Synology Level 1 – Foundations

This course introduces Synology NAS platforms and DSM administration in a practical, beginner-friendly way. It gives learners the foundation needed to provision a unit, understand how Synology storage is structured, configure core services safely, and manage day-to-day file access with confidence.

The focus is on real operational tasks: initial setup, networking basics, storage pools, arrays and volumes, users, groups, shared folders, permissions, privilege models, application awareness, and backup and restore concepts. It is designed as the starting point for staff who will administer Synology systems in business environments.

Course purpose

Give learners a practical foundation in Synology administration so they can deploy and manage a NAS safely, understand how storage and permissions are organised, and make sensible day-one decisions around file access, applications and data protection.

Duration

1 day for most learners
Can be expanded with extra labs for teams new to NAS administration

Target audience

new Synology administrators
helpdesk and support staff
office and branch IT administrators
infrastructure staff responsible for shared storage and backups
technical teams moving from ad-hoc file shares to managed NAS platforms

Prerequisites

Ideally learners will have:

basic IT literacy
some awareness of IP addressing and network devices
basic familiarity with users, folders and access control concepts
general understanding that storage needs protecting with backup, not just redundancy

The course is still designed to remain accessible to administrators new to Synology.

Learning outcomes

explain what a Synology NAS is and where it fits in an infrastructure estate
provision and complete initial setup of a Synology system using DSM
understand the role of interfaces, IP settings, DNS and gateway configuration in a NAS environment
distinguish between disks, RAID, arrays, storage pools and volumes
create and manage users, groups and shared folders safely
apply permissions and privileges with a clearer understanding of inheritance and access impact
understand the purpose of common Synology applications and package-based services
explain the difference between redundancy, snapshots, backup and restore
perform day-one administrative tasks with safer operational habits

Detailed module structure

Unit 1: Introduction to Synology and DSM

Topics:

what a Synology NAS is
common business use cases:
- file sharing
- department storage
- backup target
- application hosting
- surveillance and collaboration services
DiskStation Manager as the management platform
appliance thinking vs general-purpose server thinking
where Synology fits alongside servers, cloud and user endpoints

Unit 2: Provisioning and first-time setup

Topics:

physical installation and drive population basics
finding the unit on the network
installing DSM and initial wizard steps
administrator account creation
naming the system appropriately
time, update and security baseline settings

Foundation message: good first-time setup decisions reduce later confusion around storage, access and recovery.

Unit 3: Networking basics for Synology administrators

Topics:

interfaces and link state
DHCP vs static addressing
IP address, subnet, gateway and DNS in context
hostname and name resolution awareness
basic network services the NAS depends on
bonding and VLAN awareness at a high level where relevant

Unit 4: Disks, RAID, arrays and storage pools

Topics:

physical disks and health awareness
what redundancy is and what it is not
RAID concepts at a practical level
Synology Hybrid RAID awareness
storage pool creation
how disk failure changes operational thinking

Critical distinction: RAID and redundancy help availability, but they do not replace backup.

Unit 5: Volumes and filesystem layout

Topics:

difference between storage pool and volume
why capacity planning matters
expansion awareness
filesystem and feature awareness at a high level
how shared folders sit on top of volumes
what happens when space runs low

Unit 6: Users, groups and identity basics

Topics:

local users and groups
why groups simplify administration
basic account lifecycle management
password policy awareness
directory integration awareness at a high level
admin vs normal user separation

Unit 7: Shared folders and permissions

Topics:

creating shared folders
naming and organisational good practice
user vs group permissions
read, write and deny logic
permission inheritance awareness
how bad permission design creates support issues

Unit 8: Privileges and service access

Topics:

difference between file permissions and application privileges
granting access to services and packages
least-privilege thinking
separating admin capability from normal usage
common mistakes with overly broad access

Key idea: someone can have access to a shared folder but still lack the privilege to use a related application or service.

Unit 9: Synology applications and package awareness

Topics:

what Package Center is
common applications at a high level:
- file access tools
- backup tools
- sync and collaboration apps
- media and surveillance awareness
resource and storage impact of extra packages
update and maintenance awareness
when to keep a NAS focused on core storage duties

Unit 10: Backup, restore and protection concepts

Topics:

why backup matters even with redundant disks
local backup vs remote backup thinking
restore objectives and recovery confidence
snapshot awareness vs backup awareness
basic restore scenarios:
- single file restore
- shared folder restore
- configuration restore awareness
testing recovery rather than assuming it works

Unit 11: Monitoring and day-to-day administration

Topics:

capacity monitoring
alerting and health checks
update habits and maintenance windows
reviewing logs and basic status indicators
good housekeeping around stale accounts and unused shares

Unit 12: Good practice and safe operational habits

Topics:

documenting storage and share design
using groups instead of one-off user permission sprawl
avoiding permanent use of powerful admin accounts
understanding the difference between configuration convenience and security
checking backup status regularly
planning before installing extra applications

Labs

complete the first-time setup of a Synology NAS
review interface, IP and DNS settings
create a storage pool and volume in a guided scenario
create users, groups and shared folders
apply permissions for a department share and test access results
review privilege settings for a package or service
walk through a backup job and a simple restore scenario

Assessment

Foundation practical

identify the correct order for provisioning a new NAS
explain the relationship between pool, volume and shared folder
configure user and group access for a basic business scenario
describe an appropriate backup and restore approach

Knowledge check

Explain how a Synology NAS should be provisioned, how storage is structured from disks to shared folders, and how users, permissions, privileges and backup design work together to produce a manageable and recoverable system.

Better Synology foundations - Safer storage administration - Clearer backup thinking

Designed for administrators who need confident DSM setup, access control and day-one NAS operations

Training scope and tailoring

The training plan shown above is provided as a structured guide to the typical scope and direction of the course. Our training content is reviewed and refined over time, so the precise balance of modules, examples and exercises may vary when the course is delivered.

Where there are specific topics, technologies or operational outcomes that are particularly important to your team, these can normally be incorporated into the delivery plan by prior agreement. Training is not treated as a rigid, fixed package; it is adapted where appropriate to reflect the client environment, delegate experience level, group size and the objectives agreed in advance.