Review of QNAP QSW M Series 10G Switches

April 14, 2022

I am using QNAP QSW-M408 and QSW-M1208 10G switches at home and here is a very brief pros and cons:

Pros

  • cost-effective
  • performance is OK for home use
  • silent
  • basic management, VLAN functions etc.
  • NBASE-T support (not only 1G and 10G, but also 2.5G, 5G etc.)
  • SFP+ and RJ45 combo ports
  • simple management UI (but also see the Cons item)

Cons

  • you cannot set a management VLAN, it is always VLAN 1, not a major issue but still something to be aware of
  • no port mirroring, I think this is the most important missing feature for me
  • no L3 features, but I do not need them, I do not use routing on switches
  • too simple management UI, VLAN assigment screen can be improved, there is a need to be able to define aliases or write descriptions for ports and VLANs
  • there is a serial console or RJ45 management port, but it is not supposed to be operated by the user I think, there is not much documentation. so you need to be a little extra careful or you might need to reset the device to factory defaults.

Do I recommend it ?

For a home or a very small office (a few people, 1-2 rooms) deployment, yes, as long as you do not need port mirroring or L3 features. For advanced uses (again port mirroring and L3) and in larger than very small office deployments, I would consider more expensive alternatives.