Software Features
The IcyBox comes with built-in software to act as a file server, print server (not tested), media server, and bittorrent client.
Bonjour
What is Bonjour? To quote Wikipedia’s entry):
“Bonjour…is Apple, Inc.’s trade name for its implementation of Zeroconf, a service discovery protocol. Bonjour locates devices such as printers, as well as other computers, and the services that those defices offer on a local network using multicast Domain Name System service records.”
If you’re running iTunes, the odds are pretty high that Bonjour is installed and running on your computer. Enabling the service from the IcyBox’s web interface is very simple. Two checkboxes in the web configuration interface and you’re done. Set your computer’s iTunes configuration to look for shared libraries and you’ll not be disappointed. One of my biggest pet peeves with iTunes is the local music folder; if you add music to the folders and it’s not automatically added to iTunes. With the IcyBox and the Bonjour protocol, this is solved. Music copied to the “music” folder on the IcyBox automatically appears in the shared library.
Bittorrent
Another of the useful features of the IcyBox is its built-in Bittorrent client. For those who are not familiar with Bittorrent, it is a peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing method. Instead of going to a specific location and downloading a large file from a single source, Bittorrent downloads from many sources at once. This is a very simple explanation and glosses over many details of what actually goes on, but this should serve as a good, albeit brief, introduction.
Using Bittorrent with the IcyBox is a very simple matter. Just obtain a torrent file, point the web interface to the torrent file, and click start. If you want to keep your ISP off your back, it is possible to limit both upload and download speeds. While the documentation and interface do not say so explicitly, it is my belief that once the download is completed, the Bittorrent client will cease sharing the content you have downloaded. This is not based on anything but observation of the download and the interface once the download has finished.
DISCLAIMER: Neither the authors, nor Icrontic condones the downloading and/or sharing of illegal content. What you do is entirely your responsibility, and if you find yourself on the receiving end of an infringement lawsuit or your ISP cuts your internet access it’s your problem, not ours.
Twonky Media (not tested)
The Twonky Media server is the only software not included in the IcyBox’s firmware, but a 30-day trial is included on the CD that comes with the IcyBox; the full version is available for $39.95 directly from the TwonkyVision web site. Twonky is a Universal Plug & Play (UPnP) audio/video server supporting a large number of hardware and software players such as Windows Media Player, Nero Showtime, Xbox 360, and Playstation 3. A full list of supported devices can be found at http://www.twonkyvision.de/Products/TwonkyMedia/devices.html.
File Server
Using the IcyBox as a file server is simple. By default, a folder named “public” is created for general sharing across the network. Anyone with a user account on the IcyBox may connect to this folder by navigating the “Microsoft Windows Network” structure, by network name (the default is \\IB-NAS4220-B), or by IP address. Whatever your method, the public folder may be accessed and optionally mapped to a local drive letter.
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