Synology NAS Mounts (NFS vs SMB)

What this is

Reference for mounting Synology NAS storage to Docker hosts and choosing between NFS and SMB.

---

Why I needed this

Docker containers require reliable access to media and data stored on the NAS.
Incorrect mount configuration can cause:

• Permission issues

• Slow performance

• Containers failing to access files

---

My Setup

• NAS: Synology (DS223)

• Mount point:

  /mnt/sjb2
  

• Used for:

  • Jellyfin media

  • Backups

  • General storage

---

NFS vs SMB (Quick Comparison)

Feature	NFS	SMB
Performance	Faster	Slower
Linux compatibility	Native	Good
Permissions handling	Better (UID/GID)	Can be tricky
Setup complexity	Slightly harder	Easier

---

Recommendation

👉 Use NFS for Docker and Linux systems

Reasons:

• Better performance

• Cleaner permission handling

• More reliable for containers

---

NFS Setup

1. Enable NFS on Synology

• Control Panel → File Services → NFS → Enable

---

2. Set Shared Folder Permissions

• Go to Shared Folder → Edit → NFS Permissions

• Add rule:

  • Host: your Docker host IP (e.g. 192.168.86.100)

  • Privilege: Read/Write

  • Squash: No mapping

---

3. Mount on Linux Host

Install NFS tools:

sudo apt install nfs-common

Create mount point:

sudo mkdir -p /mnt/sjb2

Mount manually:

sudo mount -t nfs 192.168.86.X:/volume1/sjb2 /mnt/sjb2

---

4. Persistent Mount (fstab)

Edit:

sudo nano /etc/fstab

Add:

192.168.86.X:/volume1/sjb2 /mnt/sjb2 nfs defaults,_netdev 0 0

---

SMB Setup (Alternative)

Install tools:

sudo apt install cifs-utils

Mount manually:

sudo mount -t cifs //192.168.86.X/sjb2 /mnt/sjb2 -o username=<user>,password=<pass>

---

Persistent SMB Mount

sudo nano /etc/fstab

//192.168.86.X/sjb2 /mnt/sjb2 cifs username=<user>,password=<pass>,iocharset=utf8,file_mode=0775,dir_mode=0775 0 0

---

Permissions Notes

NFS (Recommended)

• Uses UID/GID directly

• Works well with Docker:

  PUID=1000
  PGID=1000
  

---

SMB

• May require:

  • file_mode

  • dir_mode

• Permissions can appear inconsistent

---

Verification

Check mount:

df -h

Test write:

touch /mnt/sjb2/testfile

---

Common Problems / Fixes

Permission denied

• Cause:

  • Incorrect UID/GID mapping

• Fix:

  • Align container PUID/PGID with NAS permissions

---

Mount not available at boot

• Cause:

  • Network not ready

• Fix:

  • Use _netdev in fstab

---

Slow performance (SMB)

• Cause:

  • SMB overhead

• Fix:

  • Switch to NFS

---

Container cannot see files

• Cause:

  • Mount not ready before container start

• Fix:

  • Restart container after boot

---

Result

• Reliable NAS storage mounted to Docker host

• Containers can access media and data correctly

• Stable performance with NFS

---

Notes

• NFS is preferred for Linux/Docker environments

• SMB is acceptable but less ideal

• Critical for media servers and backups