1-Bay DiskStation DS124 (Diskless)

I have been a fan of Drobos for decades, but recently when one of my Drobos failed I found out that Drobo is no more. The went out of business in 2020. So, the hunt was on for a replacement. The key feature (for me) of the Drobos was that they could hold drives of different sizes and would automatically adjust storage if a drive failed so that you only had to replace that one drive. To my knowledge none of the other DAS or NAS manufacturers supported this functionality. In my hunt, I looked at several NAS and when I got to Synology, I stopped in my tracks. Turns out Synology has an operating system for their NASs called SHR which stands for Synology Hybrid Raid. It doesn’t work like Drobo, but it is similar enough that you can put different drives in your drive station and the OS will handle it. The only down side from what I can determine is that when different size drives are used, then some space will be wasted because essentially the Synology SHR breaks each drive into very large chunks and pairs them up for data protection. If one of the drive chunks can’t be paired with a chunk on another drive then it will not be used. For example if you put a 4TB drive in your NAS paired with a 7TB drive, then SHR will only be able to match chunks for 4TB of total space and 3TB will be wasted. Not great, but usable until you can afford to buy another 7TB drive to match up with the 7TB you already have. Functionality: I wish I had known about the Synology SHR years ago, cause now that I bought their NAS and am learning about it, I am finding that there is an enormous amount of functionality that it brings to the table. I have struggled for years with sharing data between my Windows computer and my Macintosh because of the incompatible by design philosophy or either Microsoft, Apple, or both. The Synology NAS makes sharing data a breeze. Now, I need to mention that I am a software engineer (retired), so I am used to handling a certain level of complexity. So, I need to make it clear that Drobo was much simpler than the Synology NAS to setup. The Drobo was essentially a really big USB hard drive. You just format it and use it like any other drive. No muss no fuss. The Synology on the other hand is essentially a completely separate and very powerful computer that happens to have a whole bunch of storage in it. Synology try’s to make things simpler by allowing you to control everything through your web browser. Once you are connected to the NAS with you browser, you get what is actually a desktop on your NAS. I have included a screen shot of the desktop displayed in a browser window so you can see what I mean. The desktop includes various tools to adjust the configuration of you NAS as well as providing a way to download and install both updates, as well as additional applications (packages) for other things you might like your NAS to do. With Package Center you can install apps to turn your NAS into a download server, a DHCP server, And audio and or video media server, a mail server, you can load an office suite as well as a simple text editor, you can install a VPN server and eve a chat server. There are also Open Source applications that can be installed and also a category called Contributor that has some third party applications like TeamViewer and KodiExplorer. Overview: The DS423 I purchased has two Gig-T Ethernet ports on the back, along with two USB3 ports that can be used to backup the NAS to external USB drives. It has slots for four drives. As a replacement for my failed Drobo, the Synology NAS does a great job, at the expense of having to learn how to set it up. That is the only real down side. If you are a novice computer user, then you will need someone to set it up for you, or you will need to just go with a USB external hard disk and forget about using a NAS. The operating system in the NAS is Linux, but Synology has hidden it very well, so you don’t need to be a Linux expert, or even a Linux user to master the Synology, but you will need to brush up on some of the network terminology that is essential to configuring a NAS. Do I recommend the Synology NAS, definitely. I had mine up and running in a minimal configuration in a few hours, but exploring all the options takes time so expect to spend some additional hours learning some new stuff. By the way, Synology makes a 2 drive bay NAS DS223 that has all the capability of my DS423, but only costs $250. Add a couple of big drives and you have a pretty good backup system for little money.

If you want something really simple, get an external drive and attach it to your router, if router allows. This is a very capable device with lots of function and a learning curve. Not too hard to set up the basic functions. Still working on it.

Outstanding and simple set up! Works great for streaming media!

Let me start off by saying I am a networking expert. I have included an image of my home layout to show what I’m talking about. A little back story. The other day I was messing around with my Western Digital MyCloudEx2Ultra (now know as NAS1), I was trying to change from Raid to JBOD. I did this with breaking the cardinal rule of not having a bakup. All of a sudden it looked like it was going to clear all data from the NAS1, I panicked and immediately pulled the plug! Many of you would know my instant panic! I was hyperventilating, my heart was racing, and all I was thinking was that I lost 4TB of data! So after plugging in the NAS1, I found that all was well. That got me thinking I need to cover my butt. I bought a 4TB 3.5” drive and tried to use it in a USB solution. No joy. Then I went online to Amazon and was shopping for a new NAS for bakup. I settled on the Synology 1 bay diskless version as I had a drive already. The drive arrived in just 2 days. After some consternation, I was able to open the cover of NAS2, and inserting the drive and securing it with the supplied screws. My biggest complaint with this enclosure is that I was unable to secure the cover completely. It just would not fit back together as it uses plastic pins to fit back in the holes and it just would not go back in. So fine. After hooking up the Ethernet cable and power, I turned it on. Compared to the NAS1 web interface, NAS2 interface was amazing. Very fresh look, and after a bit to figure out making a couple of shared folders, was up and running in about 30 minutes. The drive wanted to update firmware which took about 15 minutes. After about 2 days I have a complete backup of my data. I have also disconnected the NAS1, put it away for safe keeping in a fire safe box. I now use the Synology (NAS2) as my primary network disk device. The reason I went with the NAS2, is it has a power button! And also, I can shut it down for the night with the web interface. I could not do that with the WD NAS. I am completely satisfied with my purchase, and highly recommend this device for home storage. Next maybe explore an option for a media device for all the movies and TV shows I have. One thing that is amazing, ALL my Android devices not talk to the NAS2, I could not do that with the NAS1. This makes it possible to access my files and videos wherever I am in the world. Quite cool eh? I give it 4.5 stars because of the cover reinstall problem, Synology, please redesign the cover.

I bought this to store memories of my family. Admittedly, I don't know all the features and functions, it was still easy to get it set up and running what I need it for which is to store TBs of photos and videos that I take on my phone. This allows me to offload the content on my phone so I can take more. I feel like it is very capable, and after reading up on this model I was a little disappointed that it can only do face recognition because you have to buy a much more expensive model to get object recognition, however during a software update, they have now enabled object recognition as well! That makes this a great value al even though its not Google Photos level of recognition, it still works. I feel good knowing my family content is safely stored and I don't have recurring costs that a cloud solution would have. Syncing using the phone app works well, and so I don't have to plug in my phone to offload images.

Arrived early. Easy to set up, slotted 2x6TB... Hassle free setup.... Highly recommended for reliable NAS....

Ho acquistato questo Synology NAS DS223 a 2 alloggiamenti (senza disco) e ne sono davvero soddisfatto. È un dispositivo ben costruito, silenzioso e molto intuitivo, ideale per chi vuole centralizzare file, backup e multimedialità senza complicazioni. 🔹 Perché merita 5 stelle: Facilità d’uso: la configurazione iniziale è semplice e guidata, anche per chi non è esperto. Software Synology DSM: l’interfaccia è potente, ben organizzata e offre tantissime funzioni (backup automatici, condivisione file, accesso remoto, app multimediali, ecc.). Flessibilità: i due alloggiamenti permettono di scegliere tra varie configurazioni RAID o uso indipendente dei dischi. Affidabilità: il sistema è stabile, e il NAS gestisce bene carichi di lavoro anche con più utenti collegati. Silenziosità: funziona in modo silenzioso, cosa che si apprezza soprattutto in ambienti domestici. In sintesi: un NAS versatile, potente e facile da gestire, perfetto per backup, storage in rete o streaming multimediale. 5 stelle meritate! 💾📂✨

Ottimo prodotto, venivo da un DS418play che si era danneggiato, ho fatto la migrazione degli HDD (Semplicissimo) e tutto è perfettamente funzionante con le mie impostazioni. Ho notato con piacere che Il 423 è molto più silenzioso del 418. Servizio Amazon impeccabile, arrivato prima del previsto e con doppio imballo.

Pour la sélection des hdd, voir avant sur le site le tableau de compatibilité des marques

半年ほど利用。監視カメラの録画機＆ファイルサーバーとして24h稼働中。v6プラス回線でも外部からもアクセスできて非常に満足。単体としての稼働音も気にならないレベル。仕事部屋においてあるが付属のアダプタのコイルなきが酷いのが気になってリビングに置く気にならない。バックアップなどを考えると2ベイ以上にすればよかったなと思った。