Local and Secure Remote Network Access**: Capability for local network access and secure remote access via brand-supported services, at no extra cost. The DS220+ is well designed too. You've got a front panel that covers the drive bays, resulting in a cleaner look. The sides and top are clear also. On the rear, you'll find the two USD 3.0 ports, as well as two 1Gb LAN ports. It would have been nice to see 2.5Gb ports here, but being able to link the two 1Gb ports up does help.

Despite the Synology hardware portfolio in the last year or so slowing moving towards more ‘file server’ and ‘high transfer speed’ processors, the Synology DS423+ NAS is the first release diskstation release from the brand in almost 2 years to arrive with an Intel Integrated graphics processor! Now, WHY is that a big deal for Plex, Emby and Jellyfin media servers? Don’t all the Synology NAS systems play 1080p and 4K media? Well, yes they do! But there is a certain contingent % of users who need their multimedia servers to convert (AKA transcode / encode/decode) their multimedia collection on the fly. In brief, must users have multimedia NAS needs that fall into the following categories:Some apps (such as the Surveillance Center apps) are long overdue an update in visuals and services

They have tonnes fo media that they ONLY want to access remotely, but have strong internet connections, the client Hardware has the file format/licence support and/or client-side transcoding support (NVidia Shield, Xbox with the HEVC licence enabled) Synology Video Station – Manage all your movies, TV shows, and home videos. Stream them to multiple devices or share them with friends and family. My thoughts: This is a no-brainer. The DS220+ is not only my favorite Synology NAS, but also my all-time favorite enclosure period. It has everything you need for a solid mid-tier, great-value server. This enclosure also supports up to 8GB of RAM, compared to the 6GB in the DS420+. Then you have full enclosure support (via the eSATA port), allowing you to throw in the Synology DX517 into the mix and add a further nine drives. Other than these improvements, the two NAS are pretty much identical in size and design. Most NAS enclosures come with no hard drives pre-installed. This is where the cost of the NAS as a whole can almost double. While you could throw in some old desktop drives you no longer use, this isn't recommended. NAS hard drives are specifically designed for continuous operation and come with some advanced features not found in desktop-class drives.

But not everyone can splash out such funds on a NAS, which is where the Synology DS220j comes into play. This handy enclosure doesn't cost much, which is great if you're new to NAS, but it'll gladly store terabytes worth of data for you. Choosing some hard drives for your NAS Three of the drives are wiped clean and ready for install. Two of them have data from my previous desktop that I used as individual JBOD type setup.

Also, very disappointed they didn’t enter with an 8MP/4K resolution camera. Specifically, with Unifi, that is where the ecosystem breaks down as their 4K/AI cameras are quite expensive.

Performance backed by Synology drives

For some other prospective user of similar set-up I rather recommend going for one port 10 Gb/s card (2 ports is fitted with fun which is very noisy) and some other fan-less Thunderbolt adapter (QNAP’s 10 Gb has a fan – this one a surprise for me – which is unpleasantly high-pitched. I would like to set this up as a place where I can access the entire collection in all one place, similar to a media server like spotify or youtube, but just with my own content. I will also be purchasing a Plex pass. The slightly better integrated GPU might be helpful for Plex users I personally always try to buy media players that won’t require transcoding but I also know that not everyone has that option and Plex can sometimes decide to transcode when not needed and can have a major impact, even when just transcoding the audio and not the video. Warranty of 2-3 Years, Extendable to 5 Years**: A standard warranty period with an option for extension.

Synology Virtual Machine Manager (VMM) – An intuitive hypervisor that supports Windows, Linux, and Virtual DSM virtual machines. Its powerful disaster recovery tools help users achieve maximum service uptime.Synology Surveillance Station – Safeguard your business, home, and other valuable assets with reliable video surveillance tools. With improved AI services being accessible thanks to Synology BC500 and TC500 Cameras arriving in 2023. Additionally, you can connect this platform with Synology’s cloud platform to use ‘C2 Surveillance’ and bolster the odds of recordings being maintained in the event of accidental/malicious damage to your surveillance system. Surveillance Station includes 2 free licenses. Connecting more cameras and devices requires additional licenses. Learn more This means that you can only officially upgrade the DS423+ via the single SODIMM slot towards 6GB with a single extra 4GB SODIMM module in the available bay. Aside from 6GB being an odd amount, people are most certainly going to make comparisons with the DS920+ having 4GB on Day 1 and 8GB max. Synology does not allow upgrading that memory beyond 6GB in this configuration (so, you cannot work around the 6GB limit by installing a 8GB in the SODIMM slot and hitting 10GB with 8GB+2GB), stating that using the system in an unsupported fashion can lead to weakened/invalidated support by the brand when you need it (as you are using the device in a configuration they did not verify and/or cannot replicate). This also includes using 3rd party memory, instead of their own branded modules I can partially see their point – they want to run a smooth, reliable and stable platform. Just a shame that Synology Memory modules are a noticeable degree more expensive than alternatives from Crucial and Kingston. Next, we need to discuss the CPU inside the DS423+ NAS – something of a hot point for some. My thoughts: We’re pushing things up a notch with the Synology DiskStation DS920+. This enclosure has a great processor, four drive bays, and some other notable features that make it ideal for Plex. Synology has been providing its own branded range of hard drives and SSDs for a little over 2 and a half years now and it is surprising how ‘normal’ it seems now. Originally when the SAT5200, SNV3400/SNV3500 and HAT5300 ranges were launched, many (myself included) wondered what the uptake would be when Seagate and WD hold such dominance in this area. Fast forward to MID 2022 and enterprise/high-scale-business NAS user base has started to take them on board (a little because of changes in device compatibility, but also that the HDDs themselves, firmware upgraded Toshiba MG Enterprise drives), with the only major criticisms being that the pricing seems a tad high and the available capacities somewhat limited. Now, that first criticism is tough to counter, given the current hardware shortages globally AND the fact that these enterprise (not Pro) series drives are not in-hosue built, so the Toshiba middle ground is something of a hurdle in the profit margin no doubt). However, Synology HAVE been working on the range of capacities and alongside the original HAT5300-8T, HAT5300-12T and HAT5300-16T capacities, they introduced a modest 4TB in the spring of 2022 and now, an 18TB HAT5300-18T (using the Toshiba MG09 Drive). Now, it is also worth highlighting that Toshiba has been working on making a 20TB (MG10) drive commercially available, so expect this to get Synology HAT5300-20T adaption in the near future too, but below is how the 18TB compares with the rest of the range Hardware Specifications