USB Copy

USB Copy helps you copy files between your Synology NAS and external USB/SD storage devices. This package comes with multiple copy and file organization strategies to ensure efficient storage usage and easy location of files.

Note:

Only USB/SD devices with file systems recognized by your Synology NAS (e.g. FAT, NTFS, ext3, ext4, and exFAT) are allowed for data copy.
Not all Synology NAS models support the HFS+ file system. USB Copy will not be able to export data to a USB/SD device using this format if the external device is inserted into a Synology NAS which does not support HFS+: the external device may enter read-only mode in such a situation. Please refer to the hardware specifications of your Synology NAS model for more information.
Only the admin and the users belonging to the administrators group can access this package.

Create USB/SD Copy Tasks

You can customize each copy task for an external USB/SD storage device, and import/export files between your Synology NAS and the USB/SD device. When the USB/SD device is inserted again for copy, your Synology NAS will recognize the matched device and apply the same copy settings.

Insert an external USB/SD storage device to your Synology NAS.

Click Create (the plus icon) on the upper left corner.

Select the desired task type: Photo/Video Import, Data Import, or Data Export.

Specify basic task information and select a copy mode:

Multi-versioned: Each time the task runs, a folder will be created and named with the run time. All source files will be fully copied to the destination.
Mirroring: Each time the task runs, all changes made in the source folder will be copied to the destination, making the destination folder a complete mirror copy of the source.
Incremental: Each time the task runs, newly added and modified source files will be copied to the destination.

When you choose the Multi-versioned copy mode, you can set up rotation policies to delete older versions:

Enable backup rotation: Select to rotate versions by the following conditions:
- Rotate from the earliest version: Delete the earliest versions when stored versions exceed the maximum limit.
- Smart Recycle: Select to start rotation when the maximum limit is exceeded. The system will rotate versions that do not meet any of the conditions below; when remaining versions still exceed the limit, the system will rotate the earliest versions:
  - Hourly versions from the past 24 hours: Keep the earliest version created each hour.
  - Daily versions from the past 1 day to 1 month: Keep the earliest version created each day.
  - Weekly versions older than 1 month: Keep the earliest version created each week.
- Number of versions: Specify the maximum number (between 1 and 65535) of versions to keep.

When you choose the Incremental copy mode, three more settings will be available:

Remove original file structure (i.e. flatten all files) in the destination folder: Select to copy files without copying the source file structure, and to further sort out the files according to the selected file organization or renaming policy.
File conflict policy: Choose Rename or Overwrite to deal with the situation when files with the same names are copied to the destination.
Delete source files after copy completes: Select to have files in the source folders deleted after they are copied to the destination.

Configure execution settings:

Copy data whenever the USB/SD storage device is plugged in: Select to auto-perform this copy task when the matched USB/SD device is inserted to your Synology NAS.
Eject the USB/SD storage device when copy completes: Select to auto-eject the USB/SD drive when this copy task completes.
Enable schedule: Select to run the copy task based on specified conditions.

Deselect unwanted file types and extensions to copy only needed files. You can also create filters through the text field:

Specify the full filename (Template: NAME.FILE_EXTENSION).
Specify the file extension (Template: *.FILE_EXTENSION).

Click Apply to finish the setup.

To run the task, do one of the following:

Click Run on the management interface.
Press the Copy button (for models with the hardware Copy button).
Plug in the USB/SD device to your Synology NAS (with Copy data whenever the USB/SD storage device is plugged in enabled).

Note:

Photo/Video Import tasks only run in the incremental copy mode. The imported photos and videos will be renamed with modification time and sorted into folders by modification date.
You can manage scheduled copy tasks at Control Panel > Task Scheduler.
When a copy task is scheduled for multiple runs, keep the storage device mounted to your Synology NAS and do not select Eject the USB/SD storage device when copy completes. Device will be ejected when there are no more pertaining tasks in progress.
Files and folders should follow the naming rules below for successful copying:
- Filenames should not start with "._" or ".SYNOPPSDB".
- Filenames and folder names should not be or contain any of the following: "@eaDir", "#recycle", "desktop.ini", ".ds_store", "Icon\r", "thumbs.db", "$Recycle.Bin", "@sharebin", and "#snapshot".
A partition on a USB device can only support multiple copy tasks with, however, certain limitations on the destination path:
- Tasks cannot share the same destination path.
- A task cannot use a destination path if a part of that destination path is already set as the destination path of another task.
- A task cannot have its destination path be included in the destination paths of other tasks.

Set up Tasks for Hardware Copy Button

If your Synology NAS comes with a hardware Copy button, through Copy Button (associated with the frontal USB port) and SD Copy Button (associated with the SD slot) you can copy data between your Synology NAS and any external USB/SD storage devices inserted into the frontal ports.

To enable a task for hardware Copy button:

Select Copy Button or SD Copy Button on the left panel, depending on the device type.

Go to Overview to enable the Copy-button task, and then go to Task Settings and File Filter to specify relevant settings.

Note:

The Copy Button tab only works with USB devices inserted to the frontal USB port.
The hardware Copy button only allows copy tasks to run in the multi-versioned copy mode.
The hardware Copy button does not work with USB/SD devices with multiple disk partitions.
When a USB/SD device is already matched with an existing task, you will only run the matched task by pressing the hardware Copy button.
The executable tasks on your Synology NAS will be auto-performed after pressing the Copy button.

View and Filter Logs

Go to the left panel, and click Log (the document icon) on the top.

In the pop-up window, you can browse logs, or filter them in either way:

Keyword filter: Enter a task name, folder name, or filename in the upper-right field and press Enter.
Advanced filter: Click on the magnifying glass icon and specify the criteria below:
- Keyword: Enter a task name, folder name, or filename.
- Type: Select Information to find processing-related logs; Error for task error logs; Warning for file error logs.
- Log description type: Select specific types of log description.
- Date Range: Select a time range when targeted copy events occurred.

Manage Copy Tasks and Settings

To manage a copy task, select the desired one on the left panel and go to the main section for managements below:

To run a task:

Click Run on the management interface.
Press the Copy button (for models with the hardware Copy button).
Plug in the USB/SD device to your Synology NAS (with Copy data whenever the USB/SD storage device is plugged in enabled).

To cancel an ongoing task: Click Cancel.

To delete a task: Click Delete. Copy Button or SD Copy Button can only be disabled but not deleted.

To view live task status: See the task descriptions on the management interface, or the LED indicator (for Copy button or Power) on the model shell.

To view task summary: Click Overview to find relevant information.

To modify task settings and file filter: Click Task Settings and File Filter to change relevant settings. If you modify settings of an ongoing task, the task will be canceled.

To move the database to another volume: Click Configure (the cogwheel icon) on the upper left corner and select the desired volume to store the database.

To limit log records: Click Configure (the cogwheel icon) on the upper left corner and specify a number (between 5 and 100000) for Maximum records.

To set a beep reminder for starting/completed tasks: Click Configure (the cogwheel icon) on the upper left corner and select Beep when copy starts and completes.

To receive notifications about tasks: Go to DSM > Control Panel > Notification, and configure settings for the desired notification media (i.e. SMS, email, and push service).