I have a Synology 106e... Am I in the cold now?

[stimpy]

Hello all, I'm a new member here, after lurking for a few months...

Right, here goes, please be patient!

I have been told by my better half, that she wants to get me an SB3, the thing that I have been going on about for ages now, as one of my Christmas presents. I was over the moon with this, as I had been wanting to get one for a long time now! But one of the reasons I have been putting off buying an SB3 so far, is the need to have a PC running whenever I want to just listen to some music.

Well, I soon found out, from the wonderful people here, that it was possible to run the server software on a NAS, well, my Synology 106e to be exact. I was really happy to learn that!

However, my joy has now turned to dissapointment, as I hear the Synology does not have enough on-board memory to run the SlimServer software anymore. This is bad news to me, as I'm so close to owning an SB3. I simply cannot justify the need to keep my PC on 24/7, let alone build a perpose-built PC just for this use, as I simply don't have the space for a 3rd PC.

I realise now, that I can still use an older version of the software on my NAS, but here comes the questions... Finally, you say!

1.) What will the later versions of the server software do, that the older ones do not do? Keeping in mind, that all I want, is to have my music available to the SB3 at all times, and for propper song/tag info to be displayed.

2.) How does the firmware get updated on the SB3? Is it sent by the server software? And if it is, how to I use the latest firmware on the SB3, but still using the older version of the server software?

3.) If I do use the latest firmware on the SB3, will it be compatible with the older software that I will be having to use on my NAS?

4.) Is it possible to make the SB3 work with a standard UPnP server, like the one which is built in to the Synology? As I really don't see the reason why it should be wrong to have a choice of server software. If it is not possible, why?(technical reason perhaps?) and also, is this important (in the mind of a person like me, who does not wish to have a PC running 24/7) feature planned in the near future?

5.) Is it possible to get the memory upgraded on my Synology 106e? I live in the UK.


Many thanks for any help.

[Paul Webster]

See this thread for investigation in progress for that device.
http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=28801

As for using old versions of software/firmware ... as is often the case with software, once a new version is available, yesterday's software can seem inadequate but just a week earlier it seemed fine.
In general, stick with the firmware that was known to work with the SlimServer that it was released with. There might be changes in the firmware that require newer versions of SlimServer than 6.3
While I doubt it would be fatal - it is probably not worth risking mixing versions unless someone from development specifically confirms it.

You might get frustrated (in the future) to find that add-ons or skins that you would like to use are only available in 6.5+ - equally you might get fed up with people telling you to upgrade to fix a known problem that you have come across.
However, my suspicion is that it will work fine for the primary function that you want it to do.

In the meantime - you can save up for a new NAS for next Christmas. Maybe Logitech will bring out a new device with NAS and speakers all integrated and you can put it in a different room and slave your SB3 to it.

[tommypeters]

The 106e is from the beginning a little meager on memory, the DS-106 runs 6.3.1 just fine. With 6.5, the DS-106 starts to swap - the 106e would swap a lot also with 6.3.1. It would still be usable on a 106e, just much slower than usual.

[roamingstudio]

There are possabilities to upgrade memory in the QNAP range - although it is not supported. I believe it is also possible in the 106e series; information and test results will be posted on this forum when known.

The main memory eating issue for 6.5 and above was the decision to use MySql - There might be an opportunity to fork 6.5 so that it continues to use low memory footprints and SQLite for slim NAS devices. This would require development time I dont have at the moment.

6.5 does work on the 106e - it is just not blisteringly fast. 6.5 does not seem to work well on the TS101 - yet...

[Fifer]

6.5 does work on the 106e - it is just not blisteringly fast. 6.5 does not seem to work well on the TS101 - yet...

I'm very grateful for the pioneering work you're doing with the TS-101 memory r_s, but is that statement not slightly misleading? 6.5 works perfectly well on my TS-101, but the web interface is slow. Working with the remote, there are no problems.

[roamingstudio]

My apologies to all - above statement is too misleading. Yes 6.5 works on the TS101 as well as 106e.

[Jerryacg]

I'm very grateful for the pioneering work you're doing with the TS-101 memory r_s, but is that statement not slightly misleading? 6.5 works perfectly well on my TS-101, but the web interface is slow. Working with the remote, there are no problems.

25th Sept Progressive posted the following "At the end of the day 6.3.1 works fine unless you have a Transporter. 6.5 runs fine if you don't want to use the web front end and don't want the HDD to spin down." Which, along with several similar progressive posts of around the same time,would seem to suggest that 6.5 does not run fine with QNAPs. Unfortunatly, as support from Progressive appears to have ceased, the question "Am I in the cold now" could be applied to QNAP owners too.

[Fifer]

I can only comment on my own experience. 6.5 runs well on my TS-101, the web interface works but slowly and the disk spins down.

[stimpy]

Thanks to everyone that has replied so far.

It looks like the only hope for me is what Roamingstudio has said about the MySql being moved away from the build. Maybe Slim Devices would consider the concept of a "lite" edition, which would be the best thing for people that simply want their music to play. Because what this really needs is either somebody making a SlimServer Lite, or a NAS (embedded)Edition if you will, or simply a way of making use of the UPnP server that is already available in my, and many other peoples NAS's.

If you look at the emerging trend here, it indicates that one day soon, even a NAS with 128Mb will not be enough to run SlimServer properly. I simply cannot imagine a NAS being equiped with 512Mb memory, and a 400Mhz CPU at an affordable (sub £400/$700) price anytime soon, because that is what is going to be needed within a year or so! This is a missed oppertunity on behalf of Slim Devices, the developer community, and the NAS manufacturers.

I really don't think I will be getting the SB3 now. I cannot run the risk of being left high and dry at some point within the next 12 months. The equipment requirements to run one of these SB's is just too high now. It's crazy, all i want is it to play my music, when I want, and how I want. I don't want to build a PC, and run it 24/7 using hundreds of watts of power, hundreds of pounds/dollars worth of parts, just to stream 100Kbps over a network, which is capable of streaming well over 10MBs on its own, with no PC.


Once again, thank you to everybody that has answered my questions so far.

[tommypeters]

Your extrapolation is imaginative.