Apple created the Time Machine tool to automatically create a copy of a Mac device’s files, applications, system settings, and other data. Nowadays, some users are using Synology NAS as a backup option rather than Mac’s Time Machine. Therefore, many configure Synology NAS as a Time Machine backup target. This blog will explain how you can set up Synology Time Machine Backup and use it to back up your Mac device data.

Table of Contents
  1. Why Use Synology as Time Machine Backup Destination?
  2. Preparations for Configuring Synology NAS Time Machine Backup
  3. How to Set Up Synology NAS for Time Machine Backup?
  4. Create Shared Folder in NAS for Mac Backup
  5. Set Shared Folder as Backup Target
  6. How to Backup Mac to Synology with Time Machine?
  7. Limitations of Time Machine Backup
  8. Final Words

Why Use Synology as Time Machine Backup Destination?

Time Machine is helpful to back up your entire Mac files and easily restore them at any point in time. Still, some users are switching their destination to Synology to secure professional data and prevent issues like Time Machine Mac not working. Below I have listed common reasons to make NAS your backup target.

  • Users can easily back up multiple Mac devices to a single Synology NAS unit.
  • Saving your Mac data on a different device helps you prevent overwriting, and no one can view it.
  • All your data will be in centralized network device, which makes it easier to manage.
  • Many times, Time Machine may fill your complete disk, as it is designed in this way. But in Synology NAS, you can set limitations on your storage quota.
  • Synology provides you with expansion units that you can plug into the host NAS for more storage.
  • To protect your data from drive failure, NAS supports RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks).

Therefore, Synology NAS offers more protection and storage for your data than Time Machine. That’s why many want to configure a NAS for their Mac Backup destination. But, to do that, you have to first prepare yourself.

Preparations for Configuring Synology NAS Time Machine Backup

  • Create a new user account in Time Machine which make it differentiate to other backup data.
  • Also, in the NAS, create a separate shared folder.
  • Make sure you apply storage quotas in your NAS to prevent it from using all the space on the drives.
  • The Synology NAS must be broadcast so that it is easily available on the network, and it will be easy for Mac to discover it.
  • Make sure Time Machine support your Synology.

After this, you can start configuring your NAS for Time Machine Backup.

How to Set Up Synology NAS for Time Machine Backup?

The process of setting up is lengthy, as you have to first create a shared folder, set the shared folder as a backup target, and set a quota. I will explain the 2 stages with proper steps.

Create Shared Folder in NAS for Mac Backup

  1. First of all, use your administrator account to log in to Synology OS.
  2. Then, go to Control Panel and then Shared Folder. Hit the Create button.
  3. Provide a name for the new shared folder and select a location.
  4. Don’t enable the recycle bin or encrypted shared folders. Then, hit Next.
  5. Configure the advanced settings, then press Next.

Set Shared Folder as Backup Target

  1. To configure your shared folder, go to the Control Panel and click File Services.
  2. Navigate to the SMB tab (DSM 7.0 and above and DSM Enterprise) or the SMB/AFP/NFS tab (DSM 6.2 and below). Then, click Enable SMB service.
  3. For DSM, broadcast the shared folder as the Time Machine backup target
    • Go to the Advanced tab and then enable Bonjour service discovery.
    • Click on Enable Bonjour Time Machine Broadcast via SMB.
    • Press Set Time Machine Folders.
    • Select the shared folder from the Time Machine menu.
  4. In the SMB tab, click Advanced Settings and add these details.
    • Maximum SMB protocol: SMB3
    • Enable Opportunistic Locking
    • Enable SMB2 lease
    • Enable SMB durable handles (Cross-protocol file locking will be disabled).
  5. Create a DSM user account and make sure to grant read and write permissions for the user account.
  6. Set a quota for backup data.

Now, your Synology has become a Time Machine backup target, where when you back up your Mac files, they will be stored in the NAS. To know how to perform a Synology Time Machine backup. I have explained the steps below.

How to Backup Mac to Synology with Time Machine?

Depending on the Mac version you are using, the steps of the backup will vary.

  1. If you use macOS Ventura 13 or above: Click the Apple menu, then System Settings. Select General and Time Machine.
  2. For macOS Monterey 12 or below: Click the Apple menu and then System Preferences. Select Time Machine.
  3. Now, run Time Machine and select Add Backup Disk or Select Backup Disk.
  4. Choose the shared folder that you have just created.
  5. If you are using Bonjour Time Machine broadcast (DSM only) and the shared folder is configured as a Time Machine Folder, go to DSM and then the File option.
  6. Select Services, then click the Advanced button. Choose Bonjour.
  7. For manual SMB connection:
    • Open Finder on a Mac, then click the Go button.
    • Select Connect to Server. Enter SMB path like this: smb://data_IP/folder_name
    • Provide username and password. Hit the Connect button.
    • Select Set Up Disk or Use Disk. Then, choose the encryption to back up your data.

Important points:

  • Use the encrypt backup option in Time Machine instead of encrypting the shared folder.
  • In macOS Sierra 10.12 and above, Time Machine uses SMB as the default protocol.
  • When you are backing up to an external drive on a Synology NAS or Synology Router. Make sure the drive file system is either ext4 or Btrfs.

Limitations of Time Machine Backup

Time Machine is an easy way for Mac data backup, and after configuring it to Synology NAS. It becomes safer. However, there are limitations to using this as well.

  • You need a stable internet connection to create a backup. If the network is unstable, power failures or connectivity issues will impact the scheduled backup.
  • When you first back up your copies in Synology NAS, the initial backup may take several hours to complete, depending on the amount of data and network speed.
  • Time Machine daily stores multiple versions of files, which you can restore from different points in time. This feature is useful, but it also uses a lot of storage space on the NAS.
  • It is only for macOS, which means that Windows, cloud services, databases, etc., use another option to back up to a Synology NAS.

Backup Synology Emails with SysTools Synology Backup Tool

If you use Synology Mail Server or MailPlus for communication or email exchange, then it is necessary to separately protect your email data with the SysTools Synology Backup Software. It helps you back up Synology mailbox data into PST, MBOX, MSG, EML, and PDF. This is a direct solution to back up Synology Mail Server and MailPlus emails locally or to a NAS. You can download this for free now on Windows or macOS.

 

Final Words

Time Machine and Synology NAS are two great tools that can protect your Mac files and system files. Configuring your NAS for Time Machine can create an extra layer of protection. Therefore, in this blog, I have explained the step-by-step process of Synology Time Machine backup. Along with it, I also suggest Synology backup if you needed in future.