Yes, but is this them being assholes, or them wanting to make sure that users aren’t making their system unreliable? I think there would be a huge distinction there.

For example, say a user wanted to create a cache drive using an SSD. But because the user doesn’t know better, they buy the cheapest crap they can find, install it, and set up caching. But because they’re using cheap shit, the drive is slow and the user reports poor performance, system hangups, and other instability.

Wouldn’t it be in Synology’s best interest to say “here’s a list of drives we know will give you the best experience.”?

Now, Synology has already done that, but users are ignoring it and continue to use poor storage drives expecting to use pretty sophisticated features. What now? Well, Synology disables those features.

For example:

De-duplication, lifespan analysis, and automatic HDD firmware updates could also disappear on non-approved drives

Um, yeah. That makes sense. If a shitty hard drive can’t reliably get firmware updates through the NAS, why on earth would they want to keep that option enabled? Same with lifespan analysis. If a crappy drive isn’t using modern standards and protocols for measuring and logging errors and performance data, Synology really can’t “enable” this to work, can they?

That’s what I think is happening. Although, this could be just greed, too. I don’t think there’s any real problem for most users, unless they say that we can’t use fairly common, high-quality NAS drives from Seagate or WD and must use their own branded drives. I’d have a huge problem with that.

Are we overreacting? Hasn’t Synology always had a list of “certified” drives for their NAS’, which end up being the same HDDs we would tend to use anyway?

I can understand that they don’t want people using any garbage storage drives, which could increase failure and make Synology NAS’ look unreliable.

Unless something has changed, this is how they’ve always done it, just like how every laptop manufacturer will say which RAM and storage works best (for reliability and performance) on their machines.

Yes, incoming.

Outgoing is another can of worms.

I try to run any of my iot devices on an isolated network. At most, they can see eachother, and that’s it.

Some devices need an internet connection, unfortunately.

The best you can do, if you’re unable to block their collection outright, is to run them through a tracker-blocking DNS (either self-hosted or something like Adguard DNS).

That can minimize unnecessary pings home.

Personally, if I think that a device is being malicious in their attempts to phone home, I stop using the device. I also try to make an effort to not get a smart device, if the alternative (unconnected option) works fine.

Digital minimalism is one way to protect ourselves from rampant data collection and profiling.

On my Synology NAS, I have it set to auto-block IPs after a few failed attempts. Some days, I’ll have like 50 of those come through at a time (all random addresses from random countries). Other weeks or months can go by without a single one.

So, I think it’s one of those “matter of time” deals, so as long as you are properly locked down, it should be viewed as normal.

I don’t know if it works in iOS, but I found that Moneymanager EX was by far the easiest to set up.

Basically, you keep the database on your NAS and run the software client on Windows, Android, etc. and just open the file from there.

But I’m considering Firefly III just for the web interface (no software client needed).

Thanks. I guess the demo restricts those backup and export features.

I know it exists, but would rather self-host and not have this data linked to Strava.

Not sure how data is exported from that app, though.

Can you screenshot that?

I see an export attachments (does nothing when I tried), and reports (only prints the data, but doesn’t export in any meaningful file format).

I don’t give a shit about my car, but I’d love to use this for my bikes! I’m currently using a spreadsheet and self-hosted calendar to keep track, but this would be “easier”.

I tried the demo, but maybe I missed it: how do you export the data you’ve input, in case you need to move it to somewhere else or if the project stops, and you want to back up the data?

Data portability is as important to me as self-hosting.

Singlefile is the only one that works reliably for me.

Linkwarden would have been awesome, but I had so many issues with it when I was self-hosting. I think it’s improved since then, though.

You can access Jellyfin through a browser, too. Is that an option for the Samsung TV?

Hmm. Perhaps. I’m just on stock Android, so I couldn’t even test further if I wanted to :( Sorry, mate.

I love Audiobookshelf, my main complaint is the Android app crashes when killed by Android (so when I try to open it I get a message about it crashing and then have to reopen it). That might just be a me thing.

Hmm, I’ve been using Audiobookshelf on my Android phone(s) for at least the last year without issues like that. Are you using the F-droid or Play Store version? I’m using F-droid if that matters.

Some of Synology’s software can feel a little clunky to use but generally I’ve found it to work great despite my limited knowledge.

Yeah, I make regular use of some of their built-in apps (Note Station, Drive, Photos).

But they aren’t perfect.

For example, Note Station has no good way to export the data for use outside of Note Station (poor data portability) and Synology Audio just feels so outdated. Photos is their best software, IMO.

The beauty of self-hosting this stuff is that you can use any third-party software that reads the files, and you’re good to go. Your music, videos, photos, and documents are available as you see fit.

That’s the problem, really. They all have pros and cons.

Kagi is American, so they are out for me. So is DuckDuckGo.

I don’t care if startpage uses the Google index, since Google isn’t profiting from my data or from ads.

Their servers are in the EU, and the balance between privacy and usable results is good enough.

I see it like using a third-party front end for YouTube. All of the benefits with none of the risks or private data theft.

Alternative?

Startpage.com

Better than qwant in my opinion.

My adventure into self-hosting started with a Synology NAS maybe 5 years (?) ago.

With just the built-in software, I was able to replace Google Photos, Evernote, Dropbox, Google Calendar, Google contacts, and Google Play Music and Movies.

Then as I learned how to use docker, I was able to replace more services.

There may be “better” options out there beyond what Synology offers, but it’s been such a “set and forget” experience, that it’s easy for me to recommend them as an option.

The biggest barrier, IMO, isn’t the learning curve, but the initial investment for the NAS + HDDs and the upgrade path as your storage needs grow.

The only feature I want in FreshRSS is a way to DELETE entries. This is critically important if you’re using RSS feeds for something like Lemmy (or Reddit) where some very NSFW or illegal content gets through before it’s moderated out of the platform. I really don’t want to be archiving that shit!

Was using the Voyager app. But now I use the Voyager PWA version through the Hermit app.