Synology and QNAP vs Build Your Own NAS - Which Is Best?

Video Chapters
00:00 - The Start
00:56 - Save so, SO Much MONEY!
03:38 - NAS OS Freedom
05:21 - Complete and Total Hardware Freedom
07:30 - No Artificial Compatibility Limits
11:40 - GENUINELY FUN
14:05 - So, SO Much EASIER!
18:00 - Single Warranty/Support Portal
20:33 - Client Apps and Tools, EVERYWHERE
23:42 - Fewer Attack Vectors
27:06 - Hardware Innovations Need Funding

The NAScompares Podcast - Let's Talk Data

buy

[DavidM]

If you want simplicity, buy Synology. If you like to tinker, buy QNAP. If you really like to get your hands dirty, save some money, and get a bit of an education, buy DIY. I have both Synology and QNAP and that's enough for me as they are both extremely capable. What I can't do with one, I do with the other.

[patrickburyk]

Many great points expressed here - I've decided to pursue the DIY option - N2/Topton/IronWolf/etc. I understand the "downsides" but have building DIY solutions for years. Thank you for all of your NAS Very Best Regards -

[BrianDavids]

First of all you did a great job, describing the differences between a build your own, and a purchasable NAS.

I have been building my own storage devices for decades, and about 5 to 6 years ago I discovered Synology and once I set one up, I’ve never looked back. For me, it really comes down to simplicity, ease of setup, installation and the continually improving software that is provided on the Synology NAS.

Could I build my own? Yes. Do I want to? No!

[JasonTaylor-poxc]

Yeah, I went through a similar evaluation and was very tempted to go DIY since I'm very comfortable building my own systems. But, I really wanted something that was well supported that would hold all my business data and I loved the apps for cloud sync, mobile apps and private cloud options. I may consider building a second NAS DIY as a backup/replication server in the future since that would be a more streamlined and less mission critical use case.

[Paul.dillingham]

Very informative and well put together video. Thanks!

[garynagle]

Great comparison video. Choose what fits your dedication level for each. DIY vs prebuilt. Both are fine if they fit your needs

[bembelknecht]

Well balanced video; I opted to DIY as I like to know my systems a bit better. It's nice when it "just works" but I want to be prepared when it does not

[andrehall]

So glad you released this video. After being a longtime Synology and fan of this channel I watched some of your most recent videos about building a DIY solution. Built one this week and couldn't be happier. I built with all new parts since I didn't have any old parts around, but going the DIY route gives you so much performance and freedom compared to the turnkey solutions. Running TrueNAS Scale on my DIY NAS and am really pleased. I'll probably built my own NASes going forward, and I don't regret it.
Jonsbo N2 Case
AMD Ryzen 5 5600G
512GB M.2 NVMe overkill for boot drive, had this laying around
AsRock B550M-ITX/AC
Apevia 500 watt SFF PSU
32GB Corsair Vengeance LPx RAM
LSI 6GB SAS HBA
SAS to SATA cable (4 ports)
(5) HGST 4TB SATA Drives

Total:$553 USD (jwothout hard drives)

[davidg]

I like to tinker and have plenty of experience with linux, servers, and netsec, so it's DIY for me every time.
That said, turnkey solutions are what I recommend for any client I help set up with a NAS, and for my family -- even if I'm the one primarily maintaining it.
My only gripe with turnkey is support. A good NAS will sit in a home or small business for a decade or so before it really needs any upgrade (not counting any drive swaps). In that time, companies occasionally drop older devices from their support list and stop releasing software/security updates or even remove functionality (like WD removing cloud functionality from their 1st gen MyCloud products last year).

[CapsLock]

thank you for showing and explaining UnRaid and TrueNAS. I am a Synology Fan at heart. But I have been thinking about building a UNRaid NAS.

[shawnbretthauer]

When my mom needed a backup solution for her work I knew to get her a prebuilt NAS. She ended up getting a Synology. I enjoy working on computers and everything, but I'm tired of being her IT solution. Now I just tell her to call their 1-800 number. As for myself, I plan on building my own for the experience.

[dsr]

I just got a Synology 1821+. Having been using a WD PR4100 as my Plex server, I am impressed with its software (easier admin tools and network options, cloud services, and 2 factor authentication), as well as form factor. I can see how DIY would be less expensive for top spec hardware. The Synology will be fine for my uses as a file server, offers me a lot of expandability as far as bays, and has a small enough footprint that I can fit it behind my TV (size of enclosure may be another selling point for some).

[streamproperty]

Thanks So Much! Great video. Appreciated

[Reman]

When it comes to DIY PC based NAS devices, I tend to just find a second hand HP tower system. You can get something with pretty reasonable specs and rock solid build quality for £50 to £100, and HP spare parts availability remains good for quite a few years.

If you find something like an old Z230 with an i7-3770 or E3-1225 v3 in it you can add 32gb of inexpensive DDR3 ram, a pair of 3.5" to duel 2.5" hard drive trays, then lose the optical drive, and run 5 SSD's (1x OS drive + 4x storage drives) off the onboard SATA ports. It's not going to set the world on fire with it's performance, but it will certainly be more than capable of filling the NAS/print server role in a small to medium sized office.

[andrewcrook]

A lot of the software under the hood of turnkey systems is a load of opensource. Base OS Linux, Web servers, DNS, DNS-SD, SSH, SMB, AD support, AFS, NFS, Time Machine support, AirPrint, containers, video conversation and compression etc a lot of these are used in the top brands and I can add any of these to a diy solution as well.

[dantonsmaxim]

That was a great video. Thanks
Which NAS is a realty hard decision.
Warranty limitations: With the DIY each part has its own warranty, with the off the shelf NAS there is a blanket warranty. But after warranty period where do you stand???
After warranty Repair for a DIY, buy a new part and reboot.
I had an 8 bay Synology that died shortly after the warrant expired. No parts available, no service at all, Synology emailed me saying buy a new one, no more problems until the end of the next warranty period.
I also have a Synology DS214, I was informed that there will be no more updates and the NAS may not work in the future.
Ease of setup:
Synology is so easy to set up, as a computer illiterate I did it in about an hour.
I have a new DIY 8 bay NAS and I can’t decide which OS to use, what disc configuration to use

[JimtheITguy]

Artificial compatibility Limits should really be considered as Suitable for production lists(HCL Lists), more focused on the business side of things rather than the home/homelab users, its always something that needs to be considered especially for people using a NAS for storing business data. not to say self built NAS boxes are bad there are reasons why you opt for fully supported hardware vs self builds for production

[VoltVandal]

just my 5ct, i have fun in building my gaming pc's. but i need my peace of mind on my backup devices => qnap fan and it is your faut ! 🙂 . love ur channel btw. THX

[InspectorGadget]

I mostly agree with you. There are a few nuances I would like to share:
There are at times also good-as-new/second-hand turn-key available at sometimes ridiculous prices(!)
(especially rack-versions, which are often very solid builds if you can accept the noisy hardware, i.e ventilators, from brand new thousands of euros to just a few hundred euros)
And, if you take efforts to look into it, it is possible to opt for a fair powered turnkey solution and hardware-hack it into a beast. (replace CPU, expand memory etc)
And lastly, with a turnkey solution, even outside of warranty, you can get it serviced and sometimes end-up with the latest-and-greatest.
But DIY is in the end often the most cost effective and tons of fun, and you will learn a lot.
I would say, in short, convenience and budget should be one of the first questions you should answer honestly to yourself.
(and, my expertise, also consider the disaster-recovery situations, how much can & will you do yourself and what part you would expect others to fix for you, i.e. your expertise etc)
As the famous soccer-player Johan Cruijff said: every disadvantage has its

[juvedelasavia]

I'm thinking about having a NAS and I'm in doubt between building DIY or buying a Synology DS1821+. The DS1823xs+ is now available, but due to the limitations/restrictions of hardware and disk updates (from the brand itself), the end of the SHR and price, it is interesting to know if it is still worth buying a DS1821+? Is the life expectancy of this equipment still long and system updates still to come (for how long)? Or should i choose to build a NAS in a Fractal Design Meshify 2 Xl case, MSI Meg x670e ace motherboard and AMD Ryzen 9 7900 non x CPU? I want the NAS to store documents, photos, videos, plex in all rooms of the house and also for 2 external accesses to the house. Later it may try/evolve (without certainty) into a home assistant and explore artificial intelligence (Big data and machine learning). This will be my first NAS. I need some advice because I don't have any one to talk, discuss and ask some advice/orientation. Continue the excellent work, with best regards and thank you all