Synology Internal Backup Guide: Storage Pool to Storage Pool

This guide covers the best methods for backing up data from one Synology storage pool/volume to another on the same DS918+ NAS.

Table of Contents

• Overview
• Prerequisites
• Method 1: Hyper Backup (Recommended)
• Method 2: Shared Folder Move
• Method 3: rsync Command Line
• Method 4: File Manager Copy
• Important Considerations
• Troubleshooting

Overview

Scenario: Backing up data from Storage Pool 1/Volume 1 to Storage Pool 2/Volume 1 on the same DS918+ NAS.

Available Methods

Method	Best For	Complexity	Versioning	Scheduling
Hyper Backup	Complete backups with versioning	Easy	Yes	Yes
Shared Folder Move	One-time migration	Easy	No	No
rsync Command Line	Advanced users, automation	Medium	No	Manual
File Manager Copy	Simple file copying	Easy	No	No

Prerequisites

Hardware Requirements

• DS918+ with DSM 7.2 or later
• At least 2 storage pools configured
• Sufficient free space on destination storage pool

Software Requirements

• Hyper Backup package installed (for Method 1)
• SSH enabled (for Method 3)
• rsync service enabled (for Method 3)

Storage Pool Configuration

# Verify your storage pools
# DSM → Storage Manager → Storage Pool
# Should show:
# - Storage Pool 1: Your source pool
# - Storage Pool 2: Your destination pool

Method 1: Hyper Backup (Recommended)

Overview

Hyper Backup provides the most comprehensive backup solution with versioning, scheduling, and restoration capabilities.

Step 1: Install Hyper Backup

1. Package Manager: Main Menu → Package Center
2. Search: “Hyper Backup”
3. Install: Click Install button

Step 2: Create Backup Task

1. Open Hyper Backup
2. Create Task: Click “+” button → “Data backup task”
3. Destination: Select “Local shared folder & External storage”
4. Next: Continue to destination configuration

Step 3: Configure Destination

1. Shared Folder: Select a shared folder on Storage Pool 2

   Example: /volume2/backup-destination
   

2. Directory Name: Enter descriptive name

   Example: "Volume1_Backup_[Date]"
   

3. Next: Continue to source selection

Step 4: Select Source Data

1. Select Folders: Choose folders from Storage Pool 1/Volume 1

   ✓ /volume1/homes
   ✓ /volume1/documents
   ✓ /volume1/media
   

2. Advanced Options:
   • Enable file compression (optional)
   • Enable client-side encryption (optional)
3. Next: Continue to applications

Step 5: Configure Applications (Optional)

1. Select Applications: Choose applications to backup

   Common selections:
   ✓ Synology Photos
   ✓ Synology Drive
   ✓ Note Station
   

2. Next: Continue to settings

Step 6: Backup Settings

1. Task Name: Enter descriptive name

   Example: "Storage Pool 1 to Storage Pool 2 Backup"
   

2. Schedule: Configure backup frequency

   Options:
   - Daily at specific time
   - Weekly on specific day
   - Monthly on specific date
   

3. Retention: Set backup retention policy

   Recommended: Keep 7 daily, 4 weekly, 6 monthly
   

4. Reserve deleted files: Check if you want to keep deleted files
5. Apply: Create backup task

Step 7: Monitor and Manage

# Monitor backup progress
Hyper Backup → Backup Tasks → [Your Task] → Logs

# Restore files when needed
Hyper Backup → Backup Tasks → [Your Task] → Restore

Backup Types in Hyper Backup

• Single Version: Mirrors source to destination
• Multi-Version: Keeps multiple backup versions
• Incremental: Only backs up changes since last backup

Method 2: Shared Folder Move

Overview

Move entire shared folders between storage pools/volumes.

Important Notes

• One-time operation: This moves, not copies
• Downtime required: Folder unavailable during move
• Snapshot consideration: Must disable immutable snapshots first

Step 1: Prepare for Move

1. Check Snapshots:

   Main Menu → Snapshot Replication → Snapshots
   Select shared folder → Settings → Disable immutable snapshots
   

2. Verify Space: Ensure destination has enough space
3. Plan Downtime: Schedule when folder can be offline

Step 2: Move Shared Folder

1. Access Control Panel: Main Menu → Control Panel → Shared Folder
2. Select Folder: Choose folder to move
3. Edit: Click Edit button

4. Change Location: From Location dropdown, select destination volume

   Example: Change from Volume 1 to Volume 2
   

5. Apply: Confirm move operation

Step 3: Monitor Progress

• Progress Bar: Shows move completion status
• Log Files: Check logs for any errors
• Verify Access: Test folder accessibility after move

Method 3: rsync Command Line

Overview

Advanced method using SSH and rsync for flexible backup options.

Step 1: Enable Services

1. Enable SSH:

   Control Panel → Terminal & SNMP → Enable SSH service
   

2. Enable rsync:

   Control Panel → File Services → rsync → Enable rsync service
   

Step 2: SSH Access

# Connect to your DS918+
ssh admin@192.168.10.11  # Replace with your NAS IP

# Navigate to volume paths
ls /volume1/  # Source volume
ls /volume2/  # Destination volume

Step 3: Basic rsync Commands

# Dry run (test without copying)
rsync -avn /volume1/source-folder/ /volume2/destination-folder/

# Basic copy with archive mode
rsync -av /volume1/source-folder/ /volume2/destination-folder/

# Copy with progress and compression
rsync -avz --progress /volume1/source-folder/ /volume2/destination-folder/

# Copy with exclusions
rsync -av --exclude='*.tmp' --exclude='Thumbs.db' /volume1/source-folder/ /volume2/destination-folder/

Step 4: Advanced rsync Options

# Full backup with hard links (space efficient)
rsync -av --link-dest=/volume2/backup-previous /volume1/ /volume2/backup-current/

# Backup with deletion (mirror)
rsync -av --delete /volume1/source-folder/ /volume2/destination-folder/

# Backup with bandwidth limiting
rsync -av --bwlimit=1000 /volume1/source-folder/ /volume2/destination-folder/

Step 5: Create Backup Script

#!/bin/bash
# Create backup script at /volume1/scripts/backup.sh

SOURCE="/volume1/data/"
DEST="/volume2/backup/"
DATE=$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S)
LOG="/volume1/logs/backup_${DATE}.log"

echo "Starting backup at $(date)" > "$LOG"

rsync -av --progress --log-file="$LOG" \
    --exclude='*.tmp' \
    --exclude='Thumbs.db' \
    --exclude='.DS_Store' \
    "$SOURCE" "$DEST" 2>&1 | tee -a "$LOG"

echo "Backup completed at $(date)" >> "$LOG"

Step 6: Schedule with Cron

# Edit crontab
crontab -e

# Add daily backup at 2 AM
0 2 * * * /volume1/scripts/backup.sh

# Add weekly full backup on Sunday at 1 AM
0 1 * * 0 /volume1/scripts/full-backup.sh

Method 4: File Manager Copy

Overview

Simple GUI-based copying using DSM File Manager.

Step 1: Open File Manager

1. Access: Main Menu → File Station
2. Navigate: Browse to source folder on Volume 1

Step 2: Copy Files

1. Select Files: Choose files/folders to copy
2. Copy: Right-click → Copy (or Ctrl+C)
3. Navigate: Go to destination folder on Volume 2
4. Paste: Right-click → Paste (or Ctrl+V)

Step 3: Monitor Progress

• Progress Dialog: Shows copy status
• Task Manager: View active file operations
• Logs: Check for any copy errors

Limitations

• No scheduling capability
• No versioning
• Manual process only
• No compression options

Important Considerations

Backup vs. Redundancy

⚠️ IMPORTANT: Backing up between storage pools on the same NAS 
   provides protection against:
   ✓ Individual drive failure (if using RAID)
   ✓ Accidental deletion
   ✓ File corruption
   
   BUT does NOT protect against:
   ✗ NAS hardware failure
   ✗ Natural disasters
   ✗ Theft
   ✗ Malware affecting entire NAS

Storage Pool Types

• SHR (Synology Hybrid RAID): Recommended for flexibility
• RAID 1: Mirror for redundancy
• RAID 5: Good balance of space and redundancy
• RAID 6: Maximum redundancy for larger arrays

Performance Considerations

# Factors affecting backup speed:
- Storage pool type (SHR vs RAID)
- Drive types (HDD vs SSD)
- Network load
- CPU usage
- File sizes and types

Space Requirements

# Calculate space needed:
# Method 1 (Hyper Backup): Source size + retention space
# Method 2 (Move): Temporary space for move operation
# Method 3 (rsync): Destination space = source space
# Method 4 (Copy): Destination space = source space

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Hyper Backup Issues

1. “Destination not accessible”

   # Check shared folder permissions
   Control Panel → Shared Folder → [Folder] → Permissions
      
   # Verify storage pool is online
   Storage Manager → Storage Pool → Status
   

2. “Insufficient space”

   # Check available space
   Storage Manager → Volume → [Volume] → Available capacity
      
   # Adjust retention settings
   Hyper Backup → Task → Settings → Retention
   

rsync Issues

1. “Permission denied”

   # Check user permissions
   sudo chown -R admin:administrators /volume2/destination/
      
   # Verify SSH access
   ssh admin@nas-ip 'ls -la /volume2/'
   

2. “Connection refused”

   # Verify SSH service is running
   Control Panel → Terminal & SNMP → SSH service
      
   # Check firewall rules
   Control Panel → Security → Firewall
   

General Issues

1. Slow backup performance

   # Check system resources
   Resource Monitor → Performance
      
   # Optimize storage pools
   Storage Manager → Storage Pool → Action → Optimize
   

2. Media indexing problems

   # Re-index media files
   Control Panel → Indexing Service → Re-index
      
   # For Photos app
   Synology Photos → Settings → Advanced → Re-index
   

Error Logs

# Check system logs
Main Menu → Log Center → System

# Check application logs
Main Menu → Log Center → Application → Hyper Backup

# Check rsync logs
SSH: tail -f /var/log/messages | grep rsync

Best Practices

Security

1. Use encryption: Enable in Hyper Backup for sensitive data
2. Secure SSH: Use key-based authentication for rsync
3. Access control: Limit backup destination folder permissions

Performance

1. Schedule wisely: Run backups during off-peak hours
2. Compression: Enable for better storage efficiency
3. Incremental backups: Use when possible to reduce time

Monitoring

1. Email notifications: Configure in Hyper Backup
2. Log retention: Keep logs for troubleshooting
3. Test restores: Regularly verify backup integrity

Automation

1. Scripted backups: Use cron for rsync automation
2. Health checks: Monitor backup success/failure
3. Cleanup: Automate old backup removal

Summary

For backing up data from Storage Pool 1/Volume 1 to Storage Pool 2/Volume 1 on your DS918+:

Best Overall Solution: Hyper Backup (Method 1)

• Provides versioning and scheduling
• Easy to configure and manage
• Built-in restoration capabilities
• Comprehensive backup features

For One-Time Migration: Shared Folder Move (Method 2)

• Fastest for large amounts of data
• No duplication of data
• Minimal resource usage

For Advanced Users: rsync Command Line (Method 3)

• Maximum flexibility and control
• Scriptable and automatable
• Efficient for incremental backups

For Simple Tasks: File Manager Copy (Method 4)

• Most user-friendly
• Good for small amounts of data
• No additional setup required

Remember that internal backups provide limited protection. Consider implementing external backup solutions (cloud storage, external drives, or remote NAS) for comprehensive data protection.

---

Last Updated: 2025-01-15 Compatible with: DS918+ running DSM 7.2+