Advice on power setting and security for Synology 218+

#1

As I know many Channels DVR subscribers use a Synology NAS on this site, I thought I would ask a few general questions as it relates to the power option and security settings.

But before I get more specific with my questions, just some quick background here. I primarily purchased my NAS for Channels DVR. And as a new user of a NAS who has limited experience with Synology products, I will keep this device as a recording engine (only) if necessary to avoid any headaches for a new user, at least until I gain greater knowledge using a NAS.

However, that being said, I can see how the Synology NAS device could also be helpful to store simple home documents, music and my pictures. And I've created Shares on the Synology 218+ and I have mapped the drives on my PC along with installing Channels DVR on the NAS itself. But I should point out, that I really don't "require" this feature as I've already got other backups for my PC data. And again, I don't see myself using the NAS for much of anything else. My PC is my go to device for surfing the web, and everything else I do online. And, of course, I've got an anti-virus program on the PC itself.

So all that said, I am wondering about a few things. First is it necessary to use and keep an anti-virus up to date on the NAS (i.e. the Anti Virus Essential offered in Packages)? Second, do I really need to concern myself with firewall settings on the NAS? And does the answer to that question depend on whether I am going to place anything on the NAS itself besides TV recordings? Third, on a different note, should I be concerned with adjusting the power settings in Control Panel on the NAS? For example, there is an option to have the NAS cut itself back on after power failures? It was off by default, but I can reset it to power the NAS back on in the event of power surges or failures? But I don't know if having a NAS reboot itself back up on its own with any power surges is a good thing or not for it's DSM operating system?

Again, my needs are very simple. Just one user here who (again) primarily purchased the Synology 218+ for my long term TV recording needs. I really don't even have to use the NAS for other purposes (such as backing up my music, pics, and documents), although, again, it would seem convenient to do that on the NAS.

Advice for a newbie here will be appreciated. I can already see that there is enormous potential for a NAS (for users who wish to get more technical with these devices). But I don't see my needs as being that "fancy" on this device.

As for Channels DVR itself, it's up and running great on my NAS. And more than anything, that is what's most important to me with this device. I've had it for a week now and its working great.

#2

no.

No your router is already port-based firewall. The DVR will only open the ports needed.

no

no, your NAS should be running all the time. Its a DVR. Don't mess with those settings.

You should get a UPS for it. Immediate power cut-off to a RAID array could be catastrophic. Don't let it happen. You have already invested so much, get some clean and reliable power to your Synology.

1 Like
#3

I would say a UPS is optional, but either way I would recommend turning this on.

1 Like
#4

I agree with the answers above. I have a Large UPS at my office for all the servers including the 2 Synology Boxes. But I do not have a USP for the 2 home Synology Boxes (DS918+, DS1019+). I have had multiple power outages without problems but having a UPS would not hurt. I have just added Tesla Solar with 2x Power Walls so I now have whole home UPS :slight_smile:

I use my home Synology Boxes for a lot more then just the a DVR (one each box). First I have a PLEX Server on one of them which maybe will be dropped (or reduced) when Channels finalizes their Media Support. I also use them to backup my office Synology Boxes for offsite storage. And more.

#5

I use mine for Channels and also for streaming movies through the infuse app to my apple tvs. I also run three surveillance cameras through it. I always run the antivirus just to be safe. It does not add very much overhead. The 218+ does not have a problem streaming 50gig 4k video files.

#6

Thanks for the replies here. The three big things here I am reading are "yes" change the default from "no" to "yes" (yes turn the NAS back on after a power surge or failure). Second, do consider getting a UPS. And three, go ahead and utilize anti-virus (i.e. anti-virus essential from Packages on the NAS) b/c it uses very few resources and certainly won't hurt anything, although the fire wall settings in my Asus 3100 router should stop attacks. I will do these things.

I've learned a lot about the NAS in the one week's time that I've had it. And as I say, I've got Channels DVR installed on the NAS and it's up and running great along with shared folders for backups from my PC along with mapped drives from the computer to the NAS. Beyond that, it seems there is still much I don't know about this product.

I started out reading about Synology by going to https://my-doodads.com/. I've gotten through about 20 of those videos (although some of them have no relevance for me since I am a single user with no household of other people). I also know there are other videos, such as those posted on Synology's site. Beyond that, are there any other good series of videos on a Synology NAS?

Using https://my-doodads.com/ during my initial setup a week ago was "very" helpful as I would not have had a clue about doing certain things, such as changing the IP address of the NAS from dynamic to static. As good as Synology seems to be, I have to say that the product documentation out of the box is very sparse.

It's almost as though there is an "assumption" that folks are already familiar with NAS devices when in fact there are "many" PC users who have "zero" experience setting up or ever configuring one of these devices. For all my years, my backup tools have consisted of a USB external SSD, USB external HDD, thumb drives, some cloud based storage, and optical disks that I used many years ago. Beyond, that nothing like a NAS.

So yes, I have learned lots in one week, but there is still a learning curve. I like videos that don't make all these "assumptions" that the listener/viewer already knows half of what the presenter is discussing.

#7

I am a pretty heavy user of YouTube (with premium and no advertising). You can find a lot of videos just by searching Synology or DSM or DS218+. The DSM is the same for all the models so you may want to search on that.

The problem is that the Software for the Synology boxes is extremely powerful. At one point I used Windows Servers for most things at the office. I.E. File Servers, Web Servers etc. After installing my fir Synology box I switch to use Synology for everything I need at the office with some overlap at home.

The advice you got about Static IP (I assume you set this up in your router and not your NAS Device. I.E. Reserve) is very import for ALL Servers like the NAS an even HDHomeruns if you have them.

All of these a very easy to setup and you can find youtube video for all of them (pretty sure).

  1. VPN Server.
  2. SSL Certificates.
  3. File Servers. Windows (SMB), macOS (AFP), Linux (NFS).
  4. Web Server using SSL (HTTPS)
  5. Synology to Synology Backups. Many options.
  6. Channels DVR Server
  7. PLEX Server
  8. EMAIL Server. I only use it for "relay smtp"
  9. FTP Server.

Much more. These are just most of what I use them for.

#8

As far as Power, definitely get a UPS and make sure to check the Synolgy website for compatible models.
https://www.synology.com/en-us/compatibility

I have both my Synology NAS's a DS1019+ & DS1513+ plugged into the same APC Back-UPS ES BE550G UPS and run the USB cable to my DS1019+ which becomes the UPS server and notifies my DS1513+ when it goes to battery power.

Power settings I use on my Synology

Control Panel > Hardware & Power > General > Power Recovery
[x] Restart automatically after a power failure

Control Panel > Hardware & Power > General > Power Schedule
NONE

Control Panel > Hardware & Power > General > HDD Hibernation
NONE

Control Panel > Hardware & Power > General > UPS
[x] Enable UPS support (selected Network UPS on my DS1513+ and entered the ip address of my DS1019+ in Network UPS server IP)
[x} Time before DiskStation enters Safe Mode (3 minutes) because I want them shut down during extended power outages
[x] Enable network UPS server (on my DS1019+ and entered the ip address of my DS1513+ in Permitted DiskStation devices)

#9

Yes, the software for Synology boxes looks very powerful. And actually (perhaps) more full featured than I need since I do not have a home business nor anything (whatsoever) that is linked with my work computer outside of the home.

As for the static IP address, yes, that was one of the first things I did before setting up my Synology 218+ NAS for Channels DVR. I went into my ASUS - AC3100 Dual-Band Wi-Fi Router and gave the NAS a static IP address as per the instructions in the tutorial videos I looked at on mydoodads.com.

Had it not been for doing some prior reading and watching those videos on that site (before I received the NAS), I would not have had a clue about the need to change the IP address on the NAS from dynamic to static as the documentation from Synology seems kind of sparse. Of course, I installed the Channels DVR software on the NAS itself and not my PC; and I've just mapped my PC so it can see Channels DVR along with a few folders created in Shares for (music, documents, and pictures).

As for HDHomeruns, yes, I use two of them connected over my home network. I've had them for a few months now (long before the NAS). I never went into my router settings for these devices. It was basically just plug and play after I scanned for channels on HDHR at the time I received them, along with setting up the HDHomeRun Config GUI on my PC. But I must say, I've never encountered any difficulties with my Fire Sticks or other devices seeing HDHR over my (whole home) hard wired network. I am hard wired for everything in the house, with the obvious exceptions of my iPhone along with a secondary PC (laptop) that I only use occasionally. If I really should change the IP addresses of my HDHR tuners from dynamic to static, I could go back into my router settings and look at that. But, again, it doesn't appear to present any problem, at least in the time I've had HDHR setup now for months.

I will check out youtubes for further readings about Synology NAS. I would like to gain greater knowledge with its many features. Thanks for your replies.

#10

HDHomerun can be found on the network as you say. Keep in mind that if you apply firmware update and they reboot they could pick up a "different" Dynamic IP Address. So, other devices would need to do a search to find them again since the IP Changed. Maybe superstitious when I was using them that I wanted them to stay on the same IP's.

#11

Couldn't agree more.

I have everything I rely on getting a reserved ip address from my router.
It also helps when you need to access a device since it always has the same ip address and you don't have to go looking for what it is currently.

There was an issue (resolved) years ago with the HDHR units where they wouldn't renew their DHCP address and ended up using a link-local/APIPA/auto-ip address in the 169.254.0.0/16 network.

#12

Speaking of Synology they make one of the best routers out there... people just see them as a NAS maker ... but their Synology Router RT2600ac is oustanding ... I can walk anywhere in the house up down etc... watching channels and never lose signal or get corrupted Video. The interface is also the best.