As I am recording this video it is so called world backup day which is a not so gentle
reminder from resellers that you should be buying hardware or services to backup your computers.
Well, it just so happens that I have received my Synology
RS1221+ just now so lets get it unboxed and get my drives moved over.
Hey, Im Jerry and a few weeks ago I made a video about backing up your Macs using synology. I
went over the different options on how to do that with Synology including Time Machine and
Synology’s own solutions like Synology Drive. For that video I was using a Synology DS420+
that Synology let me borrow for some testing and I had planned to make a number of videos using that.
I ended up liking the synology so much that It became my active storage solution so I couldn’t
really do any testing with it. Now that my RS1221+ is in I can move everything over and make a few
more videos for you so be sure to let me know if there is something you are interested in seeing.
Now, if you are new to Synology or a NAS, NAS stands for Network Attached Storage. You can
think of it as an external hard drive that connects to your network so that
you can access it with multiple computers or devices. These things are fancy boxes of
different shapes and sizes that allow you to backup, store and share file, photos or
anything else. They can also run all kinds of things, depending on the device, like virtual
servers, or media servers like Plex without needing to keep a computer on all the time.
You can get a NAS with a single hard drive all the way up to 12 or more drives but let me just say
you should not get a single drive NAS. You always want to have some kind of redundancy
in case one drive fails. The NASs also come in different form factors like the DS420+ which
is made for a desktop or shelf placement, or there are rack mount versions like this rs1221+
that I will be installing in a little rack I have in my closet.
There are a couple of other reasons I went with the rs1221+ for my use, besides being
able to fit in a small half depth switch rack, including the ability to add up to 8 drives
with the possibility of expanding another 4, The ability to add up to 32GB of memory if I decide
to run some virtual machines or other services, A PCI expansion port for future 10GB ethernet
if I choose, and also a fast and powerful, yet efficient AMD Ryzen quad-core processor.
My main use for this NAS is to be used as my backup storage and to backup all my data off
site using the built in HyperBackup and BackBlaze B2 for cloud backup storage.
I will be syncing my existing OneDrive data to the Synology,
along with all of my personal photos and video library, and of course my youtube
video backups. I like to edit videos locally and backup to the synology when completed. I
will also be using this for TimeMachine backups on my family’s computers and as a simple Plex server.
In case you are wondering, I do not plan on doing much plex transcoding
which should be fine for this AMD CPU NAS which does not contain any hardware decoding
capabilities. Its really just for our families legacy video library and mainly just gets used
around the holidays for old Christmas movies. If a big Plex library is your thing and you plan
on building out something that is streamed from frequently there will be better options out there
that include hardware transcoding Including the DS420+ and 920+.
In case you are wondering, there is no SSD cache option on this unit which is not an issue for me.
Speed is not my goal, with my focus being more on expansion,
backups, being out of the way. If you think you need SSD caches, again you can look at the
previous ones I mentioned or even the desktop version of this which is the ds1621+ or 1821+
Opening up the box to the rs1221+ you will find the NAS its self
…….and an accessory box containing power cords for both standard and a C13 to C14
cord………….mounting screws for 3.5 and 2.5” drives………………and a quick install guide.
The 1221+ its self is pretty plain and just like most enterprise type servers
or gear if you have seen them. On the front you have the power button, alarm mute button
and drive status lights and of course the 8 drive bays…….
On the back you have the PCI expansion slot, 2 USB-a ports for a UPS or external drive,
4x 1gbps ethernet ports, a serial management port and esata for connecting to the expansion unit.
OK, so after reading through Synology’s documentation the migration from this DS420+
to the rs1221+ should be pretty straight forward. I should just need to move each drive over
keeping them in the same slot……like slot 1 to slot 1, slot 2 to slot 2, etc.
This feels a little nerve racking but I did make sure to complete a full backup using HyperBackup
so I do have a copy of all my data in case something goes wrong. Unfortunately with the 1221+
I need to actually install the drives to the caddys with screws compared to the simple
tooless design for the desktop versions. If you are curious, I am using 6TB Seagate Ironwolf NAS
drives. These drives are built to withstand extra vibrations that can occur in a multi disk device
like this. They of course have different drives sizes ranging from something like 1TB or less
all the way up to like 14 or 16TB? So let me go ahead and transfer all 4 drives over.
……………..
This is great. I have my drives moved over, everything looks healthy and I should be able
to continue my backups where I left off and be good to go. ……My next steps are going to be to
add an additional drive for a total of 5 but in stead of expanding the storage I will be adding
redundancy and converting this to a SHR-2 raid which mean I can withstand 2 drive failures before
losing any data. I think that about 15.7 TB of capacity should last me a few years with my video
backups so I just want the added redundancy which does give me time to replace a drive if one fails.
After all of that I do have this third party memory that I got on Amazon, which
I will leave a link to in the description below. Synology only supports their own
first party memory but this is much cheaper and supposedly does not give
any error messages about not being compatible, so fingers crossed it
all works. And if I do see any issues I can always reinsert the original factory memory.
Just so you can see it, here is my new rs1221+
racked and cabled in my closet, no the shoes are not mine. I think it
fits really nice and tucked way out of the way which is where I want an appliance like this.
I am hoping that this guy lasts a good 5 years or so before its time to replace it.
Would I recommend this version, this rack mounted Nas?
For most people absolutely not because it is rack mounted and, also, therefore loud.
This belongs in a equipment rack or server room where noise is not an issue. For almost anyone
the DS models or desktop NASs are a better option and function the same and run the same software.
Please let me know what Synology questions you have or what you would like to see in a future
video and I will see if I can get some made. If you want to see the 3 great options for backing
up your mac or multiple macs to Synology, check out this video right over here. Hit the thumbs
up button if you liked it, hit subscribe if you want, and Ill see you next time.