Synology DSM, in plain English

• DiskStation Manager (DSM) is the easy-to-use operating system that turns Synology hardware into a secure, central place for your company’s files, backups, mail, and apps. It’s a web-based console that feels familiar, scales from a single box to many, and keeps your data under your control. As of September 2025, Synology is on the DSM 7.2 series, which brought immutable storage, full‑volume encryption, and performance/security boosts to help organizations harden against ransomware and simplify compliance. (synology.com)

Why DSM matters for a solid Back Office

• It centralizes your core data and services (files, identities, backups, email, and more) so your team always knows where to work and where to find the truth.

• It bakes in protection by default (snapshots, WORM folders, encryption, off‑site and cloud options) so your recovery plan isn’t a bolt‑on afterthought. (synology.com)

• It’s flexible: run Windows, Linux, and Virtual DSM virtual machines, containers, or simple packages—so you can replace point tools at your pace. (synology.com)

• It scales from small offices to multi‑site and enterprise setups, with centralized monitoring and fleet management built in. (synology.com)

Core strengths at a glance

• Data resilience you can trust: use WriteOnce (WORM) folders and Immutable Snapshots to lock critical data against tampering, then layer full‑volume encryption (with KMIP key management) to protect at rest. (synology.com)

• Fast, familiar file access: share securely over SMB/NFS/FTP/WebDAV and manage permissions with Windows ACLs—great for teams living in Explorer and Finder. (synology.com)

• Backups that cover everything: protect PCs, servers, VMs, Microsoft 365/Google Workspace, and entire NAS systems with Active Backup and Hyper Backup. Restore whole devices or single files fast. (synology.com)

• Hybrid cloud and multi‑site: keep one global namespace in the cloud and cache hot files at each office with Hybrid Share. Add global file locking so teams don’t overwrite each other. (synology.com)

• Security by design: passwordless sign‑in with Secure SignIn (FIDO2/security keys), MFA, account protection, and hardening updates (DSM 7.2.2 further tightened file‑system integrity and snapshot security). (synology.com)

• Central oversight: watch health, capacity, login events, and file activity across sites with Active Insight; or manage many NAS devices via Central Management System. (synology.com)

File, identity, and access that fit how teams work

• File services built for business: granular permissions, quotas, and versioning mean departments get exactly what they need—nothing more, nothing less. Synology Drive adds desktop sync, sharing, and team folders with audit trails. (synology.com)

• Directory and SSO options: run Synology Directory Server (AD‑compatible) or LDAP, and enable SSO with OIDC/SAML so users sign in once to web apps and packages. (synology.com)

• Stronger logins, fewer tickets: Secure SignIn supports hardware security keys and approvals on mobile, reducing weak‑password risk while keeping sign‑ins quick. (synology.com)

Built‑in data protection (your “sleep‑at‑night” plan)

• Snapshot Replication: snapshot shared folders and LUNs every few minutes and replicate to another site/NAS; roll back in seconds if something goes wrong. (synology.com)

• Active Backup for Business: centrally back up Windows/Linux servers, PCs/Macs, and VMware/Hyper‑V—deduped, efficient, and with flexible restores (bare metal to file‑level). (synology.com)

• Hyper Backup: versioned backups of data, apps, and even entire systems to local disks, another NAS/rsync, or clouds including Synology C2 and S3. Client‑side encryption and rotation keep it lean and safe. (synology.com)

Hybrid cloud and multi‑site made simple

• Hybrid Share gives each office local‑speed access to shared data while storing the authoritative copy in C2 Storage. You get global file locking, snapshots in the cloud, and straightforward capacity scaling. (synology.com)

Run apps, VMs, and containers on the same platform

• Virtual Machine Manager (VMM) lets you run Windows, Linux, and Virtual DSM VMs, cluster up to seven NAS, migrate live, and enable high availability for key workloads. (synology.com)

• SAN Manager serves fast block storage (iSCSI and even Fibre Channel on supported models) with VAAI/ODX support, snapshots, and intuitive provisioning for VMware and Hyper‑V. (synology.com)

• Container Manager (formerly Docker) adds an easy UI for single and multi‑container apps (Compose), so IT can package services cleanly. (synology.com)

Monitoring, fleet management, and uptime

• Active Insight (cloud monitoring) tracks performance, update status, login attempts, and file activity across many sites—and can snapshot proactively on suspicious behavior. CMS simplifies policy‑based management at scale. (synology.com)

• Synology High Availability pairs two identical units for real‑time replication and automatic failover—ideal for back‑office services that can’t go down. (synology.com)

Popular packages that replace point tools

• Synology Drive + Office: modern file collaboration with real‑time co‑editing for docs/sheets/slides, version history, and growing AI helpers—without SaaS data sprawl. (synology.com)

• MailPlus: private, on‑prem email with clustering for uptime and optional Bitdefender Antispam integration for stronger filtering.