Mounting Synology NAS on Windows as a Network Drive With SMB
Synology Network Attached Storage (NAS) devices offer robust data storage solutions for businesses and homes. To enhance the accessibility of your Synology NAS, you can mount it as a network drive on your Windows system using the Server Message Block (SMB) protocol. This guide will walk you through the step-by-step process of mounting your Synology NAS on Windows as a network drive via SMB.
Prerequisites
Before you begin, ensure you have the following:
- A Synology NAS device connected to your network.
- A Windows computer connected to the same network.
- Admin access to your Synology NAS.
Step 1: Enable SMB Service on Synology NAS
1. Log in to your Synology NAS using a web browser.
2. Navigate to ‘Control Panel’ > ‘File Services’.
3. Check the box next to ‘Enable SMB Service’.
4. Click ‘Apply’ to save the changes.
Step 2: Configure Shared Folder on Synology NAS
1. Go to ‘Control Panel’ > ‘Shared Folder’ on your Synology NAS.
2. Create a new shared folder or select an existing one to be accessible via SMB.
3. Right-click on the selected folder and choose ‘Edit’.
4. In the ‘Edit Shared Folder’ window, go to the ‘Permissions’ tab.
5. Ensure that the appropriate user or group has ‘Read/Write’ access to the folder.
6. Click ‘OK’ to save the settings.
Step 3: Map Synology NAS as a Network Drive on Windows
1. On your Windows computer, open ‘File Explorer’.
2. Click on ‘This PC’ or ‘Computer’.
3. Select ‘Map network drive’ from the top menu.
4. In the ‘Drive’ field, choose a drive letter for the network drive.
5. In the ‘Folder’ field, enter the SMB path of your Synology NAS shared folder (e.g., \\NAS_IP_Address\Shared_Folder).
6. Check the box next to ‘Reconnect at sign-in’ for automatic remounting.
7. Click ‘Finish’ to map the drive.
Step 4: Accessing Synology NAS as a Network Drive
Once the mapping is complete, you can access your Synology NAS as a network drive from ‘This PC’ in File Explorer. Simply double-click on the mapped drive to browse and manage your files seamlessly.
Conclusion
By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can easily mount your Synology NAS on Windows as a network drive using SMB. This setup enables convenient access to your NAS storage directly from your Windows system, enhancing data management and workflow efficiency.
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