and black colour scheme, which is an improvement over the metallic blue of its predecessor. The chassis is compact and appears smaller than other 2-bay NAS on the market, but this is because the TS-264 uses a longer and deeper chassis, relying more on horizontal airflow, resulting in a more oblong shape.

In terms of cooling, the TS-264 has smaller vent spaces on the sides of the chassis than most other NAS, but it compensates for this by having more of them on the sides and base under each of the storage bays. These vents are designed to allow users to operate the system 24×7 with the front panel on, but still allow the larger rear fan to have enough active airflow through the passive vents. Despite its plastic chassis, the result is that the TS-264 is slightly noisier in operation than the Synology DS723+ 2-bay, despite the latter system having 2 fans, but much larger front and side ventilation by comparison.

The front of the TS-264 lacks the LCD panel of larger business/enterprise NAS systems in the QNAP portfolio, relying on multiple LEDs that denote system activity, network status, copy/backup activity, and individual LED indicators for the HDD storage media bays. The internal M.2 SSD bays have their own LEDs, but they are only visible inside the chassis.

The trays inside the TS-264 NAS are designed for easy, screwless installation while also providing screw holes and screws for 2.5″ media. These plastic trays have improved significantly in recent years and are now more robust and able to handle heat, vibration, and pressure without cracking. They also help to reduce noise generated by spinning or accessing drives due to strategically placed rubber washers at the screw points.

QNAP TS-264 NAS Review – Ports & Connections

The rear of the TS-264 is similar to that of the TS-253D at a glance, but there have been a few subtle changes that you might not spot without a visit to the specs sheet. Most of these changes are made possible thanks to an upgraded CPU in this new model. The majority of the connections are standard for this product series, but it is in their frequency and bandwidth that the TS-264 stands out. The single rear fan, at 120mm/12cm remains largely unchanged, able to adjust its operation automatically, increasing/decreasing the RPM as the system gets hotter/cooler in extended operation. This fan can also be adjusted manually if required, but it is recommended to leave it on ‘automatic’ as the system is quite reliant on this fan drawing air over a significant number of internal components.

The TS-264 also boasts an HDMI output, which is an HDMI 2.1 port too (newly added to the 2-Bay TS-x64 series, though first-generation TS-464/TS-664 NAS devices might still feature HDMI 2.0), which allows you to connect a monitor or TV and access a parallel GUI, as well as a range of first-party and third-party applications through the QNAP HD Station application and QNAPClub.eu. Although the HD Station application is impressive, it has not seen as many updates and improvements as other areas of the QTS/QuTS platform, remaining largely unchanged for a few years. Despite this, it is still a powerful tool that enables you to enjoy multimedia from your couch, deploy graphic-based applications locally, set up a standalone surveillance system, deploy a virtual machine locally, and more. Additionally, the HDMI port also allows you to use the NAS as a media player, streaming content to your TV or monitor without the need for additional devices. The HDMI port also allows you to connect a keyboard and mouse to the NAS, making it easy to navigate and use the system. The HDMI port is also designed to be compatible with a wide range of monitors and TVs, making it easy to connect to your existing setup.

Back in early 2020, we made a guide on HD Station on what it can do on the QNAP NAS platform. We will be revisiting this subject later in 2023, but the general features, services and abilities of HDStation in QTS 5 remain largely the same at the time of writing. To find out more about it and what you can/cannot do with the HDMI port on the TS-264, watch the video below:

In addition to the front-mounted USB 3.2 Gen 2 port, the QNAP TS-264 features additional ports on the rear, including another 10Gb/s USB and two USB 2.0 ports. Usually, having USB 2.0 ports in 2023 would be a disappointment, but in the case of the TS-264, it makes sense given the inclusion of the two 10Gb/s USBs and the HDMI. These USB 2.0 ports can be used for the KVM setup, which is a logical choice. However, it’s worth noting that some users may have preferred more USB 3.2 ports overall, especially given that the TS-264 NAS can be expanded by 2, 4, 6, 8 and 12 drives using the QNAP TR and TL series of NAS expansions.

Overall, you really cannot fault the ports and connections available on the QNAP TS-264 NAS, when the price has changed very little between this and the TS-253D 3 years before it and TS-253Be 5 years ago. Maintaining that tier of pricing, whilst effectively doubling down on the connectivity, expandability and upgradability in this 2-Bay in most areas is genuinely impressive. Lets discuss the internal hardware of the TS-264 and see how things have changed for better or worse in this system over its predecessors.

QNAP TS-264 NAS Review – Internal Hardware

The release of new hardware by QNAP, such as the TS-264, is often driven by changes in the wider tech industry, including changes in consumer demands and advancements in manufacturing. In the case of the TS-264, QNAP typically refreshes this series every 2 years, often coinciding with updates to the Celeron series of processors from Intel. The TS-264 features the Intel N5105/N5095 processors, which are a slight upgrade from the Intel J4125 used in the TS-253D.

To access the inside of the TS-264, one must remove the three rear screws and slide off the side panel. Inside, we find the larger SATA HDD storage bay cage and the key components of the TS-264. The Intel N5105/N5095 processor is located under a large, black heatsink and does not require an active cooling fan, as is common in desktop NAS systems of this scale. The CPU fan is in line with the rear active cooling fan.

The TS-264 features one surprising difference in memory compared with the TS-46 and TS-664, in that it features 8GB by default – already a solid base of memory to start using the system with, however, this memory is soldered to the main board and cannot be upgraded to 16GB, like the larger devices in the TS-x64 range. This is a odd move, likely motivated by memory shortages in the industry right now and is still a decent starting amount. That said, it is not going to suit everyone and some users may slightly resent having to pay extra for this 8GB when they would have been happy ith 4GB. Alternatively, if you are going to manage hundreds of file shares at once, a surveillance user looking to use the TS-264 as your primary CCTV and NVR center, or maybe you are a VM/Container user looking to create multiple systems – the lack option to easily upgrade to 16GB of memory is possibly going to annoy you. Equally, if you plan on using high-frequency storage management methods such as deduplication, large-scale small file but high number databases or even 10GbE in a sustained manner, that 8GB as a base amount is going to be tremendously beneficial massively beneficial.

That N5105 CPU inside the TS-264 has also allowed QNAP sufficient available PCIe bandwidth to also include two M.2 NVMe SSD slots on the NAS too. This is something that QNAP has only tended to provide on their rackmount systems and much higher-end desktop solutions, despite their biggest rival Synology providing this for almost 5 years now at the same hardware tier. Now as good as this sounds (i.e to have a PCIe upgrade slot AND the m.2 NVMe SSD slots) there is good and bad news. The good news is that unlike Synology and its inclusion of M.2 NVMe SSD slots, the 2280 slots inside the QNAP can be used for more than just read/write caching. The use of SSD caching to provide performance benefits to a slower, but larger and more affordable Hard Drive RAID away are quite well established in the NAS industry, using the SSD space to either write files to the system faster (acting as the primary write area, before moving the data) or increase the speed of accessing commonly requested files on the NAS (making copies of those files onto the SSDs, though largely tiny files are optimized and do not really affect larger block/sequential data). However, though the QNAP TS-264 supports SSD caching on these bays, it also supports their use in QTier. This is similar to caching but in QTier the available HDD and SSDs are combined into a single storage area and it intelligently moves files periodically to the appropriate storage media as it analyzes their access and requests. Finally, if you wish, you can use the NVMe SSD bays for just a fast accessing and performing storage pool and volumes of it’s own. These two bays, plus the 2 HDD bays, plus adding a PCIe SSD storage card in the available bay mean that the TS-264 has enormous storage potential. These m.2 bays can also be used for system upgrades, but these are still quite few in reality and it is only the google TPU m.2 upgrade that increases AI system processes that is recommended in 2023 so far.

However, as good as all that sounds about the NVMe SSD bays, it is worth also factoring that (much like the PCIe Upgrade slot) in order to provide these bays and still provide the rest of the system hardware from a relatively simple Intel Celeron processor, QNAP has had to narrow down the architecture of these bays for reasons of physical profile and available PCI lanes+chipset. The result is that the m.2 Bays are PCIe 3×1 in architecture, or 1,000MB/s in bandwidth each between the installed m.2 and the system. That means that if you are buying PCIe 3×4 SSDs for your  NAS, such as the Seagate Ironwolf 510 or WD Red SN700, they will be somewhat bottlenecked to 1GB throughout each (though they can be RAID’d). It is still better to have these bays in this somewhat streamlined fashion than to not have them at all, but it is worth keeping this in mind when considering the future upgradability of the QNAP TS-264 NAS.

The internal hardware of the TS-264 is by FAR one of the best example of a prosumer/SMB 2-Bay NAS in this price tier from both QNAP and any other brand. Yes, they have had to make a balancing choice between providing a multitude of upgrade and scaling paths in the hardware architecture vs the CPU available, but overall I really cannot challenge them on the range of ports, connections and internal hardware that is available here. I am a little surprised by how much hardware is inside the TS-264 and so close together (leading me to imagine that this system with a fully populated 2-bay storage RAID, 2x NVMe SSD, 8GB memory and a PCIe card would get really hot, i.e. fans going NUTS!) but you cannot really argue with the wide range of options available to the end useR in terms of the day 1 level of hardware on offer, as well as the many ways and means you can change this system in it’s lifespan to best suit your storage and network requirements. Let’s discuss the software included with your TS-264 NAS.

QNAP TS-264 NAS Review – Software & Services

Alongside the hardware of the TS-264 NAS, you also receive the complete software and services package of QNAP QTS (currently in version 5.0). This is a complete operating system. similar in design and presentation to Android OS, it runs hundreds of applications, services and functions, as well as arriving with many mobile and desktop client applications that allow you to interact with the data on your NAS in a much more tailored way. Alongside this, the QNAP QTS software on the TS-264 also includes a few extra SSD tools for anti-wearing on SSDs, better SSD profiling and even options to separate the media into storage, caching or tiered storage where appropriate. The performance and services of QTS have been covered many times on this channel, so reviewing it’s individual performance on the TS-264 NAS is a difficult task, as we have to look at two key things. Is QTS a good software platform and is it safe

On the first score, I can comfortably say that QNAP NAS software and services have truly come into their own and the balancing act of supplying the end-user with the flexibility to use the system ‘their way’, whilst still keeping it user-friendly is the best it has ever been. Is it perfect, no. In its efforts to make itself customizable in every way possible, QTS develops an inadvertent learning curve that may catch some novice users unaware. Likewise, although QTS 5 has done a lot of work on its presentation of information and notifications, there is still the odd moment of ‘TMI’ when switching between services on the fly. QNAP’s NAS software is still easily one of the most adaptable in the market right now and allows users to have a truly unique storage environment if they choose and although not quite as user-friendly as Synology DSM, it counters this by being fantastically flexibly by comparison (from file/folder structure to 3rd party services support and connectivity). That said, 2020-2021 were a bumpy road for the brand and a series of ransomware attacks were targetted at the brand that was caused by a combination of vulnerabilities in Linux (which practically all NAS and Android software is built upon) but also in how applications in the QNAP platform were allowed to have external access. In previous revisions of QTS, customization and guidance for changing settings on the system was made very easy and open but lacked a lot of the gravitas and significance that these changes add to the system being highlighted to less experienced users (such as allowing the QNAP to adapt remote ports on your router over UPnP and how the HBS3 program allowed remote access. These omissions, vulnerabilities and communication issues in QTS have seemingly been resolved and QTS 5 seems to be a much tighter system on the whole (as much as anything can be once you open it to the internet). But many users still feel that the brand needs to do more and therefore until QNAP can remove the lingering stories of ransomware and malware over time, this si always going to be an existing sensitive issue for buyers. In order to see the extent of the latest version of QNAP TS 5.0 use the links below to the written review and video below released in late 2021:

FULL Written QNAP QTS 5 Review	FULL Video Review of QNAP QTS 5

Although the full review of QNAP QTS is available in the article and video linked above, let’s discuss the highlights of the platform. First off there are the software and services for managing files and folders on the fly. QTS includes several tools for managing files in your web browser (with full copy, paste, archive, extract, sharing, etc options built-in), as well as smart system/file search functionality.

Then security when using your TS-264 NAS (again, a continued area of contention and criticism for QNAP in the past) in customization and alerts have been noticeably improved and upgraded in both their deployment and presentation in QTS. These range from a multi-layered security advisor to control anti-malware scans, anti-virus schedules, firewall monitoring and more. There is also a range of access and security credential tools that are quite far-reaching all built-in. With QNAP having to prove their platform is safe more than most, there is a bit shift positively in this direction in the latest versions of QTS.

Overall storage management, access, mounting and how this factors into backups have also been massively diversified in QTS and along with numerous means to create a very unique storage system (factoring RAID, multi-stage 1-2-3 backups, connecting with cloud drive/objects and how this is presented to the end-users are incredibly deep. It can lead to a situation in which the end-user is a pinch overwhelmed, but you cannot say that QNAP is not providing the tools – they are just almost TOO numerous in their presentation.

The same goes for multimedia handling on the QNAP TS-264, with a wide range of tools for handing photos, music and video in a tailored GUI to each media type. This is made considerably easier with QNAP’s multimedia console tool that provides a single GUI that can be used to handle all the backend setup of all your individual media apps. QNAP also provides AI photo recognition to allow decades of photos to be searched intelligently for people and subjects to quite an impressively deep degree (not needing internet access to do so, with the AI onboard the system). Then you have support for a wide range of 3rd party multimedia tools such as Plex media server, Emby, Twinky and Kodi (unofficially).

Then you have business tools (small, medium or even enterprise) included that can range from the deployment of multiple virtual machines across many platforms and a dedicated 1st party container deployment tool. One very unique feature of QNAP QTS compared with other NAS brands in their deployment of VMs is that they include 2-3 click download options in their respective applications that allow you to download ready to use VM in Windows 7,8 and 10, as well as a VM market place for more enterprise virtual clients and even a Ubuntu 18/19/20 VM deployment tool that allows you to quickly set up a VM and then access remotely OR use the HDMI+KVM set up locally. The container station tool also has its own pre-built tool repository too.

Finally, for surveillance use, the TS-264 arrives with QVR Pro which allows you to have a business class surveillance platform hosted on your NAS. This platform has its very own GUI that supports thousands of IP Camera brands, as well as the software arriving with 8 camera licenses with the TS-264, a multi-camera feed display, intelligent alerts, AI services (hardware appropriate), multiple client tools for mobile/desktop clients, integration of 3rd party system management tools and you can even attach USB cameras to your QNAP NAS and have local cameras fed into the NAS too.

So, software on the QNAP TS-264 is pretty diverse and although the brand has seen its fair share of security complaints in the past, I think that it would be hard for me to ignore the range of NAS hardware configuration, services and tools that are included.  Tests of the QNAP TS-264 on how it performs as a Plex Media Server, host for Virtual Machines and more will be conducted shortly over on NASCompares YouTube channel. I recommend visiting there to learn more. Below is the video review for the QNAP TS-264 NAS

QNAP TS-264 NAS Review – Conclusion & Verdict

The TS-264 boasts exceptional hardware for its tier in the NAS market, a strength that QNAP has consistently demonstrated. Even when looking back just 5 years, the level of hardware scalability and ease of upgradability offered by the TS-264 is impressive and remains largely unmatched in 2023. The 2-Bay NAS is a logical choice for those looking to move away from the limitations of subscription-based cloud services like Google, OneDrive, and Dropbox, and instead, opt for a more flexible and fully-featured private server. The TS-264 offers unbeatable value for the money in terms of hardware. In terms of software, the situation is less clear-cut. QTS 5 is a feature-rich operating system that can be accessed via a web browser, with multiple mobile and desktop clients, and hundreds of apps that can be easily installed. However, it can be a steep learning curve for some users, and its interface can be overwhelming. For those who desire a highly customizable system that can present data in various ways, and offers a wide range of third-party support, QNAP and QTS 5 offer unique services that are not available elsewhere. Keep in mind that setting up and customizing the system will require some time and effort.

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