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[MrMarco]

Hello all. Newbie here to the forum and I do have some questions about the 343. I was under the assumption that it would work with my Mac, but I see in the enclosed literature that only Windows OS is supported. I do have a windows laptop that I can do the setup with but 99.99% of all my work is done on my iMac. So I suppose the overall question would be "Am I able to work with the 343 and my Mac without issue?" (after installation of course)

I ultimately would like to use all the functionality - the ftp server, backup my Mac, play movies and music through my tv etc.

I was hoping to find more information regarding the use of Macs and the DNS-343 but haven't found much.

Did I make the wrong purchase?

Thanks in advance

[ECF]

Mac OS is not a supported OS listed on this device however it does in fact seem to work fine with Mac and you will have functionality with all of the features.

[johnkeye]

Currently if you want to make Time Machine backups, you'll have to jump through hoops. (Note: You will most likely fail in getting through that how-to, that was just an FYI)

I haven't tried streaming movies from it, so I can't say anything about that (I prefer moving so large files onto my computer before playing them; if I watch HD quality movies over the wire, my itty MacBook can't handle the infinitesimal extra load).

If you have the need, you can follow other tutorials on abovementioned site and get stuff like a bittorrent client onto your NAS, get a better FTP server than the built-in, plus much, much more. That is, if you're a nerd. If you're not, just use it as D-link has set it up, that's still a pretty sweet deal.

[MrMarco]

Thanks ECF. So I'll do the initial setup with my windows laptop and subsequent usage will be through the iMac.

Johnkeye - I suppose once I load the 343 up with drives I'll use it for backups and not the time machine. I agree about watching movies on the Mac. I'd load them up to the machine before watching. However I do want to watch movies on my LCD in the living room as well. Playing music from the TV is not necessary, but movies and possibly pictures would be great. The main thing would be to have backup and ftp capabilities.

Another question... Can I set up the 343 to use 2 HD's for backup and the other 2 for extra storage?

[johnkeye]

After I wrote the above, I tried using Boxee (a variant of XBMC) just to see how well it worked - HD streaming worked a charm, so that function should be fine for TV as well.

[MrMarco]

Johnkeye - good news thanks. Now I just have to get everything aligned and working.

***silly question alert***

is a switch the same as a router? Just asking because it sounds like it to me and of so maybe I can use my extra extreme base station between my wireless dsl router and my computer and tv.

[hilaireg]

In a home environment, folks typically purchase a device that includes WAN/LAN/WIFI capabilities - a router.

Simplified (aka Brief High Level)

The term router implies that the device is able to "route" traffic from WAN-to-LAN, WAN-to-LAN-to-WIFI, LAN-to-WAN, WIFI-to-LAN-to-WAN.  Packets are managed at the TCP/IP and MAC Address levels.

Switches on the other hand, serve as a central "hub" of sorts; packets are typically managed at the MAC Address level.

Here are some links that provide comprehensive information:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Router
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Residential_gateway
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LAN_switching
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_switch


HTH,