Connecting a USB hard drive to a Synology NAS vs router

[galapogos]

Hi guys,

I have a Synology DS218j NAS that's connected to an ASUS RT-AC2600 router (that is also my house's main router). I have a spare 2TB USB hard drive lying around and would like to add it to the network as another NAS. Both my NAS and router supports NAS via USB. Would it be better to connect my USB hard drive to my existing NAS, or to my router? What are the pros and cons? Thanks!

 

[it_geek]

IMO you are better off connecting it to your NAS than the router.

When you plug USB drives to the router and transfer files off it, you are utilising the Router's CPU load to transfer files from LAN to USB. This takes away precious CPU resources required to route traffic in the home network, resulting in lower overall bandwidth.

I experimented this with my Netgear Nighthawk X6 a few years back and discovered that if i shifted files from my PC to the USB drive, i lose easily 100 - 150mbps overall on the connection from the OTP to the router.

leave the router to do the job that it best does - that is to route network traffic. The USB port to me is frankly a gimmick and I don't use it anymore since.

Let the NAS do the pulling work of shifting data between the different interfaces i.e. LAN to USB. Surely your NAS CPU is way more powerful and adept at handling this.

 

[firesong]

Likewise, my external HDD went to my Synology NAS, since it's a dedicated file server device.

Also, the routers that advertise having "NAS" features are usually very rudimentary implementations of SAMBA with limited configurability, and might not even be properly secured. Synology's OS, while not perfect, is pretty well optimised as a NAS OS.

Another thought - if you have a Raspberry Pi lying around (or can get one cheaply), you could try and build your own NAS with Samba. It might be worthwhile project, and allow you to isolate the Synology NAS from the internet. The way things are going - with ransomware specifically targeting and successfully taking down Qnap and other brands, isolating your NAS may not be a bad idea. This way your new "NAS" becomes your front-facing device, and you're less likely to store critical data there but still have something that you can quickly access remotely via the Internet if you wish, without having to VPN in.

 

[galapogos]

Thanks guys for the unanimous answer
Interesting thought on the rpi, but I don't have one around, and from what I've heard there's a global shortage now too.

 

[Entry Level PC]

IMO you are better off connecting it to your NAS than the router.

When you plug USB drives to the router and transfer files off it, you are utilising the Router's CPU load to transfer files from LAN to USB. This takes away precious CPU resources required to route traffic in the home network, resulting in lower overall bandwidth.

I experimented this with my Netgear Nighthawk X6 a few years back and discovered that if i shifted files from my PC to the USB drive, i lose easily 100 - 150mbps overall on the connection from the OTP to the router.

leave the router to do the job that it best does - that is to route network traffic. The USB port to me is frankly a gimmick and I don't use it anymore since.

Let the NAS do the pulling work of shifting data between the different interfaces i.e. LAN to USB. Surely your NAS CPU is way more powerful and adept at handling this.

That's why in the absence of a NAS,
you should use a dedicated spare router with USB3 to host the USB HDD.