Network Attached Storage (NAS) servers are mainly intended for backing up and storing files, but they can also do alotmore. I’ve been using a two-bay Synology DiskStation DS718+ NAS for close to a year now, and I’ve found some cool ways to make it more than just a data dumping ground.
Many people try to use home servers as full replacements for cloud services, usually with self-hosted instances of NextCloud and other similar tools. I’m not quite there yet—I don’t want tobe my own IT guyfor all my important data. For now, I’m mostly interested in services that benefit from 24/7 uptime, and ways to extend my existing cloud storage. Hopefully, this gives you a few ideas foryour own NAS or home server.
1Computer Backups
This is one of the most common use cases for a NAS. My two main computers are an M1 Mac Mini and M1 MacBook Air, and I have my NAS configured as a backup destination forTime Machine in macOS. This allows me to restore any file on my computers from the network backup, or I can fully restore the computers in the event of a catastrophic failure. It’s surprising to me that Windows still doesn’t have a similar built-in backup tool.
I don’t really need the historical timeline of my files to stretch back weeks or months, so I have the maximum storage quota close to the computers’ own storage capacity. As long as all my current local files are backed up somewhere else, I’m good.
2Torrent Client With VPN
This isby farthe most fun service I’m running on my NAS. I set up thedocker-transmission-openvpn Docker image, which runs theTransmission torrent clientwith a web interface. I can add, delete, and manage torrents from any web browser on my network, and the files are stored on my NAS. It routes all internet traffic through an OpenVPN-compatible connection—a P2P-compatibleProton VPNin my case—giving me an extra level of privacy. The server stops working if the VPN becomes disconnected, like akill switch.
This setup is much easier than turning on and off VPNs for torrenting on my computers, and it can run all day long. I can add torrents from any device on my network, and when they’re done, I can open the files from the network drive or copy the data to another device. I can also keep the torrents running all day long for others to download.
I’ve added a bunch of torrents for Linux distributions likeFedoraandUbuntu, software projects like LibreOffice, backup data collections from theSciOp project, and items from theInternet Archive. With this setup, I’m effectively donating my unused bandwidth and storage to other projects and organizations.
This is also a great use for drives that don’t have backups, or drives that aren’t in a shared storage pool. If a drive dies that you are using exclusively for torrents, and at least one other person is still seeding each of those torrents, you can just swap in a new drive and start rebuilding your copies. Most of my torrent files are on my main mirrored drive pool, but I’m alsousing two old flash drivesas throwaway torrent storage.
3Cloud Storage Backup
I use OneDrive as my primary cloud storage for important files, photos, and videos. It wouldn’t be a fun time if all those files suddenly disappeared, or I somehow lost access to my account. Thankfully, I can combine two tools to create regular local backups of my cloud storage.
The first tool isSynology Cloud Sync, which I set up to mirror my OneDrive to a local folder on the NAS. I can also access that local cache from the network share, but OneDrive is directly installed on my other devices, so I rarely do that. I can see that option being more useful in homes with limited bandwidth, though—instead of multiple devices constantly trying to download and upload changes, every internet synchronization event only happens a single time.
The second component isSynology Snapshot Replication, which creates point-in-time copies of folders—in this case, the OneDrive folder. I set it up to create a snapshot of my OneDrive account once a week, which I can then restore to the OneDrive folder or copy to another location.
This setup won’t help me if I lose access to cloud dataandmy NAS stops working at the same time. I could combine this with regular off-site backups or some other solution, but for now, I’m happy to just havesomekind of fallback.
4Plex
Plexis another incredibly common NAS application, allowing you to create your own libraries of movies, TV shows, and music, and stream them to your own devices. I don’t have any normal media libraries set up right now, but I am using Plex forstreaming and recording local live TV.
I previously had aSling AirTV 2for watching and recording local TV stations, but the software experience wasn’t great, and it was limited to 720p. I ended up buying a used third-generationHDHomeRun Dual tuneron eBay for $32, set it up over Ethernet, and connected it to the Plex server running on my NAS.
Even though that tuner is over a decade old, it works perfectly in Plex, and Plex’s TV guide and recording interface is much better than what I had with Sling. I can also backup and copy my recordings when needed, since they’re just MPEG-2 video files on my NAS.
5IPerf3 Server
Internet speed tests are a great way to check your maximum network performance, but they can’t narrow down your connection problems. If you get a lower download or upload speed than you’re expecting, it could be your local network, your internet service provider, or both.
IPerf3is a great utility for testing network speeds between two local devices, and since my NAS is connected directly to my router over Ethernet, setting up IPerf3 gives me a Wi-Fi performance test I can run at any time. I set up a Docker container with anAlpine Linux image, with port 7575 open to my local network, which runs this command at startup:
I can then install iperf3 on any other device, likethe Mac version from Homebrew, and run this command with the IP address of my NAS:
There are also iperf3 clients foriOSandAndroid, so I can also test network performance on phones and tablets. The one catch with my setup is that my Wi-Fi is capable of multi-gigabit speeds, but the Ethernet connection on my NAS is only 1 Gig, so my speed test results can’t be faster than that. That’s a good reason for my next NAS to have a 2.5G or 10G port.
6Orb Server
Orbis an internet quality dashboard, giving you short-term and long-term information about your network latency, dropped packets, speed, and general reliability. It wasreleased to the public in April 2025, and its creator was formerly CEO of Ookla, which runsSpeedtest.net.
You don’t need a NAS or other server to use Orb, but when it’s running on an always-on device like a NAS, it turns into a great 24/7 monitoring tool for your home internet. I can see when my connection drops throughout the day, and I get nearly-instant notifications on my phone’s Orb app when my home’s internet connection drops out and returns. That feature requires a (free) account.
