DSM 7.0 USB device gets randomly unmounted

[jprates]

Hi all,

1st post, so thanks for listening and creating this forum I just found out about.

Here's what I'd like to hear from you guys probably with a lot more experience than me on VMM:

I've been running Home Assistant (aka HASS) in a VM on my DS916+ for over a year, probably two, without any issues whatsoever.
I recently upgraded to DSM7 after other fellow users of HASS confirmed the USB Z-Wave dongle some of us use gets correctly identified and works on DSM7.

It has been working indeed for several weeks, probably over a month, but last week I started getting notification on HASS Z-Wave logs like this one:

2021-09-06T17:12:14.240Z DRIVER   Serial port errored: The serial port closed unexpectedly!
Error in driver ZWaveError: The serial port closed unexpectedly!

Sure enough when I checked VMM on DSM and looked at the running VM, the USB device was unmounted at the settings, and please note it was there when I started the VM:

I can still select it back, as it is still available on the combo box, and restarting the VM from HASS gets it back to working again... for some hours, days, weeks at random, till it fails again.

Looking at the logs on DSM there is absolutely nothing recorded, apart from my EDIT action to put back the device in the settings pane:

Has any of you gone through a similar scenario before? How did you solve it?

I'm mad at this mainly because at the very least we should get an error logged at VMM stating the USB had been dismounted, and ideally why it was dismounted.
I don't know if there are more fine grain logs that we can reach by ssh, don't know about VMM that much, so any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance,
-jprates

 

[Robbie]

I can defeat the DSM7 logic and get a USB adapter to run (ethernet dongle in my case) but I cannot get it to run continuously without DSM7 kicking it out at some point.

Synology have taken their ball home leaving us with nothing but jumpers for goals.

 

[jprates]

One expects to gain new features and new bells and whistles at each new version of any software.

I was far from imagining Synology would cut on existing functionality and move us back in time with a new DSM version.

This is insane. You're saying this is intentional on their part!?!?

 

[Telos]

You're saying this is intentional on their part!?!?

Ref: DSM7 release notes

My USB device does not work on my Synology NAS. What can I do? - Synology Knowledge Center

Synology Knowledge Center offers comprehensive support, providing answers to frequently asked questions, troubleshooting steps, software tutorials, and all the technical documentation you may need.

kb.synology.com

 

[jprates]

Ref: DSM7 release notes

Thanks but that page doesn't help at all, since it assumes the USB device is a disk drive or other media storage.

My second USB port is connected to my APC UPS and is working fine, and it does not show in "Control Panel > External Devices" either, that GUI tab is a ridiculous demonstration of poor design and function if you ask me:

Anyway, as I've said in my first post, the device is well recognized by DSM 7, as it was already in DSM 6.2 and it was working for some 2 years with DSM 6, so we know for a fact that it is hardware compatible.

Here are my devices correctly listed in VMM USB mount options on DSM 7:

I've already opened a support ticket on Synology side, and my question is quite straight forward IMHO:

Why is a device that...
1) was working fine on DSM 6.2 for years, effectively proving to be fully compatible with DS916+;
2) a device that is still recognized by VMM itself;
3) a device that can in effect be chosen as a USB device to be passed to the VM, and the OS in the VM sees it;
... why does this device gets kicked out and dismounted at random time by the VM host on DSM 7 ???

Why on earth would Synology or any sane software company kill existing features and compatibility on previous OS versions when releasing new OS versions?

I don't know, call me stupid, but I can't grasp this concept at all.

 

[Robbie]

Thanks but that page doesn't help at all, since it assumes the USB device is a disk drive or other media storage.

Unfortunately that page does help, almost completely so.

With DSM7 Synology went almost as far as dictating that the USB ports could only be used for storage media - to the point that they almost neutered the standard USB UPS function out of existence too (thankfully a stance somewhat softened since initial release).

Times are a changing at Synology. I run 4 x Syno NASes but I suddenly find myself as the exact type of customer that Synology no longer wants.

 

[jprates]

Some info for you folks that might interest you.
I opened a support ticket for the non-functioning USB device.
I also opened a request/complaint for the lack of support on USB devices on DSM 7.

After some iterations with support and product manager this is where we stand:

From Synology support:

There is not much we can do at the support position : The decisions that has been made comes from the headQuarter - To be honnest, we all completly agree with you : This is unacceptable that some functionnalities disapear after an update​

​

I'll take the point directly to the HeadQuarter for them to begin a new dev to allow the material to be compatible​

​

We already did it for DS Cloud, and they finally accept to work on DSM 7 dev for the Mobile APP​

From Synology Product Management Team:

We are sorry about the trouble caused by removing USB drivers in DSM 7.0.​

​

The reason behind this is for product security concerns.​

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Not all USB device manufacturers provide official drivers for Linux-based environment, so sometimes Synology can only integrate unofficial drivers from open-source forums.​

​

However, integrating third-party drivers leads to the fact that Synology can't fully control their compatibility and quality.​

​

In addition, if security vulnerability is discovered, it is difficult to ensure all unofficial drivers can be fixed in time.​

​

This is why Synology decided to remove the drivers in DSM 7.0 and reduced the support of USB devices.​

From support I got assured they will push with HQ to support back the USB devices, so I left them alone.

To Synology PM I had to answer back:

I totally understand the security issues and risks as an IT professional myself working on very large IT service provider.​

However, and although your points are understood, they don’t fully justify what you (Synology) did on DSM 7.​

​

You removed industry standard device support, something that every hardware and operating system company has the obligation to support!​

​

We’re not talking about vendor specific drivers, we’re not talking about gray products, we’re talking about something that any operating system, from Windows to Linux supports out of the box.​

​

Surely you don’t want to convince us Microsoft, Suse, RedHat or any other OS house should remove standard drivers support based on security issues, do you?​

​

Case in point, there are thousands of people in the world running a software called Home Assistant, several hundred using Synology NAS to host it in VMs or docker containers.​

​

This is a perfectly legitimate use of Synology NAS and DSM 7 as you know.​

​

One of the many features of this software is the use of Z-Wave protocol, by means of a USB dongle, most of us use the Aeotec Z-Stick Gen 5.​

​

This dongle only needs the industry standard Communication Device Class (CDC) Abstract Control Model (ACM) for USB Devices, there is no vendor specific software needed!​

​

This was fully supported by DSM 6.2 and it’s turned off by default in DSM 7.​

Why? What’s the reason? Why is Synology removing industry standard protocols from its OS?​

​

I finish the same way I started:​

• I can sympathize with the fact that you want to keep your systems secure, I fully understand that.
• I cannot (no-one can) understand that Synology cuts on industry standard drivers that every other single operating system out there supports out of the box.

​

Trust me when I say you can find hundreds of people mad at you (Synology) at the internet, and rightly so.​

​

I hope you can revise your stance and can turn back on kernel modules like the cdc_acm by default on the next DSM 7 minor release.​

 

[Jcbdw63]

Hi,
I'am one of those hundred people (or probably much more) that loses his usb ZWave Aeotec Z-Stick Gen 5 device spontanously since DSM 7.0. Sometimes once a day or more. This is unacceptable. So I'am very glad someone is fighting for normal product service. So wake up Synology!

 

[jeyare]

Times are a changing at Synology. I run 4 x Syno NASes but I suddenly find myself as the exact type of customer that Synology no longer wants.

welcome in the club of the gradual transition

Hi,
I'am one of those hundred people (or probably much more) that loses his usb ZWave Aeotec Z-Stick Gen 5 device spontanously since DSM 7.0. Sometimes once a day or more. This is unacceptable. So I'am very glad someone is fighting for normal product service. So wake up Synology!

1. No one from Syno is reading this.
2. Even if they occasionally do, it only confirms their inability to solve essential things.
3. Back into reality.

@jprates
- on the day when I will be forced to upgrade my entire NAS farm to DSM 7 (in this state) I will shut down the remaining services in this NAS platform. So far, I'm satisfied with the first phase of my storage replacement roll out.

as I wrote somewhere, it has been a nice +10 years with this platform. Many here see me as a negativist. I just have the balls to name things the way they are. Blindly following is not my cup of coffee.

I like this @SynoMan project and I will support it.

 

[jprates]

Hi @Jcbdw63 , thanks for your kind words.

There's more good news for you and all that are interested in this subject.

Please see this topic on HASS Comunity site, I believe you'll be happy with what you'll read there:

Z-Stick Gen5 disappears from VM on DSM7

Hi, I was precisely to come here this weekend and share some good news, or so it seems to be the case. During the last 2 weeks I’ve been exchanging messages with Synology Support, and managed to get up to the Product Management team. I also contacted AEOTEC support to make sure I was not...

community.home-assistant.io