On the security front, all of the units I tested provide password-protected access to the network storage device's management console, and most allow the creation of usernames and passwords to access shared folders. Some let you set permissions to allow read-only or read/write access. For most home and small office environments, however, basic password access to the resource is probably sufficient.

The configuration utilities that come with these products can be password-protected. However, anyone with physical access to the device can defeat that by activating a reset switch on the unit. From there, secure access to drive shares can be disabled. All of these devices are small and could easily be carried away under a jacket, so if you have a lot of visitors, consider keeping the devices in an area where they will be physically secure.

Buffalo Technology Linkstation Pro Gigabit Shared Network Storage

With a street price around US$200 (US$419.99 list), the LinkStation was one of the least expensive units I tested and easily offered the most features for the money. Fortunately, the more advanced features don't get in the way for users who just want the basics.

My test unit had a capacity of 320GB, but Buffalo also offers a 500GB model. Linkstation uses SATA drives with 1.5Gbit/sec. throughput. The bells and whistles start with four indicator lights on the front of the unit that indicate power, connectivity, errors and status message waiting (messages can be viewed from the management console).

Setting up is relatively painless, especially on the iMac, although the software installation process could be more straightforward. The enclosed Link Navigator installation disk walks the user through physically setting up the unit and connecting it to the network. It concludes by creating a desktop shortcut to the shared disk and installing the NAS Navigator configuration utility.

Link Navigator presents two options: "Connect LinkStation to Network" and "Connect LinkStation to PC." The former consists of the step-by-step pictorial that walks the user through the physical setup. The latter actually installs the software. If the user clicks on the "Connect LinkStation to Network" option first, he must know to circle back to the first screen and run "Connect LinkStation to PC" to complete the process.

In my package the Link Navigator utility failed to properly install the bundled backup software from Memeo Inc. However, I did find a rudimentary backup program, AutoBackup, on the shared disk and installed that. According to Buffalo technical support, AutoBackup is an older program that shouldn't have been loaded on the shared disk. I was able to download a copy of Memeo from Buffalo's technical support.

Memeo includes a license for one PC (it does not support the Mac). Additional licenses are US$29.95 or 3 licenses for US$49.95.

Once installed, Memeo is mindlessly easy to use. Users create a backup name, choose a destination device and can check a button that encrypts the backup (which substantially slows down the backup process). The software runs the backup immediately, continuously updates it as you make changes to your data, and maintains up to three historical versions of each file.

Memeo does not include an option to compress backups to save disk space. Also, the software can only back up to the shared drive, not from it. So if you maintain a shared folder on the network drive, Memeo can't back up that data to a local disk or to another shared storage device. Steve Owens, vice president of business development at Memeo, says a new version that supports that capability should be available early in 2007.

For those so inclined, the LinkStation offers a wealth of configuration options, available through a password protected user interface. You can restrict folder access by creating user accounts and groups and you can set folder permissions to allow read only, read/write or no access for each user or group. LinkStation was the only product I tested that integrates with Active Directory, Windows Server Message Block or Windows NT domain controllers to authenticate users. That feature might be helpful to some small businesses, but I suspect it will be beyond the needs of most home and small offices.

The configuration utilities that come with these products can be password-protected. However, anyone with physical access to the device can defeat that by activating a reset switch on the unit. From there, secure access to drive shares can be disabled. All of these devices are small and could easily be carried away under a jacket, so if you have a lot of visitors, consider keeping the devices in an area where they will be physically secure.