Synlogy NAS + Plex Media Server

[oHUTCHYo]

I wasnt sure to put this in the Storage forum or in here, ideally Id like input from both sets of expertise.

Current Setup: 2x WD 3TB MyBookLive streaming high qualty 1080p/5.1/7.1 MKV files to a Raspberry Pi3 running Kodi in to Samsung KS8000 and Yamaha soundbar (yes, I know)

My drives seem to be on their way out so am considering a Synology NAS. A budget of £300-£600 for enclosure plus hard drives. I dont often have this amount of money to burn on something like this, it was intended for something else I had been saving for but is no longer needed. May as well burn the money on a good NAS before it disappears.

I quite like the idea of Plex, having a central library which I can manage in the NAS rather than independant libraries on Kodi.

Where I’m torn is this: do I buy an entry level Synology or go for the 218+ which I understand can transcode on the fly to other, smaller devices. I dont NEED transcoding, but am also concerned that an entry level NAS may somehow not direct stream similarly to my existing WD setup. Currently my setup works flawlessly and would be devastated to spend this money and see buffering or audio issues etc etc.

Any advice folks?

 

[oHUTCHYo]

I have the DS414, I don't use transcoding either. You won't get buffering issues, I assume your network is all cabled..? If you don't need transcoding, you could save a bit and get a DS218J, you can spend the extra on larger drives.

The non J variants are nicer, tool less drive removal etc, but they come at a premium.

I assume you know this, but by default it will run in RAID1 (SHR), so 2x 4TB drives would be 4TB total space.

Thanks Bledd, I managed to save £70 on a 218+ model by using the 20% eBay discount yesterday, so very pleased. Ive also orderd 2x4TB WD Red. I’ll be running Raid0 as if I lose my movies its no big deal really.

Looking forward to trying Plex

 

[oHUTCHYo]

To be safer than RAID0, you can just use them as single drives.

You can then use PetaSpace (Synology app in the Package Centre). To virtually merge volumes.

https://www.synology.com/en-uk/dsm/packages/PetaSpace

Awesome, this sounds far better as is what Im used to currently having two independent 3TB Mybooks. One for movies and one for TV shows + music + random backup such as photos, document etc. The latter random stuff I habitually back up to a USB 1TB portable drive for peace of mind.

Is it obvious during the initial Synology setup to be able to run seperate drives? Whats the terminology? Ive watched a few few setup videos on yutube in advance. Am I also right in saying ext4 file system would be better for me than...whatn is it...btfs?