Synology Drive

DSM Version

General

Features

  • Synchronization server for clients on various platforms
  • Cross-office file collaboration among Synology NAS servers
  • File management on web portal
  • Integrated with Synology Office for online file editing
  • Generates safe and secure file sharing links

Specifications

  • Compatible with DSM 7.0 or above
  • Please refer to DSM System Requirements for a list of supported browsers
  • For Synology Drive Server versions 3.0 and above:
    • Connected Synology Drive client applications, including Synology Drive Client and Synology Drive ShareSync, must be updated to version 3.0 and above to ensure compatibility
  • The following packages from Package Center must be installed first:
    • Synology Universal Search
    • Synology Application Service
    • Universal Viewer

Application component

Synology Drive Admin Console

Features

  • Service management center for administrators to monitor and control business data assets and resources on Synology Drive
  • File synchronization server for corresponding client applications on computers, mobile phones, and other Synology NAS servers
  • Option to select specific shared folders on Synology NAS for access in Synology Drive with history version policies
  • Flexible settings for users' access and sharing permissions to suit any deployment scenarios
  • Point-in-time history version restoration of files and folders

Specifications

  • Manage shared folders with versioning policies
    • Up to 32 historical file versions with deduplication across versions
    • Rotate historical versions with durations of 7, 30, 60, or 120 days
    • Retention policy options: first-in-first-out or Intelliversioning algorithm to preserve significant file versions
  • Advanced security options available for shared folders (e.g., restrict file downloads, add watermarks)
    • Compatible with Synology Drive Server 3.4 and above versions
    • Full functionality requires updating to Synology Drive Client 3.4, Synology Drive mobile app 3.3 and above versions
    • Restrict downloads only applicable to non-admin users
    • For the watermarking function:
      • Supports up to 32 characters
      • Customizable settings for content, font color, angle, and transparency
      • Supports files of up to 100 MB in size
      • Limited to specific file types (Learn more)
      • Only supports Synology NAS models with 2 GB or higher RAM (Learn more)
      • Sync tasks are not supported
      • For read-only users, Hybrid Share folders with the watermark function enabled cannot be directly downloaded from C2 Storage
  • Recommended number of concurrent computer client connections per Synology NAS varies by model (Refer to the product specifications of each model)
  • Supports logging and exporting system information for monitoring purposes, including service disruption, system health status, events, or modification of files or shared folder configurations
  • Allows non-admin users to set sharing permissions
    • Public sharing with password enforcement and expiration time
    • Direct sharing with assigned DSM users and group accounts
  • Export sharing link reports with detailed information about sharing links in selected folders
  • Allows non-admin users to create file requests
    • Password protection and expiration time options available
  • Supports managing shared labels
    • Assign privileges to non-admin users to create shared labels
    • Supports transferring ownership to other users
  • Supports file locking on shared folders
    • Connected Synology Drive client applications, including Synology Drive Client and Synology Drive ShareSync, must be updated to version 4.0.0 or above to ensure compatibility
    • Automatic or manual file locking options available
    • Administrators can force unlock files
  • Blacklist file types (e.g., documents, music, videos, images), file names, file extensions, and set maximum file size for syncing files by specific users
  • Connection list of client applications with detailed information such as device name, username, application type, online/offline status, IP address, and location. Includes options to unlink connections or remotely wipe synced files from devices
  • Customizable content indexing rules for each shared folder to enhance search functionality in Synology Drive
  • Calculate application's storage usage and manually clean up deleted files in recycle bins to free up space
  • Version Explorer allows administrators to switch view roles, browse file/folder version history, and download/restore them with minute-level version granularity

Limitations

  • Mounted shared folders cannot be enabled as Team Folders

Synology Drive ShareSync

Features

  • Real-time collaboration via two-way synchronization with multiple Synology NAS servers in multiple locations
  • One-way synchronization to distribute or collect data and files to remote Synology NAS servers
  • Flexible options to sync folders and selectively sync sub-folders to prevent redundant file syncing

Specifications

  • Sync files on shared folder basis or selectively sync sub-folders with multiple Synology NAS servers
  • Flexible sync mode settings with either syncing all privileges, only domain user privileges or files excluding permissions and metadata
  • Two-way sync or one-way upload/download to meet different remote offices and collaboration needs
  • Blacklisting file types (e.g., documents, music, videos, images, etc.), file name, file extensions, and maximum file size for syncing files and folders for each syncing task
  • Options to tackle file version conflict by either keeping the latest modified version, or keeping the version on the server and renaming to keep the discarded version
  • Monitors the syncing status with connected servers' information and connection status for error handling
  • Monitors and logs detailed file syncing events which can be filtered by shared folders, keywords, or date range

Limitations

  • Under the following circumstances, files will not be synced by Synology Drive ShareSync:
    • Certain file types or file paths containing certain characters (Learn more)
    • The file path is longer than 2,048 characters
    • The file name is longer than 255 characters
  • Each Synology NAS can connect with multiple remote Synology NAS servers, but a Synology NAS can only be paired with a remote Synology NAS once
  • A local shared folder cannot be set as the sync folder for multiple remote Synology NAS servers simultaneously
  • Mounted shared folders and folders without write permission cannot be used as sync folders
  • Mounting folders on the local sync folder is not supported

Synology Drive

Features

  • Access files via the web portal and collaborate through Team Folders, using personal or shared labels and stars to categorize or highlight important files
  • Granular and flexible file/folder permission settings for secure sharing scenarios
  • Integration with the online editing tool Synology Office and instant messaging service Synology Chat for seamless team collaboration

Specifications

  • Supported browsers including Firefox, Chrome, Safari, and Edge
  • Organize files with personal labels, shared labels, or hotkeys, and sort by title, modified time, type, owner, or size
  • Collect files from external users via file requests
  • Content searching via DSM built-in package Synology Universal Search with a variety of search criteria (e.g., keyword, location, type, owner, labels, size, and date) to quickly gather the most relevant data
  • Customizable permission settings to share folders and files only with other DSM users, or share publicly with the protection of password and validity period
  • Monitors and logs detailed user actions and events, including file manipulations, permission modifications, and version rotations
  • Provides the ability for team collaboration on documents, spreadsheets, and slides through the integration with Synology Office
  • Sends important update notifications via the Synology instant message application Synology Chat
  • Backs up Synology Drive to local or remote destinations and restores the settings and data of the package to a previous point in time with the Synology package Hyper Backup

Limitations

  • Deleted files from Team Folder will be placed in Recycle Bin, which is only accessible by system administrators
  • Symbolic link files or folders are not displayed in the Synology Drive web portal

Affiliated Utility

Synology Drive Client

Features

  • Desktop application to synchronize files and folders between the computer and the Synology Drive server to access, browse, and share files via file browser
  • Real-time or scheduled computer backup from local computer to Synology Drive Server with the capability to restore files and folders on the client side
  • File locking to ensure only one user can edit a file at a time, preventing conflicts

Specifications

  • Synology Drive Server package must be installed on your Synology NAS
  • Supported operating systems:
    • Windows: Windows 10 2004 and above (excluding Windows 10 on ARM and Windows Server editions)
    • macOS: macOS 12 Monterey and above (64-bit)
    • Linux: Ubuntu 20.04 and above (officially supported versions)
  • Create up to 64 sync tasks with Synology Drive Client for Windows environment
  • The On-demand Sync feature helps reduce computer capacity consumption and overhead on the server (Available on Windows 10 version 1809, macOS 12.3, and above versions)
  • File access from file browser on local computer with synchronization with My Drive, Team Folder, and Shared with me folders on Synology Drive Server
  • Two-way sync or one-way upload/download to meet different collaboration needs
  • Blacklisting file name, file extensions, and maximum file size for each sync task
  • Flexible backup settings with continuous, manual, or schedule mode to meet different backup needs
  • Monitors and logs file manipulations, including downloads, delete, rename, etc.

Limitations

  • The maximum number of files each Synology Drive Client can sync is 500,000. Exceeding this figure may reduce the application's performance and cause unexpected errors
  • Certain file and drive types are not supported on Synology Drive sync task (Learn more)
  • .pst files are not supported because .pst files are not guaranteed to be portable
  • Only one backup task can be established for one account
  • Folders already synced or folders that are ancestor or child folders to a synced folder cannot be selected for sync task
  • If the local folder contains a folder mounted via other file protocols, files inside this mount point might not be synced because Synology Drive cannot detect file changes inside a mount point
  • On-demand Sync
    • Local folders which are already synced with Synology Drive's On-demand Sync, OneDrive's File On-Demand, or iCloud Drive and their child folders cannot be selected for a task with On-demand Sync
    • Root drive directories (e.g., C:\ and D:\) and home directories (e.g., C:\Users<username>) cannot be selected as On-demand Sync folder

Synology Drive (Mobile)

Features

  • Easy access and file management on the go with file searching, sharing, moving, applying labels, and creating customized collections in iOS and Android environments
  • Granular and flexible file or folder permission settings for secure sharing scenarios 
  • Offline access to view the files downloaded to the local device
  • Keep files and folders up-to-date with the sync function
  • Protects photos and videos on the mobile device with the photo backup function
  • Protects files on WeChat with the WeChat backup function (Only on China version)

Specifications

  • System requirements
    • iOS: 17.0 or above
    • Android: 8.0 or above
  • File management with labels, stars, sorting by title, modified time, type, owner, and size
  • Content searching with a variety of criteria (e.g., keyword, location, type, owner, labels, size, and date) to quickly gather the most relevant data
  • Customizable permission settings to share folders and files only with other DSM users, or share publicly with the protection of password and validity period
  • Secure application lock with passcode (Fingerprint scanner supported)
  • Photo backup to custom backup path for flexible management
  • Enhanced protection of mobile data with two-way and one-way sync task that allows for setting custom sync rules
  • Offline access and auto-update for multiple files on a local device
  • Supports editing Synology Office documents and spreadsheets (Requires Synology Drive Server 3.2.0-795, Synology Office 3.5, Android 10.0, iOS 14.0, and above versions)
  • Supports annotating PDF files, including text highlighting, adding notes, and signing PDF documents. On iOS, annotations will be updated to the original file in Synology Drive; on Android, users can choose to replace the original file or save as a new file
  • Supports editing .txt and .md files within the app, including Markdown syntax support for .md files
  • Option to view files by file types (e.g., document, photo, video, music) and to create custom Collections
  • Integration with iOS Files and Android document provider as a universal entry to easily browse, open, edit, or move files among different storage apps
  • Supports viewing general file formats (Supported file formats)
  • Accelerates file loading speed with cache management
  • Provides storage usage and quota limit information of each team folder
  • Supports dark theme settings

Limitations

  • On iOS devices, Synology Slides cannot be viewed if the files are opened with links that do not allow downloads or copies
  • PDF annotation is only available for documents that allow editing
  • On Android devices, PDF annotations in the Synology Drive mobile app can be made and displayed in any character types. However, in third-party apps, annotations will disappear unless the character type is one of the following:
    • Chinese (Traditional and Simplified)
    • Cyrillic
    • Greek
    • Japanese (Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji)
    • Korean (Hangul and Hanja)
    • Latin