Synology DS212J DiskStation 4TB (2 x 2TB) 2 Bay Desktop NAS Solution

Great product, easy to set up and use
There are a few NAS systems on the market, and I eventually went with the Synology due to the number of positive reviews. I wasn't disappointed. This is one of the best experiences I have had setting up new technology. First impressions of the DS213J is that it's smaller than you might expect from the photos. Installing the hard disks is a doddle - just slide off the plastic cover on the side of the NAS, slot the disks into the bays (easy with SATA connections as there are no separate power/data cables to worry about) and secure the hard disks in place with the provided screws (the rubber bushes in the drive bays make this much easier - nice attention to detail). Setting up the system is just a matter of pointing your web browser to the Diskstation. It automatically formats and sets up the disks in a RAID1 (mirrored) configuration, and you're good to go. If you want to use the NAS as a media server, this is a separate download, but takes seconds to do using the package manager. The...

Synology DS212J DiskStation 4TB (2 x 2TB) 2 Bay Desktop NAS Solution

Synology NAS
Unit was simple to set up as simple Nas storage for home use with RAID. The unit is well built although other reviews you may rerad will suggest it is flimsy before the drives are installed.

The unit was easy to set up with the Synology management software meaning that little IT expertise was required as the interface was fairly straightforward. This was worth a slight premium on price for the Synology product range.

Creating directories with appropriate access rights requires a little thought with multiple users accessing the drive to avoid having to change the file structure.

It is used to store music files for a Sonos system and works well in this application. I have not investigated the many other options and features available with the Synology system so cannot comment but based on the experience of the features I have used I have no reason to believe they would not work.

This review was written about one month after set up and so far...

Synology DS212J DiskStation 4TB (2 x 2TB) 2 Bay Desktop NAS Solution

You gets what you pay for.
I've had external hard drives before (2 Iomega Network Drives - Cloud Edition and a WD My Book) both used for storing and accessing photo, video and music on various TV's and pc,s around the house via my home network.
My other drives were single drives. Both Iomegas failed - one disastrously losing all data, the other I caught before total failure.
This made me re-think my storage options.
So after a lot of research I hit on Synology.
It comes without drives. So for a case alone it does sound very expensive. But really what you are paying for is the control and software side of the product. This is where it excels.

The case looks good, is quiet and is simple to open and install your hard drives (sold separately)

If you haven't had a NAS drive before it can be a bit daunting. But for a twin drive system - where the second drive is an exact copy of the first (for back-up) then its just a simple case of following the install instructions and...

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