Debian Lenny Supported by Qnap NAS

QNAP Systems, Inc. and the Debian project jointly announced the availability of Debian Lenny (version 5.0) for all QNAP ARM-platform Turbo NAS, including TS-109, TS-209, TS-409 series and TS-409U. Debian Linux on the QNAP NAS can serve as an alternative to the default firmware provided by QNAP.  Debian can be easily installed and thousands of popular software packages will be instantly available on the energy-saving yet powerful 500MHz ARM SoC-based QNAP NAS.

According to Andy Chuo, Product Manager from QNAP, "The latest Debian Lenny now fully supports our TS-109, TS-209, TS-409 series and TS-409U Turbo NAS. As Debian is considered the only major Linux distribution which actively supports the ARM platform as well as its prominent feature of APT package management system that provides over 10,000 software applications, QNAP saw its open community nature and the potential applications and uses it might bring to inspire us to continually improve our products. We decided to support the efforts to add Debian support for devices based on Marvell’s Orion SoC the CPU used by all our ARM-based NAS products. It can also serve as an alternative to the standard firmware to offer our users more competitive options to maximize the use of their NAS."

"There is considerable interest among high-end Linux users in a NAS device that can be used as a powerful and customizable home server. They want a full Linux system which allows them to easily install additional software and to modify the environment. Debian is an ideal choice for such users because it supports the ARM platform, is very mature and robust, and offers over 10,000 individual software packages to install", says Dr. Martin Michlmayr who has been working on porting the Debian and its easy-to-use ‘Debian-installer’ package for devices based on Marvell’s Orion-based architecture including the TS-109, TS-209, TS-409 series and TS-409U since September 2007.

Debian on QNAP NAS installation guide