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Even though it’s out of WD support, I’m still occasionally using my trusty EX 4 for storage. Just wanted to run some things by the community.
I could never get an answer out of WD support as to why the device was taken out of support. I assume this had to do with remote/cloud access, which I never used. At the time they made it sound like a security issue, but without details. Any insights?
It’s been basically turned off most of the time, and the current firmware is 2.12.127. I seem to recall some users saying they had problems with firmware after this, and so I’ve not bothered with updates given WD is not supporting it and should it go bad… well. I’m getting prompts to update to 2.13.108. Any thoughts?
Your EX4 uses OS3. OS3 did (does) not support the security updates for My Cloud. It went EOS back in 2022. The hardware doesn’t support upgrading to OS5.
My EX4 is on 2.13.108. All it really does is to disable MyCloud, remove the notifications function and add an End of Support message in the dashboard. Everything else still works.
The readme file for 2.13.108 says:
“On April 15, 2022, support for prior generations of My Cloud OS, including My Cloud OS 3, will end. Your device isn’t compatible with critical security updates that are only available for My Cloud OS 5-compatible devices. As a result, you’ll only be able to access it locally. After April 15, 2022, your device will no longer receive remote access, security updates, or technical support. To help protect your content, we recommend that you back up your device, disconnect it from the internet, and protect it with a strong, unique password.”
I still use mine daily (no internet connection) and is fully accessible on my local network. I still run Twonky for media serving but that’s the only app besides file storage.
I also have an even older Netgear ReadyNAS (also EOS), that I use exclusively to backup my EX4. Couple with a pair of USB drives and some Cloud storage (Dropbox, Google Drive, etc.), I have several tiers of backups for my stuff.
Thanks for confirming this. It’s funny that the support folks at the time wouldn’t confirm the information in that firmware update note for me. They were so oddly evasive, incapable of giving me a similarly direct answer other than “buy a new model.”
I wish there were a way to disable the update notifications as I think I’ll just ignore that final firmware update as it provides me no value.
End of Updates and End of Support . Nine years after a product’s release, we may discontinue all updates, including critical software security updates. Western Digital may also discontinue cloud service support for a product in this phase. If a product feature depends on cloud services to function, that functionality will end.
The My Cloud EX4 Planned Support Timeline (Product Release date – End of Support date) was March 2014 - April 2022
The My Cloud EX4 does not support OS5. One can find additional discussion for the EX4 series in the Legacy Products My Cloud OS3 subforum:
Firmware Version 2.13.108 (04/15/2022)
As of April 15, 2022, support for prior generations of My Cloud OS has ended. We’ve made the following
changes as part of this release:
• Disabled Cloud Access support
• Disabled Notification Email support
• Added My Cloud OS 3 End of Support message in the My Cloud dashboard
You will continue to have local access to your stored content. Remote access, security updates,
I have a few units on OS/3 - - all of which are running the “second to last” firmware update prior to the OS/5 transition. Note that I don’t allow these OS/3 units anywhere near internet access.
I have not heard any negative feedback about the final OS/3 firmware version. . .and nothing good about it either.
WD likely dropped support for the EX4 due to security vulnerabilities, particularly with remote/cloud access. If you’re only using it for local storage, it should be fine, but keeping outdated firmware could still pose risks. Some users reported issues with later updates, so if your setup is stable, you might want to leave it as is. If you do update, ensure you have a full backup first.
