Conclusion
It was a real joy to take a more in-depth look at Synology’s DiskStation Manager (DSM) than I usually can do in my reviews and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed playing with the newest version, DSM 6.0, and show you some of the amazing features as well as the ease with which you can set it up and configure it to your liking.
Two of my absolute favorite features are the Video Station and the Photo Station, but that’s probably due to movies, shows, and photography being passions of mine. These are also some of the cornerstones of Synology’s DSM system. The two along with Music Station are probably some of the most used apps from NAS users, or will be as soon as the upgrade to DSM 6.0. With the number of features and flexibility is amazing considering everything running through a browser. At the same time, it doesn’t take many resources to use them thanks to the transcoding and index abilities in the apps and system. The Music Station also falls into this category with its ability to both play and stream local files and internet radio. Everything can be customized according to users and you have a great control of who gets access to what.
Besides the ability to store and stream files, more and more users move towards NAS systems in order to create their own personal cloud setup away from the commercial and public solutions that get attacked on a regular base. When you store your files locally you also got far better control of who actually gets to see your files and who doesn’t which is another bonus. Synology’s Cloud Station in combination with both mobile and desktop apps provides you with a complete setup that can handle it all. At the same time, it’s also able to utilize other cloud solutions as a further backup point.
With a tool like the File Station, it’s easy to manage files both locally and remotely through mounted network connection. The improved search feature also allows you to find what you’re looking for much better by being able to search meta tags too. With all those precious files on your system, you need a good security too. What you need you shall get with DSM as it comes with basic firewall and DoS protection as well as advanced virus scanning that includes customized and scheduled scans. DSM 6.0 also comes with the best certification setup that we’ve seen so far with the ability to customize the usage, import, and create new ones for all your needs.
You even get half an online office pack along with DSM thanks to the Spreadsheet and Note Station apps. Create online spreadsheets and share them with colleagues, coworkers, and more while you keep track of version changes and who got access to what. The Note Station is as close to a full-fledged word processing application as you can get and you’re able to insert tables, charts, and images as well as format the text in all possible ways. Note Station also includes a To-Do and reminder feature to make sure that you never forget what you’re up to again. All of these things are working in conjunction with the mobile DS apps that you can download for both Android and iOS devices.
I’ve written over 8000 words in this review of DSM 6.0 and I feel like I’ve just scratched the surface. The amount of functions, features, and apps is amazing and it will take you weeks to discover them all. I still hope that you thoroughly enjoyed reading this and have a look at what amazing things Synology’s DiskStation Manager has to offer.
That was a lot about the actual functions, but how is it to use you may ask? Let us start right off with the performance. Even tho I tested this on an entry-level device, I didn’t have to wait for anything. The user interface is quick to react and does what you expect. You got a full-working desktop-like interface with a start menu, taskbar, notification area, and much more. What you search is what you shall find as everything is sorted logically and it’s quick to find for both novice and advanced users. Novice users will also benefit greatly from the comprehensive built-in help whenever you should run into trouble. You can customize your experience and make everything look like you’d like to, from background images and themes to the login screen and desktop icons. A masterpiece of software creation.
Pros
- Easy to use for both novice and advanced users
- Fast loading times and speedy interface
- Nearly limitless functionality, based on the hardware you have
- High customizability
- Firewall, Antivirus, and Advanced certificate management
- Share, Stream, Create, Collaborate
Cons
- Cons? What cons?
“Synology’s DiskStation Manager 6.0 (DSM) is as easy to use as it is filled with great features, modern functions, and a great security. Whether you’re a novice or advanced user, you’ll love this operating system.”
Thank You Synology for providing us with the review sample.
DSM 6.0-7321 Update 2, no bitsync support yet
Hi, thx for your review.
Question: if you have raw files (nef) how do you convert them to print later ? Or is there a way to see the convert file from Photo Statiopn (Largest one) and to print them. Thx
Like Synology’s own documentation, this page could be improved by clarifying the differences in purpose, features and overall function between the DiskStation’s “Media Server” and its “Video Station”. In particular,
— Should one use ONLY Video Station for video content? Or ONLY Media Server in some situations? This needs a much more user-centered description.
— Can the Video Station be used to prepare material or playlists for viewing on a DLNA-capable smart TV?
— When you point the Video Station to your “Video” folder, which is presumably the same location where you put material for Media Server, does that make a COPY of these very large files, or is it more simply just links for convenience?
— Can the “offline transcoding” feature be used to serve up content that cannot be viewed directly with Media Server due to various format incompatibilities?
— I’m getting the sense that Video Station might make it possible to capture streaming video for viewing at a more convenient time and without worrying about buffering or clunky user interface (pause, rewind, fast forward). True or false? If true, does that include Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc.?
Thanks!
Hi Kevin
You can use as many of the video player/streaming functions as you want, it will make no difference to the NAS of functionality. Just keep in mind that when you first add a new service, the NAS might be “busy” for a while cataloguing the files, creating thumbnails, and downloading information about the content from imdb, tvdb, etc. So don’t get discouraged if the performance drops a bit for a short period after enabling and setting them up. So go nuts, Plex, VideoStation, Emby, and what else is available – install and use what you want.
To the other question, no, they won’t create duplicates of your files. The apps only index them in their databases. At max, they might create thumbnails (don’t hang me up on this, they might be stored other places – haven’t checked recently and can’t remember)
Video transcoding will only work through the Video Station, afaik, so you won’t get the benefits of this in the other streaming or media server apps.
As for Netflix, Prime, and similar services – I don’t have any personal experience with those. I live in an area where there’s so little content due to geo-blocking that the services are useless for the asking price.
Hope that answered a few of your questions. Maybe you can try the official Synology forums and ask there. I’m sure there are other users who have similar setups to what you’re planning, who will be able to answer the last questions for sure. https://forum.synology.com/