Newbie - Transfer from Computer To MyCloud way to slow - 880 kb per second

My Cloud OS 3 Personal & Network Attached Storage My Cloud
#1

Hi folks. newbie here to this product so be gentle! I have been around computers for years and I can navigate and find almost everything I need to. I am actually a web developer as well. All these years I have just backed up my sites to a DVD every so often as they don’t change to much. For a few years I have been eyeballing this MyCloud unit as it seemed like everything I could ever want for backup and having access to it from anywhere was also very appealing. Doubt I will ever use that feature, but it is available if I need to.

So before I proceed, here is my hardware list:

HP Pavallion p6710f Desktop with a 64 bit OS. The wireless built in failed so I have installed a Linksys N300 wireless adapter which has worked flawlessly.

My modem/router is an AT&T supplied Motorola 3347-02 ADSL Modem/Router w/Wi-Fi with 4 ethernet ports and a telephone line input.

Router Specs: http://www.cnet.com/products/netopia-3347-02-wireless-router-dsl-802-11b-g-desktop-series/specs/

Ok…so now you know what I am working with here. Now, as much as I know about computers and being able to successfully take care of most things myself, I have NO IDEA about all this external hard drive stuff, transfer rate and a lot of the “lingo” every uses here on this forum. All I know is I wanted an external hard drive to backup my computer and the WD MyCloud was my choice. As a matter of fact I bought TWO of them. One to backup my computer and one to backup my backup. Makes sense right? (I did a little research first but it now seems I should have bought a USB backup to the MyCloud backup so in case I need a quick recovery I could plug it right back into my computer…see, I do read the forums!!! LOL)

Ok…I know you can’t hook these MyClouds right into the computer (which is a feature/option it should come with) so I know the data transfer has to be done via the router no matter what.

Ok, I un-box only one of my two new MyClouds, read the setup instructions and hook that bad boy up. I was struggling with downloading the software because so many YouTube reviews said it is worthless and basically you end up back at the user CP (dashboard) anyhow. So I just went bare bones. Anyhow, after hooking it up I go to my windows explorer, click on my network and there it is…perfect!!! I can see all my folders and I test dragged and dropped a few quick photos and it worked perfectly. HOORAY!!!

I then decide to proceed to a bigger scale transfer of files and this is where it all goes very bad. I decided to backup my full web development folder which is 104 gb. So I drag the folder over and the files start moving…slow. I was hoping this would speed up but it did not. After 4 hours I had a transfer rate of only 880 kb per second which is 3168000 kb per hour or 3.2 gb an hour. At this rate it would take 32.5 hours to transfer all those over and that is just unacceptable. No way I can live with that for sure.

Now I am almost 100% positive there is nothing wrong with my new MyCloud so I am pretty sure it has to do with my other hardware or settings I don’t have configured right…otherwise no body would buy this setup with that kind of transfer rate. After reading I am suspecting it is my router and I have no idea if the ethernet ports are those gigabit ones that everyone seems to talk about and how big of a difference that will make.

So my question to the gurus here are “what do I need to get this thing up to speed?” You guys know my hardware as I listed it all above. If it does turn out to be having to buy a new router then that is what I will have to do…I just wish I would have read that somewhere first. Now I have a second MyCloud also I can’t return since I bought it off eBay. My plan was to hook it also into the router and use the “Safepoint” feature to backup to it? is that a good idea or do I have this whole process wrong?

I just need some guidance here in basic easy to understand terms. Like I said I have no idea of the terminology I read here (Like RAID and so forth) so forgive me on that. I just want to make backups and not have to wait 5 days for it to happen.

Thank you in advance for any guidance!

peace out,
daddylogan

P.S. - I forgot to add that in the middle of the backup yesterday my wireless got snuffed out and I lost all connection to my router!!! Took me hours to get it to work again. First I unplugged my router and plugged it back in…then I restarted my computer…still did not work…then I did a system restore…and that did not work. Finally I pulled the adapter out of the USB port and plugged it back in and it came back alive, thank god! I have never had this happen before until I was trying to transfer all those files at one time.

Can connect with LAN cable but not over WiFi on the same network
#2

Turn off Media Server for all shares – sounds like it’s of no use to you anway.
Also disable remote access.

My guess is it’s the indexing function for those above features that’s slowing down the transfer.

Plus, transferring bazillions of small(ish) files is about the most brutal test of performance.

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#3

You do seem to be getting a low transfer rate. In addition to Tony’s suggestions, I’d add:

  • use a wired gigabit connection to your router (it is a gigabit router, right…?)
  • you can connect the device directly to your PC; see the troubleshooting appendix of the user manual (download it)
  • look up turning off the wdmcserverd and other indexing tasks (search the forum)
  • look up some of the threads talking about speed

I’d also note that initial backup is a one-off; thereafter, incremental will be quicker. By the time you have found an answer, your data will have copied…

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#4

First read the following thread…

https://community.wd.com/t/before-you-pack-up-your-wd-and-return-it-lets-talk-about-copying-speeds/91887

Second, if you plan on copying a large amount of data or large files do not use WiFi. You will generally get faster speed using Ethernet.

Third, make sure your using Gigabit Ethernet connections where ever possible. This includes the routers and switches on the local network.

Fourth, you will never get the advertised speed. There are many factors from the speed of your computer’s hard drive, its NIC port, the speed of the My Cloud hard drive, network overhead, etc. that will all impact copying speed. Read the following links to gain an understanding why one typically never see’s the advertised speed on a Gigabit network or their WiFi network.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gigabit-ethernet-bandwidth,2321-3.html

http://www.speedguide.net/faq/what-is-the-actual-real-life-speed-of-wireless-374

Fifth, if you are using AT&T Uverse some have reported problems (do a forum search for Uverse) with the AT&T supplied router. The workaround if you are having connection issues with the My Cloud is to place a switch inbetween the My Cloud and the AT&T supplied router.

Sixth, lets look at your hardware:
Your HP Pavallion p6710f (at least according to the base specs on HP’s website) does not have a Gigabit networking port, its 10/100 only.
The Motorola 3347-02 ADSL Modem/Router appears (per this link) to only have 802.11g/b WiFi which means you’ll get less than 54Mbps over WiFi. The four networking ports are 10/100Mbps.

So based on the hardware you’ve listed you don’t apparently actually have a Gigabit network. Which means at best you’ll be transferring data at less than 100Mbps, at worst over WiFi at less than 54Mbps.

It is NO SURPRISE you’re seeing poor copying speeds.

It would appear you need to get better networking hardware. Start by contacting AT&T and see if they have or can provide a newer router, preferably one that supports Wireless N since you already have a Wireless N Linksys adapter for your PC. You will need to ask AT&T if the new router they provide supports Gigabit networking ports. If not then you may want to invest in a separate wireless router that supports both Wireless N (or Wireless AC) and has Gigabit networking ports. If you get a router that supports Gigabit networking you will also have to get a Network card for your computer that supports Gigabit networking.

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#5

Thank you for your answers. I do know how to turn off the Media Server but how do I disable remote access and what is remote access so I know what it means?

So, do you mean I can connect this to my computer using MAPPING to a drive letter? Will it function as it should and can I make my initial backup transfer this way?

Thanks again :wink:

peace out,
daddylogan

#6

Thank you for your support! I really don’t think my router is a gigabit router. Probably where most of my problem is. I edited in a link above to my routers specs.

Thanks again,

daddylogan

#7

Ah, yes; it’s a wifi-g router, so the best you’ll get is 54Mbit/s. Even wired, you will only get 100Mbit/s, which will translate to a maximum 10Mbyte/s. Even so; still much faster than the 0.9 Mbyte/s you’re getting. It may just be the small file effect.

#8

@daddylogan, if you haven’t done so already you should read the My Cloud User Manual (http://www.wdc.com/wdproducts/library/?id=439&type=25). It explains in general terms how to enable or disable the Remote Access option within the Dashboard > Settings page. Further it explains how to “map” a My Cloud Share for easier access.

http://support.wdc.com/KnowledgeBase/answer.aspx?ID=2676

http://support.wdc.com/KnowledgeBase/answer.aspx?ID=2686

Remote access is the ability to access the My Cloud from a remote location using one of the WD software applications (WD My Cloud Desktop), the WD mobile apps for iOS or Android, or the MyCloud.com web portal. One can also enable FTP access on the My Cloud for additional remote access but FTP is not secure where as the previously mentioned methods of remote access are generally secure (for the most part).

#9

To further show the difference in copying speed. Here are some Crystal Disk Mark results I posted to another thread yesterday (see this link). It shows the speed difference on my local network between a desktop computer with a Gigabit NIC, and a laptop computer that only has a 100Mbps NIC, when testing read/write speed to a My Cloud connected via Gigabit.

Note: For the My Cloud that I use, it initially came with a 4T WD Red 5400 RPM Class SATA 6 Gb/s 64MB hard drive that got damaged, and was replaced with a Seagate Barracuda 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s hard drive.

Desktop PC with Gigabit NIC:

Laptop with 100MBps:

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#10

Thank you for all the hard work you put into your reply…much appreciated! Trust me when I say I have no idea about all this “networking” stuff. Never had a use for it before at home and all the ones I use to use at work were all hard wired. My home is wireless and I would like to keep it that way as my computer is in a different room from the wireless modem-router and I also use the wireless for my DirecTV and my Nest products. (I don’t even know if that makes a difference?)

I have never used LAN as I believe I am using wifi? Can you even use LAN if you are wireless? Sorry if that is a silly question but I truly don’t know anything. I thought I was buying a simple hard drive to back stuff up to and then I bought another to backup up the backup. I never imagined there would be so much more to it and now I wish I had just bought a standard USB unit and just plugged it in when I needed to make backups. Too late though…I bought both these MyCloud unit off eBay with a no return policy so I am stuck and I might as well make the best of it now.

So let’s talk about exactly what I need. You say I will need a new wireless router that supports both wireless N (what is that BTW…the "N’ part) and has gigabit networking ports and then I have to get a new network card for my desktop that supports gigabit networking. Is that all I will need to get speed up to decent while still using my wifi connection? So, do you have any router recommendations? I figured one day I would end up buying my own for one reason or another and how hard are they to set up as like I said my DirecTV and NEST thermostat are connected to my wifi also? What networking card would you recommend? The reason I ask for specifics is that I don’t want to make a mistake and waste more money, especially if I buy off ebay. I am already $250.00 in with the MyClouds and I can imagine between a good new router and network card I will be spending another $300.00?

I also noticed someone else said I can hard wire into my computer by way of mapping? Is this true. I would hook up the MyCloud via the ethernet cable directly into my computer and then map it as a drive…then would I be able to transfer my data at normal speeds? People say once you make the initial transfer then things speed up after that. Does the cloud only identify new files when doing future backups?

Sorry I am such a dummy at all this as even some of the basic lingo is over my head but I am trying to catch on. I have learned that LAN is local area network and that WAN is wide area network. Can you still be wireless and use ethernet instead of wifi?

Once again thank you for your replies. I will get this figured out and learn from this and will report all my results as to help others in my position.

peace out,
daddylogan

#11

First the terminology. LAN stands for local area network. It is the network all your devices (both wired and WiFi) connect to in order to communicate with each other and to send traffic/information to and from the Internet. Generally WAN is what the Internet is. The router is the gatekeeper to control or block traffic to and from the internet/WAN and the local network/LAN. WiFi allows devices to connect to the LAN without the need to run an Ethernet wire/cable.

Next, contact AT&T and ask about getting their Wireless Router upgraded. Specific ask them what Wireless version it is (G, N, AC). And if it has Gigabit networking ports. Because your DSL router/modem is so old its possible they may give you newer router for free or for the same rental fee your currently paying (if your paying a router/modem rental fee). If AT&T won’t give you a newer router that at least has Wireless N and Gigabit networking ports then its time to think about spending money on your own WiFi router. There are a variety of Wireless N and Wireless AC routers with Gigabit networking ports for under $100 US dollars. Just note that setting up a second router on the LAN will involve some configuration of the second router in addition to possibly some configuration of the main AT&T router/modem. What those changes are would depend on what brand/model the second router is and if the AT&T router/modem can be put into what is known as “bridge mode”. Not all AT&T routers/modems are capable of “bridge mode” which causes issues when using a second router on the LAN.

There are a wide variety of Gigabit networking cards (including USB adapters) one can install or connect to a computer. One will need to see what internal slots are available (PCI, PCIe, etc.) their desktop computer supports in order to know what type of Gigabit networking (10/100/1000Mbps) card to buy. Gigabit networking cards can be found for fairly low cost now, some are even under $10.

If you have not already done so you may want to read the My Cloud User Manual (http://www.wdc.com/wdproducts/library/?id=439&type=25) to understand all the features of the My Cloud and how it can be used to sync or backup computer information to the My Cloud.

Depending on the backup software (or sync software used) and how the backup is performed the backup speed for the very first backup tends to be the slowest/longest while subsequent backups are faster as only newer data is backed up to the My Cloud. The My Cloud comes with the Smartware backup software and the WD Sync program. Both are fairly basic and some people have problems with one or both programs. There are a number of third party (some free, some not) software to backup and or sync a computer to the My Cloud. One can read the Smartware User Manual at this link: http://www.wdc.com/wdproducts/library/UM/ENG/4779-705057.pdf

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#12

Hey there, everybody has to start somewhere :slight_smile:

Your connection will auto metric to the fastest connection you have on the HP PC. E.g. while on Wifi 300Mbps, you then plug in a 1GB Ethernet, the 1GB will be the priority.

From your specs which is pretty low, let’s see your options (on top of what has been recommended by our fellow users):

  1. Stay wireless? If you can’t demand/request/opt for hardware upgrade from your ISP (AT&T), try to upgrade your Wifi router (this should also upgrade to Gigabit ports and work well with your existing Wifi-N), get at least the N model (cheaper) or AC model for future proof like this quite affordable TP-LINK Archer C7 Wireless AC1750 Dual Band Gigabit Router, 450Mbps on 2.4GHz + 1300Mbps on 5Ghz, 2 USB Ports, IPv6, Guest Network

  2. Go wired for speed? Get a cheap 1GB NIC Ethernet PCI card for your HP PC or easier a Plug&Play USB3.0-to-1GB-Ethernet adapter (edited: ops your HP PC only supports USB2.0, so best to get the previously said 1GB NIC PCI), get a cheap gigabit switch hooked to your existing router, then link MyCloud and your HP PC via the gigabit switch.

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#13

The WiFi letter indicates the version of WiFi standard (ieee802.11) supported by the devices. Like all technology, it has continued to improve, giving higher data rates. The oldest, and slowest is ‘b’, then ‘g’, ‘n’ and, most recently ‘ac’. So your router is two generations old.

The WiFi adaptor you have bought for your PC is WiFi-n, so more recent. However, it can only talk to your router using WiFi-g, operating in a backward compatibility mode.

Speak to your internet service provider; they really ought to give you a router with at least WiFi-n, and at least one gigabit wired Ethernet port (to which you would connect your primary MyCloud).

Ideally, they’d give you an ‘ac’, fully-gigabit router. Then you’d have to buy an ‘ac’ wireless adaptor for your PC, to get the most benefit. Or use wired gigabit Ethernet, which would need a gigabit Ethernet card for your PC.

WiFi and Ethernet cards for PCs are pretty cheap.

Newer routers usually support the older WiFi standards, so your other WiFi devices should still work with a new router.

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#14

Yes, everyone needs to start somewhere, agree, but most people are much better prepared to “start” before posting in a forum. But, a forum is not the place to go get “basic training”.

So, @ daddylogan

I feel bad for you; you are way behind the 8 ball and you most definitely put the cart before the horse. You are so unprepared to process all this info coming at you; you bought a product you knew nothing about, you are clueless about networking and what even an N router is, you have antiquated computer and network equipment. You are at such a disadvantage to even process all this info and even improve the situation any time soon. You need to get educated about all this.

So, instead of giving you even more info you don’t understand, I am going to suggest you take a crash course in home networks and associated equipment ,for starters. A good place to start is an informative website, and one I think is appropriate for you is:
http://www.howtogeek.com/ Spend a lot of this weekend perusing this site which has lots of info for beginners and others. Good luck with it all.

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