Working with iMac and NAS

[Tjmckay4]

Anyone working on files stored on a NAS (like Synology) from the new iMac 2017 via a wireless home network?

I'm going to buy a 512gb iMac at some stage and I'm trying to work out where to store my data that's on my current 2011 iMac (about 1tb, 738gb of which is synced with dropbox). If I get a Synology NAS, rather than a external HDD connected into the iMac, I can sync it with dropbox.

Could I use lightroom on the iMac to work with pictures/videos stored on the NAS?

 

[Floris]

I always fear these machines (if it works) that it performs well, until it has to be woken up, or auto goes to sleep.. making workflow frustrating.

 

[cynics]

If you edit locally and store on the NAS it will be fine. You can run into bottlenecks if you are trying to edit directly from the NAS if Lightroom even allows it without a bit of effort (I would research that first).

Transfer speeds can vary wildly, and for storage its not a problem (just transfer and forget about it) but for editing I would want a lot more than even the theoretical maximum of 1 gigabit per second (125 MB/s).

 

[Polmac]

You'd better consider your NAS as a slow storage. You use your fast iMac's storage for actually working with files, and your NAS to store finished work or items for which you don't need fast access.

Working with files stored in your NAS can be painful, as it will likely be much slower than your internal storage.

Having that in mind, you should be perfectly OK using your Synology.

 

[Tjmckay4]

I always fear these machines (if it works) that it performs well, until it has to be woken up, or auto goes to sleep.. making workflow frustrating.

Strewth.... that's some serious media management.... not sure whether I need to go that far but thanks for sharing. Is there a product (NAS) that you can plug directly into the iMac but still share over the network?

 

[spooklog]

Just a small word of caution about the NAS approach. I network stuff only if I can't access it another, more direct, way. Networking involves more protocols, more hardware and software; there is a greater chance of things going wrong. True, everyone is networking more seamlessly today than ever, but for honestly mission-critical work, I'd default to local storage. I'd use network resources as a redundant, backup thing.

 

[RuffDraft]

I use a Synology as a back up storage system. I transfer weddings to there, and it can take between 12-24 hours for my weddings to back up (around 300GB-350GB (Video)).

If you want to edit, you're a lot better off with a RAID array. I use the G RAID Shuttle XL for storage of my editing files, and run the software off internal SSD. Really fast solution for editing.

 

[user1234]

I regularly use NAS as part of my Lightroom workflow, and I can say that it's too slow to work directly with large files stored on the NAS.

What I do is that I have my library on the internal SSD, as well as new imports. When I'm done working with the files, I transfer them to the NAS within the Lightroom interface. This way they are still online if I need to access them later, but it's fast while I work with them. Working on a single file directly on the NAS is not a big problem as it's cached locally, but switching between images will be super slow. Remember that 1 Gbps ethernet will give a maximum of 125 MB/s theoretical, but I rarely get more than 80-110. Wireless will be much slower.

This is on a 2013 rMBP, but network limitations are the same.