Why did you not feel the need to identify the launch of a totally new MyCloud device, with different hardware and firmware that is incompatible with the previous, identically-named product?
Why did WD move from Debian to Busybox for the Gen 2 My Cloud machines?
Why do the Gen 2 machines have a different firmware build?
Why do the newer Gen 2 machines have a firmware that has an earlier (v2) version number identifier?
Why do the other MyCloud family members use different OS and firmware?
The most sensible development approach would seem to me to have a common, shared OS for all MyCloud family members, and a shared firmware base that has support for incremental feature addition.
This would have many benefits:
Only one OS to support, and track/roll out developments/bug fixes/security patches to.
Only one code base to support, bug track and roll out.
Only one API for WD apps to interact with.
Only one set of documentation to support (with incremental feature for the more advanced models).
Only one product line for Support to understand and, well, support…
Eases migration from one model to another for users.
Less confusion all round.
I can understand the need for different hardware, and the need for RAID support, but the hardware can be dealt with by a board support package providing a hardware abstraction layer for the OS/firmware, and the RAID issue can be dealt with by incremental feature implementation.
Frankly, I think WD are mad, and if I were their CEO I’d sack the product development manager.
I agree whole heartily, it’s shear madness but do you really think you will get an answer? If they don’t have time to figure out and implement a Product Plan, or maybe they do and don’t care, then I would assume the customer falls on deaf ears.
All the best cpt_paranoia on this and I really hope you get an answer.
Well, I got a personal message from a WD staff member, inviting me to chat with their Customer Relations Manager.
That’s all very nice, but I don’t think it will have any effect on their product development. So I think I’ll decline; my suggestion for how they ought to develop a family of products is made pretty clearly above.
You have the opportunity to speak your mind direct to someone at WD. Chances are probably slim that your suggestions will effect a change but no way to know for sure unless you have the conversation with them. This could be a simple matter of the right hand not communicating with the left hand within WD.
When WD has problem why users not getting emails like “Dear costumer, we have problem in our services, don’t try to fix your device\router”
Who the hell will go to check on forums on the internet if there is any problem with some kind of service? I’m regular to get notification when something like that is going on emails like all the normal people around the world
WD had to remember that not all WD costumers know how to find the forum or to use it
for instance
I’ll take my self as an example for this thread, when i’ve tried to get my files from the android device and i couldn’t i went home and started to do stuff and try stuff, I’ve retarted the My cloud device, did factory reset, did 4 sec reset, did 40 sec reset, reset my router, almost any thing
It took me half night !!! and it didn’t worked, only then i went online to serach for solution and i bumped into the thread that says that currently there is problem with WD services.
Very sad that we are paying lot of money and some of that money does not go to the most retarded thing there is in tech products, sending of “service problems” alert by email
Actually, I was going to write the same post and it isn’t that you beat me to it… it was the realization that there was absolutely nothing that we, the customer, can do about it. There is one thing that we can do about it and that is to shift to another product and believe me, I have been reviewing QNap quite intensely; when I say reviewing, I mean studying and making plans.
I hate the fact that what I had thought was two great 8TB clouds, on their way, will turn out to be another weekend fiasco of testing, figuring work-arounds, trying to stop the scans, trying to figure out whether a USB drive can connect to the drive. I would have been excited if the same firmware were in those new clouds, thus all I need to do is to move my already-solved scripts over to the new hardware.
When the new clouds arrive, I may just return them to costco without even opening them. I just don’t have the patience anymore. In fact, after returning the clouds, I may just pick up a 4-bay QNAP 431 for $350 and start taking apart my clouds.
So I think I’ll add to this… I just bought two My Clouds 8TB and have just dug through your BusyBox code to find that perhaps the solution that we found to make your previous Cloud gen might work, thus putting out the fire somewhat.
I believe what your company needs is a technical forum administrator as well as a software designer that understands the functions of a true NAS/Cloud and is able to speak/write to the forums, answer technical questions.
You have a great product hardware wise but a terrible user interface both on the Cloud and on the forums where nobody understands your product and is not able to provide answers to frustrated users. Everyone is simply guessing rather than knowing.
I’ll be testing out the new cloud for the next little while, although I am tired of doing this, but at least I am no longer absolutely fed up with your products, I am just tired of being your beta tester and tech supporter; all without being paid.
That is great that they put out a new version with new software. But a lot of people are confused about the version number. The old device had version 4.xx firmware the new device has 2.xx. So people want to upgrade their firmware to version 4.xx. Which won’t work. Secondly they changed the way the new version works. So people with both version have to learn two different ways to control their devices. Gen1 devices use a Debian Linux with 64k page size. Gen1 devices will not run standard Debian Linux code unless they are on version 3.xx firmware. The Gen2 devices use Busybox. Busybox is a special type file that contains several Linux commands in a single executable. Busybox also runs on a stripped down linux. Most of your smart devices, use busybox, like blue ray players, TV’s etc.
Also when these gen2 were first released nobody was even aware that there was a gen2 version.
The problem and confusion that is evident in this support forum is the fact that the newer generation My Cloud uses a firmware number that is LOWER than the older generation My Cloud. The older gen My cloud uses firmware v3.x/v4.x. The newer gen My Cloud uses firmware v2.x.
Further confusion is caused when some try to upgrade their gen 1 My Clouds to the v2.x firmware of the gen 2 My Cloud and find they cannot.
The two Dashboards are slightly DIFFERENT with different fields and tabs. Worse there is at least ONE missing feature (the shutdown button) missing from the v2.x Dashboard despite being mentioned at least twice in the v2.x My Cloud User Manual (http://www.wdc.com/wdproducts/library/UM/ENG/4779-705147.pdf)
When someone comes to this user to user support forum and asks for help with the Dashboard or with certain features, one has to ask which firmware version they are using because of the stupid firmware differences between the two generation versions.
Then there are various unofficial [Apps] for the v4.x firmware that is not compatible with the v2.x firmware. This is because of the firmware differences between the two generations.
Then there is the complaint that one cannot officially change the main “Public” Share to private so it means there is always one Share open to anyone who can access the My Cloud to store data. There was a “bug” in the early v3.x/v4.x firmware that would allow one to sidestep the inability to set the Public Share to private and actually set that Share to private, but WD “fixed” (ie removed) that bug when they released the OS3 firmware.
The issues raised by cpt_paranoia are valid and should be conveyed to the WD developers, firmware coders, and WD higher ups so they don’t continue to make such questionable decisions as they’ve continually made with the current single bay My Cloud firmwares. Some of what was raised deserves answers, but chances are good that we end users will never get answers to those issues raised or have the many suggestions raised in the Cloud Ideas (https://community.wd.com/c/personal-cloud-storage/cloud-ideas) subforum enacted which would fix the various issues with the Dashboard in both My Cloud versions.
I think Bennor just covered the tip of the iceberg…
I’ll try to answer without whining about specific problems.
There are a number of users that has spent years finding work-arounds that solves many problems that WD has never fixed with their firmware. Apparently there is no WD Tech support on this forum and thereby there has been a group of Users that have been providing most of the tech support with answers that they have spent years finding.
Now WD has gone and changed all that with a new OS and still not fixing all the old problems. Now we got the same old problems except we don’t have fixes for them. On top of that, new users are confused with all the different answers. Basically we got fragmentation and that is a huge problem.
A good example is samba where we use to be able to edit the samba config file. This is no longer possible, well yes and no, it is possible but it isn’t permanent as well as the ability to stop and start the samba services is different now.
From studying all the stuff on BusyBox, it does seem that WD has decided to have all their WD devices on BusyBox and that is fine with us if they had perhaps gave the Clouds a new name like Cloud2 or something. Even Nintendo named their new 3ds devices “3ds New”.
This confusion, this non tech support, the bugs, the inability to resolve them is really frustrating… especially when the device won’t sleep.
but…
yes the devices that WD is putting out is getting better… and it took them 5 years… but I still think they need to have a technical person that can help here on the forums.
Yes it was just the tip of the iceberg. I have no doubt many of us regular contributors to this subforum could write pages on the various specific things that could be (and should be) fixed, not just improved, in the current firmware. Some firmware issues, like the sleep issues, have been around for years and continue to remain unsolved/unaddressed by WD. Users are forced to take to SSH to solve some of the firmware issues.
The single bay My Cloud has much potential, but is sometimes hobbled by its firmware. The 2nd gen single bay (v2.x) My Clouds from the sounds of it (I don’t have one) are a definite improvement but there are unfortunately still some issues present to vex users.
WD has recently experienced a couple of outages of our remote access servers. During that time any My Cloud features and functionality associated with remote access, sync and MyCloud.com were interrupted. We’re very sorry for any inconvenience these outages may have caused. Rest assured, any data already on your My Cloud device was not impacted and is safe in your own home.
At this time we’d like to apologize for not actively communicating to My Cloud owners of this outage. We’re implementing a new communication plan that will go into place if another outage should occur.
We plan to:
Send an outage email to all our registered users (if you need to register your device go here)
Send an alert via WD’s official Twitter handle: @WesternDigital
With technology there are sometimes issues that arise, and we strive to fix those issues as quickly as possible. We do make you a promise that going forward we’ll more actively communicate to you when problems do arise. We value our My Cloud users and want you to have the best experience possible with the product.
