Many people think of Synology’s stellar lineup of NAS enclosures for home use when they hear the name. A user’s experience with network storage is largely determined by the software, despite the significance of the underlying hardware. As a NAS OS, Synology’s DiskStation Manager (DSM) is very powerful and versatile. DSM 7.2 is the next significant upgrade after last year’s huge makeover, and it’s packed with long-requested improvements. In this article, you will find all the information you require concerning DSM 7.2.

New and updated features for Synology DSM 7.2 and beyond

Full volume encryption is a feature that many Synology users have been asking for, and it will soon be available in the next DSM 7.2 upgrade. This is a significant upgrade from the previous encryption method of encrypting individual shared folders, and it will provide your NAS with complete data security. If you have a lot of folders inside folders, you may be limited by the current encryption method, but that won’t be the case with the new one. Synology claims that we may expect a considerable speed increase over the current setup, even when using full-volume encryption.

They are also making Synology Drive, their answer to Google Drive, a more attractive choice for businesses with several employees. In the event of a stolen or hacked computer, administrators will have the ability to remotely delete any data stored on the device. Users will see faster indexing times when transferring many files at once. Synology asserts that the upgrade will make things 10 times quicker than the present approach, which might take hours depending on the quantity of data. This is an amazing assertion, but we need to do our own tests to verify it.

Like Windows users, Mac users will soon have access to a native Synology Active Backup app, providing a straightforward means of copying full system backups to a NAS. Synology’s backup solution is superior to Apple’s Time Machine for large-team administrators who must manage backups for various devices remotely and from a single dashboard.

DSM 7.2 includes the enterprise-focused functionality “Write Once, Read Many,” or WORM for short. It enables large-scale file sharing while protecting data from unauthorised changes. Synology offers various configurations that provide organisations more leeway in determining retention policies to meet the requirements of state and federal regulations.

Active Insight, Synology’s NAS health management tool, will soon be able to detect a ransomware attack and take a series of automated actions until an admin can intervene manually, in keeping with the company’s emphasis on data security in its 2023 outlook. Hyper Backup will also be able to create complete backups of your NAS. This will be helpful if your NAS is compromised or if several drives die and you need to restore everything to its original condition.

That’s a whole lot of improvements and additions coming to Synology’s NAS boxes. Many of these utilities have been requested by power users for some time, and with the introduction of DSM 7.2 in the first quarter of 2023, they will be available at last.

There is brand new hardware available from Synology

At its presentation in New Delhi last week, Synology demonstrated not just the updated software but also the new DiskStation DS923+. While superficially identical to its wildly successful forerunner, the DS920+, this new model has undergone significant internal revisions. Mainly, it has a new, massive 32GB RAM upgrade option and an AMD Ryzen 1600 CPU. In addition to the DS152210GbE +’s LAN port, this one also contains an expansion slot for future use.

One of the most notable changes to the DS923+ is its new CPU. Although the Ryzen 1600 processor is highly competent, it lacks an integrated GPU, making it much weaker at video transcoding on the fly than the DS920+, the recommended NAS for installing a Plex server. Synology’s new mid-range NAS is aimed squarely at enterprises and small teams, whereas Plex streaming caters mostly to individual users.

Let me be clear: the DS923+ will still stream your favourite programmes and movies without a hitch, provided that you don’t need to convert the video files in beforehand.

Synology will also be entering the security camera industry with the release of two new products. These 5 megapixel cameras from the 500 series are compatible with Synology Surveillance Station and come with useful tools like the ability to set up activity zones. The greatest aspect is that integrating these cameras with your NAS won’t need you to buy any more licences.

In addition, a new mid-range WRX560 Wi-Fi 6 router is available. Its software is identical to that of the more expensive RT6600ax.

While you can get your hands on the new router right now, the rest of these products—along with DSM 7.2 and its many improvements—are scheduled for availability in the first half of 2023. Any Synology NAS now running DSM 7.1 will be able to be updated to the latest software when it is released next year, providing Android users even more incentive to purchase a Synology NAS.