How to Backup Onsite & Offsite with Synology NAS Automatically

VIDEO INDEX:
00:49 - Ransomware defined
03:23 - Cloud station drive for file syncing
04:51 - BTRFS file system and local snapshot replication
06:27 - Setting up BTRFS snapshots
07:57 - Managing snapshot retention policy
10:18 - Offsite backup : syncing with cloud services
11:42 - Encrypting data for cloud sync backups
12:03 - Hyperbackup for external drive backup
13:42 - USB Copy alternative for backup
14:45 - Conclusion and final thoughts

Links:
BTRFS compatibility list:

Hyperbackup Video:

A comprehensive, multi-version backup strategy is important to protect critical data from ransomware / malware attacks, human error and physical damage to disks.

In this video I demonstrate how saving a file locally on a laptop sets off a string of events that immediately copies the file to multiple locations both onsite and off and keeps multiple revisions of those files moving forward. Here is what's demonstrated:

1. Synology's Cloud Station Drive for syncing the local file to a Synology NAS. Cloud Station also keeps multiple revisions of the file as it is changed.

2. Synology's BTRFS file system maintains multiple internal snapshots of the file on the NAS that allows for rolling back to previous versions.

3. Synology's Cloud Sync automatically encrypts and copies the file and its changes to multiple cloud services like Dropbox, One Drive, and Google Drive (plus many others like Amazon S3 / Glacier).

4. Synology's HyperBackup backs up large volumes of data to an external drive or over the network or Internet to another volume. It too keeps multiple version snapshots of files.

All of this happens seamlessly in the background every time a change is made to a file.

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[CobraDove]

I have just learned that Synology has completely screwed people over who had created btrfs volumes and in an update, wiped out their volumes making them gone and then responded that btrfs never was supported in these units, so now you have to upgrade to a new unit to get your data back. Absolutely UNBELIEVABLE! I don't think I want to go forward with this company at all! I will send my ds220j back on Amazon. Even though I've never been screwed over by this company, these latest actions have scared me away for good!

[dennisolof]

Do not forget to do cold storage backup, from time to time, like DVDs and keeping things on hard drives that are not permanently connected. So if the Synology hard drives fails you have that backup too. That said, it is a nice thing with automatic backup and a NAS system plus offsite backup. It should keep you pretty safe from a disaster.

Lon, do you know why it is so difficult to add more memory to the Synology units ?

Perhaps you should ask them ?

To me this seems like a great way to use, say 16Gb or 32Gb of RAM as a RAM disk, as a buffer storage for backup, surveillance so that the unit has time to spin up a large hard drives from sleep mode to write out new data. In theory a hard drive that is in sleep mode should last a lot longer than constantly writing to the drive or if it is spinning without doing anything. If you only want to save video when there is something going on, and disregarding the rest or the "feed". Like you demonstrated in a video, where you could select a area of the frame that was of interest and only save that when something in that frame changes.

Of course you could use SSDs for that too, but my fear is that the system, when in idle is still writing "dummy" data to the SSDs and then creating wear and tear. A bit like windows does.

Thanks for another great video.

[markmaybell]

Your channel is excellent and has been very helpful. Please consider doing an episode on Synology Drive and how to use it to sync to an offsite NAS.

[ForeverMan]

Lon, I did liked this way of review... sponsored videos with your own words ( I know they gave you the topics, but I think the words were all yours )... I just watched a 16minutes AD and I was glad I did... thanks

[readyrepairs]

Lon. You are the most likable shill I have encountered on youtube yet. I accept, respect, and fully support your content. While I am not in a place to actually send you monies - I will do something Ive never done ... I will white list you in the adblock thingy. I am in love with the fact that you do a full disclosure on each video. I Always thought it was neat, but excessive since you never did aponsored videos that I saw... now I have.. and im fine with it. Keep it up boss.

[Razor]

While I prefer the value of a DIY NAS, I do like the simplicity of devices like the synology, as they do simply many common tasks. One thing I have with some NAS software is when some tasks require a ton of steps even though 99% of the time it will be done the exact same way every time. One of the most difficult thing I have encountered, is getting a good NAS setup where I can just specify a backup size and have it do snapshots until the max size is reached, then start deleting the oldest snapshots.

[SeanJuanNJ]

Excellent video - explains it in great detail, quick and to the point.

[richardberube]

Hi Lon! I don't know if you will see that comment since that an older video, but he nice future sponsored video from Synology could be about all the different way to restore those backup !

A lot of video are showing different way to save data, but no one seem to show how easy (or not) it is to get your stuff working again. For example if you nas is destroy or stolen, how do we restore our files from from a cloud provider (Amazon, Backblaze, Onedrive, Google drive, etc) depending on our method of choice for backup.

I find it strange that almost no info exist on that. I got my DS218+ because of all your video about Synology and wanted to base my backup strategy on the best way to recover data in case of lost, but I had to work the other way around. I installed all the backup option (cloud station, hyper backup, snapshot replication, etc) and did some test, took me week or so that could have been avoided if a 20-30 min video would have explained all the option.

Keep those (great!) sponsored video coming !

[nathanmarsh]

Your awesome at reviews waiting for 1m

[Lonestar]

Can you please explain how the new Synology Drive app works? Installing it disabled Cloud Station Drive, which was working well. I don't understand this "upgrade."

[farnsworth]

His favourite "Motorcycle Forum".

[balderol]

I like your videos. Very helpful and informative. I have a minor quibble. When I locate a video titled "how to backup, " I'm interested in learning how to backup. I don't need nearly three minutes at the beginning of the video telling me why it's important to back up. Obviously, I already think it's important which is why I've searched and found your video.

[rsmmartins]

Hi Lon, greetings from Brazil...It was a great review...I have a WDMycloudEx2 and it seems that Synology is miles ahead of WD.

[nyanates]

Very helpful! I have a question. I recently needed to directly access the (EXT3) files on a USB NAS backup drive that was connected (and backed up nightly to from) a failed NAS server. I recently bought a new Synology replacement NAS. In this NAS failure scenario, what backup package/method would you use to enable similar access when using the Synology hardware? Tnx...

[ld]

Sorry just to add, I have read the Manual 30 times and watched all the Clips on what it does and how to do it, including this one, but all of them are similar, expecting that people watching have been working with a Synology NAS for years, is the app you running Cloud Server, Cloud Drive or just the new Dive that seems to replace Cloud server and cloud drive. I also only work with Local storage and never from portable devices or over the internet. Only internet to cell phone for home security cameras replay.

[springbok]

Synology are now phasing out Cloud Station Drive in favor of Team Drive. Which sucks, because it no longer functions as a backup client program, and is full of stuff I’m not going to use.

[GlennLMS]

Is there a utility you’d recommend for backing up my windows pc to my DS218J?
I have a mapped drive to my sharepoint files and would like to setup a daily backup (there’s no library’s or sites involved, just plain flat files within a mapped drive).

[bobray]

thank you for the video, is there any simple way to backup the synology unit to a windows share that is on the LAN? Its just as important to backup the NAS as it is to backup to it. I tried my google-fu but everything point to how to get data to the NAS but I want to backup the actual NAS to a simple windows file share - not have to buy another synology or use a cloud solution.

[roncreamer]

Hey Lon. I really appreciate your videos. Quick question. I am setting up a new DS1517+ and wonder if you would go with BRTFS or stay w/ EXT4. Thanks.

[willrowland]

If you have your NAS volumes mapped as drives (in either Windows or macOS), what would prevent ransom-ware from encrypting the NAS? Is there a better way to "map" your network drives that you use (FTP, AFS, SMB or something else)?