Cache or RAM first?

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Cache or RAM first?

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I am awaiting the arrival of a 1621+ and would value advice on which upgrades would be most useful; 2x cache or extra RAM. I have a UPS. The NAS is going to be almost entirely used by just myself. Apart from storage and viewing of media (videos and images files) I shall be using it with Lightroom classic, Photoshop and occasional Final Cut. I see various recommendations on memory to be used but living in the UK cannot get some of the recommended items. Advice would be welcomed and appreciated. Thanks
 
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I'm in the UK, share some of your tasks and have a similar AMD-equipped NAS (RS1221+ in my case).

For me the starting point is 10 GbE connectivity. If you are working directly with data on the NAS then a 10 GbE card is a must as the 1 GbE link is your first bottleneck.

Second would be the RAM - Synology has improved its use of RAM for caching and particularly so for the AMD platforms.

Third offers a split point. The money spent on an SSD cache is usually best spent on an SSD volume and, as a single user, the opportunities for the SSD cache to earn its keep will be very limited. If you had multiple users accessing multiple files and datasets then the SSD cache could prove its worth but not for you. Over time I have worked my way from a 2xSSD 'fast' volume to a 5xSSD volume. This is where the power, speed, latency and safety all shine through. I do include a 'slow' HDD volume in the RS1221+ too but the work is done on the 10 GbE card and the all-SSD fast array.

So the order of money in your case is 10 GbE, then RAM, then an SSD array.
 
I would agree with @Robbie. SSD and 10G connectivity should be the focus, and then RAM if needed (depending on the use case scenario). My cache modules are shadowed by my main SSD volumes, so putting money into them is not worth it imho.

I can see RAM being a priority over SSD, again, depending on the needs, but in any case, both are more worth then getting cache slots populated.
 
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I'm in the UK, share some of your tasks and have a similar AMD-equipped NAS (RS1221+ in my case).

For me the starting point is 10 GbE connectivity. If you are work direct with data on the drive then a 10 GbE card is a must as the 1 GbE link is your first bottleneck.

Second would be the RAM - Synology has improved its use of RAM for caching and particularly so for the AMD platforms.

Third offers a split point. The money spent on an SSD cache is usually best spent on an SSD volume and, as a single user, the opportunities for the SSD cache to earn its keep will be very limited. If you had multiple users accessing multiple files and datasets then the SSD cache could prove its worth but not for you. Over time I have worked my way from a 2xSSD 'fast' volume to a 5xSSD volume. This is where the power, speed, latency and safety all shine through. I do include a 'slow' HDD volume in the RS1221+ too but the work is done on the 10 GbE card and the all-SSD fast array.

So the order of money in your case is 10 GbE, then RAM, then an SSD array.
Robbie hi that is incredibly helpful thanks. I have a fairly slow 15gn internet connection - would this limit my use of a 10GbE add on?
I would agree with @Robbie. SSD and 10G connectivity should be the focus, and then RAM if needed (depending on the use case scenario). My cache modules are shadowed by my main SSD volumes, so putting money into them is not worth it imho.

I can see RAM being a priority over SSD, again, depending on the needs, but in any case, both are more worth then getting cache slots populated.
Rusty hi and many thanks. I'll start looking into 10GbE right now.
-- post merged: --

I'm in the UK, share some of your tasks and have a similar AMD-equipped NAS (RS1221+ in my case).

For me the starting point is 10 GbE connectivity. If you are working directly with data on the NAS then a 10 GbE card is a must as the 1 GbE link is your first bottleneck.

Second would be the RAM - Synology has improved its use of RAM for caching and particularly so for the AMD platforms.

Third offers a split point. The money spent on an SSD cache is usually best spent on an SSD volume and, as a single user, the opportunities for the SSD cache to earn its keep will be very limited. If you had multiple users accessing multiple files and datasets then the SSD cache could prove its worth but not for you. Over time I have worked my way from a 2xSSD 'fast' volume to a 5xSSD volume. This is where the power, speed, latency and safety all shine through. I do include a 'slow' HDD volume in the RS1221+ too but the work is done on the 10 GbE card and the all-SSD fast array.

So the order of money in your case is 10 GbE, then RAM, then an SSD array.
Would this be the sort of card I would need:

Synology E10M20-T1 M.2 SSD & 10GbE Adapter Card?​


Thank you.
 
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Presuming you want RJ45 10Gbase-T / Nbase-T then the cheaper E10G18-T1 would suffice. There are other brands in the NIC world that work just as well (until Synology gets even more stupid with vendor controls).

My 10GbE card installed:

IMG_1681.JPG


☕
 
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Thanks Robbie - would this 'card' do the same as the E10M20....?

NY NAS arrived early this afternoon and I'm climbing rather slowly up the learning curve.
 

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