What's new

Considering a Synology Router

  • SNBForums Code of Conduct

    SNBForums is a community for everyone, no matter what their level of experience.

    Please be tolerant and patient of others, especially newcomers. We are all here to share and learn!

    The rules are simple: Be patient, be nice, be helpful or be gone!

jkbmjp

Regular Contributor
I am new to Synology products. I want to find out if Synology router would be good for me to buy.

Currently, I am using the Linksys 1900ac router and I have tried Asus 68u, Netgear r8000 and Homehalo routers. Homehalo sucks and is made for the non technical user. Asus is ok and provides a lot of features but doesn't work well with Apple devices. Netgear doesn't do it for me.

I am thinking of trying the Synology router. I am not sure if I should try the RT1900 or spend the extra cash and get the RT2600. I am wondering if I can do the following with the Synology router.

1. Block Sites- I need to be able to block HTTP and HTTPs sites. I need the block to take affect immediately with no delays.

2. Time Schedule- I need to be able to set a time schedule PER hour PER device on the router itself. Everyone knows that if you pause a Youtube video AFTER the block is active, the video will continue to play and still gives the user the ability to search other videos. I can't have this happen. I need the block to take affect immediately.

3. Traffic Analyzer/Web History- I need to be able to view ALL traffic or look at some log to see the activity on each wireless device. This would include sites that are visited and attempts made on a blocked site. It would be nice to see which sites such as Youtube or Netflix is frequently visited PER device.

4. Network Map- I need to be able to visually see on a network map all devices wired and wireless connected to the router. It would be nice to have type of device, brand, model, IP address, MAC address and current status.

5. App and Browser- I need to be able to access the router remotely both on browser and App. When I am away from home, I need to be able to have complete access to the router either on a browser or App.

6. Speed- I have a lot of devices from Kindles to printers. I have ATVs and Kindle Fire TVs for streaming so I need a router to keep up with the demand of number of devices and be able to multi-task to provide streaming and web surfing. I need the router to be fast.

I am looking for a router that has outstanding features to "manage" my home network. I have teenagers at home and I need to have control over the network and I need to see what they are doing. Obviously, the brand name routers are good but lack in features. I want to know if the Synology router will help me achieve my goals.
 
im new to their products too, synology is relatively new with networking as they've been doing NAS for a while.

Number of devices dont make a difference to the router, i really should write a guide about this. Even an old router can handle many devices and i should probably write a guide explaining the relationship between CPU, throughput, RAM, connections. I see soo many people asking about if the router will support many devices.

I am not entirely sure if a synology router will do all you ask. The difference between the models are just physical, the firmwares will have the same features as its the same line. I know asus does all you ask and asus is one of the higher end consumer wifi routers.

if you want to "manage" your home network than theres no better router like pfsense with its various available features and mikrotik with dude server running on router. I have tried asus app and am impressed though. If you still have your asus router i suggest giving RMerlin's firmware a go.

not all brand name routers are good, dlink is an example and netgear stock firmware sucks. The problem i see with consumer routers is that people are starting to demand features only available on non consumer routers while wanting it to be user friendly so the manufacturers are struggling to make user friendly features from something that is difficult in the first place.

A router's speed is not related to number of devices, only throughput. What you need is a router with QoS and there are plenty i can think of but i have no idea as throughput for them varies and you didnt mention your internet speed.

instead of http blocking you can use something like openDNS which basically lets you do this but at the DNS level instead. Combined with a router that can force all clients to use the set DNS and there wont be any way around the filtering.
 
Keep your WRT and consider a standalone NAS - Synology and QNAP have great solutions - also consider AsusSTOR, ReadyNAS

The WRT's have a good reputation for USB3/eSATA filesharing - but the functionality inside the WRT is very basic...
 
Number of devices dont make a difference to the router, i really should write a guide about this. Even an old router can handle many devices and i should probably write a guide explaining the relationship between CPU, throughput, RAM, connections. I see soo many people asking about if the router will support many devices.
I'd really like to see your "guide" that shows how even an old router (WRT54G?) can handle even a handful of devices trying to stream YouTube.
 
I'd really like to see your "guide" that shows how even an old router (WRT54G?) can handle even a handful of devices trying to stream YouTube.
that would be a question of throughput not number of devices on the network. Performance is measured in packet rates but in your tests you usually just translate it to bits straight away using the standard 1500 byte packets. Whether you have 1 device or 100 it wont make a difference unless on a shared medium like wifi but even than some devices have survived and managed to handle that many on wifi.

As i said i really need to write some sort of simple guide or faq to help people understand the relationship between hardware specs, performance and capability.
 
I think you are splitting hairs, SEM. When people ask about how many devices a router can support they are usually asking about how well it supports traffic load.

Case in point:
"I have ATVs and Kindle Fire TVs for streaming so I need a router to keep up with the demand of number of devices and be able to multi-task to provide streaming and web surfing."

But, I could be wrong...
 
A general thought and guideline (at least for me):
I would never ever go for a router which does not have an alternative firmware available (or enhanced version like Merlin in this forum provides) AND the firmware need to be (at least partially) Open Source! :rolleyes:

Keep in mind that most of the home routers have the same hardware and only a good software will make it the great device which you are looking for - same as I did and found with the devices+firmware below! ;)
 
Last edited:
I've never yet had the desire or need to load anything but factory firmware on any router I've used.

No kidding! I don't mind running custom ROMs and hacking other personal devices but not on a router that manages my whole network.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I think you are splitting hairs, SEM. When people ask about how many devices a router can support they are usually asking about how well it supports traffic load.

Case in point:
"I have ATVs and Kindle Fire TVs for streaming so I need a router to keep up with the demand of number of devices and be able to multi-task to provide streaming and web surfing."

But, I could be wrong...
i know but the number of devices isnt a factor, QoS throughput in this case is and QoS performance isnt related to how many devices/apps/connections as thats for RAM. What really matters in this case is the CPU and QoS configuration.
 
Going back to OP's question - the WRT1900ac can handle 50 clients (and more based on personal experience, up to 65) - and for most folks, if needs are simple, the factory firmware is "good enough" for most...

And back to his original question - since he was asking about Synology specifically - the DS216 series might be a good solution with the recent models (both Marvell and Annapurna Labs based) might be a good solution once one grows out of the built-in USB/eSATA sharing capabilities of the WRT.

@jkbmjp - check out the recent review of the Syno devices on the main site... these are 4 bay units, but the 2-bay units are going to be similar...

https://www.smallnetbuilder.com/nas/nas-reviews/33078-synology-ds416-ds416j-reviewed

Synology does a great job with their NAS units - as does QNAP, which one should also consider - they're comparable on both performance and feature sets - and price points are similar.
 
Unfortunately there's a lot of this going on...

giphy.gif


I personally would never rely on one device to try and perform all what jkbmjp asks. Layered security is the best approach. It's also a good idea to have a grownup discussion about expectations and have some trust with the teens and not try and rely on tech to do the work.

And there was zero request for anything storage, it was all about performance, filtering, logging and network management.
 
Last edited:
Now that I think of it you just may be in luck with your Linksys if you have this model.

https://wiki.untangle.com/index.php/Linksys_WRT1900ACS

I would use that at a top level with wireless off and then use the RT2600ac behind it for wireless.
That solution would defiantly work.

And why the app crap? All you need is a good mobile web browser if you really feel the need to manage remotely...something I don't recommend.
 
I've never yet had the desire or need to load anything but factory firmware on any router I've used.

Might be because you never keep a router long enough for it to become EOL, with no further security updates from its manufacturer. :)
 
Might be because you never keep a router long enough for it to become EOL, with no further security updates from its manufacturer.

that may be my case too as i dont have routers online long enough for them to eol support never mind out of warranty , back in the days of the wrt54gl there was indeed a need for 3rd party fw as the manufactures just had nfi about features and performance expectations or at least didnt give a crap about what punters wanted

these days some manufactures actually listen which is a good thing for us all
 
Thanks for the replies. I was simply asking about the Synology RT2600 router and its features. Since Linksys is no longer releasing new firmware for the 1900ac, I thought I would try a new router. Again, I have tried Netgear r8000, Asus rt68u and a crappy Homehalo model. I have tried Asus rt68u, more on this later. I am not interested in the Synology NAS. Perhaps in the future, I will looking at reviewing the NAS and see how it works with my environment. For now, I am speaking of the RT1900 or RT2600 router.

I understand Synology has two models, 1900 and 2600, and I wanted to find out since I am new to Synology, would it be worth buying the 1900 or spend the extra money and buy the 2600. Also, I understand, either router may or may not, do what I am asking it to do. Since there is no demo for the Synology router, I wanted to get a idea from users who already own this router of the features and what is it capable of doing.

Back to the Asus. I have tried the rt68u on Merlin's firmware. It doesn't seem stable and slow at times. Even the stock firmware seems slow and not reliable. I agree, Asus has the most features of any router and I was hoping this router would work across many devices but it doesn't work that well with Apple devices. That is why that I stuck using an OLD Linksys 1900 router. Overall, this router is stable and reliable despite the Network Map is terrible and unreliable.

So, why do I want to try a different router. It is very simple, Linksys routers are weak in parental controls and the Network Map is very basic and unreliable. This router provides basic information about what each device is doing and I need a router to provide much more information. Perhaps, the Synology router will make up for the lack of features Linksys 1900 gives me. I won't know unless I buy the router or a current Synology router user provides me with overall information.
 

Attachments

  • 1.JPG
    1.JPG
    36.8 KB · Views: 850
  • 2.JPG
    2.JPG
    27.1 KB · Views: 812
  • 3.JPG
    3.JPG
    92.8 KB · Views: 607
  • 4.JPG
    4.JPG
    14.8 KB · Views: 595
  • 5.JPG
    5.JPG
    22.7 KB · Views: 613
Last edited:
Here are some more. I took screen shots of a report I just generated and didn't have website tracking enabled but did for a little while to see what came up.

I recommend you supplement any router with something else to fill in gaps you may have. Did you see my post above about Untangle with the Linksys? Untangle is a solid platform and it can definitely log every site you wanted to.
 

Attachments

  • 6.JPG
    6.JPG
    9 KB · Views: 585
  • R1.JPG
    R1.JPG
    46.3 KB · Views: 727
  • R2.JPG
    R2.JPG
    36 KB · Views: 696
  • R3.JPG
    R3.JPG
    54.9 KB · Views: 758
  • R4.JPG
    R4.JPG
    32.7 KB · Views: 679
Thanks for the information and taking the time to provide screenshots. I appreciate it. Looking at the pictures, I don't see anything that grabs me or stands out as a feature. I understand RT2600 blocks HTTP and HTTPs. Is that true? How does the Google Safe Search work with this router and what is the importance of this feature? I am not familiar with it. Does this router have a web history or some type of log that shows the URL instead of the IP of the sites accessed or attempted to access? The Linksys router only gives a log in IP format. Looking at 3.JPG, I noticed the numbers are 0-23 time format. That must be 24 hour clock. How do you know if it is AM or PM? If I wanted to block from 2pm to 9am, then how do I set it on this router?

I have reviewed Untangle and for 540 dollars, no way. If that is the correct total, I would spend the money on a new router first.
 

Latest threads

Sign Up For SNBForums Daily Digest

Get an update of what's new every day delivered to your mailbox. Sign up here!
Top