User Manual LinkStation HD-HLAN Series www.buffalotech.com v5.
Introduction Welcome to the LinkStation User Manual! This manual will help you configure your LinkStation. This user manual uses images representative of LinkStation user interfaces and software. Future user interfaces and software may be available for download from: http://www.buffalotech.com (Support Section - Downloads). Due to the evolving state of the product, the images and text in this manual may vary slightly from the images and text displayed by your LinkStation.
Table of Contents LinkStation Diagram................................................4 LinkStation Quick Setup..........................................6 Link Navigator Setup............................................. 12 Accessing LinkStation Data from a PC................... 21 Accessing LinkStation Data from a Mac................. 24 LinkStation Expansion........................................... 27 Basic Settings........................................................ 28 Network Settings.............
LinkStation Diagram 1. Power Button – The Power Button is used to power the LinkStation on or off. The power on process will take approximately 30 seconds to a full minute to complete. During this time, do not unplug the LinkStation from the wall outlet. To turn the LinkStation off, press and hold the power button for several seconds until the Power LED light begins blinking. At that time, stop pressing the button and shutdown should complete within 30 seconds. 2.
LinkStation Diagram 4. Disk Full LED – When LinkStation’s internal drive approaches 95% of its capacity, the Disk Full LED will light up in red. For options to increase storage capacity, see LinkStation Expansion section on Page 27. 5. Diagnostic LED – The Diagnostic LED flashes if the LinkStation encounters an error. In this event, please contact our technical support. 6. USB Port (Front & Rear) – LinkStation offers two USB Ports for adding external drives or USB printers.
Quick Setup Plug the LinkStation’s power cord into the back of LinkStation. Then, plug the other end of the power cord into a power outlet. Also, plug the included Ethernet Cable into LinkStation’s Ethernet Port located on the back of LinkStation.
Quick Setup Connect the other end of the included Ethernet Cable into a hub, switch, or router on the network, or connect it directly to a nearby running PC. NOTE: It is recommended that you connect LinkStation to a hub or switch on your network. Connecting it directly to the back of a PC should only be used if absolutely necessary. Many features, including DHCP IP Addressing, require LinkStation to be connected to a switch or hub.
Quick Setup Turn the LinkStation on by pressing the power button until the green Power LED begins to flash.
Quick Setup Check the LINK/ACT light on the front of the LinkStation. If it is lit, then your LinkStation is connected properly; please turn to page 12 to continue setup. If it is not lit, continue to the next page.
Quick Setup On the rear of the LinkStation, flip the black Cable Selection switch. This switch tells LinkStation whether to communicate over a Crossover or Patch cable. Verify that the LINK/ACT LED on the front of LinkStation is lit (see page 9’s picture). If it is lit, continue to page 12 to continue setting up LinkStation. If the LINK/ACT LED is still not lit, try moving the switch to the other position. If that doesn’t help, turn to the next page to check for common problems.
Quick Setup Having Problems? Make sure that: • Both LinkStation and the switch or PC are powered on. • The Ethernet Cable is securely fastened to both devices. • The Ethernet Cable is not damaged; verify this by trying another Ethernet Cable. • When verifying new cables, try the Cable Selection switch in both positions (see page 10). If problems persist, contact our technical support.
Link Navigator Setup Insert the Link Navigator CD into a PC’s CD-ROM drive. Depending on the PC’s configuration, the EasySetup program may launch. If it does not automatically launch, manually launch it by pressing the Start menu, selecting the Run... option. When the Run dialog opens, type x: easysetup.exe (where x is the drive letter of the CD-ROM drive). Press OK to continue.
Link Navigator Setup LinkNavigator is now running. Please press the Install IP Setup Utility icon, then press the Start button. The LinkStation IP Configuration Utility will launch and scan for networks.
Link Navigator Setup The IP Configuration Utility allows you to easily configure LinkStation’s network settings. The Search button will re-scan the network for any and all LinkStations available. The drop down menu lists all available LinkStations. If there are multiple LinkStations on the network, then select the proper LinkStation from the pull down menu. Once the proper LinkStation has been selected, press the Change IP Address button to continue.
Link Navigator Setup This section of the program changes LinkStation’s IP Address. Check the check box that states Acquire IP Address Automatically. This will give LinkStation an IP Address from the network’s router/DHCP server. A set (static) IP Address and Gateway can also be set if preferred. The Administrator Password field sets an administrator password for the web-based configuration. If desired, type a password in the field. When finished, press the OK button.
Link Navigator Setup LinkStation is now ready to be configured. The login prompt will appear. The user name is “root”. There is no password by default. If a password was specified on the previous step, then type that password in, otherwise leave the password field blank. Press the OK button when finished. User name: root Password: default password is blank. Only enter a password if one was set on page 15.
Link Navigator Setup Congratulations, you have logged into LinkStation. These are the main configuration menus. Please bookmark this page for easy access. For detailed explanations of each menu and setting, please refer to the Settings section (starting on page 28) of this manual. To continue setup, click on the Basic link. Then, click on the LinkStation Name Setup link to continue.
Link Navigator Setup This section allows you to change the name of your LinkStation. This name will be required to access LinkStation data. A friendly, easy name is recommended. Please enter an appropriate name in the LinkStation Name field. The name cannot contain any spaces or special characters. Alphanumeric characters including hyphen and underscore are allowed. A short description of the LinkStation can be created in the LinkStation Description field.
Link Navigator Setup By default there are two shared folders on LinkStation. One is for Windows and Mac machines, while the other is for Macs only. Windows machines will only see one share. If you would like to create additional shares for specific users or specific types of data, then click on the Security tab on the left. Then click on the Shared Folder Setup link to continue. From this screen you can add new shares/folders or edit existing shares/folders.
Link Navigator Setup To begin setting up a new share, enter an appropriate share/folder name in the Shared Folder Name field. Set the remaining settings to the desired function. Access Restriction will turn on security features. Please refer to the Settings section (starting on page 28) of this manual before using the Access Restriction function. Press the Apply button when finished. A new shared folder has been set up. Please repeat this step to set up more shared folders.
Accessing LinkStation Data from a PC To access LinkStation data: Press the Start menu, select the Run... option. When the Run dialog opens, type \\LinkStation_ Name (where LinkStation_Name is name of the LinkStation set on page 18). Press the OK button to continue.
Accessing LinkStation Data from a PC LinkStation’s root directory will appear. You will see all of the configured shares. All users can read and write to all folders unless otherwise configured. To set up security and password protection, please refer to the Settings section (starting on page 28) of this manual. To setup a printer see the LinkStation Expansion section found on page 27. LinkStation can be accessed by multiple PCs simultaneously by following this step.
Accessing LinkStation Data from a PC From the previous step’s Root Directory screen, use the pull down menu and click Tools and then select Map Network Drive. The Map Network Drive program will run. Select the drive letter you would like LinkStation to assume from the Drive: pull down menu. Enter the \\LinkStation_ Name\share_name in the Folder: field (where LinkStation_Name is the LinkStation Name set on page 18 and share_name is the Shared Folder Name set on page 20).
Accessing LinkStation Data from a Mac If your Mac does not automatically detect your LinkStation’s Share folder and put it on your desktop, you will need to add the LinkStation to the Mac’s server list. Begin by clicking Go, and then choose Connect to Server. In the Server Address field, enter your LinkStation’s IP address in the form smb:// ipaddress (where “ipaddress” is your LinkStation’s IP address), and click Connect. If you don’t know your LinkStation’s IP address, see page 26.
Accessing LinkStation Data from a Mac Select Guest and click on Connect. Note: If you have configured share permissions on your LinkStation, select Registered User and enter your Registered User credentials. Select the volume that you want to mount, such as share or share-mac, from the list of folders on the LinkStation. The share will open. A link to the shared folder will appear on your desktop.
Accessing LinkStation Data from a Mac If you don’t know your LinkStation’s IP address, there are several ways to get it. One simple method is to use the LinkStation client utility (included on your CD), or TeraStation client utility (available for download from www.buffalotech.com) to find your LinkStation(s). Just click on the tab for your LinkStation and you’ll be able to read its IP address. You must have a Windows PC running on the network to use the LinkStation or TeraStation client utility.
LinkStation Expansion LinkStation has two USB 2.0 ports on it, one on the front and one on the rear. These ports can be used for adding an external USB Hard Drive or a USB Printer, allowing everyone on the network to share the USB device. One printer or one external USB Hard Drive can be added to either of the ports. If you install both a printer and a USB hard drive, the printer must be plugged into the front USB port and the hard drive into the rear USB port.
Basic Settings LinkStation Name Setup: LinkStation should be configured with a unique name to identify it over the network. A general description can be given for the device as well. Date and Time Setup: To properly catalogue shares and files by date, and to properly schedule tasks (such as backups), the current date and time must be set. An NTP client is configurable for automatic time corrections.
Basic Settings - LinkStation Name The LinkStation Name identifies the LinkStation on your network. The LinkStation name should be something easy to remember. It can be named after its owner, its location, or the type of data that will be installed on it. If there is only one LinkStation on the network, then naming it “LinkStation” would be fine. LinkStation Description is a handy way of differentiating multiple LinkStations.
Basic Settings - Time and Date Time Setup: The LinkStation time must be set to maintain proper logs and to schedule proper backups Input the proper time and date or press the Get Current Date & Time button to set LinkStation’s time to the same time as the PC that is being used to configure it. Check the Daylight Savings Time checkbox if your region is currently in DST. This will have to be unchecked in the fall and checked again in the spring each year.
Network Settings IP Address Settings: By default, LinkStation will attempt to obtain an IP Address from a DHCP Server. If a DHCP Server is not available, it will assign itself an IP Address of 192.168.11.150. A designated static IP Address can be given to LinkStation within IP Address Settings. The gateway and subnet can also be set here. FTP Server Settings: LinkStation includes a built-in FTP Server. The FTP Server can be used for accessing files over the internet using the FTP protocol.
Network - IP Address & Default Gateway IP Address Settings: LinkStation operates using the TCP/IP protocol. Thus, it must have an IP Address to communicate on a network. This IP Address is also used to access the web-based configuration menus. If LinkStation cannot obtain an IP Address from a DHCP Server, LinkStation will automatically use the IP Address 192.168.11.150, or you may enter an IP address and subnet mask manually.
Network - Network Setup Workgroup Settings: Select the appropriate Network ID. Enter the name of your workgroup in the Workgroup Name field. “Workgroup” is recommended for most home networks. Wins Client Settings: LinkStation does not require a WINS Server. Don’t enable WINS Client unless you have a good reason for doing so.
Network - FTP Server Select Enable to use LinkStation’s FTP Server. Allowing Anonymous access is not recommended because of security concerns. Select Registered Users for a password protected FTP Server. Anonymous access may be used on a single shared folder on the LinkStation. FTP Access specifies whether the anonymous shared folder is read only or writable; select the appropriate setting.
Security - Shared Folders Shared Folder Setup: Access to shared folders can be controlled via group and User permissions. By default a shared folder will allow access to all groups and users. Folders can be created in file formats for use by Windows, Mac, or both operating systems. User Setup: Individual users and passwords should be created for each user that needs to access restricted shared folders. Once created, a user can specifically be given access to a shared folder or included in a group.
Security - Shared Folders LinkStation stores its data in shares. Multiple shares can be configured for different types of data. By default LinkStation has two shares. One share is for Windows and Macintosh computers. The other share is for Macintosh only. The default shares may be deleted if desired. Add a New Folder: This begins the process to create a new share. The next page describes this process further. Edit Shared Folder: This button allows shared folder information to be edited.
Security - Add a new Shared Folder Shared Folder Name: Name can be up to 12 alphanumeric characters (“-” and “_” are supported). Shared Folder Description: To differentiate the folders on LinkStation, a brief sentence or phrase evoking the type of data in the share is recommended. Shared Folders OS Support: If only Windows machines will access this shared folder, then select Win. If both Windows and Macintosh machines will access this shared folder then select Win/Mac.
Security Settings Enabling Access Restriction on the previous page will give you this screen, where you can restrict access to your new shared folder to specific users and/or groups. NOTE: You may add restrictions to an existing shared folder by pressing the Edit Shared Folder button on the main Shared Folder Settings page and enabling Access Restriction. Here you can specify who may access the new shared folder. Select which groups and which users will have access to the new shared folder.
Security Settings Groups allow for quicker security administration. A group is a group of users with specific rights to specific shared folders. A business may want to make a Manager group and add all of its managers to the group. This group could have access to a shared folder that the regular employees do not have access to. By default there is a share called hdusers. This share cannot be deleted. Add New Group: This begins the process of creating a new group.
Security - Add New Group Group Name: This will be the name of the group. The name should reflect the types of users added. For example, the managers’s group could be named ‘Managers’. Group Description: The group description should be used to differentiate the different groups on LinkStation. A brief sentence or phrase regarding the users inside of the group is recommended. Select Affiliated Users: Select the users that are to be added to this new group.
Security Settings - Shared Folder Setup User accounts allow LinkStation to limit access to certain or all shared folders. A user account is assigned a password. This password is used to obtain the data inside the shared folder. If a user does not have the proper user account credentials, then access to the data will be denied. NOTE: User accounts will only be used on shares with the Access Restriction function turned on. Add New User: This begins the process of creating a new user.
Security Settings - Shared Folder Setup User Name: Enter a name for each user here. Each name should indicate the named user. For instance, you could use the user’s first name as the user name. Password: The user password is the password associated with the user. The password can be up to 8 characters and can contain spaces, hyphens, and underscores. The password will need to be confirmed on the Password (Confirm) line as well. The password can be changed at a later time by editing the user’s settings.
USB Settings USB Details: Normally, all devices currently connected to the LinkStation will be displayed under USB Details. Newly attached USB devices may not be visible here until the LinkStation is restarted. USB Disk Setup: An attached USB Disk can be configured as an additional shared folder for additional storage space. The attached USB Disk must be formatted by the LinkStation before it can be used on LinkStation. If a USB Disk is attached to LinkStation, it must be attached to the rear USB Port.
USB Settings USB Information: The USB Information table lists information about connected USB devices (such as printers and hard drives). It lists the USB Class (Printer or Storage), the manufacturer if available, the device name, and whether it is a USB 1.1 or USB 2.0 device.
USB Settings USB Disk Setup: The USB Disk setup options specifies if an attached USB Disk is to be used as a shared folder. Using it as a shared folder increases the capacity of LinkStation. Selecting the Disable option makes it impossible to make the USB Disk drive a shared folder. However, if set to Disable, the USB Disk will still be available for Disk Backup. NOTE: The USB Disk must be attached to the rear USB Port to work properly. The front USB Port only works with USB Printers.
USB Settings - Print Server Print Server: The Print Server function turns printer sharing on or off. The Print Server function must be set to Enable if a printer is to be shared. LinkStation supports most PostScript printers. It doesn’t support bi-directional printers. Non-PostScript printers are not supported by Buffalo.
USB Settings - Printer Share Installation Now that LinkStation is set up to share your printer, you can easily add the printer to any Windows PC on your network. Follow these steps for each PC that you want to be able to access the printer. • Access the LinkStation by pressing the Start Menu, selecting the ‘Run...’ option and entering \\LinkStation_ Name (where LinkStation_Name is the name set on page 18). Press the OK button when finished. • Right click on the lp icon and select Connect.
USB Settings - Printer Share Installation • The Add Printer Wizard will launch. Select the proper driver for your printer. If the specific printer is not in the list, you will be required to insert the CD that came with your printer into your PC’s CD-ROM drive and press the Have Disk button. Refer to your printer documentation for further information on installing your printer if necessary. Press the • The printer is now successfully installed.
USB Settings - Printer Share Installation • To print a test page or configure additional printer settings, right click on the lp printer icon and select Properties. This will open the printer’s driver properties page. • Press the Print Test Page button to print a test page. You can also browse through the available settings for the printer. Please refer to the printer’s documentation for more information on changing the printer’s settings.
USB Settings - Delete Print Queue Deleting print jobs may be necessary if a corrupt print job was sent to a printer. If printing to the printer connected to LinkStation suddenly fails, it is recommended that you Execute the Delete Print Queue program. Deleting the print jobs will require that users re-send their print jobs to the printer. If there are still problems printing to the printer, then check the printer manufacturer’s documentation for troubleshooting information.
Maintenance Settings System Status: The System Status page displays current information about LinkStation. Disk Backup: Individual Shares or folders inside of shares can be scheduled for backup to an attached USB Disk. The scheduled backup time should not conflict with a scheduled sleep time. Disk Sleep Function: The LinkStation can be scheduled to enter a sleep mode to preserve energy at a scheduled time. The sleep time cannot coincide with the time of a scheduled backup or the backup will fail.
Maintenance Settings Disk Format: The internal drive or an attached USB drive can be formatted and rebuilt. Once a format begins all data will be lost on the drive. Care should be taken to backup any data stored on the drive prior to formatting. Any external USB Disks attached to LinkStation will need to be formatted via this Disk Format utility before being used by LinkStation. Administrator Password: By default, the administrator name (login) is “root” with a blank password.
Maintenance Settings - System Status The System Status page lists configuration information about LinkStation. No configuration changes can be made from this screen, but it’s a good place to review settings.
Maintenance Settings - Sleep Sleep Function: Enable Sleep Function to allow LinkStation to go into Sleep Mode. In Sleep Mode, LinkStation’s internal hard drive shuts off until the Wakeup Time. Disable Sleep Mode if you want LinkStation to always remain on. When LinkStation is sleeping, data cannot be accessed and scheduled backups will fail. Schedule Sleep Time: If the Sleep Function is set to Enable, then enter an appropriate Disk Sleep Time and Disk Wake Up Time. Click Apply to save these settings.
Maintenance Settings - Backup All Disk Backups are sent to the attached USB Disk on LinkStation. Please turn to page 56 for information on how to restore Backups. Disk Backup Folders: Before Disk Backup can be enabled, at least one share or folder inside of a share must be added to the Backup. To select a share or folder to be backed up, use the drop down menu under Folders for Backup.
Maintenance Settings - Backup Settings Disk Backup: The Disk Backup function allows LinkStation’s data to be backed up to an external USB Hard Drive. Backing up data is important in the event of LinkStation becoming damaged. Without a backup you risk losing data if a catastrophe happens. The Disable option turns off the ability to backup. Backup Frequency: There are three options for starting backups. The Run Backup Immediately option makes LinkStation begin backing up instantly.
Restoring a Backup To restore a backup, the USB Disk must be shared as a shared folder. This setting can be enabled on page 44. Then, browse to LinkStation and find the folder labeled usbdisk1. This is where all of the backup data is sent during backups. Double click on its icon, or right click on it and select the Open option. Once inside of the folder, the backup archives will be present. If there are multiple folders labeled by numbers, then multiple backups exist on the USB Disk.
Maintenance Settings - Disk Scan Disk Scan: The Disk Scan Target is the disk that is to be scanned. The Internal HDD option is for LinkStation’s internal hard drive. If a USB Hard Drive is connected to LinkStation, then it will also be available from the pull-down menu. Please select the disk that should be scanned. If both disks are to be scanned, then the Disk Scan’must be run twice; once for each disk.
Maintenance Settings - Format Select a disk to format: The pull-down menu lists the drives that can be formatted. If a USB Hard Drive is connected to LinkStation then it will be available for format. The Internal HDD can also be formatted from this page. NOTES: Formatting a drive will erase all data. Do not format a drive unless you need to! Brand new USB Disks may need to be formatted before the LinkStation can write to them, but the internal LinkStation hard drive comes pre-formatted.
Maintenance Settings - Administrator Password Settings Administrator Name: The Administrator Name is used to log into the Web-Based configuration. The default Administrator Name is “root”. It cannot be changed. Old Password: Please type the current administrator password into this field. By default there is no LinkStation password. If a password has already been set on LinkStation, then enter the current password. New Password: Please enter the new desired administrator password.
Maintenance Settings - Shutdown Shutdown: The Shutdown function in LinkStation allows an administrator to shut down LinkStation without using the power button. This feature can be handy if LinkStation is being configured from a location not close to the LinkStation’s power button. Press the Execute button to shutdown the LinkStation. The LinkStation can then only be turned on by pressing the power button on the front of it or by waiting for the Wake Up Time (if set on page 56).
PCast Settings PCast is a special service that can run within LinkStation allowing it to be a media server for Buffalo’s LinkTheater product. The LinkTheater is a media player that connects to your television and streams multimedia content. The PCast service allows you to stream any multimedia content directly from LinkStation to the LinkTheater. If you do not own a LinkTheater, then these settings can be completely ignored.
PCast Settings - LinkTheater LinkTheater Settings: The LinkTheater Settings allow you to configure your LinkStation to communicate directly with Buffalo’s LinkTheater. Media Server Function: The Media Server Function will need to be enabled for this function to work. If you do not own a LinkTheater than disabling this feature is recommended. Media Folder: The Media Folder specifies which shared folder to share with LinkTheater.
PCast Settings - LinkTheater Password: Enter the password required for access to the LinkStation content from LinkTheater. This password will need to be entered everytime you initially access the LinkStation from LinkTheater. The password can only be four alphanumeric characters. This limitation has been set because of the time it takes to input alphanumeric characters with the LinkTheater remote control. Password (Confirm): Confirm the password set above.
Troubleshooting - Multiple Shares When adding multiple shares, it’s possible that you may get an error message similar to the following: This is caused by having multiple shares to the same resource using different credentials. The error occurs when connecting to at least one secure, restricted share. Due to a constraint in Microsoft Windows only one set of credentials can map drive letters for a network resource (LinkStation).
Troubleshooting - Multiple Shares When mapping any share, select the ‘Connect using a different user name’ option. A login and password prompt will appear. Enter the same username and password for all LinkStation shares. This username and password is the username and password required for the secure, restricted share. Use this same login procedure for all unsecure, unrestricted and restricted shares on LinkStation.
Troubleshooting Disk Errors If LinkStation encounters a disk error, it will be reported in the LinkStation status on the top of any of the Web-Based configuration screens. Run a Disk Scan in the event of this error. If that doesn’t work, try a reformat. Reformatting the drive will delete all of the data on it so try to backup any data you can before beginning. Finally, if none of the above solutions help, then please contact Technical Support for further assistance.
Technical Specifications LAN Standards: Auto-MDIX10/100/1000 Base-T Ethernet Transmission Types: 1000BASE-T: 8B1Q4, PAM5; 100BASE-TX 4B/5B, MLT-3;10BASE-T Manchester Coding Access Media: CSMA/CD Media Interface: RJ-45 USB Standard: USB 2.0 Hi-Speed (HS) Full-Speed (FS) Low-Speed (LS) USB Connector: USB 2.0 Connectors (2) Data Transmission Speed: Max: 480 Mbps (HS Mode) Max: 12 Mbps (FS Mode) Electric Current: 5.
Technical Support (US and Canada) Buffalo Technology offers toll-free technical support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for this product. Customers in the United States and Canada can obtain technical support using the following information: Web: E-mail: Telephone: www.buffalotech.com info@buffalotech.com (866)-752-6210 (USA & Canada only; see page 72 for European tech support) FCC Warning This device complies with part 15 of the FCC Rules.
Technical Support (Europe) Buffalo Technology (Europe), Inc. 176 Buckingham Avenue, Slough, Berkshire, SL1 4RD United Kingdom GENERAL INQUIRIES Email: sales@buffalo-technology.com TECHNICAL SUPPORT Technical Support in Europe is available between the hours of 9am-6pm (GMT) Monday to Thursday and 9am-4:30pm (GMT) Friday for this product. Customers in Europe can obtain Technical Support using the following information: E-mail: helpdesk@buffalo-technology.ie | Web: www.buffalo-technology.
