Synology is a reputed name in the data storage solutions and is specialized in Network-Attached Storage (NAS) devices. The company has a comprehensive portfolio of NAS devices to cater to the different needs of home users, small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and large businesses. Synology’s NAS solutions are available under different models, such as DiskStation, RackStation, and FlashStation.
These NAS devices also come with multi-tier data backup plans with enterprise-grade data protection systems. Every Synology NAS device uses a Linux-based proprietary operating system, called DiskStation Manager (DSM) that powers the NAS and helps manage and protect the data. In this article, we will discuss how data is organized in Synology NAS and how to recover lost data from Synology NAS devices.
How Data is Stored in a Synology NAS?
Like other NAS devices, Synology NAS is also setup as a centralized storage with multiple drives for storing and managing data over a network. Member drives in Synology NAS device can be formatted with either Ext4 or BTRFS file system to create volumes. Each drive volume contains Shared Folders, where files and folders are stored and managed. Shared Folders allow users to share the files with both DSM and non-DSM users.
Synology NAS device supports custom folder hierarchy that allows users to create folders and sub-folders within each shared folder for storing data according to their requirements. This improves access to files and folders and their management. Shared folders in Synology NAS drives can be encrypted with a 256-bit AES data encryption algorithm for additional security and to prevent unauthorized access to sensitive files and folders.
The DiskStation Manager can be used for allocating storage limits on every NAS volume. However, with BTRFS-formatted volumes, DSM can be used to view quota and storage capacity usage for each shared folder. Moreover, the DSM can be used to track storage trends and forecast storage needs for future expansion.
Read More: BTRFS vs EXT4 File Systems
RAID Arrays Supported by Synology NAS
Member drives in a Synology NAS can also be configured as a RAID setup. Synology NAS supports varied RAID configurations to cater to different requirements.
Read More – Types of RAID Arrays
Reasons for Data Loss from Synology NAS Devices
Synology NAS devices often run into issues that result in the data loss. Some of these issues are:
Issue 1: Loss of RAID Configuration
RAID configuration or NAS metadata is stored on the member drives. This can get lost due to corruption, power outages, and other reasons. It can also happen due to file system corruption. When this happens, the files on the NAS device become inaccessible to the users.
Issue 2: Drive Failure
If any member drive in the Synology NAS is failed, then it can lead to data loss, depending on the setup. For example, if the Synology NAS is setup as RAID 0, then failure of a single drive can result in data loss. On the other hand, if there is a RAID 5 setup, then failure of more than 2 drives can lead to data loss.
Issue 3: RAID Rebuild Failure
When you replace a hard drive in RAID-based NAS, it automatically starts rebuilding the RAID array. If the process is interrupted due to a sudden power outage or any other reason, it may crash the RAID array. In some cases, this may result in severe corruption or complete data loss. The RAID rebuild process may also fail if the drive controller encounters bit errors (bit rot).
Issue 4: issues with Firmware Update
If there is an issue when installing a firmware update, then this may cause the storage pool to become unavailable. Sometimes, sudden power outage or system shutdown during firmware installation may make the OS inaccessible, causing data loss.
Issue 5: Accidental Data Deletion
Accidental data deletion is a common reason behind data loss in Synology NAS device. This could happen while deleting unrequired files or folders.
Issue 6: NAS Box Failure
If any Synology NAS box component, such as drive controller, CPU, memory, etc., fails, it may prevent it from operating, thereby making the data inaccessible.
How to Recover Data from Synology NAS Device?
In case of data loss from Synology NAS, you can first check the system logs, status, and health of the member drives. This helps you to assess the severity of damage and data loss. If you’re using any backup solution, such as Synology C2 backup, Hyper Backup, etc., then you easily restore the lost data from backup.
However, if you don’t have a backup, then you can take the help of a Synology NAS data recovery software, like Stellar Toolkit for Data Recovery. This software helps recover all kinds of data, such as files and folders, media files, etc., from a RAID-based Synology NAS. Its advanced data recovery algorithms can recover file from inaccessible Synology NAS drives. It can also recover lost files and folders from Synology Hybrid RAID.
Read More – Methods to Avoid Data Loss in NAS
End Note
Synology NAS devices are preferred storage solutions as they are scalable and secure. These also come with numerous data protection solutions and multi-tiered backup plans to mitigate data loss. In case, you’ve lost data from Synology NAS device, then the easiest option to recover the data is by using an advanced NAS data recovery software, like Stellar Toolkit for Data Recovery. It can also recover data from RAID-based Synology NAS.
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