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Message
uGreen or Synology NAS?
Posted on 1/4/26 at 4:01 pm
Posted on 1/4/26 at 4:01 pm
After all my reading I don't see a good reason to pay double or more. I'm looking at the 4 bay model to be configured as RAID5.
What do y'all have now? This is for a large number of video files, not so worried about photos.
What do y'all have now? This is for a large number of video files, not so worried about photos.
7
Posted on 1/4/26 at 4:18 pm to CAD703X
i have 2 synology devices and am pleased with them. have a buddy that has synology and ugreen (he was part of kickstarter) and he raves about the ugreen. granted, i got my synologies discounted at NFR partner pricing. most recent one is the DS1821 and initially populated it with 4 drives from serverpartdeals.com, it's sole use is media storage. other device is RS820 that's for files, apps, backups
Posted on 1/4/26 at 5:40 pm to CAD703X
I own a Synology 1520 and a 1522+. I use Synology Hybrid Raid. It does what I need it to, which is be transparent and a non factor in daily ops. I wish I could update packages from the ActiveInsight app, but that's minor. I don't have any SSDs in it, and have 3 WDC Red Pro drives, and 2 equivalent Seagates, one of which is the hot spare. Although nearly every drive has lived longer than the warranty period in the last ten years, I feel more comfortable not waiting on a replacement for 6 weeks sweating another drive failing.
Anecdotally, I've found that if you get drives that came off the line the same day/week, they will tend to fail close to each other. As my volumes have gotten more diversified (sizes, manufacture dates, etc.) it's less of a problem, but it sure was anxious time when I was only running RAID 1 on two drives.
Not sure if you're considering it, but I put a perfectly functional WD Black (non NAS rated) drive into my 1520, and the vibration from the other drives (I'm assuming) caused it to fail within about 10 days. Just pay for the NAS rated stuff. And buy the drives soon. HDD prices were already up 4% at the end of 2025, and it's expected to get worse.
Anecdotally, I've found that if you get drives that came off the line the same day/week, they will tend to fail close to each other. As my volumes have gotten more diversified (sizes, manufacture dates, etc.) it's less of a problem, but it sure was anxious time when I was only running RAID 1 on two drives.
Not sure if you're considering it, but I put a perfectly functional WD Black (non NAS rated) drive into my 1520, and the vibration from the other drives (I'm assuming) caused it to fail within about 10 days. Just pay for the NAS rated stuff. And buy the drives soon. HDD prices were already up 4% at the end of 2025, and it's expected to get worse.
Posted on 1/4/26 at 5:45 pm to LemmyLives
Thanks. Looking at the recertified x22 exos drives from seagate and apparently ugreen raid5 doesn't care who makes them as long as they're the same capacity.
Your vibration comment is interesting. May have just saved my cheap arse some pain in the future.
ETA not interested in SSD right now either. Too pricey
Your vibration comment is interesting. May have just saved my cheap arse some pain in the future.
ETA not interested in SSD right now either. Too pricey
This post was edited on 1/4/26 at 6:04 pm
Posted on 1/4/26 at 6:35 pm to CAD703X
Synology backed off of the "Synology only" drive thing about 90 days after they publicized it.
For the WD Black issue, until I had a NAS, I always had at least 2 drives in RAID 1 in my PC, and usually had a tower with RAID 5 in it, and never experienced an issue (drives in the 2000s-2010s failed pretty regularly anyway.) I blew off NAS rated drives as an extravagance until then. The 1520 was well ventilated and on a shelf in an unused closet where my homerun was. I had the proper rubber grommets on every mounting screw, etc., and it barely lasted long enough to replicate data to it.
I presume you're going after Exos for the HAMR capacity. Check the stats from Backblaze on drive failures Q3 2025. I don't know what their population of HAMR drives is, but do a risk analysis on it based on whatever data is there. I don't know how much video you're storing, but with most of the Synology 4=5 bay NAS, you can add the DX 517 expansion unit to the same volume, which may be cheaper than trying for leading edge capacity drives. I usually by 2 storage jumps behind (if 12TB is popular, I'm buying 6TB or 8TB) to save money.
As far as the SSD goes, I agree, but I'm not video editing. But, 128GB of unneeded RAM I got cheap, FTW!
For the WD Black issue, until I had a NAS, I always had at least 2 drives in RAID 1 in my PC, and usually had a tower with RAID 5 in it, and never experienced an issue (drives in the 2000s-2010s failed pretty regularly anyway.) I blew off NAS rated drives as an extravagance until then. The 1520 was well ventilated and on a shelf in an unused closet where my homerun was. I had the proper rubber grommets on every mounting screw, etc., and it barely lasted long enough to replicate data to it.
I presume you're going after Exos for the HAMR capacity. Check the stats from Backblaze on drive failures Q3 2025. I don't know what their population of HAMR drives is, but do a risk analysis on it based on whatever data is there. I don't know how much video you're storing, but with most of the Synology 4=5 bay NAS, you can add the DX 517 expansion unit to the same volume, which may be cheaper than trying for leading edge capacity drives. I usually by 2 storage jumps behind (if 12TB is popular, I'm buying 6TB or 8TB) to save money.
As far as the SSD goes, I agree, but I'm not video editing. But, 128GB of unneeded RAM I got cheap, FTW!
Posted on 1/5/26 at 8:23 am to CAD703X
Synology used to be heavy on proprietary bullshite, drives and internals. Not sure if that's change or not, but I stay away from them because of it. Ugreen seems to be a good disrupter in the space with their pricing
I would check out minisforum too, if you want to go with something more customizable on the OS end
I would check out minisforum too, if you want to go with something more customizable on the OS end
This post was edited on 1/5/26 at 8:45 am
Posted on 1/5/26 at 8:52 am to bluebarracuda
quote:
Ugreen seems to be a good disrupter in the space with their pricing
this seems to be the case so much of the time. early leader gets cocky, tries to jail their customers and customers get fed up and another more friendly solution crops up and starts gobbling market share. dinosaur company then promises to 'back off' their lock-in policies but the damage is already done and their customers don't trust them.
This post was edited on 1/5/26 at 8:53 am
Posted on 1/5/26 at 11:12 am to CAD703X
I got a UGreen on Black Friday due to them being totally open for drives and OS. Very easy to set up and great build quality
This post was edited on 1/5/26 at 11:13 am
Posted on 1/5/26 at 11:30 am to Carson123987
i wish my drive had failed prior to black friday to get me off my arse but c'est la vie 
which model did you go with? I'm looking at the 4 bay. What OS did you decide on?
which model did you go with? I'm looking at the 4 bay. What OS did you decide on?
Posted on 1/5/26 at 12:14 pm to bluebarracuda
quote:
heavy on proprietary bullshite, drives and internals. Not sure if that's change or not, but I stay away from them because of it
They only went proprietary with their 2025 releases of NAS, which dropped "full support" for non Synology drives. They backed off of it quickly.
quote:
Yes, Synology has reversed its previous policy and now allows the use of third-party hard drives and SSDs with its 2025 DiskStation models following the release of the DiskStation Manager 7.3 update. However, M.2 NVMe drives still require Synology's own brand.
This didn't impact pre 2025 models at all.
Posted on 1/5/26 at 4:41 pm to CAD703X
quote:
which model did you go with? I'm looking at the 4 bay. What OS did you decide on?
DXP4800+ loaded with 12TB WD Reds
Posted on 1/5/26 at 8:58 pm to Carson123987
The 4800+ is 15% off today at Amazon. Thinking of pulling the trigger
Posted on 1/6/26 at 10:04 am to CAD703X
Rocking the Synology personally but with only 2 bays @ 1TB each drive - redundant of course.
Their interface isn't as cool as I thought it would be, but once you get the hang of it, it's pretty good.
Their interface isn't as cool as I thought it would be, but once you get the hang of it, it's pretty good.
Posted on 1/6/26 at 2:02 pm to idlewatcher
DXP4800+ 4 bay
5% off for new orders at uGreen (all you do is go to their website and the 5% off ad will pop up and ask for an email address); coupon is instant.
uGreen site has it 15% off ($594) just like amazon
free shipping
total: $565 + tax if anyone else is interested. that matches the black friday price at amazon.
eta if you go through rakuten, you'll get an additional 4% off as well. THANKS NOLAGT
5% off for new orders at uGreen (all you do is go to their website and the 5% off ad will pop up and ask for an email address); coupon is instant.
uGreen site has it 15% off ($594) just like amazon
free shipping
total: $565 + tax if anyone else is interested. that matches the black friday price at amazon.
eta if you go through rakuten, you'll get an additional 4% off as well. THANKS NOLAGT
This post was edited on 1/6/26 at 2:03 pm
Posted on 1/6/26 at 5:18 pm to CAD703X
quote:
I'm looking at the 4 bay model to be configured as RAID5
Slightly off topic, but read theough this before settling on RAID5
HowToGeek.com article on pitfalls of RAID5
Posted on 1/6/26 at 5:34 pm to TigerFanatic99
i asked grok
quote:
OH SWEET MERCIFUL SATA PORTS, YOU DARE ASK IF RAID5 IS STILL VIABLE IN 2026 FOR A BIG-BOY NAS?!
ARE YOU TRYING TO SUMMON THE DATA-REAPER HIMSELF?!
RAID5 in a large array right now is like playing Russian roulette with five bullets loaded and one empty chamber, while blindfolded, on fire, during an earthquake, and the gun is pointed at your irreplaceable 47TB collection of 4K cat videos and family photos.
One drive sneezes? Dead.
Rebuild starts? The array begins its week-long marathon read of every sector.
One single unrecoverable read error (and on a 20TB drive that’s basically guaranteed, like taxes and drive failures in batches) ? POOF. Your entire array turns into a very expensive, very sad paperweight that whispers “should’ve used RAID6, bro” as it dies.
RAID6? That’s the CHAD. The absolute UNIT. Dual parity means it can watch two drives explode, shrug, keep serving your Plex library, and still rebuild without turning into digital confetti. It laughs at UREs. It spits in the face of bit rot. It’s the only sane choice unless you genuinely enjoy living on the edge of a nervous breakdown every time SMART sends an email.
Anyone still recommending RAID5 for anything bigger than a 4-bay with 4TB drives is either stuck in 2009, works for a drive manufacturer trying to move inventory, or secretly hates you and wants to watch your data burn.
So no. RAID5 is not “fine.” RAID5 is not “close enough.” RAID5 is a war crime against storage in 2026. Use RAID6, accept the one extra drive sacrifice to the reliability gods, sleep at night, and stop tempting fate before it yeets your entire hoarding empire into the void.
And if you even think about saying “but muh extra terabyte,” I will personally manifest in your server room and replace all your drives with floppy disks.
RAID6 OR BUST, COWARD.
This post was edited on 1/6/26 at 5:36 pm
Posted on 1/6/26 at 6:20 pm to CAD703X
You've clearly trained your Grok account differently than I have mine, lol.
At least it's giving you an accurate response. RAID6 or death.
At least it's giving you an accurate response. RAID6 or death.
Posted on 1/6/26 at 6:34 pm to TigerFanatic99
i got an even better one on the uGreen:
quote:
OHHHHHHHHHHHHHH BABY, STRAP IN, BECAUSE THE UGREEN NASYNC 4-BAY (DXP4800 Plus or whatever sexy 4-bay model you’re eyeing) IS ABOUT TO BECOME YOUR NEW RELIGION IN 2026 AND HERE’S WHY IN FULL UNHINGED GLORY:
THIS LITTLE CHINESE BEAST WALKS INTO THE NAS PARTY WITH A frick-YOU RAID6 SMILE AND KICKS RAID5 IN THE TEETH!
Yes, you heard that right—four bays, and it still lets you run RAID6. That means you can stuff four shiny 20 TB monsters in there and still survive TWO DRIVE FAILURES while the rest of the world cries over their RAID5 corpses during week-long rebuilds. Your cat videos, Linux ISOs, and that 8TB hoard of 2005 anime rips? THEY LIVE, BITCH!
Price tag?
It’s basically laughing in the face of Synology and QNAP while costing half as much. You’re getting 10GbE (on the Plus model), two M.2 NVMe slots for cache or app storage, a modern ARM or Intel chip that doesn’t choke on Plex 4K transcoding, AND RAID6 protection… for the price of a mid-tier Synology that still forces you into RAID5 like it’s 2012. UGREEN basically robbed the NAS cartel at gunpoint and is selling their organs at a garage sale.
The software (UGOS Pro) is still a bit of a feral gremlin compared to DSM, but it’s getting updates faster than your ex returns your texts, and it already supports:
Docker
Plex / Jellyfin / Emby
RAID migration (start with RAID5, add a drive later, ascend to RAID6 without losing data)
Snapshot protection so ransomware can eat a bag of rusty screws
And let’s talk about the vibes.
This thing looks like a Cybertruck had a baby with a Mac Mini. It’s got RGB you can actually turn off (bless), it runs stupidly quiet, and it doesn’t make your electric bill file for divorce. You’re not paying Synology’s “brand tax” or QNAP’s “we’ll add 47 useless apps you’ll never use” surcharge.
The unhinged reality check:
If one more 18–22 TB drive dies during a RAID5 rebuild and you lose everything because you were too cheap for two parity drives, I will personally haunt your dreams with the sound of clicking drives and the message “TOLD YOU TO GO RAID6, DIPSHIT.”
So here’s the deal:
Buy the UGREEN 4-bay.
Throw in four big drives.
Set it to RAID6.
Laugh maniacally while your friends panic-rebuild their RAID5 arrays for the third time this year.
Sleep like a baby knowing your data can survive a drive apocalypse.
This isn’t just a good choice.
It’s the chaotic-good choice.
The “I refuse to be a storage simp” choice.
The “frick around and find out… but actually find out you’re safe” choice.
UGREEN 4-bay NAS + RAID6 = your data’s new warlord.
Bow down or get rekt.
YOUR MOVE, HOARDER.
Posted on 1/6/26 at 6:54 pm to CAD703X
I'm curious now, what was your prompt for that response? Lol
Posted on 1/6/26 at 6:59 pm to TigerFanatic99
nothing fancy. just ask it to respond to your query in 'unhinged mode' and you'll get a more OT-like response which makes me feel at home. eta i've got it debating drivepool vs a dedicated NAS right now
very entertaining as each are scoring points.
This post was edited on 1/6/26 at 7:01 pm
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