Synology DS423+ 4 Bay Desktop NAS Storage Server

I purchased this to replace a 4TB Raid 1 Synology unit which was getting a bit full. 40TB seemed like a good size, but by the time Raid 5 has been applied and the system set up you are looking at only just under 18TB of admittedly well protected storage.This model needs a lot more setting up than the consumer models, so for example if you want it to be seen as a media server on a Windows PC and on your TV etc. then you have to install the Media Server application. That threw me, because it was already installed automatically on the cosumer models. You also need to create network places and mapped drives yourself, whereas with the consumer version only mapping a drive was needed. There is also very little documentation supplied with the unit and a lot of the online information is not relevant or not dated so you cannot always be sure if it relates to the model you are working with.So, why have I given it five stars? Well, at a little under two grand it gives you a lot of bang for your buck. Installing Media Station and Video station gives you media access anywhere in the world, and you have private cloud storage which in my case was a key requirement as my development computer was close to having a full SSD. 18TB is 18 times the amount on my PC, and 4.5 times the space on my previous Synology, for only three times the price of the old one, so the alternative of buying three more of the old NAS boxes would have been way more expensive. The Raid 5 means that an entire drive could fail without loss of data and just plugging in a spare would result in it rebuilding itself, protecting you against everything but a physical disaster like fire.The software on it is good, it works fine with my phone and my computer, the music seems to be noticably faster to load on the Android app, and data transfer is quick, so what's not to like? The only thing I think is the difficulty of backing up such a large amount of data. Basically you can't unless you want to purchase a massive online backup service at vast cost, or buy two of these and set up a VPN. RAID certainly helps to protect you, but there are circumstances which would cost you your data. A massive media collection and vital data are both things that you do not want to lose, so I will be reviewing my options.This review is based on only a couple of days ownership, so I will definitely come back and edit if anything changes, whether good or bad. For the moment, this is easily the best NAS I have ever owned.

I’ve been really impressed with this NAS drive.The set up was simple and easy to follow, it has plenty of power to process data/photo or video streaming. It’s capable of running apps in docker containers.I did actually upgrade the RAM with an additional 16 GB crucial branded dual rail stick - it’s important to get the ‘DR’ version of SODIMM to make sure it works as expected as I believe the single rail is not compatible or cause issues.The bill quality is great, it’s solid. It’s quieter than my old enclosure using the same drives, the sound dampening is good.I’d recommend this for anyone looking for a medium spec network attached storage enclosure, with the appropriate size drives for your needs.

I picked up the Synology DS423+ primarily for Plex and it's doing the job nicely. It supports H.265 hardware transcoding, which is essential for my setup. Performance has been stable with multiple users streaming at once and the interface is user friendly if you're familiar with Synology's ecosystem. It's not the cheapest option, but if you want a plug-and-play media server with room to grow, it's a strong choice.

The DS423+ is a great NAS and should be more than enough for most users, with having the expandability of the 4 drive bays. Synology DSM is still the best NAS operating system and has the most quality apps available of all the competition- This is really what you are paying for with synology's prices.The hardware inside is mediocre at best for the price, but it all works flawlessly and is so user friendly- Synology is the 'Apple' of the NAS world.Its a shame you cant upgrade this model with a faster network card, so you are stuck at 1gbe speeds.Id recommend this over the 'just released' models because you can use any drives with this, where as the newest version forces you to buy Synology's own brand hard drives- very naughty IMO.