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[wigglebutt]

Please help me,

I'm obviously uneducated about servers, hard drive enclosures, and network attached storage. I need some help and advice.

I purchased the DNS 321 over a year ago, and it has been in the closet since then because I couldn't figure out how to install the enclosure to a time capsule or to a macbook pro. I've installed two Seagate 1tb hard drives, but I can't get the ethernet connection to connect or recognize the DNS 321. It doesn't appear on the finder, and I can't get to it through Safari, using the default IP address, the ethernet assigned DHCP address, or the default MAC address (http://dlink-xxxxxx).

I thought that this was an issue with my hardware, but obviously it is a deficiency in my understanding. I've read many threads and I have seen that the DNS 321 works well with OS X. I've recently resorted to updating to Snow Leopard which didn't help.  I also went as far as buying a 2010 mac mini server in an attempt to get the DNS 321 attached to a desktop unit, because all that I have are Mac notebooks. That didn't work either, and since I've already proven my low level of understanding, I now have a $1000 mac mini in the closet next to my DNS 321.

This is getting very expensive, and I have nothing to show for it. I started-out wanting to centralize the music and photos that were clogging-up the notebooks. I've filled the time-capsule and I needed some overflow. Is there a guide to OS X set-up? Where am I going wrong? Secondly, is there a better option to consolidate media files and keep the laptops free?

Thanks in advance for your responses and welcome ridicule.....

[JavaLawyer]

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but from what you've written it sounds like you are connecting your DNS-321 directly to your MAC.  You must connect the unit to a router or switch on your network.

[wigglebutt]

Oooh. Ok, I guess it's time to add a router to the closet shelf....
I had the enclosure connected to the time capsule (a router, right?), but it would not stay connected. I have a Gigabit ethernet switch, and I'll try that tonight.  

Incidentally, I got the mac mini to recognize the DNS 321 temporarily by configuring the ethernet port to 192.168.0.39 (DHCP, assigned IP), where .39 was made-up to differentiate it from the default address of the DNS-321, 192.168.0.32. This is still working, and the ethernet cable is communicating with the DNS 321, in that, I'm able to configure the device with the web-based GUI at http://192.168.0.32. I'm not able to connect to the server, however, by smb or afp, after an initial time period of being able to do so. The server just fell off of the finder window, and I've been unable to connect to it since then.

Thanks for taking an interest in my case.

5/8/11: more info on above: I used the GUI through the web server to turn the IP address to static, non-DHCP (192.168.0.32). It now comes up reliably. I also read about adding the network drive to the user account through the system preferences window, as "login items." Just drag and drop the network drive. I believe this is the equivalent of "mapping" a Windows drive.

[JavaLawyer]

No problem.  Let us know how things work out.

[wigglebutt]

OK.

I've set things up using the gigabit ethernet switch, and all seems to be running well, but the LAN speeds are not impressive. If I check the mac mini server network traffic, the fastest rate is just under 4MB per second, and most of the data is sent around 1MB/sec.

I'm worried that the LAN is not active, and that I'm still transferring files wirelessly. My current set-up is cable modem => WAN port on time capsule => time capsule LAN to switch
                                                            => mac mini server ethernet to switch
                                                            => DNS 321 ethernet to switch

The mac mini server is finding the DNS 321 just fine. I can't see the DNS 321 with the Macbooks that we're using, which doesn't necessarily bother me. The Macbooks are seeing the Mac mini just fine too.

Is there something that I'm doing wrong?  I'm currently trying to consolidate itunes libraries onto the DNS 321, through the mac mini server. It is going painfully slow. The time capsule's library alone (including home movies) is around 200GB.

[JavaLawyer]

If you are unsure whether your Mac is accessing your DNS-321 wirelessly or wired (due to the relatively low throughput) you can always disable wireless altogether and see what happens.

There are more subtle ways to validate/determine which network card and connection type are providing access to your DNS-321, but someone with Mac experience will have to respond as this is not my strong suit.

[wigglebutt]

Sorry about the delay in updates.

Well, it looks like the time capsule prefers to connect wirelessly, even if the mac mini server is connected by LAN (ethernet).

Like you suggested, I had to disable wireless altogether in order to see if the through-put would improve. This was particularly frustrating because the mac mini is a headless unit, and I don't have a monitor. I was using screenshare with the laptops, but that goes through the wireless router. I still was able to screenshare once the ethernet LAN was set up. BTW speeds went up to 15-20 MB/sec. Awesome. It took a 160 hr job down to 6 hours. Truly impressive. Now, if I could just get the timecapsule to default to ethernet LAN settings....

thanks again, for you interest.