Why use a Synology NAS over a older PC with a bunch of HDD's? reddit / selfhosted ---------------------------------------------------------------------- jotkaPL · 2023-12-22 10:13 Synology will use less energy and it's better as NAS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Timmeh8907 · 2023-12-22 10:21 No ---------------------------------------------------------------------- billysmusic · 2023-12-22 10:32 It really depends on what you want out of it. Synology has a lot of software that is very capable. If you don’t need any of that then go PC. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- jotkaPL · 2023-12-22 10:39 yes. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- senectus · 2023-12-22 10:39 Synology is great for fire and forget/ low maintenance. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Timmeh8907 · 2023-12-22 10:40 It’s ok to be wrong. But you’re wrong. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Cylian91460 · 2023-12-22 10:41 You should explain why. Basically you can use an old laptop (and remove the battery) with a nvme to sata interface, you should get a better price/power usage. But it will probably be less powerful. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Timmeh8907 · 2023-12-22 10:44 It will use the SAME energy as an entry level old pc and it no way in an unmodifiable setup ‘better’ than something I can alter to perfectly fit my needs. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Timmeh8907 · 2023-12-22 10:45 It will use the SAME energy as an entry level old pc and it no way in an unmodifiable setup ‘better’ than something I can alter to perfectly fit my needs. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- TheQuantumPhysicist · 2023-12-22 10:46 I don't trust Synology NAS because last I checked (over 10 years ago), it wasn't open source, so no way to know if they can get into your network for any reason. I always preferred buying hardware with low power consumption and using it as a server. I install Debian on it, configure it properly, and use RAID, and here we go. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Scarfiotti · 2023-12-22 10:55 If he already had the hardware, then he won't save monies by buying an expensive Synology. I'd say Synology is also for ppl who can't troubleshoot if needed. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- jotkaPL · 2023-12-22 10:55 no. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- OdyebJeLansiran · 2023-12-22 11:12 I used to have DS414 and it was way slower than my 2009 Phenom II 925 X4 with Truenas / RAID5. Not to mention less configurable. Although, Synology is quite ok for amateurs and home use. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- OdyebJeLansiran · 2023-12-22 11:12 And for CATCHING fire, if you use it 24/7 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- doodeoo · 2023-12-22 11:15 Define "better as NAS" ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ghostly_magus · 2023-12-22 11:16 From my perspective, (owner of synology ds118) it's just easier to setup. That's it. But if you're up for "the challenge", then PC with similar price will have better specs in cost of your time. Yet you can run interesting stuff (have PC with 2 Xeon 2697 v2 and 128GB of RAM for that purpose) with VMs/docker etc. In the end it's up to a simple question: what do you value more? Your time (then synology is your choice) or customization/scalability (then building your own setup is better)? Anyway, that's mine opinion. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- senectus · 2023-12-22 11:17 Mine runs 24/7 and it barely gets over 32 deg C Not sure what your "educated" issue is with synology ---------------------------------------------------------------------- OdyebJeLansiran · 2023-12-22 11:25 Friend used his for video surveillance and it literally melted ten days later. If you use it for Plex or some other low intensity activity it's ok I guess. Had one at home, used it for file share and it worked ok, but it was painfuly slow. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- senectus · 2023-12-22 11:28 been using it for file server for 4 people, plex, minecraft server, terarria server and about 10 other dockers apps. It barely breaks a sweat. (920+ with 4 Ironwolf NAS drives) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- nurdism · 2023-12-22 11:38 Did you even look? Like from my 2 seconds of looking, a nas would consume around 25-50 wats, where a whole computer would likely be around 150-300 wats. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Timmeh8907 · 2023-12-22 11:41 Did the test when I started my homelab and tested my friends synology. His used 20 more watts than my starter pc and I will always have customization on my side. Down vote all you want I’ll always be right. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- buckyoh · 2023-12-22 11:51 I agree. I had a j series Synology and thought it was slow. Decided to upgrade to a + to run docker containers. It does plenty now at a good speed. I really think the J series should be sold under a different brand as they really drag down the impression of Synology for those that don't get it's the budget range. A bit like when my dad said that iPhone were better than Samsung because he was comparing a £400 iPhone to a £30 Samsung. (No iPhone hate here...This works the other way too.) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- No-Theme-4347 · 2023-12-22 11:59 If you build a purpose built machine you can get way lower power consumption and with the choice of software in the free catagory I would argue the DIY version is better if more difficult to build ---------------------------------------------------------------------- jaytrouts · 2023-12-22 12:16 I would say the other way around. If you need a lot of capable software and are prepared to tinker with it then you go the PC route. If you're fine with using it as just a storage with synologys apps then go prebuilt ---------------------------------------------------------------------- kiezmor · 2023-12-22 12:19 Currently using a syno and old workstation on ESXi. I think it depends on your usage. I use my syno to backup my phone, pc and my server. I use it as a shared folder for my Plex running on the server. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- TylerDurdenJunior · 2023-12-22 12:20 Power consumption and noise. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Andriel-1 · 2023-12-22 12:25 In my case its HyperBackup and Synology Photos. Thats basically whats keeping me from going to TrueNAS or similar. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- pounto · 2023-12-22 12:31 Indeed. These two apps have very good functionality and ease of use. For the rest I could use any other NAS/PC as a bit bucket. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- fifteengetsyoutwenty · 2023-12-22 12:44 I do enough troubleshooting in my day job. Don’t shame people that want something that “just works”. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Massive_Analyst1011 · 2023-12-22 12:55 Preference and needs - “Mic drop”. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- splice42 · 2023-12-22 13:00 > I'd say Synology is also for ppl who can't troubleshoot if needed. I ran OMV. I now run Synology. What you said is very reductive. I've worked decades in IT support at every level, I maintain network appliances for tens of thousands of users. I can troubleshoot when needed. I encountered a weird failure with OMV and despite all that I could not resolve a rebuild stuck at 0% for days even with attempts at forum help. Synology just works. I've never had any issue with any rebuilds with it. I'm never going back to OMV or other open source NAS solution. The money I spent for the hardware has paid itself many times over in saved time troubleshooting weird artisanal homebrew NAS software issues that aren't present in Synology's polished product. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Outrageous_Plant_526 · 2023-12-22 13:06 What OS do you run on every device and appliance in your home? I am talking every device from the router that brings your Internet to the phone in your hand. If you say anything other than Linux your statement above makes no sense. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- readit-on-reddit · 2023-12-22 13:10 Duplicacy and Immich are good alternatives. Arguably better. I prefer Duplicacy over HyperBackup because Duplicacy deduplicates across devices instead of per device. I like Immich more than Synology Photos because it just looks better and has more features. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Zeal514 · 2023-12-22 13:17 Software. Synologys software is pretty good for ppl who are moderate tinkerers, but just want a prebuilt package. But with software like that, it also means it's restrictive. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Djaesthetic · 2023-12-22 13:19 I’m sorry, but this is objectively dumb (*hence the downvotes*). A NAS is literally designed to run 24/7 for years on end. If your friend’s “*literally melted ten days later*” then it was almost certainly something they did out of the norm. Even if you had a complete failure of all active cooling your most likely scenario is the heat cooking the platters and HDDs just dying. (*Not fire.*) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- crusader-kenned · 2023-12-22 13:19 Honestly at this point I would say it’s only preferences. They have containers and VMs (and the thing is just a Linux machine you can ssh into) so you could probably do almost anything on a Synology that the old pc is capable of. (Plus since all the basics are so easy to do, the learning curve is probably gonna feel insane for someone having to leave the gui for first time to du some big boy tinkering) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- crusader-kenned · 2023-12-22 13:22 Yeah all the synologys I have owned have been super noisy compared to the PCs I have used as servers over the years. Larger fans and better fans will beat the little ones in those boxes everyday. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Male_Inkling · 2023-12-22 13:23 In my case, just power consumption. Older =! Less power hungry. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Cavallofurioso · 2023-12-22 13:27 maybe a NAS is more compact compared to a pc with 2 HDD ---------------------------------------------------------------------- linkismydad · 2023-12-22 13:28 Easier. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- workingreddit0r · 2023-12-22 13:47 Preach brother ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Andriel-1 · 2023-12-22 13:47 I am not yet ready for trusting Immich with my photos, especially as they advise otherwise themselves. When the time arrives recreating albums may be a pain as well (?) Duplicacy looks interesting, also has Backblaze connection ready, thank you! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- CactusBoyScout · 2023-12-22 13:53 Yes you’re paying for reliable, stable software ---------------------------------------------------------------------- iC0nk3r · 2023-12-22 14:00 I'm a Synology Partner through work and I've NEVER heard of any of the chassis melting. Sounds fabricated or exaggerated. I manage over 20 chassis from RS, DS+, and J. The slowdowns are typically attributed to misconfiguration, bad networking equipment, or overwhelming the file system (solved with an SSD Cache). ---------------------------------------------------------------------- OdyebJeLansiran · 2023-12-22 14:01 What if HDD caught fire and transferred it to diskstation? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- slackjack2014 · 2023-12-22 14:01 My guess would be the person put the NAS where it had zero airflow and cooked itself. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- BraceIceman · 2023-12-22 14:01 I’ve owned a Qnap NAS, but could not get comfortable with the proprietary software, weird file structure and constant reboots that took ages. Migrated to a Dell T320 that ran Raid 5 and Debian. Used that for 3 years until I imagined that it was a bit power hungry got my use case. Ended up with a Dell T20 with Exos disks that does the same and keeps me happy. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- thermal_shock · 2023-12-22 14:03 yup. for older people, grandparents, etc, that don't want to micromanage their server, just set it and forget it. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- horus-heresy · 2023-12-22 14:08 No one told him to not mount it inside of microwave ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ExcitingTabletop · 2023-12-22 14:10 Every Synology NAS I've owned or operated has run for years 24/7. I replaced mine from 2015 recently. It was online virtually every second for near eight years. That's how they're intended to run. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ExcitingTabletop · 2023-12-22 14:11 Did you put it in quiet mode? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ExcitingTabletop · 2023-12-22 14:13 I'd say Synology is also for people who are professionals and get the right hardware for the job. I spec'd a 60TB NAS to offload junk off our prod servers. Think ISO's, decom servers that we want to retain for X years, etc. Anything where performance doesn't matter, we just don't want to get rid of it. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- iC0nk3r · 2023-12-22 14:14 What if the house burned down around the Synology? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- bitse · 2023-12-22 14:19 As someone who knew next to nothing about NASes before getting one, being able to get off the ground with Synology was invaluable. There were so many things I didn't know that I didn't know. Synology comes out of the box with settings and packages that let me poke around and even know what questions to ask. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Brakels · 2023-12-22 14:19 This. The software is amazing and largely just works. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Djaesthetic · 2023-12-22 14:20 Well… yeah. That’s how fire works. But why in the hell are your hard disks arbitrarily catching fire? lol I’ve been managing storage arrays for ~20 years, have two Synology NAS’ at my house, one at my father’s, and four at work. I’ve currently got SAN arrays w/ hundreds of disks. I’ve managed literally **thousands** of HDD. Ya know how many caught fire? None. Is it *possible*? Sure. It’s also possible for a car to catch fire. A microwave. A television. You’re talking about a NAS as if they just randomly explode as common practice (*which is absurd*). ---------------------------------------------------------------------- headinthesky · 2023-12-22 14:22 And their support has been good for me, esp when I've some weird instances where I couldn't update. Works great for my Plex server too with hardware transcoding. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- madmari · 2023-12-22 14:28 Seven years ago I tired it and spent more time tinkering and fixing than it was worth it. Bought a 416plus, and it has been working flawlesly since. I have just been adding and replacing smaller drives with larger ones. I now sepnd my tinkering time on other selfhosted services. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- TheQuantumPhysicist · 2023-12-22 14:31 This is the dumbest argument I heard in a very long time. Basically you're saying that preferring open source is bad because not everything I use is open source. Even dumber than this, you think open source doesn't have value because every user doesn't audit it themselves, as if, auditors from the community have no value and can't share their findings if something fishy was found. How dumb are you?! And ignoring all that stupidity, how do you know I'm not using VLAN to shield the network devices I don't trust? Oh, wait, you probably don't know what VLAN means, because you're stupid, ignorant and probably a teenager who understands nothing in networking, so that you think that having a router means I have one wifi with everything connected to it, and hence all devices are equal. So, please, stfu, and go back to your mediocre closed-source NAS. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Djaesthetic · 2023-12-22 14:32 “*I used to have a Mitsubishi Mirage and it was way slower than my Aston Martin Valkyrie. Not to mention less configurable. Although, Mitsubishi is quite ok for amateurs and home use.*” ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Znoot · 2023-12-22 14:39 Gotta say, I love self-hosting and fiddling with non-essential stuff, but with other things, I just like them to run and not bother me with anything. That's where my 40 TB DS918+ comes into play. It's been running reliably ever since 2017. That's six years, no fiddling, no maintenance. The price is a joke when you consider TCO and protection from strokes, heart attacks and nervous breakdowns over the years. It's running all the basics I like to rely on, calendars, contacts, Plex, general storage, you name it. Twice a Seagate IronWolf drive would fail on me. I received an e-mail from my NAS, slapped in a new drive, and initiated a rebuild without any interruption. End of. So painless. Fire and forget. Granted, Synology has recently increased its anti-consumer efforts with the dumbing down of DSM, dumping CPUs with integrated gfx and mediocre, yet over-priced proprietary drives, but at the end of the day, the package is still very solid. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Zeal514 · 2023-12-22 14:39 I truly believe that the way forward 8snt cloud computing, but rather nas/server boxes in the line of synology. Instead of Google or apple owning your virtual self, you own it, you just plug your hub in, and the hub has to have a clear easy way to build a public domain and firewall. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- melasses · 2023-12-22 14:49 For senior IT specialists who got tiered messing with self built stuff ---------------------------------------------------------------------- bmbm-40 · 2023-12-22 14:50 Can you just install Synology on a pc? [https://xpenology.org/installation/#google\_vignette](https://xpenolo gy.org/installation/#google_vignette) PS I know pretty much nothing about servers, just started investigating for server for myself. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Outrageous_Plant_526 · 2023-12-22 14:51 Oh how stupid you sound. You make a comment that Synology is bad because it isn't open source and you can't trust the company's privacy, yet if you use any Windows product, Apple product, any IoT device, or any product for that matter that is closed source you are still using a product where you can't trust the privacy. Virtual Local Area Networks or VLAN as you used the acronym requires a device that is normally commercial grade and normally managed. This capability normally isn't available in consumer grade or normal home user products. So once again you are going to be using a closed source product that you can't trust their privacy. What about your WiFi .... do you use a commercial product or did you flash your APs with an open source OS? Also, VLANning only isolates your network traffic into virtual segments and will do nothing to protect your privacy. If someone compromises a device on your network VLANs make it harder for them to go lateral across your network. I have been doing Cybersecurity for nearly 20 years so maybe, just maybe, you need to stfu. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Croatwink · 2023-12-22 14:53 I actually built a new PC with a cheap MB, a 5.25" slot where I could fit 6 2.5" drives in a carrier. That PC ended up in my storage unit and being replaced by a DS411slim (now replaced by a ds620slim). It's just not worth the effort considering the size and performance. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- phoneguyfl · 2023-12-22 14:53 This. Maybe I'm just a cranky greybeard but after decades in IT I want something at home that \*just works\*. I've got plenty of challenges at work, I don't need that shit at home as well. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- melasses · 2023-12-22 14:54 Ask any senior IT expert why they hate home bult stuff and also most smart home tech ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Massive_Analyst1011 · 2023-12-22 14:54 I agree just didnt want to stur up a fight with redditors. 😂 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- TheQuantumPhysicist · 2023-12-22 15:00 You've been doing cyber security "for 20 years", yeah, I don't believe you, but anyway, you still don't understand the value of open source software that you control. Just fuck off! All this is just an attempt to justify to yourself why you doing something stupid is OK. You don't need to cry on reddit to feel better. No one gives a fuck. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- signifywinter · 2023-12-22 15:09 It all depends on what you are trying to achieve. While I have “production” running on both DIY and Synology hardware/software, I certainly have a different level of expectation with Synology applications vs. those that I self-host. This especially true when it comes to client-focused applications vs. more infrastructure/platform type software. One consideration is I don’t really know how much I’d expect the Synology to scale vs. more flexible open source solutions. Every tool has its purpose, but I definitely view Synology as more of a specific scope/defined purpose NAS versus a flexible, scalable SAN. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- thermal_shock · 2023-12-22 15:11 that too ---------------------------------------------------------------------- sushikingdom · 2023-12-22 15:35 I think your analogy doesn't work because the Mirage and Aston Martin are very different in price. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Djaesthetic · 2023-12-22 15:38 It absolutely works when you look up the price of the full PC all-in (*software and time configuring included*) vs. the comparable on the NAS. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- revivemeifdeadkthnx · 2023-12-22 15:39 Because it requires actual work, and we hate actual work…that’s why we delegate it to other people. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- kotarix · 2023-12-22 15:44 Synology is overpriced for how under powered they are ---------------------------------------------------------------------- sushikingdom · 2023-12-22 15:44 I have no skin in this, as I have a Synology and a DIY NAS. FYI, a N95/N100 CPU Mini PC costs about $110-$130 and has faster RAM. A DAS costs about $50+ depending on how many hard drives you want to keep connected. Software is free if you go the Debian + CasaOS route. You can also go the route of OpenMediaVault or pay a small fee for Unraid. All in all, you can build out a more powerful setup for the same price as a Synology. It would also have similar self hosted programs that you can run through Docker (very easy). Synology is good if you don’t want to tinker and just want an out of the box solution. I believe that’s the general consensus on here. We can go back and forth about the software and stuff but the price isn’t very different. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Djaesthetic · 2023-12-22 15:48 That CPU he just cited ran north of $300 in 2009. I stopped the math right there. Heh ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ibluminatus · 2023-12-22 15:55 Had my Synology for a decade now it's still ticking and still doing it's job. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ichbinrodolf · 2023-12-22 15:57 With Docker and VM support, I don't find Synology restrictive at all ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Point-Connect · 2023-12-22 16:02 It's definitely a personal and subjective preference with no wrong choice, but I also think a lot of people simply have no idea how much more power you get for less than a quarter of the price with a diy solution or an old office computer and how accessible the OS's are now. The power consumption really isn't much more at all either and probably negligible if you're in a country with relatively low power prices. Seriously though, id implore anyone who has some tech knowledge to check out doing it yourself vs a prebuilt solution. With docker and vm's, almost anything is possible and will have a community of eager enthusiasts to help if you ever need it. Discounting synology's software, the price to performance of the hardware is very very very bad. (I know, a large part of the price IS the software) Again, for some users, the software and plug-n-play nature more than makes up for that disparity and there's absolutely no shame in making that choice, seriously I don't mean to disparage anyone or imply it is a bad or wrong choice! But as someone who almost pulled the trigger on a $250 2 bay synology that had less power than a mid-tier laptop from 2005 and no upgradeability and instead went for a used HP desktop for 100 bucks, upgraded ram and CPU for $50, a 2.5 gbe nic for $15 more bucks and now have a system that's quite literally more than ten times more powerful and can take 5 hard drives, I would've beat myself up for not doing it myself. There's a learning curve, but for me, the cost in performance and long term usability more than made up for the few hours to learn and understand OMV and docker. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Major_Dick · 2023-12-22 16:07 How’s it compare to Unraid? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Zeal514 · 2023-12-22 16:08 The issue is synology uses ports 443 and ports 80, so when you start getting more advanced with multiple sites. Anytime you narrow down your focus, or streamline things, you simultaneously restrict possibilities, there is no difference between the 2. You as the end user may not notice it, and that's good, but that's a pretty universal law. Like when you invest your attention on 1 thing, like a chair, you aren't investing your attention on literally everything else. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Zeal514 · 2023-12-22 16:13 Hmm I e never used unraid. From my understanding, unraid is great for gui use, but doesn't allow ssh use, so I just wouldn't use unraid. Synology allows ssh use. The 1 thing I dislike about synology is the expense of the unit, and the fact it uses ports 80 and 443, so hosting multiple sites and subdomain with a reverse proxy starts getting weird. There's a whole scene for documentation and how tos with synology, but it's limited and not always up to date. Personally, I just use Ubuntu server, but plan to switch to proxmox for my primary VMs and containers. Than just convert my current Ubuntu server into truenas, just for storage. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ichbinrodolf · 2023-12-22 16:15 You can easily change ports and add a proxy to route queries to the appropriate service. Trust me, with more than 25 containers on my DS220+ I am not limited at all and can remotely access many services. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Avanchnzel · 2023-12-22 16:19 For me it was mostly: Smaller form factor and less tinkering / maintenance. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Zeal514 · 2023-12-22 16:20 I had a whole problem when I was trying to publically host a few different services, I don't recall the details anymore, but I had to get pretty deep into the documentation to find out the way synology streamlines your ability to have remote access was through taking over ports 443 and 80, which becomes problematic if you run a reverse proxy, you have to use synologys reverse proxy cause it doesn't want to be off of it.... Which I think that's what it was, you have to use synologys reverse proxy. It was frustrating. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- spacewarrior11 · 2023-12-22 16:28 *tired ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ichbinrodolf · 2023-12-22 16:49 You can now easily control the ports exposed by your synology, and configure a reverse proxy with few clicks if needed ---------------------------------------------------------------------- kmisterk · 2023-12-22 16:52 ## Post Removed Hey, pewpewpostit! Thanks for your submission on selfhosted. Your post has been removed due to a violation of the purpose of the subreddit: **Self Hosting** ## Not Self-Hosted When it comes to posts regarding applications in this subreddit, they must feature a self-hosted tool, or a tool that *can be* self-hosted, or some kind of related information, help request, or otherwise related to a tool that is something that one can self-host. If you believe this post *is in fact* relevant to /r/selfhosted, feel free to [message the mods](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to= /r/selfhosted&subject=Removed For Not Being Self- Hosted&message=[Removed Post](https://www.reddit.com/r/selfhosted/comments/18obk14/-/\)) with your concerns.