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HP EX470 MediaSmart Home Server (AMD Live, Windows Home Server, 500 GB Hard Drive) | 
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| Brand: Hewlett-Packard
Category: Personal Computer
List Price: $549.99
Buy New: $499.99
You Save: $50.00 (9%)
New (6) from $499.99
Rating:  109 reviews
Sales Rank: 84
Media: Electronics
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Operating System: Microsoft Windows Home Server
CPU Manufacturer: AMD
CPU Speed: 1.8
Processors: 1
Hard Drive Size: 500
Modem: None
Shipping Weight (lbs): 19
Dimensions (in): 9.7 x 9.2 x 5.5
MPN: GG795AA
Model: EX470
UPC: 883585222636
EAN: 0883585222636
ASIN: B000UY1WSK
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | Conveniently centralize your files and access them from an internet-connected computer | | • | 500 GB hard drive, expands via 4 hard drive bays | | • | Automatically backup and protect the digital memories on your home PCs running Windows XP and later operating systems | | • | Stream photos, music and videos to PCs on your network or to your TV or stereo system | | • | Powered by Microsoft Windows Home Server software and 1.8 GHz, 64-bit AMD Sempron processor |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com Product Description
Maximize the power and potential of your home network with the HP EX470 MediaSmart Server, which enables you to conveniently centralize your files and access them from multiple PCs in your home. Based on AMD Live processing power, the MediaSmart Server enables you to back up your home's PCs as well as share and enjoy digital music, home videos and photos from any computer or entertainment system on a home network. The server also has the expandability to grow with your family's changing needs. 
The stylish HP MediaSmart Server easily fits into your living room or office decor. | 
Its small size will fit on top of even the most crowded desk, and it offers wireless access when connected to a Wi-Fi router (via the Gigabit Ethernet port). | This sleek, streamlined micro-tower design is perfect for use in the home office or the living room, and its perforated steel exterior panels provide cool, quiet operation. The EX470 MediaSmart Server features a 500 GB internal hard drive (SATA, 7200 RPM), 512 MB of installed DDR2 RAM, four hard drive bays for additional expansion using off-the-shelf SATA I or II hard drives, a Gigabit Ethernet port for ultra-fast networking (and connection to a wireless router), four USB 2.0 ports (1 on the front, 3 on the back) for connecting to additional hard drives, and an and an eSATA port for high-speed data transfer to external storage devices--up to 6 times faster than existing solutions. It's quick and easy to set up your HP MediaSmart Server and create up to 10 user accounts using the Microsoft Windows Home Server software. You can also open a predefined Guest account for additional file sharing capabilities. The HP MediaSmart Server also lets you set up your own secure personal web address to allow file access by remote users. Easily Enhance Your Network
Expand your storage possibilities with the MediaServer's four hard drive bays. | Every PC on your network will have the Control Center software, giving users the ability to browse shared folders on the HP MediaSmart Server, add photos to the HP Photo Webshare and perform an immediate backup of their computer. Set the access privileges for each user at the shared-folder level to allow Read/Write, Read Only or No Access. You also control the remote access privilege for each user. Approved users will then be able to remotely access shared files and even applications on their home PC through a secure connection from any Internet-connected PC. 
AMD LIVE Smarter Digital Entertainment | Share Your Media
Use included HP Photo Webshare software to easily and securely share photos stored on your HP MediaSmart Server with select friends and family. A quick link to Snapfish allows easy photo printing. Enjoy digital music, photos, video and files from any networked PC. Stream content directly to your home entertainment center using a digital media adapter (DMA). The DMA device accesses the media files and coordinates the streaming process between the HP MediaSmart Server and your entertainment device. Protect Your Data
Keep your PC files safe with automatic backup for multiple PCs. You can customize the frequency of backups and how many backups are stored. Files accidentally deleted can be easily found on the backup image and copied to your PC. In the event of hard drive failure, the included HP PC Restore disc is all you need to return your PC and all your data to their original condition. Other Features
- Centralize your iTunes music libraries and playlists on the server for playback to any PC or notebook running iTunes on your home network.
- Incremental backups: After initial backup, only changes are backed up.
- Efficient single copy backup: A single copy of each file is backed up, no matter how many computers that files resides on in your home network.
- Add an internal or external hard drive to the HP MediaSmart Server, indicate that you want to add the disk in the Windows Home Server Console, and the HP MediaSmart Server storage grows. No need to power down the unit or manage drive letters for multiple hard drives.
- Remote access compatibility: Microsoft Windows XP Professional, Media Center Edition 2004 or higher, or Windows Vista Ultimate or higher
- File sharing compatibility: Microsoft Windows Vista, Windows XP Home or Windows XP Professional, Windows 2000 Professional SP4, Mac, OS X, Linux.
- Backup compatibility: Microsoft Windows Vista, Windows XP
What's in the Box
HP MediaSmart Server, power cord, Ethernet cable, software installation disc, PC restore disc, server recovery disc, Quick Start and HP support guides. Important: The HP MediaSmart Server is not a stand-alone computer. You connect it to your networked computer system. No monitor is needed because its user interface is accessed from another computer.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 45 more reviews...
 Just TOO cool! November 30, 2007
Tomcat_STL (St. Louis, Missouri United States)
45 out of 46 found this review helpful
I pre-ordered after figuring out I could not put together as nice of a box for twice the price. Good Call!
This is really close to a perfect product right out of the chute. The difficulties I ran into mostly had to do with some complicated PC configurations I have. If you are moderately comfortable with your operating system then you probably won't have too much trouble. I wouldn't dump it in a novice's lap, though.
Couple of quick tips...
1. Don't run more than 1 anti-virus/spyware/security package on your pc. This caused some difficult complications for me.
2. Before you install the server allow your PC's firewall to forward all IP traffic from your local network. This will allow the installer to find the server and do its thing without any blocking.
3. Check your services and make sure Volume Shadow Copy and COM+ are enabled and set to Auto.
4. It seems best to setup all your pcs with the same user names and strong passwords. The MediaSmart doesn't organize things by name but rather identifies each PC individually. This REALLY simplifies things!
Using a Remote Desktop Connection you can access the underlying WHS operating system. I set mine up with a static IP and changed the Workgroup to match the rest of my LAN. Also, I checked the performance and everything is cool even during a backup with a remote connection. I also plugged in my LaserJet 1300 and used WHS to add the printer for sharing. This didn't go well until I went to device manager and updated the printer driver from there. Then it was like butter and the printing speed is super quick.
I considered upgrading to 1GB of ram, but it seems really unnecessary. If you'd like to... Kingston #KVR667D2N5/1G has worked for another - it's PC2 5300, fyi. Messing around in WHS is at your own risk, of course! But my gigabit network is fast and server discovery is bullet fast. I use a Netgear GS108 ProSafe switch and Cat6 cables. iTunes sharing is awesome, too.
I connected from work through a large corporate network and it worked like a charm, fyi.
I loaded it up to a total of 2.5TB but that may be overkill. Two wired dual-boot PC's and a wireless connection comprise my home network. The router is a Buffalo WHR-G54S firmware flashed with dd-WRT. The server auto-configured the unit flawlessly. It is amazing how the backup operation conserves space amongst multiple PC's.
Nice Job MS, HP and Amazon!!!
A must-have for multi-PC families November 26, 2007
Cruzer
56 out of 60 found this review helpful
"You need a what? Why do we NEED a home server?" is what my wife asked incredulously when I told her I had to have the EX470 MediaSmart Home Server. If you're like our family, you have more than 2 PCs (we have 6 PCs, 1 media center, 2 XBOXs, and 2 MP3 players) and your music, photos, and multi-media are spread throughout the network. You also have never done a single backup of any of the PCs in your house and you're one hard-drive failure from losing those precious moments.
The HP MediaSmart Home Server, based on Microsoft's Home Server Edition is not your plain-vanilla backup drive. Instead it has some killer features:
- Speedy, intuitive setup in a great looking machine (took me literally 10 minutes to setup)
- Automatic backup with optional folder duplication
- Hot-pluggable storage allows you to expand storage up to 16 terabytes on the fly (we have 1 terabyte)
- Login remotely and upload/download files from anywhere
- Access other computers on your network remotely (like Go-to-My-PC)
- File/media serving and print serving (centralize your media and access it from any device)
- Setup a domain in a few clicks so you can share your folders with friends and family over the web
- Monitor all your PCs for security...you will get alerts if antivirus or the firewall aren't working
- Extensible "Add-ins" allow developers to build and offer (usually freeware) some cool features like remote management, mobile access, and dozens of other custom applications
- You can also sign-up for internet storage and backup your Home Server automatically (for additional safety) to offsite providers for as little as $5/month for unlimited storage
Overall, I consider the Home Server to be a breakthrough in home technology. There's no other backup drive or NAS on the market that offers the breadth of features or extensibility, in a centralized and automated fashion (for those lazy home administrators). I am really happy with this purchase and particularly happy that all of our family pictures are finally safe from hard-drive failure. I heartily recommend the MediaSmart Home Server.
HP QUALITY November 21, 2007
G. Hoza (USA)
82 out of 95 found this review helpful
I have owned and operated HP micro and mini computers since 1982. The name "Hewlett Packard" has for me always stood for quality (except when Compaq was acquired). I just got my EX470 direct from HP. Since the holidays are here I couldn't wait for a preordered unit from Amazon - so I paid a little more to get it direct from HP. [If you are not in a hurry then Amazon is the way to go - as I would not trust any other mail order house to order sophisticated electronics]. The EX470 is a one 500GB windows home server. The EX475 has two 500GB drives. I opted for the one 500GB drive so that I could fill the other 3 bays with 1 TB Seagates (7200.11) so that I could have 3.5TB of needed storage. [See Tomshardware dot com for a great review of those drives. If you are interested I ordered the drives for a great great price from NewEgg.] It is important that you have at least 2 drives in this unit to enable the server to make 2nd backup copies of important files that are backed up from your several PCs on your network, otherwise you risk losing your backup in the event that a hard drive on your server quits.
Anyway, the unit is a piece of art - you can't stick the thing in a closet - as it is too pretty! Very well made hardware. This is not a piece of plastic that rattles, rather it is tightly assembled, dense (surprisingly) and well, beautifully put together. Mark my words, you are getting far more for your money by buying this hardware than anything you have purchased for less than $600 in the past! I simply plugged in the power and the gigabit lan and presto - we're connected. After a minute or so system test you incert the appropriate discs into one of your networked computers and within 15 minutes you are up and running.
I have yet to configure the remote capabilities of the server and will wait until I understand what I am doing. One thing you don't want to do is make all your personal data available to anyone on the internet! So I will go a little slow in that department. Once I get my other Seagate drives on Monday I hope to add to this post. If for some reason I gave too many stars to this review I will make it known in that supplement that my opinion has changed. However I doubt that that will happen! :) Buy it - you'll like it.
UPDATE: OK it is now January 9, 2008. Since my initial review I have replaced the original Seagate 500GB drive with a 1TB Seagate 7200.11 one, and installed 3 other 1TB Seagate's in the other 3 bays. In addition, I have also added a Rosewill eSATA external HD enclosure and added another 1TB Seagate drive. Now I have 5TBs and I feel I will need more space after a year or so.
For those of you who are kicking the tires on this Windows Home Server, I would stick with HP. In a few more weeks both HP and Microsoft will be coming out with a series of software upgrades and enhancements. There will be features for you to actually backup all or part of your Windows Home Server. 64 bit clients as well as 32 bit clients will have complete functionality. Moreover, McAfee virus protection will be added on a 6 month free trial (which is good if you plan to do remote sharing). [Microsoft is also working on a fix of certain corruption problems people have had using certain software to edit and save to the server directly.] So far I am completely happy with my purchase. I am looking forward to the exciting new add-ins that will be available for this unit in the future. I would give this unit six stars if I could. :)
Saved my photos November 3, 2007
Janet Levinger
87 out of 103 found this review helpful
I have been using a beta version of the HP MediaSmart for quite a few months. Two weeks ago I discovered that over a month ago during some quick "I need disk space delete non-essential stuff" exercise, I had accidentally erased a large directory of travel photos from my laptop. And I discovered that I had not first copied them to my usual "Photos" directory on my home server first. I was totally bummed for a few hours until i realized that my laptop has been automatically backed up on the home server for months. I went back to the old backups (they are set to save there for a long time), and was thrilled to find the photos right where they were before i deleted them. What a relief. That alone paid for the product times 10.
A Microsoft product that works - REALLY WELL December 23, 2007
ScOObydoo (USA)
14 out of 14 found this review helpful
It's hard to describe how happy I am about this product without sounding like an idiot.
First of all the basics; it's a nice looking device. It's VERY quiet, and cabling is nice and simple; power and ethernet. Included in the box is the device, the cables you need, a set of CD's and a getting started guide.
On the back is an eSATA port (not shown in the Amazon photos or mentioned), 3 USB ports for more storage and a USB port on the front.
You plug it into your network, install the CD and you are good to go. No fooling around with product activation, no 30 minute setup.
The software; it's spectacular. Microsoft made this easy to use without treating you like a fool. Setting up shared storage and scheduling a backup couldn't be easier. If you ever need to restore, then you just pop in the included boot CD into the target machine and it'll let you restore backups stored on the server.
The 500Gb (or 1Tb) drive is fine for most people, but in my case I added some more drives. You just pop them into the cradle, slide them into the server and select "add" in the control panel. It automatically turns them into one large drive you can access. You can then select in the control panel which directories you want to duplicate (mirror) and it will make a backup copy onto one of the other drives. If you ever need to remove a drive, it will let you copy the contents onto the other drive(s) before doing so.
Another cool feature is the iTunes server; it will copy your local iTunes library onto the server in the background so you free up space on your PC and have a network accessible iTunes server on your lan.
All in all $577 WELL SPENT. There are other solutions out there (Drobo, Infrant, FreeNAS) but this integrates perfectly in Windows and is in my opinion the best value for money.
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