Synology DS 1813+

I primarily use my Synology DS1813+ as Network Attached Storage for my VMware vSphere home lab.  That said, it’s role in my home office has grown to include:

  • Syslog Server
  • CIFS (Windows File Share) Server
  • SMTP (Email) Relay Server
  • Media (DLNA) Server

So for use as a VMware storage target, what sets the Synology DS1813+ apart from your other run of the mill home NAS?  Here are the top features that have made it a killer device for my lab:

  • x3 1GB NICs, bonded via LACP for 3Gbps bandwidth
  • Support for SSD TRIM
  • Support for MTU 9000 (Jumbo Frames)
  • Support for Cloud Backup (Amazon Glacier)
  • Both iSCSI and NFS capabilities
  • Support for Active Directory / LDAP user accounts

As seen below, I’ve taken 3 of 4 NICs and created a LACP bond:

 

Synology DS1813+

Synology DS1813+