QNAP launches the second open beta of QuTS hero h6.0

QNAP, one of the world’s leading specialists in storage and networking solutions, has presented the second open beta of QuTS hero h6.0, the new major version of your operating system based on ZFS that promises significant improvements in business resilience and intelligence.

Operating systems are key to the operation of NAS, devices that, as you know, work independently with their own hardware. Hence the importance of having software at its height and a set of applications to extract its full potential in an era of AI where ceaselessly increases the data to be protected and managedas Tim Lin, product manager at QNAP, explains in the announcement of the beta of its next operating system:

“With data volumes rapidly increasing and business operations transformed by AI, businesses need secure, intelligent, and future-proof storage.”

QuTS hero h6.0 (Beta) main functions

The second open beta is now available in the QNAP Download Center and the company encourages its customers to carry out the corresponding tests. Additionally, those who share the experience in the QNAP Community can win a TR-004 DAS. Regarding the main keys, the company has indicated the following as a summary:

1. High availability (HA) with two NAS. Two NAS devices form an active-passive HA cluster using High Availability Manager. h6.0 supports even more models and applications, with over 90% of services already HA-ready, providing cost-effective redundancy for business continuity.
2. Immutable snapshots. Immutable Snapshots, available on all QuTS hero models, lock data from modification or deletion during the protection period, ensuring data integrity and quick recovery even after a ransomware attack.
3. KMIP password management. As a KMIP client, QNAP NAS integrates with the internal centralized key management server (KMS) system to ensure unified control of encryption keys. Keys are stored and automatically applied remotely, reducing the risk of manual entry and ensuring FIPS 140-3 compliance for enterprise-class security.
4. Improved system security. QuTS hero h6.0 adds multiple layers of protection to protect system integrity and prevent intrusion
   • FIDO2 Passcodes enable passwordless, phishing-resistant authentication to ensure greater account protection.
   • Secure Boot uses hardware-level protection to verify the integrity of the firmware during boot, blocking any unverified code and ensuring that the boot always starts from a safe state.
   • Ransomware Protection (coming soon) adds the ability to Malware Remover to detect and isolate certain behaviors, allowing you to identify anomalies, log suspicious activities, and neutralize threats in real time.
   • Secure IP Access feature (coming soon) introduces IP-level controls to reduce network exposure and apply context-sensitive access policies.
5. Qtier prepare QuTS hero. QNAP’s popular Qtier tiered storage technology is now supported on QuTS hero NAS. With flexible manual tiering, users can allocate data to ultra-fast SSDs or high-capacity HDDs based on workload needs, striking the ideal balance between performance, capacity and cost efficiency. Ideal for businesses that handle large mixed workloads, such as file servers, virtual machines, or video production.
6. Kernel-mode SMB daemon with encryption. By running SMB services in kernel mode, QuTS hero achieves significant performance and IOPS improvements while enabling SMB encryption for secure file transfer.
7. Easy management and access control
   • SSO via QNAP ID streamlines login to NAS and cloud services with a single login.
   • Fiber Channel’s NPIV feature enables multiple virtual WWPNs on a single Fiber Channel port to improve multi-user management.
   • ACL 2.0 introduces a redesigned permissions management engine that provides significantly faster operations, smoother administration, and more reliable performance for large directories.
   • AMIZcloud Monitoring feature provides centralized cloud management for HA groups and displays cluster status, latency, and alerts.
   AI and automation
   • The on-premise LLM feature in Qsirch introduces RAG Search based on locally deployed large open source language models (such as DeepSeek, Gemma, Phi, and Mistral) on GPU-ready NAS. Enables semantic search and rapid summary of documents with full data sovereignty.
   • MCP Assistant allows administrators to manage the NAS with natural language commands through tools such as Claude Desktop, VS Code, Telegram or n8n, simplifying daily operations through AI-based automation.
8. AI and automation
   • The on-premise LLM feature in Qsirch introduces RAG Search based on locally deployed large open source language models (such as DeepSeek, Gemma, Phi, and Mistral) on GPU-ready NAS. Enables semantic search and rapid summary of documents with full data sovereignty.
   • MCP Assistant allows administrators to manage the NAS with natural language commands through tools such as Claude Desktop, VS Code, Telegram or n8n, simplifying daily operations through AI-based automation.

More information | QuTS hero h6.0 release notes