Synology DS224+ 2-Bay NAS
The Synology DS224+ is a $300 2-bay NAS built on the Intel Celeron J4125 quad-core at 2.0GHz, with 2GB DDR4 RAM (expandable to 6GB) and dual 1GbE ports. Its real value is DSM 7.2 — the most polished NAS operating system on the market and the reason Synology dominates the home and small-business space.
The easiest NAS to recommend to a beginner — DSM is unmatched, just accept the 1GbE ceiling and Synology's tightening drive policies.
Where to Buy
Pros
- DSM 7.2 is the most polished NAS OS — the iPhone of network storage
- Intel Celeron J4125 has Quick Sync video for hardware Plex/Jellyfin transcoding
- Massive Synology software ecosystem: Photos, Drive, Surveillance Station, Container Manager
- Active Backup for Business backs up Windows PCs, Macs, and VMs at no extra cost
- Quiet under load — 19.8 dB(A) idle per Synology's spec sheet
Cons
- Only 2x 1GbE — no 2.5GbE, no 10GbE option even at extra cost
- Synology's drive compatibility list is increasingly restrictive — non-listed drives now show warnings in DSM
- No M.2 NVMe slots (the DS923+ added them, the DS224+ has none)
- 2GB stock RAM is genuinely tight if you run Container Manager — plan a 4GB SO-DIMM upgrade
- DSM lock-in: migrating to QNAP or TrueNAS later means losing Synology Photos/Notes/Drive sync
DSM 7.2 — Why You Are Really Buying This
The Intel Celeron J4125 is a perfectly average 2019 quad-core chip — the reason the DS224+ costs $300 is DSM. DiskStation Manager 7.2 is a full Linux distribution wrapped in a web UI that genuinely behaves like a native operating system. You install Synology Photos, Synology Drive, Synology Office, Surveillance Station, and Container Manager from a built-in package center. Each app has Android and iOS clients that work without any port forwarding via Synology's QuickConnect relay service. None of this exists on competing NAS platforms at the same level of polish.
The consequence is that nothing else feels as easy. Setting up SHR-1 (Synology Hybrid RAID, equivalent to RAID 1 for 2 drives) takes three clicks. Sharing a folder over SMB takes two. Enabling AFP for legacy Macs, NFS for Linux clients, or WebDAV for cross-platform sync are all checkboxes, not config files. Backups via Hyper Backup push encrypted snapshots to Backblaze B2, AWS S3, or another Synology NAS in a tab.
The lock-in is real, though. Synology Photos uses a proprietary database — moving 100K photos to Immich means re-importing and losing all the AI-generated face groupings. Synology Drive's selective sync, version history, and on-demand caching are not portable. Once you build your household around DSM, switching to QNAP or TrueNAS means rebuilding the entire experience. That is fine if DSM keeps shipping like it has for a decade, but Synology has been quietly raising 'compatibility' walls (drives, RAM, M.2 SSDs) which makes long-term users nervous.
Hardware — Adequate, Not Generous
The J4125 is a 14nm Goldmont Plus chip with 4 cores, no hyperthreading, base 2.0GHz, burst 2.7GHz, and a 10W TDP. Single-thread performance is roughly half a Raspberry Pi 5; multi-thread is closer to a 4GB Pi 5 thanks to four real cores. Quick Sync is the differentiator — Intel's hardware video engine handles H.264, H.265, and VP9 transcoding without touching the CPU, which is why Plex performance feels far better than the spec sheet suggests. Two simultaneous 4K HEVC → 1080p H.264 transcodes are comfortable.
2GB DDR4 ships soldered with one open SO-DIMM slot. Synology officially supports up to 6GB total (2GB soldered + 4GB SO-DIMM). The community routinely runs 18GB total (2GB + 16GB) using Crucial CT16G4SFRA32A modules, but Synology's compatibility tools will flag this. If you plan to run Container Manager with three or more containers (Plex, Immich, Nextcloud), buy a 4GB Synology-branded SO-DIMM ($50) and call it done.
Networking is the real ceiling. Two 1GbE ports max out at ~110MB/s each, and link aggregation only helps with multiple simultaneous clients — a single workstation still tops out at gigabit. There is no PCIe slot to add a 10GbE card. Spinning HDDs in SHR-1 can sustain ~200MB/s sequential reads, so the network is the bottleneck, not the disks. If 1GbE is fine for you, the DS224+ is an excellent buy. If you want 2.5GbE, look at the QNAP TS-264 or Ugreen DXP4800 Plus.
Drive Compatibility and the Synology Whitelist Problem
Synology's drive compatibility list (HCL) used to be advisory — a list of drives Synology had tested. In 2023-2024 it became enforcement: DSM now warns you, withholds certain features (drive health monitoring, dedup, SHR optimizations), and on the larger Plus-series units may refuse to create storage pools with non-listed drives. The DS224+ is still relatively permissive — most major NAS-grade drives work — but it is the direction Synology is moving and worth understanding before you buy.
The safe choices today are Seagate IronWolf (3-12TB), Seagate IronWolf Pro (4-22TB), and WD Red Plus (4-14TB, the CMR variant — avoid WD Red without 'Plus' which is SMR and terrible for RAID). Synology's own HAT3300/HAT3310 drives are obviously on the list but cost 30-40% more for no measurable benefit. WD Red Pro and Seagate Exos are also fine. Avoid shucked WD Easystores or off-brand drives — they will boot but DSM will badge them with warnings indefinitely.
For the DS224+ specifically, two 8TB WD Red Plus drives (~$160 each) in SHR-1 give you 8TB usable with one drive of redundancy — comfortable for 5-10 years of household photos, video, and backups. Two 12TB drives bump that to 12TB usable for ~$240 each. SHR is Synology-proprietary but is functionally RAID 1 on a 2-bay; you can rebuild and migrate to standard RAID 1 later if needed.
Common Gotchas
The drive whitelist will bite you eventually. If you buy a non-listed drive and DSM shows persistent warnings, the only fixes are (a) accept the warning, (b) replace the drive, or (c) edit /etc.defaults/synoinfo.conf to add your drive model — this works but is fragile across DSM updates. Buy from the official compatibility list at synology.com/compatibility to avoid the problem entirely.
2GB stock RAM is genuinely insufficient for serious use. Spin up Container Manager with Plex, Jellyfin, or Immich and you will see swap usage spike within a week. Symptoms: web UI gets sluggish, container restarts at 3 AM, occasional 'out of memory' container kills. The fix is a $50 4GB SO-DIMM. Do this on day one if you plan any Docker workloads.
QuickConnect relay is convenient but slow. Synology's relay servers cap out at roughly 5-10 Mbps for free accounts — fine for accessing a single photo or document remotely, terrible for streaming Plex over cellular. Set up DDNS through Synology's free service plus a port forward (or Tailscale) for real remote performance.
The DS224+ has NO M.2 NVMe slots. The very similar-looking DS923+ has two underneath, and tutorials sometimes confuse the two. If you want SSD cache or M.2 storage on a Synology 2-bay, you have to step up to the discontinued DS720+ or jump to the 4-bay DS923+. There is no DS224+ M.2 mod.
DSM updates occasionally remove third-party packages. Synology Community Package Sources (SynoCommunity) hosts useful add-ons like Sonarr/Radarr that are not in the official package center. Major DSM updates sometimes break these. If you depend on a third-party package, hold off on auto-updates until SynoCommunity confirms compatibility.
Full Specifications
Processor
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Architecture | x86-64 Intel Celeron [1] |
| CPU Cores | 4 [1] |
| Clock Speed | 2000 MHz [1] |
Memory
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| ram_gb | 2 GB [1] |
| ram_max_gb | 6 (2GB onboard + 4GB SO-DIMM expansion) GB [1] |
| storage | 2x 3.5" SATA bays (up to 22TB each = 44TB raw) [1] |
| m2_nvme_slots | 0 (no M.2 NVMe slots — DS923+ has them) [1] |
I/O & Interfaces
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| ethernet_ports | 2 x 1GbE (with link aggregation) [2] |
| usb_ports | 2 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 [2] |
Power
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Input Voltage | 100-240V AC [1] |
| power_consumption | 14.7W active, 4.4W idle (with 2 drives) [1] |
Physical
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 165 x 108 x 232 mm [2] |
| weight_g | 1300 g [2] |
Who Should Buy This
DSM is the closest thing to plug-and-play in NAS land. Set up SHR-1 with two 8TB WD Red Plus drives, install Synology Photos to replace Google Photos, and you are done in an afternoon. The J4125's Quick Sync handles 1080p Plex transcodes for the family.
The J4125 transcodes 4K HEVC well via Quick Sync, but the 1GbE LAN caps you at ~110MB/s. Two simultaneous 4K direct-play streams will saturate the link. Step up to the QNAP TS-264 with 2.5GbE if you serve 3+ concurrent 4K streams.
Better alternative: QNAP TS-264 2-Bay NAS
The DS224+ runs Container Manager (Synology's Docker frontend) and Immich works well, but bump RAM to 6GB first — Immich's machine learning container is hungry. The J4125 is fast enough for facial recognition on a 50K-photo library overnight.
Two bays caps you at one parity drive (SHR-1 mirror). For 4-bay RAID 5 with M.2 NVMe cache and ECC RAM, the DS923+ is the right Synology — or save $260 with the 8-core TerraMaster F2-424 and run TrueNAS.
Better alternative: Synology DS923+ 4-Bay NAS
If you want to run TrueNAS Scale, Unraid, or Proxmox bare-metal, do not buy a Synology — DSM is the entire value proposition. The Beelink ME mini at the same $300 price gives you 6 NVMe slots and a clean N150 platform for any OS.
Better alternative: Beelink ME mini Mini PC (DIY NAS Server)
A Raspberry Pi 5 8GB with the official M.2 HAT+ and OpenMediaVault costs ~$150 in parts, but you trade DSM polish for hours of configuration. Worth it only if you already enjoy Linux. Otherwise the DS224+ pays for itself in time saved.
Better alternative: Raspberry Pi 5 (8GB)
Ecosystem & Community
Synology DSM is the iPhone of NAS — polished, locked down, and unmatched for non-technical users. r/synology has 130K members and SynoCommunity hosts third-party packages for Sonarr, Radarr, and other home server staples.
Compatible Software
What to Build First
Install Synology Photos on the DS224+, point the iOS/Android app at it, enable auto-upload, and stop paying Google for storage. Facial recognition, timeline view, and shared albums work just like Google Photos but stored on your own NAS. Most popular first project for new DS224+ owners.
View tutorial →Must-Have Accessories
Tutorials & Resources
- Synology DS224+ Product PageOfficial spec sheet, compatibility list, and software feature overviewdocs
- r/synology Subreddit130K-member community for setup help, drive compatibility questions, and DSM troubleshootingtutorial
- Synology DS224+ ReviewIndependent benchmarks of the J4125 platform under DSM workloadsreview
- Synology DS224+ Review and ComparisonsRobbie at NASCompares covers every DS-series release with hands-on comparisonsreview
Frequently Asked Questions
Can the Synology DS224+ run Plex with 4K transcoding?
Yes. The Intel Celeron J4125 includes Quick Sync, Intel's hardware video engine, which handles 4K HEVC and H.264 transcoding without loading the CPU. Two simultaneous 4K-to-1080p transcodes are comfortable. The 1GbE LAN, however, caps total throughput at ~110MB/s, so 3+ concurrent 4K direct-play streams will saturate the network.
Should I upgrade the RAM in the DS224+?
Yes if you plan to run Container Manager (Docker). 2GB is tight as soon as you have Plex plus one other container. A single 4GB Synology DDR4 SO-DIMM (~$50) brings the total to 6GB, which Synology officially supports. The community runs 16GB-18GB unofficially, but you may see compatibility warnings.
Does the DS224+ support Immich, Nextcloud, or Jellyfin?
Yes, all three run in Synology's Container Manager (built-in Docker). Synology Photos already covers most Google Photos use cases, but Immich's facial recognition is more accurate. Nextcloud and Jellyfin are popular drop-in replacements for Synology Drive and Plex respectively. Plan a RAM upgrade if you run more than one of these alongside DSM.
Is the DS224+ noisy?
Synology rates it at 19.8 dB(A) idle and around 22 dB(A) under load — quieter than most desktop PCs. Drive noise dominates: WD Red Plus and Seagate IronWolf are fairly quiet, while higher-RPM enterprise drives like Exos can be audible. Place it in a closet or under a desk and you will rarely hear it.
Can I use any 3.5" hard drive in the DS224+?
Physically yes, but Synology's compatibility list is increasingly restrictive. Listed drives like Seagate IronWolf, IronWolf Pro, and WD Red Plus get full DSM features (health monitoring, SHR optimizations). Non-listed drives boot and store data but display persistent warnings and may lose certain features. Stick to the HCL at synology.com/compatibility.
How does the DS224+ compare to the QNAP TS-264?
The TS-264 has more powerful hardware: Intel Celeron N5095, 8GB RAM standard, 2.5GbE, two M.2 NVMe slots, HDMI 2.0 4K output. The DS224+ wins on software polish — DSM is more refined than QTS, the mobile apps are better, and Active Backup for Business is best-in-class. Buy the TS-264 for hardware, the DS224+ for the OS.
Can I install TrueNAS or Unraid on the DS224+?
Technically possible but pointless. The entire reason to buy a Synology is DSM. If you want to run TrueNAS, buy a TerraMaster F2-424 or Beelink ME mini at a similar price with better hardware and full BIOS access. The DS224+ has UEFI lockdowns that make alternative OS installs fragile across firmware updates.